ROBERT J. SHARER is Sally and Alvin Shoemaker Professor in Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the author of of The Ancient Maya (revised and expanded edition 2006) and Quirigua: A Classic Maya Center and Its Sculpture (1990), has published over 100 scholarly articles, and has co-written two archaeology textbooks and several monographs reporting the results of his archaeological research. He has also co-edited five books, including Understanding Early Classic Copan (2004), and Regional Perspectives on the Olmec (1989). He has conducted research in Central America for over 40