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Wetland Fields in the Maya Lowlands: Archaeobotanical Evidence from Birds of Paradise, Belize

Wendel, Martha M
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1554215790495424

Abstract Details

2019, MA, University of Cincinnati, Arts and Sciences: Anthropology.
Discoveries of rectangular canal patterns in the margins of wetlands in the ancient Maya lowlands of Guatemala, Belize, and Mexico shed light on a previously unknown agricultural practice: raised wetland fields. One example of wetland fields is found at the site Birds of Paradise (BOP) in the Rio Bravo region of northwestern Belize. For my research project, I have analyzed macrobotanical remains from BOP to: 1) identify the plants that were growing in the canals, 2) identify the plants that were growing in the features identified as raised fields, 3) assess their ecological preferences, 4) assess changing frequencies of different types of plants over time, and 5) provide some insight on how the canals and fields were used. Because this is the first time any systematic macrobotanical analysis has been done at BOP, it makes an important contribution to understanding how the Maya were interacting with their landscape with the use of these features. Additionally, innovative recovery methods such as use of a sonicator and sorting through all geological sieve fractions allowed for more robust quantitative analysis of data. These methods have wide application for use at other sites conducting archaeobotanical research.
Susan Allen, Ph.D. (Committee Chair)
Sarah Jackson, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
David Lentz, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
94 p.
Archaeology
archaeology; Maya; archaeobotany; wetland fields; paleoethnobotany; Belize

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Wendel, M. M. (2019). Wetland Fields in the Maya Lowlands: Archaeobotanical Evidence from Birds of Paradise, Belize [Master's thesis, University of Cincinnati]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1554215790495424

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Wendel, Martha. Wetland Fields in the Maya Lowlands: Archaeobotanical Evidence from Birds of Paradise, Belize. 2019. University of Cincinnati, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1554215790495424.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Wendel, Martha. "Wetland Fields in the Maya Lowlands: Archaeobotanical Evidence from Birds of Paradise, Belize." Master's thesis, University of Cincinnati, 2019. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1554215790495424

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ucin1554215790495424
229
© 2019, some rights reserved.Creative Commons License Wetland Fields in the Maya Lowlands: Archaeobotanical Evidence from Birds of Paradise, Belize by Martha M Wendel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Based on a work at etd.ohiolink.edu.
This open access ETD is published by University of Cincinnati and OhioLINK.