Barton Creek Cave

Barton Creek Cave

Cave interior

Barton Creek Cave is a natural cave in Belize, known as both an archaeological site and as a tourist destination. It is located in the Barton Creek area near San Ignacio in the Cayo District.

Description

Barton Creek Cave is a primarily single-passage resurging stream cave. By 2002 a cave survey had been completed by the Western Belize Regional Cave Project, recording a total of 6400 m of passages; dye traces at sinking streams above the cave indicated that there could be a further 6 km of cave passages beyond the terminal sumps. By 2005 the Xibalba Mapping and Exploration Team had extended the survey to 8 km.

Archaeology

Extensive looting of artifacts occurred soon after the cave was first reported, but it remains an important site for archaeologists. Evidence of cave use by the Maya exists on ten ledges within the first kilometre of cave passage. Pottery shards indicate use between the Early Classic (200 to 600 AD) to the Late Classic (600 to 900 AD) periods. The remains of at least 28 humans have been found within the cave.

References

Larson, David and Eleanor. Multiyear Project to Map Caves for the Belize Department of Archaeology, 2002 NSS Convention
Larson et al. "Report on Multiyear Project to Map and Photograph Caves for the Belize Institute of Archaeology", 14th International Congress of Speleology

External links

Protected areas of Belize

National parks	Aguas Turbias Bacalar Chico Billy Barquedier Chiquibul Five Blues Lake Gra Gra Lagoon Guanacaste Honey Camp Laughing Bird Caye Mayflower Bocawina Monkey Bay Elijio Panti Payne's Creek Peccary Hills Río Blanco Sarstoon-Temash St. Herman's Blue Hole

Natural monuments	Actun Tunichil Muknal Blue Hole Half Moon Caye Thousand Foot Falls Victoria Peak

Nature reserves	Bladen Burdon Canal Tapir Mountain

Wildlife sanctuaries	Aguacaliente Cockscomb Basin Corozal Bay Crooked Tree Gales Point Spanish Creek Swallow Caye

Forest reserves	Caye Caulker Chiquibul Columbia River Deep River Fresh Water Creek Grants Work Machaca Manatee Mango Creek Monkey Caye Mountain Pine Ridge Maya Mountain Sibun Sittee River Swasey Bladen Vaca

Marine reserves	Bacalar Chico Caye Caulker Gladden Spit and Silk Cayes Glover's Reef Hol Chan Port Honduras Sapodilla Cayes South Water Caye

Archaeological reserves	Altun Ha Barton Creek Cahal Pech Caracol Cerro Maya El Pilar Lamanai Lubaantun Marco Gonzalez Nim Li Punit Nohoch Che'en Santa Rita Serpon Sugar Mill Xunantunich Yarborough Cemetery

Other reserves	Aguacate Lagoon Bird sanctuaries Block 127 Community Baboon Sanctuary Golden Stream Monkey Bay Río Bravo Runaway Creek Shipstern

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