Abstract

Maya iron ore 'mirrors' are known from both primary archaeological contexts and their iconographic representation on various artistic media, especially ceramics, in the Late Classic and Postclassic periods. It is generally accepted that these mirrors served as elite status items; typically the personal effects of Maya lords and nobles. Several hypotheses are introduced and examined in an effort to understand why these symbolically-charged elite status items occur in regions beyond the Maya southeast periphery. Exploratory frameworks focus on diachronically shifting socio-political power structure(s) and socioeconomic restructuring as potential explanations for the occurrence of Maya mirror in Lower Central America.