This study re-examines and contextualises Eduard Seler''s investigations in the Chacul¿egion (Department of Huehuetenango, Guatemala). Starting with a discussion of ethnohistory as well as the historical circumstances of Seler''s research, his methods are critically examined in the context of archaeology in late 19th century Guatemala and the practice of collecting by European museums, specifically the Ethnological Museum Berlin. This is followed by the results of a reconnaissance of the different archaeological sites documented by Seler in the region, in which their current state of preservation is examined and Seler''s excavation trenches are re-discovered. The core of the work is a new study of the materials from the region in the collection of the Ethnological Museum Berlin, including previously undocumented ceramic materials. Through typological cross-dating, a first ceramic chronology for the region is established, showing that the major settlements were occupied from the Late Cl