II. The Golden Age or Old Empire of the Maya (200-600 A.D.). This period extended, roughly, from 9.2.10.0.0. (210) to 10.2.0.0.0. (600). In this time many cities rose, flourished, and fell. Of these Palenque, Yaxchilan, Piedras Negras, Tikal, Seibal, Quirigua, Copan, and Nakum are some of the more important. Like Seibal on the east and Piedras Negras and Yaxchilan on the west, Tikal and Nakum were not far from the Peten region to which our attention will be chiefly directed.[2] Indeed, Lake Peten lies in what is almost the geographical center of the area formerly occupied by the Old Empire. It is significant, therefore, that Mr. Morley has found at the modern town of Flores (in Lake Peten) two stelae dated approximately 10.1.0.0.0. and 10.2.0.0.0. (580 and 600). The various elaborate architectural features of the Old Empire cities have been fully examined by many writers, and it is, therefore, needless for us to speak of them except in the most general terms. One predominating feature of all the ruins is the excessive use of ornamentation. Because the country was devoid of any great natural elevations which would give an effective setting for their buildings, the people often used substructures of varying heights and superstructures of several sorts. If one may judge from the sculptures left by the inhabitants of the early cities, their life was mainly taken up with an extremely involved ritualistic religion which, in the hands of a priestly body, was at once the means by which they were ruled and the outlet for the artistic gifts which they undeniably had. Very probably the over-elaborate religion was responsible for the tremendous mass of detail to be seen in so many of the ruined cities. So great was the eagerness for space upon which to crowd ornamentation that an architectural feature which served no purpose other than that of affording more ample space for decoration was evolved. The roof-comb is found in a high degree of development at Yaxchilan and elsewhere. (Spinden, 1913, p. 112, fig. 148.) Sometimes, as at Tikal, this cumbersome construction was carried to such lengths that the area covered by walls was out of all natural proportion to that covered by rooms. One can only conjecture what brought about the downfall of these ancient cities in which a very advanced culture once flourished. It is not impossible that the priesthood became so oppressive that an emigration took place; or, owing to a lack of proper agricultural knowledge, the fields probably became spent so that the people were forced to seek new homes; possibly also there was some sort of an invasion from the west or east. Any one or all of these causes may have brought about the succeeding period, one which lies within and at the end of the Golden Age. III. The Colonization Period (450-700 A.D.). This period is chiefly notable for us because it marks the beginning of documentary history and because the Itzas are first specifically mentioned in connection with it.[3]