LiDAR analyses in the contiguous Mirador-Calakmul Karst Basin, Guatemala: an introduction to new perspectives on regional early Maya socioeconomic and political organization

Abstract

LiDAR coverage of a large contiguous area within the Mirador-Calakmul Karst Basin (MCKB) of northern Guatemala has identified a concentration of Preclassic Maya sites (ca. 1000 b.c.–a.d. 150) connected by causeways, forming a web of implied social, political, and economic interactions. This article is an introduction to one of the largest, contiguous, regional LiDAR studies published to date in the Maya Lowlands. More than 775 ancient Maya settlements are identified within the MCKB, and 189 more in the surrounding karstic ridge, which we condensed into 417 ancient cities, towns, and villages of at least six preliminary tiers based on surface area, volumetrics, and architectural configurations. Many tiered sites date to the Middle and Late Preclassic periods, as determined by archaeological testing, and volumetrics of contemporaneously constructed and/or occupied architecture with similar morphological characteristics. Monumental architecture, consistent architectural formats, specific site boundaries, water management/collection facilities, and 177 km of elevated Preclassic causeways suggest labor investments that defy organizational capabilities of lesser polities and potentially portray the strategies of governance in the Preclassic period. Settlement distributions, architectural continuities, chronological contemporaneity, and volumetric considerations of sites provide evidence for early centralized administrative and socio-economic strategies within a defined geographical region.

Ancestral Maya domesticated waterscapes, ecological aquaculture, and integrated subsistence

“…1000 b.c. – a.d. 200; Hansen et al 2002; Pohl et al 1996). They have also examined Classic period (ca.…”

“…In examining domesticated waterscapes, a summary of research on ancestral Maya wetland agriculture and water management is necessary. Ancestral Maya waterscape studies have kept a taut focus on wetland agriculture and cultivated fields (Beach et al 2013; Dunning et al 2020; Hansen et al 2002; Lentz et al 2022; Lucero 2006; Turner and Harrison 2000). In specific areas, ancestral Maya dug canals in floodplains and placed sediments on adjacent fields or agricultural zones.…”

“…Investigators working on Maya canals, wetlands, and raised fields have not acquired much cultural and scientific data on ancient to modern fishing and aquaculture. Instead, they concentrate on wetland cultivation, water storage in reservoirs, canals for draining fields, and water management to mitigate flooding and drought, which were important for Maya civilization (Dunning et al 2022; Hansen et al 2002; Gunn et al 2014; Lucero 2006; Luzzadder-Beach et al 2016). Investigators also concentrate on crop productivity, soil qualities, and plant diversity for human use on the shores of lakes and canals (Beach et al 2019; Darch 2000; Harrison 1993; Lentz et al 2022).…”

“…Archaeologists have also found construction features, including berms, walls, and stone alignments, in Maya waterscapes (Berry and McAnany 2007; Fedick 2003; Hansen et al 2002; Harrison 1996; Matheny and Gurr 1979; Pohl et al 1990; Scarbourough 1991; Siemens and Hebda 2009; Turner and Harrison 2000). Variable Maya dredging techniques and filling with clay, sand, and stone have been noted.…”

“…Evidence for ecological aquaculture and integrated subsistence has been found at many Maya sites in ongoing investigations. Archaeologists, for instance, have recently identified extensive canals, reservoirs, wetland modifications, and raised fields, among other modified waterscapes throughout the Maya region following light detection and ranging and satellite mapping techniques (Beach et al 2019; Canuto et al 2018; Dunning et al 2020; Garrison et al 2019; Hansen et al 2022). Some investigators believe the water features could have supported aquaculture, but they have not studied nor described this subsistence system (Dunning et al 2017).…”