sh. At the same time, the use of local Ocosito ceramics waned. This Teotihuacan influence places the destruction of monuments in the second half of the Early Classic. The presence of the conquerors linked to the Naranjo-style ceramics was not of long duration and suggests that the conquerors exerted long-distance control of the site, replacing the local rulers with their own governors while leaving the local population intact.
The conquest of Takalik Abaj broke the ancient trade routes running along the Pacific coast from Mexico to El Salvador, these were replaced by a new route running up the Sierra Madre and into the northwestern Guatemalan highlands.
Late Classic
In the Late Classic the site appears to have recovered from its earlier defeat. Naranjo-style ceramics diminished greatly in quantity and there was a surge in new large-scale construction. Many monuments broken by the conquerors were re-erected at this time.
Postclassic
Although use of the local Ocosito-style ceramics continued, there was a marked intrusion of K'iche' ceramics from the highlands in the Postclassic period, concentrated particularly in the northern part of the site but extending to cover the whole. The indigenous accounts of the K'iche' themselves claim that they conquered this region of the Pacific coast, suggesting that the presence of their ceramics is associated with their conquest of Takalik Abaj.
The K'iche' conquest appears to have taken place around AD 1000, some four centuries earlier than had been supposed using calculations based on the indigenous accounts. After the initial arrival of the K'iche' activity continued at the site without pause, and the local styles were simply replaced by styles associated with the conquerors. This suggests that the original
