Macanas in the Postclassic Maya Lowlands? A Preliminary Look

Abundant obsidian prismatic blade segments in late (Late Postclassic/Colonial; ca. AD 1300-1700) lowland Maya lithic assemblages, generally ignored, are evaluated against the possibility that they were used in macanas, broadsword-like weapons resembling the Aztec macuahuitl, as attested by Spanish chroniclers. Measurements of 4,664 segments, proximal, medial, and distal, from seven sites around the central Peten (Guatemala) lakes, plus Tipu and Santa Rita Corozal (Belize) and Mayapan (Yucatan, Mexico), were analyzed. Segment dimensions are highly variable, both within and between sites, but appear to have had two modal sizes, rectangular (minimally 12 x 8 mm) and smaller and squarish (around 10-12 mm square). Macanas themselves also may have been made in two sizes, small and large. Although it cannot be proven that the segments were used in Maya macanas, the possibility warrants further study.