Sayil Revisited: Inferring Terminal Classic Population Size and Dynamics in the West-Central Yucat�n Peninsula

Abstract

Research at the site of Sayil in the Yucatan Peninsula has provided a valuable database for making inferences about the Terminal Classic (A.D. 750-1000) occupation of the Puuc region. This article evaluates and modifies previous demographic estimates for the site and considers the long-term implications associated with supporting this many people. Although a relatively high level of population was possible because of the excellent soils in the region, their natural fertility could not have been sustained indefinitely. The apparent demographic load on the proposed Sayil system would have required an intensive cropping strategy that may not have been sustainable for more than 75 years. This conclusion not only indicates how long the principal occupation of Sayil may have lasted, but more importantly, how the occupational dynamics during the Terminal Classic may have played out in the greater Puuc region.

The perfect storm: climate change and ancient Maya response in the Puuc Hills region of Yucatán

“…Population densities of 1570–3139 persons per square kilometre were proposed using the number of people that could be supported by the site's area of agricultural subsistence, water-storage capacity for chultuns, and room counts for stone and perishable buildings (Dunning 1989, 1992; McAnany 1990; Tourtellot et al 1990). The high estimates have, however, been revised downward by 30–50 per cent based on: a) the long-term negative effects of intensive cultivation on Puuc soils; b) low average daily water consumption per capita of 2.4–4L; and c) high counts for a minimum nuclear family of four people per room per structure (Becquelin & Michelet 1994; Andrews 2004). Employing a 40 per cent reduction of 3139 persons per square kilometre to calculate the Xcoch population across 8km² urban densities yields a net result of 15672 inhabitants, or 1883 people per square kilometre.…”

Kax and kol: Collapse and resilience in lowland Maya civilization

“…The high productivity of Puuc soils underwrote this dramatic growth. However, analysis of Puuc soils and apparent cropping system indicates that maximal yields would likely have been sustainable for only about 75 y, with significant declines in fertility and yields certainly setting in after about 100 y (74). This duration is coincident with the apogee of most Terminal Classic Puuc centers (ca.…”

4 Growth and Decline in Classic Maya Puuc Political Economies

“…Evidence of conspicuous consumption in the form of Maya monumental architecture and costly ceremonialism suggests that the high‐gain phase was accompanied by political integration and economic maximization rather than resilient resource exploitation strategies (see Adams ; Alexander ). In Tainter's model, high‐gain phases are usually relatively short in duration because, while the key resource is initially abundant, it is typically inefficiently managed and rapidly depleted—something that seems partially to be the case in the Puuc region (Andrews ; Dunning ).…”

“…Once the Puuc agricultural system had been pressed into delivering maximum crop yields, the region's soil resources could only sustain such high levels of productivity for a limited time—no more than 75 years before crashing (Andrews ). This non‐sustainable system likely deteriorated even more catastrophically under the influence of drought induced stresses (Medina Elizade et al.…”