Densidad Poblacional en La Capital Olmeca De San Lorenzo, Veracruz

Baizabal, Virginia Arieta; Cyphers, Ann

doi:10.1017/s0956536116000195

Cited by 8 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…We investigate a specific portion of the wetland terrain located just north of the capital that not only has ethnographically documented resource abundance, but also numerous archaeological features that were important for food production for the growing population of San Lorenzo, calculated at 11,800 inhabitants by 1200–1000 cal b.c. (Arieta and Cyphers 2017; Cyphers et al 2013). Because archaeological, botanical, and geomorphological evidence suggests there have been significant changes in this terrain since the decline of San Lorenzo, we decided to analyze its ancient characteristics in a unique way, using archaeological data and a Digital Terrain Model (DTM) derived from an airborne Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) survey (INEGI 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multidirectional Interpolation of Lidar Data From Southern Veracruz, Mexico: Implications for Early Olmec Subsistence

Ramírez-Núñez

Cyphers²,

Parrot

et al. 2019

Ancient Mesoam

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From their beginnings some 4,000 years ago to their decadence around 400 b.c., the Olmec people achieved a high level of sociopolitical complexity and dominated their native geographic territory, the southern Gulf Coast of Mexico. The first Olmec capital of San Lorenzo, Veracruz, was the only site in Mesoamerica that produced imposing monumental stone sculpture and architecture between 1800 and 1000 b.c. These characteristics reflect the capabilities of its centralized political system headed by hereditary rulers with divine legitimation. Key issues regarding the development of San Lorenzo Olmec culture center on subsistence and environment. The present study focuses on a portion of the landscape located immediately north of the first Olmec capital of San Lorenzo, Veracruz, that has been proposed as a key resource area during the development of the first civilization in Mesoamerica. We calculate the surface, volume, and water depth of this area based on archaeological data and a Digital Terrain Model (DTM) derived from an airborne Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) survey. The expected minimum and maximum area, local minimum altitude, and the DTM of 5-m spatial resolution provide a basis for inferences regarding the characteristics of the wetland ecosystem during Olmec times. The goal is to quantify and qualify the potential of this resource zone relying on LiDAR topography. Our models validate the observations in the field and, when combined with algorithms, they confirm the archaeological conclusions. We affirm that the northern plain in Olmec times was deeper than it is today and would have been a source of abundant aquatic resources for the primary subsistence of the early Olmec society.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%