Distributed Urban Networks in the Gulf Lowlands of Veracruz

Stoner, Wesley D.; Stark, Barbara

doi:10.1007/s10814-022-09178-4

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 134 publications

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“…The most significant urban civilizations of the ancient period of history developed their splendid cultures on alluvial plains, e.g., Sumer in southern Mesopotamia (from Greek: "between rivers") covering the Tigris and Euphrates floodplains [1,2], Ancient Egypt upon the Nile River [3,4], the Harappan in the Indo-Gangetic Plain, with the valleys of the Indus and Upper Ganges Rivers [5,6]. The highly developed cultures in more distant (from a European perspective) locations on the Earth were associated with alluvial plains as well, e.g., the Longshan and the Erlitou in China, in the valley bottoms of Yellow River and its tributaries, the Fen and the Qin Rivers [7,8]; the Mayan Lowlands on the Yucatán Peninsula in present-day Mexico (Usumacinta River floodplain [9]) and Belize [10] and the Olmec heartland of San Lorenzo on the interfluve plains of the Tatagapa and Chiquito Rivers in Veracruz state, Mexico [11,12].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Flood Perception from Local Perspective of Rural Community vs. Geomorphological Control of Fluvial Processes in Large Alluvial Valley (the Middle Vistula River, Poland)

Krasiewicz,

Wierzbicki

2023

Hydrology

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The origin and dynamics of a 2010 pluvial flood in the valley of a large European river are described. In order to study how local people perceive this catastrophic event a small administrative unit (rural municipality) within the Holocene floodplain (thus flooded to 90%) was chosen. Using a questionnaire a human-research survey was performed in the field among 287 people living in flood-prone areas. Almost half of the interviewees feel safe and do not expect a flood recurrence (interpreted as a levee effect). Seventeen percent believe the levee was intentionally breached due to political issues. Six percent of interviewees link the breach with small mammals using levees as a habitat, e.g., beavers, moles, and foxes. The sex and age of interviewees are related to these opinions. Most interviewees (39%) think that flooding was a result of embankment (dyke) instability. The spatial distribution of the survey results are analyzed. Maps presenting: inundation height, economic loss, attitude to geohazards and perception of possible flood recurrence were drawn. Causes of the flood as viewed by local inhabitants and in the context of the riverine geological setting and its processes are discussed. Particular attention is paid to processes linking the levee breach location with specific geomorphic features of the Holocene floodplain. A wide perspective of fluvial geomorphology where erosive landforms of crevasse channels (and associated depositional crevasse splays) are indicators of geohazards was adopted. This distinct geomorphological imprint left by overbank flow is considered a natural flood mark. Such an approach is completely neglected by interviewees who overestimate the role of hydrotechnical structures.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Flood Perception from Local Perspective of Rural Community vs. Geomorphological Control of Fluvial Processes in Large Alluvial Valley (the Middle Vistula River, Poland)

Krasiewicz,

Wierzbicki

2023

Hydrology

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First Cities

Saitta

2024

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This Element describes and synthesizes archaeological knowledge of humankind's first cities for the purpose of strengthening a comparative understanding of urbanism across space and time. Case studies are drawn from ancient Mesopotamia, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas. They cover over 9000 years of city building. Cases exemplify the 'deep history' of urbanism in the classic heartlands of civilization, as well as lesser-known urban phenomena in other areas and time periods. The Element discusses the relevance of this knowledge to a number of contemporary urban challenges around food security, service provision, housing, ethnic co-existence, governance, and sustainability. This study seeks to enrich scholarly debates about the urban condition, and inspire new ideas for urban policy, planning, and placemaking in the twenty first century.

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Astronomy, Architecture, and Landscape in the Olmec Area and Western Maya Lowlands: Implications for Understanding Regional Variability and Evolution of Orientation Patterns in Mesoamerica

Šprajc,

Inomata

2024

Latin Am. antiq.

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In the area along the southern Gulf Coast in Mexico, a large number of previously unrecorded archaeological sites have recently been detected with the aid of lidar data, which also allowed us to determine the orientations of hundreds of structures and architectural assemblages, including many standardized complexes dated to the Early-to-Middle Formative transition. As revealed by our analyses, most orientations were based on astronomical and calendrical principles, occasionally combined with certain concepts of sacred geography. While the results of these analyses were presented in a recently published article, here we explore the potential of alignment data for addressing other questions of archaeological relevance. The distribution of particular building types and regional variations in alignment patterns in the study area suggest the existence of two somehow different cultural spheres, loosely corresponding to the areas conventionally called the Gulf Olmec region and the western Maya Lowlands. Examining pertinent evidence, we argue that it was in this area where some of the most prominent orientation groups materialized in later Mesoamerican architecture originated. We also attempt to reconstruct the paths of their diffusion, which are expected to contribute to understanding the dynamics of long-distance cultural interaction in Mesoamerica.

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Distributed Urban Networks in the Gulf Lowlands of Veracruz

Cited by 4 publications

References 134 publications

Flood Perception from Local Perspective of Rural Community vs. Geomorphological Control of Fluvial Processes in Large Alluvial Valley (the Middle Vistula River, Poland)

Flood Perception from Local Perspective of Rural Community vs. Geomorphological Control of Fluvial Processes in Large Alluvial Valley (the Middle Vistula River, Poland)

First Cities

Astronomy, Architecture, and Landscape in the Olmec Area and Western Maya Lowlands: Implications for Understanding Regional Variability and Evolution of Orientation Patterns in Mesoamerica

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