JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.The ancient Maya hieroglyphic inscriptions of the upper Usumacinta region record an intensive interaction that took place among its regional capitals. The precise geographic locations of some of these sites are presently unknown. Through the application of the Gravity Model within the framework of Geographic Information Systems (GIS), we present the probable locations and possible territorial extents of a few of these: Sak Tz'i', Hix-Witz, and the "Knot-Site." On this occasion, however, we concentrate our discussion on the role that the kingdom of Sak Tz'i'played in the geopolitical scenario of the region. It is our belief that this case study constitutes a good example of how, through a conjunctive approach that integrates the archaeological with the epigraphic data, GIS can represent an excellent analytical tool to approach archaeological issues such as the political organization of the Maya Lowlands during the Late Classic period.Las inscripcionesjeroglificas Mayas contenidas en los monumentos de la region delAlto Usumacinta dan cuenta de una intensa interaccion que se dio entre las capitales regionales, algunas de las cuales aun desconocemos su ubicacion geogrdfica. En este trabajo, a traves de la aplicaci6n del Modelo Gravitacional, dentro del marco de los Sistemas de Informaci6n Geogrdfica (SIG), proponemos la probable ubicacion y extensi6n territorial de algunos de estos centros: Sak Tz'i', Hix-Witz, y el "Knot-Site." En esta ocasi6n, sin embargo, nuestra discusi6n sobre la organizacion politica de la regi6n se centrard exclusivamente en el importante papel que desempeno el reino de Sak Tz'i' en el escenario geopolitico. A nuestro juicio este caso constituye un buen ejemplo de como, a travis de un enfoque conjuntivo que reune tanto el dato arqueoldgico con el epigrdfico, los SIG representan una importante herramienta analitica para abordar el problema de la organizacidn politica durante el periodo Cldsico Tardio en las tierras bajas mayas.

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Severe aridity during the mid-Holocene, ca. 8.0-4.0 kyr BP, led to extreme ecological stress in the tropical Andes. Here, we report paleolimnological and archeological data from Lake Suches in southern Peru (70° 24' 12" W, 16° 55' 35" S) spanning 13.6-4.4 kyr BP. Integrated paleoclimate and archeological data reveal that moisture was locally available and the basin served as an ecological refugium throughout the mid-Holocene. Mid-Holocene aridity was established no later than 7.2 kyr BP, with maximum aridity ca. 5.5-4.8 kyr BP. However, water levels in Lake Suches were sustained throughout peak middle-Holocene aridity, even as other systems desiccated. Isotopic enrichment of water in Lake Suches (δ 18 O lake) and extensive wetlands (δ 18 O bofedal) surrounding the lake indicate prolonged residence time. These reservoirs, combined with elevation-linked hydrographic factors, mitigated mid-Holocene net decreases in atmospheric moisture. Archeological data from Suches indicate successive population increases beginning ca. 11.0-9.8 kyr BP as drier but more stable early Holocene conditions were established regionally. Population maxima in Suches during the mid-Holocene/mid-Archaic period ca. 9.0-7.0 kyr BP coincide with peak aridity in the Titicaca and Atacama systems, as well as documented archeological hiatuses in these regions. Population decreases coincide with peak aridity recorded in Lake Suches ca. 6.0-5.0 kyr BP, but the basin was never fully abandoned. Evidence for refugial microenvironments is key to understanding the persistence of human populations and other endemic Andean flora and fauna during the highly adverse climates of the middle-Holocene. We outline several mechanisms which likely explain the formation of refugia linked to bofedales and hydrographic characteristics of Suches. Understanding refugial dynamics will be key to understanding the effects of past climatic change, as well as addressing current warming and decreased precipitation trends in the tropical Andes.