Maya Postclassic persistence in the Birds of Paradise Wetland Fields, Belize
Abstract
Rapid decay of organic artifacts obscures our view of ancient tropical settlements. We present a study of architecture and artifact assemblages from an ancient settlement excavated at the Birds of Paradise (BOP) fields, the largest lidar and field-validated ancient Maya wetland field complex. The site’s unique setting preserved architectural wood and provides exceptional evidence of Maya Terminal Classic (CE 800 to 1000) to Postclassic (CE 1000 to 1500) persistence within tropical wetlands through periods of large-scale societal and climate change. A new Bayesian chronological model tightens the occupation history for the broader BOP wetlands based on 14 new radiocarbon dates of wood and charcoal from this settlement. These wetlands and their preserved ancient wood face imminent destruction through modern land uses.
Article Details
Journal Info
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
National Academy of Sciences
Authors (13)
Lara M. Sánchez-Morales
Department of Anthropology, New York University
Timothy P. Beach
Department of Geography and the Environment, University of Texas at Austin
Sheryl Luzzadder-Beach
Department of Geography and the Environment, University of Texas at Austin
Samantha Krause
Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, Texas State University
Duncan Cook
School of Arts and Humanities, Australian Catholic University
Byron Smith
Department of Anthropology, California State Polytechnic University Humboldt
David Lentz
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cincinnati
Carlos Quiroz
Belize Ministry of Education, Culture, Science and Technology
William Pratt
Department of Geography and the Environment, University of Texas at Austin
Lori Phillips
Acacia Heritage Consulting
Thomas Guderjan
Department of Social Sciences, University of Texas at Tyler
Colleen Hanratty
Department of Social Sciences, University of Texas at Tyler
Fred Valdez
Department of Anthropology, University of Texas at Austin