Caracol, Belize: Evidence of Ancient Maya Agricultural Terraces

Healy, Paul F.; Lambert, J. D. H.; Arnason, J. T.; Hebda, Richard J.

doi:10.2307/529463

Cited by 28 publications

(57 citation statements)

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“…Three construction forms of ancient Maya terraces have been identified by Healy et al [49] in Western Belize. All of these involve the use of both large boulders and numerous, smaller, fist-size rocks and marble-size stones.…”

Section: Sample Locationsmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Suspected agricultural soil samples were collected from a heavily terraced area approximately 2e3 km east of the core zone of Caracol, within the intermediate support zone for the area [49]. The sampled terraces are all located on the same hill ( Fig.…”

Section: Sample Locationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…AD 650) by as many as 150,000 inhabitants [20]. Much of the hinterland of Caracol, outside the core zone, is marked by internal road systems and remnant traces of ancient Maya hill-slope terraces [49].…”

Section: Sample Locationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Across the Maya lowlands, the presence of raised fields and terraced hillsides attests to the fact that the ancient Maya manipulated the landscape to improve soil conditions and intensify agriculture in order to support their dense populations [35,36,46,49]. However, given the poor preservation of organic macrofossils or pollen in harsh tropical climates, it remains a challenge to prove exactly which crops the ancient Maya grew in these fields.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Here, we will examine the effectiveness of this technique to identify former maize agriculture on terraced soils collected from the area surrounding Caracol, Belize, a major Maya center which flourished during the Classic (AD 250e900) Period [19,20,49]. …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Detection of ancient maize in lowland Maya soils using stable carbon isotopes: evidence from Caracol, Belize

Webb

Schwarcz

Healy

2004

Journal of Archaeological Science

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Section: Sample Locationsmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Sample Locationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Sample Locationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Detection of ancient maize in lowland Maya soils using stable carbon isotopes: evidence from Caracol, Belize

Webb

Schwarcz

Healy

2004

Journal of Archaeological Science

Self Cite

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Conceptualizing socio‐hydrological drought processes: The case of the Maya collapse

Kuil

Carr

Viglione

et al. 2016

Water Resources Research

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With population growth, increasing water demands and climate change the need to understand the current and future pathways to water security is becoming more pressing. To contribute to addressing this challenge, we examine the link between water stress and society through socio‐hydrological modeling. We conceptualize the interactions between an agricultural society with its environment in a stylized way. We apply the model to the case of the ancient Maya, a population that experienced a peak during the Classic Period (AD 600–830) and then declined during the ninth century. The hypothesis that modest drought periods played a major role in the society's collapse is explored. Simulating plausible feedbacks between water and society we show that a modest reduction in rainfall may lead to an 80% population collapse. Population density and crop sensitivity to droughts, however, may play an equally important role. The simulations indicate that construction of reservoirs results in less frequent drought impacts, but if the reservoirs run dry, drought impact may be more severe and the population drop may be larger.

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Stable Isotopic Evidence of Ancient Maya Diet at Caledonia, Cayo District, Belize

Rand

Healy

Awe³

2013

Intl J of Osteoarchaeology

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The skeletal remains of 18 individuals interred at the ancient Maya site of Caledonia (100 to 1000 C.E.), located in the Cayo District of Belize, w ere sampled for stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis in order to reconstruct their diet. Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios in 18 bone collagen samples and stable carbon isotope ratios in bioapatite from 15 bone and 6 tooth enamel samples were assessed. Small sample sizes precluded the assessment of dietary variation with respect to age, sex, social status or time period among the Caledonia Maya. However, the sampled individuals consumed a varied diet consisting of maize, supplemented with some C 3 plants, terrestrial herbivores and/or lower order freshwater resources such as snails and molluscs and possibly maize-fed animals. This dietary variability with an emphasis on maize is unsurprising given the biological diversity surrounding the site and the known importance of this crop to the ancient Maya. As expected, the isotopic values from Caledonia are similar to those from nearby sites from similar time periods. However, four individuals exhibit a marine dietary signature, possibly indicating inland trade of marine resources from coastal sites, or the migration of coastal people to Caledonia. This study demonstrates the validity of sampling small, fragmented collections from minor Maya centres in order to gain valuable insight into ancient Maya dietary practices.

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Caracol, Belize: Evidence of Ancient Maya Agricultural Terraces

Cited by 28 publications

References 0 publications

Detection of ancient maize in lowland Maya soils using stable carbon isotopes: evidence from Caracol, Belize

Detection of ancient maize in lowland Maya soils using stable carbon isotopes: evidence from Caracol, Belize

Conceptualizing socio‐hydrological drought processes: The case of the Maya collapse

Stable Isotopic Evidence of Ancient Maya Diet at Caledonia, Cayo District, Belize

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