Mayan_trade_stones

Rare stones such as jade and pyrite were also very important to the Mayan elite. These stones were relatively hard to acquire, so having such treasures helped them to solidify their positions in the society. Many of the stones were collected in the highland of the empire, so when long-distance trade developed, the Mayans were able to move more of the these precious stones to the lowland cities.Other stones, such as obsidian, were more common, but were also a crucial part of the Mayan society. Obsidian was a strong volcanic glass, also from the highlands, which could be chipped and shaped into strong sharp tools in order to be used for cutting. In the later years of the Empire obsidian was moved extensively via long-distance trade routes.During the early periods of the Maya, much of these commodities were only available to the regions in which they could be produced, or were naturally available. However, economic restructuring during the transition from the Classic period to the Post-Classic period, as well as the beginning of trade over water allowed for larger volumes of long-distance trade to occur, and therefore the commodities were able to reach throughout the entire Mayan Empire.