Palaeoenvironmental, epigraphic and archaeological evidence of total warfare among the Classic Maya

Wahl, David B.; Anderson, L.; Estrada-Belli, Francisco; Tokovinine, Alexandre

doi:10.1038/s41562-019-0671-x

Cited by 17 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…Recent above‐referenced research (Wahl et al. 2019) brings together various data sets illustrating warfare tactics and their environmental and societal effects. A researcher on that team, Francisco Estrada‐Belli, commented to the press (Martínez 2019) that the order to destroy the site of Witzna (not to be confused with Waka’) by fire was likely given by Lady Six Sky of Naranjo.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Expanding the canon: Lady K'abel the Ix Kaloomte’ and the political narratives of classic Maya Queens

Navarro-Farr¹,

Kelly²,

Rich³

et al. 2020

Feminist Anthropology

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We consider how a feminist perspective permits appreciation for and reflection on the complex and often understated ways in which Classic-era (∼CE 250-80) royal Maya women contributed to processes of statecraft. Our work centers on archaeological and epigraphic evidence for the life of one important royal woman, Ix Kaloomte' K'abel of Waka' whose reign was one of the most influential of the Late Classic Period (∼CE 550-800). In reviewing the lines of evidence which detail her political life as a ruler, we consider parallels with other important royal women of the period. We argue a feminist approach permits working beyond unacknowledged presentist biases to consider the ways in which these women actively crafted state politics alongside their male counterparts.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recent interdisciplinary research details the environmental aftereffects of these violent campaigns and her likely role in them (Wahl et al. 2019). Like Lady K'abel, she was also a marriage diplomat, originally from the kaan ally site of Dos Pilas.…”

Section: Situating Lady K'abel In the Canon Of Politically Powerful Amentioning

confidence: 99%

Expanding the canon: Lady K'abel the Ix Kaloomte’ and the political narratives of classic Maya Queens

Navarro-Farr¹,

Kelly²,

Rich³

et al. 2020

Feminist Anthropology

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“…Internecine warfare is defined here as frequent, intergroup lethal violence. Combatants and noncombatants are targeted, and many individuals killed are the victims of surprise raids and ambushes the goal of which is to dispatch members of enemy groups (Keeley, 1996; Scaffidi & Tung, 2020; Wahl et al, 2019).…”

Section: Evaluating Hypotheses On the Character Of Conflictmentioning

confidence: 99%

The character of conflict: A bioarchaeological study of violence in the Nasca highlands of Peru during the Late Intermediate Period (950–1450 C.E.)

McCool

Tung

Coltrain

et al. 2020

American J Phys Anthropol

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Objectives: This study uses osteological and radiocarbon datasets combined with formal quantitative analyses to test hypotheses concerning the character of conflict in the Nasca highlands during the Late Intermediate Period (LIP, 950-1450 C.E.). We develop and test osteological expectations regarding what patterns should be observed if violence was characterized by intragroup violence, ritual conflict, intermittent raiding, or internecine warfare. Materials and methods: Crania (n = 267) were examined for antemortem and perimortem, overkill, and critical trauma. All age groups and both sexes are represented in the sample. One hundred twenty-four crania were AMS dated, allowing a detailed analysis of diachronic patterns in violence among various demographic groups. Results: Thirty-eight percent (102/267) of crania exhibit some form of cranial trauma, a significant increase from the preceding Middle Horizon era. There are distinct trauma frequencies within the three subphases of the LIP, but Phase III (1300-1450 C.E.) exhibits the highest frequencies of all trauma types. Males exhibit significantly more antemortem trauma than females, but both exhibit similar perimortem trauma rates. Discussion: There was chronic, internecine warfare throughout the Late Intermediate Period with important variations in violence throughout the three temporal phases. Evidence for heterogeneity in violent mortality shows a pattern consistent with social substitutability, whereby any and all members of the Nasca highland population were appropriate targets for lethal and sublethal violence. We argue that by testing hypotheses regarding the targets and types of conflict we are better able to explain the causes and consequences of human conflict.

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“…Militarism is traditionally thought to have increased during the Postclassic, though recent research demonstrates the important role of warfare in cultural developments throughout Maya history (Canuto et al 2018; Inomata, 2014; Wahl, Anderson, Estrada-Belli, & Tokovinine, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Estimates of the number of combatants that could be fielded by a large polity vary from a few hundred into the tens of thousands (Stanton, 2019:216). Recent discoveries of large-scale fortifications and sitewide destruction certainly suggest that warfare could, at times, impact all members of a given settlement (Canuto et al, 2018; Wahl et al, 2019). Elite female participation in warfare has been suggested based on decipherments of Maya hieroglyphic writing and depictions of queens as warriors (Ardren, 2002; Reese-Taylor, Mathews, Guernsey, & Fritzler, 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biomechanical Investigation of Ancient Maya Warfare at Mayapan, Yucatan, Mexico

Dorranian

Serafin

Lope

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Despite significant advancements in the reconstruction of activity patterns from skeletal remains and growing scholarly interest in ancient warfare, few biomechanical studies have investigated weaponry use. We adopt a biomechanical approach to investigate who participated in ancient Maya warfare and the types of weaponry used at the Late Postclassic (ca. 1200-1450 A.D.) regional political capital of Mayapán located in northwestern Yucatán, Mexico. This has implications for the nature and scale of Maya warfare and the size of territories that could be controlled by Maya polities. Comparative Finite Element Analysis is a powerful, non-destructive method that can be applied to skeletal remains to model strain, stress and deformation of structures in response to a defined loading regime. Here, biomechanical data extracted using cross-sectional geometry were combined with Finite Element Analysis models of three ancient Maya humeri from Mayapán: one elite male, one elite female, and one commoner female. Models were created with loading conditions of archery and spear use to assess evidence for skeletal adaptation to habitual weapon use. Following suggestions by some Mayanists that elite status males were the principal participants in warfare, we hypothesized that the elite male humerus would exhibit lower strains than the two female humeri in all the loading conditions. This was supported by the Finite Element model results, with the exception of spear throwing. The elite female humerus showed similar trends to the elite male humerus, suggesting the possibility of elite female participation in warfare.

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Palaeoenvironmental, epigraphic and archaeological evidence of total warfare among the Classic Maya

Cited by 17 publications

References 16 publications

Expanding the canon: Lady K'abel the Ix Kaloomte’ and the political narratives of classic Maya Queens

Expanding the canon: Lady K'abel the Ix Kaloomte’ and the political narratives of classic Maya Queens

The character of conflict: A bioarchaeological study of violence in the Nasca highlands of Peru during the Late Intermediate Period (950–1450 C.E.)

Biomechanical Investigation of Ancient Maya Warfare at Mayapan, Yucatan, Mexico

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