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The Potential Role of Small Depressions as Water Storage Features in the Central Maya Lowlands

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Estella Weiss-Krejci  and
Thomas Sabbas
Estella Weiss-Krejci
Affiliation:
Institut für Ethnologie, Kultur-und Sozialanthropologie, Universität Wien (Institute for Social and Cultural Anthropology, University of Vienna), Universitätsstrasse 7, 1160-Vienna, Austria
Thomas Sabbas
Affiliation:
Abteilung Abfallwirtschaft, Institut für Wasservorsorge, Gewässerókologie und Abfallwirtschaft, Universitát für Bodenkultur (Department of Waste Management, Institute for Water Provision, Water Ecology and Waste Management, University of Agricultural Sciences), Nussdorfer Lände 29–31, A-l 190 Vienna, Austria
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Abstract

Small depressions are a frequent landscape feature in the northeast Petén and northwestern Belize. Although generally considered the remains of seasonal ancient Maya water cisterns, they have not been subject to systematic study. Excavation of 16 depressions in northwestern Belize showed that these features are either natural sinkholes (dolines) or quarried cavities. In three depressions, quarrying for construction materials and mining for clay was evident and two depressions are the remains of collapsed chultuns. Depressions probably also served as areas where household activities were carried out, they may have played a role as gardens, and were used as trash dumps. For one quarter of the sample, a water storage function was established. Water input-output calculations showed that these features could have held water year round and thus theoretically could have played a much more important role in supplying water than commonly assumed. The study indicates that Classic Maya population could have relied on decentralized water sources and suggests that hypotheses of centralized water management in the central Maya lowlands should be critically reviewed.

En el noreste del Petén y noroeste de Belice, el paisaje se caracteriza por la abundancia de pequeñas depresiones. Aunque generalmente se consideran restos de antiguos estanques de agua estacionales, todavía no han sido estudiadas de modo sistemático. Excavaciones en 16 depresiones pequeñas llevadas a cabo en el noroeste de Belice mostraron que estas estructuras son tanto de origen natural del karst (dolinas) como cavidades excavadas. Cinco depresiones con fondo de roca madre dura y bajas densidades cerámicas y líticas son interpretadas como naturales. Tres depresiones en las cuales se halló sascab muy fino, barro y cortes en la roca madre probablemente formaron sascaberas, minas y canteras. Las dos depresiones más pequeñas resultaron ser chultunes derrumbados. Para un cuarto de la muestra se consideró que la función era el almacenamiento de agua. Esta evaluación se basa en la presencia de área de recogida de tamaño apreciable, sistemas de encauce y un substrato gris, muy duro, sobre la roca madre. Dicho substrato se interpreta como los restos destruidos de un antiguo sello. Algunas depresiones fueron usadas para diferentes actividades secuenciales no relacionadas. Una depresión probablemente sirvió como área de producción doméstica, otra pudiera haber sido usada para cultivo. Dos depresiones probablemente fueron empleadas como basureros. Algunos investigadores han cuestionado la capacidad de depresiones pequeñas para funcionar como fuentes abastecedoras permanentes. Se realizaron cálculos teóricos de uso y evaporación de agua, usando una depresión que se consideró como antiguo estanque de agua. Esta depresión almacena una capacidad aproximada de 57,000 litros de agua. Los cálculos muestran que depresiones pequeñas podrían mantener agua durante todo el año y, por tanto, que su papel en el suministro de agua durante los meses de sequía puede ser más importante de lo que generalmente se considera. El estudio indica que la población Maya Clásica podría haber dependido de fuentes de agua decentralizadas y que la hipótesis de control central del agua debe ser reconsiderada.

Type
Reports
Information
Latin American Antiquity , Volume 13 , Issue 3 , September 2002 , pp. 343 - 357
Copyright
Copyright © Society for American Archaeology 2002

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