Hot dogs: Comestible Canids in Preclassic Maya Culture at Cuello, Belize

The contribution of animal protein to the ancient Maya diet, and its means of procurement, can be assessed more accurately on the basis of systematic faunal recovery from recent excavations. We evaluate the presence of dog (Canis familiaris) remains in Preclassic (1200 BC-AD 250) deposits from the Maya site of Cuello, Belize, and conclude that the animals were raised for food and killed at the end of their first year of life. The frequency and distribution of canid bones suggest a significant but not dominant contribution to the meat supply throughout the Preclassic period.     

Origin and Collapse of Complex Societies in Oaxaca (Mexico): Evaluating the Era from 1965 to the Present

I summarize recent archaeological work in Oaxaca, Mexico, with a focus on questions central to world prehistory: the origin and collapse of complex societies. Monte Albán was the capital of an emerging civilization in the southern highlands of Mexico during the second half of the first millennium B.C. Soon after the foundation of the ancient city, there is evidence for state formation and a political expansion into regions outside the Valley of Oaxaca. Centuries later, Monte Albán went into decline, giving way to the competing small polities found throughout Oaxaca at the time of the Spanish conquest. Since the late 1960s, our knowledge of these changes has been transformed by study of Oaxaca's pre–Monte Albán past, regional settlement surveys, and processual model building. Evolutionary and historical perspectives allow for significant refinement of current debates surrounding the rise and fall of complex societies in Oaxaca.     

Human biology in the Classic Maya collapse: Evidence from paleopathology and paleodiet

We review evidence from human biology—paleopathological and isotopic paleodietary studies on ancient Maya skeletons—to assess the validity of ecological models of the Classic Maya collapse, in which elevated disease and deteriorating diet are commonly assumed. To be upheld, the health arguments of ecological models require that the Maya disease burden (1) was greater than that for many other societies and (2) increased over the span of occupation. The dietary argument requires (1) consistent change in diet from Preclassic and Early Classic Periods to the Terminal Classic and (2) increasing social divergence in diet. A correlation between diet and disease is necessary to link these arguments. Neither pathology nor isotopic data consistently support these criteria. Instead, it appears that local environmental and political factors created diversity in both disease burden and diet. In view of the human biological data, we are skeptical of ecological models as generalized explanations for the abandonment of Classic Maya sites in the southern lowlands.     

Assessing Surface Correspondence and Trade of Maya Figurines and Moulds Using Multi‐Stripe Laser Technology and Metrology*

One of the most intriguing questions for archaeologists studying clay artefacts concerns technologies employed in their manufacture and whether standardization can be demonstrated through traditional ceramic analysis. Visual comparisons and mechanical measurements have been used to determine correlations and infer standardization. Using a laser multi‐line scanner and software developed to quantify Hausdorff distances between vertices in 3D surfaces, we analysed sample collections of figurines and moulds from Belize, Mexico and Honduras. The results indicated that this procedure was a more precise indicator of common source and standardization in moulded clay artefacts. This method provided data relevant to assessing the scope of ancient trade networks and the nature of social and economic relationships that existed among the ancient inhabitants of Mesoamerica.     

14C and Maya Long Count Dates: Using Bayesian Modelling to Develop Robust Site Chronologies

Bayesian statistics has now demonstrated its strong utility in archaeology, specifically through software that conditions radiocarbon data. Only recently has this technology been applied within Maya archaeology, however, in part because the Maya calendar provides a much greater resolution in dating archaeological events than is possible with radiocarbon data. The Long Count in particular allows for the assignment of some events relative to each other, accurate to the day. In this paper, a new approach is presented to incorporate robust records of both in the same Bayesian analysis through the OxCal software. The results do call for a reconsideration of the earliest radiocarbon studies in the Maya area from the 1960s, as well as the latest attempts to corroborate the currently popular calendar correlation known as the GMT. This new study demonstrates the value of the approach and corroborates the 1σ accuracy of the GMT, while at the same time opening up the possibility of revision by 20 or more years.     

The afterlife of earthen-core buildings: A taphonomic study of threatened and effaced architecture in Central Belize

Buried architecture poses an interpretive challenge to field archaeologists the world over. The depositional sequence of the site must be reconstructed through excavation and stratigraphic analysis, and the various phases of construction and use that occurred in the past must be inferred. Effaced earthen-core architecture (e.g., architecture that was once faced with a masonry outer layer that is no longer present) constitutes a heightened challenge in this regard, as events and layers are not always clearly distinguishable, an interpretive difficulty that can be compounded when such architecture is threatened and decay accelerated by modern-day land use activities such as bulldozing and plowing. The case study presented here focuses on an ancient Maya E-Group architectural configuration—a triangular arrangement of structures that served to commemorate astronomical events, among other functions—that is being degraded through repetitive plowing. The significance of this site in regard to Maya archaeology is undeniable, as it was used and reused over a period of at least eight centuries. The site warranted a salvage-based approach designed to gather maximal quantities and types of data when only a minimal amount of time, labor, and funding was available. The procedure presented here was developed for a specific example of endangered, earthen-core Maya architecture in Belize; however, it is applicable to any archaeological project that faces similar obstacles in examining and documenting architecture before it is either eroded or intentionally destroyed.     

Influence of Taoism on the invention of the purple pigment used on the Qin terracotta warriors

Until the 19th century, most pigments were based on naturally occurring colored minerals and dyes, with three significant exceptions: Egyptian Blue, Chinese Blue/Purple and Maya Blue. The former two are alkaline-earth copper silicates, and because of this similarity it has been proposed that the Chinese pigments were derived from Egyptian Blue. Herein, we analyzed clumps of pigment from the Qin warriors and discovered that in spite of the structural similarity to Egyptian Blue, the micro-structural morphology of Chinese Purple is very different. Therefore, we believe that the synthesis technology for the Chinese pigments was a by-product of high-refractive index glasses (artificial jades) produced by Taoist monks. Further, the disappearance of these pigments from Chinese art and monuments concurrently with the decline of Taoism not only substantiates the link between the two, but also gives a striking example of how cultural changes in the society affected the scientific developments in ancient China.     

先秦中国和古代希腊文明起源的地理环境之比较

文明起源的地理环境可以分为整体地理环境和中心地理环境。前者指文明整体能力所及的极限地理范围,后者指文明主体的主要活动区域。从这两个角度分别进行比较,将有助于解释希腊和中国文明侧重于陆地或是海洋发展的原因。     

Archaeological Heritage in Guatemala: Indigenous Perspectives on the Ruins of Iximche’

In Guatemala local perspectives on heritage often remain unheard. In this paper a case study is presented to show the complex relationship between the highland site of Iximche’ and Tecpán, an Indigenous community nearby. Although Iximche’ is of little importance to the local economy, its significance is derived from its role as a field for different kinds of social and religious interactions. Traces of a spiritual relationship to this place can be dated back to the colonial period and today Maya from all over Guatemala go there to perform ceremonies. The place has also become a focal point of identity constructions for locals, Pan Mayan activists and the nation itself. The ruins of Iximche’ play an important role in the construction of collective memory which also includes ideas coming from external players such as Christian churches, the national government, Mayan activists, and archaeologists as well.     

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

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 C₃ 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. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.