Terminal Classic settlement pattern research was carried out in the east transect of the ancient Maya site of La Milpa, Belize. The data from these investigations were brought bear on four settlement models: the Uniform Field of Settlement Model, the 'Friction Effect of Distance' Model, the Concentric Zonation Model, and a fourth model based on Maya cosmology The results of testing the four models indicate that the landscape surrounding La Milpa, Belize, was culturally modified to create an earthly representation of the Maya cosmos. The minor center of La Milpa East stands atop a high hill directly east of the site core. The large public plaza of the minor center is angled to allow an unimpeded view of the site core from the small pyramid located on the eastern side. Other minor centers have been found on hills in each of the three other cardinal directions, while hills in the intervening, non-cardinal directions hosted no architectural groups of similar size The locations of the four minor centers in relation to La Milpa Centre create a grid similar to the Maya world tree where the four unique directions unify in a single central point. Elements of cosmology were incorporated into the site plans for many other Maya sites. Most of these sites contain the cosmological elements within the site core. At La Milpa, the evidence came from the rural portions of the site. The results of the La Milpa settlement research indicate that substantial site plan information is located in areas that have often received scant attention
