ROCK HILL, SOUTH CAROLINA – Winthrop University Professor Brent Woodfill expanded his audience this fall to teach his ground breaking archeology work on an episode of the popular cable show, “Expedition Unknown.”
In the episode entitled “Lost City of the White Jaguar,” Woodfill embarks on a riveting expedition to uncover the secrets of a lost Mayan city, Sak B’alam. The city was founded more than 400 years ago by the Lacandon Maya, one of several Indigenous groups in southern Mexico and Central America who resisted Spanish colonial rule for centuries.
The episode, available for streaming on Max and Paramount+, promises viewers an immersive journey into the heart of Mayan civilization as Woodfill seeks to unravel the mysteries surrounding Sak B’alam. His expertise and passion for archaeology shine through as he navigates the challenges of exploration in modern times. Filming for the episode took place in May.
Winthrop Interim Provost Peter Judge praised Woodfill for his work in uncovering these historical sites. “He is not only a source of pride for the university but also a testament to the caliber of scholars that make up the Winthrop community,” Judge said.
At Winthrop, Woodfill teaches courses in archaeology, ethnography, forensic anthropology, linguistic anthropology, environmental justice, non-Western economics, and sacred places.
Interest in Archaelogy at a Young Age
Drawn to archelogy at age 10, Woodfill said he began volunteering in the field and lab in the Upper Midwest by age 13. The Minnesota native discovered the Maya during a study abroad course through the Yucatan Peninsula in college and was immediately smitten by the combination of the size, scale, and beauty of the ancient Maya cities.
Since then, his research has taken him to explore caves, cities and hilltop shrines in western Belize, central Guatemala and southeastern Mexico. He and others have used archaeological remains to reconstruct the history of the major trade route that passed through that part of Central America.
All of these places were still sacred to the contemporary Maya who lived atop and around them today, and so he began to collaborate with local leaders and spiritual guides as well as government agencies and development specialists. They have collaborated to use the archaeological research to help with local development initiatives, including a national park co-managed by the Guatemalan government and the leaders of two local villages as well as multiple local ecotourism projects and access to clean water through the construction of wells.
Between 2009 and 2022, Woodfill has been working at the site of Salinas de los Nueve Cerros, a major city occupied for over 2,000 years that surrounds the only non-coastal salt source in the Maya lowlands. Nueve Cerros was a rich city with powerful merchants that was one of the earliest cities in Mesoamerica and was able to survive several centuries beyond the Classic collapse due to its residents' control over this rare and essential resource.
To learn more about the research, check out Woodfill’s two books, “War in the Land of True Peace: The Fight for Maya Sacred Places” (2019) and “Ritual and Trade in the Pasión-Verapaz Region, Guatemala” (2010).
For more information, contact woodfillb@winthrop.edu.
