Archaeologists used a laser-based detection system to discover more than 6,500 Pre-Hispanic structures in Campeche, Mexico, including a previously unknown Mayan city named Valeriana.
Details of the main ruins of Valeriana in Campeche, Mexico. Image credit: Auld-Thomas others., doi: 10.15184/aqy.2024.148.
“Our analysis not only revealed a complete picture of densely populated areas, but also revealed a lot of variation,” said Tulane University doctoral student and Northern Arizona University professor. Lecturer Luke Old-Thomas said.
“What we found was not only rural areas and small settlements, but also a town where people had long been actively farming amidst the ruins, right next to the only main road in the area. We also found a large city with pyramids.”
“The government knew nothing about it. The scientific community knew nothing about it.”
“This is an exclamation point after the statement that, no, we haven't discovered everything. Yes, there's still a lot to discover.”
lidar technology It uses laser pulses to measure distance and create a 3D model of a specific area.
This allows scientists to scan vast tracts of land from the comfort of their computer labs, discovering anomalies in the landscape that turn out to be pyramids, family homes, and other examples of Mayan infrastructure. It's done.
“With LIDAR, we can map large areas very quickly and with very high accuracy and level of detail, so we can say, “Wow, there are so many buildings that we don't know about, and they must have a large population.'' ‘It's huge,’ said Old Thomas.
“The counterargument was that lidar surveys were still too constrained to known large sites like Tikal, thus creating a distorted picture of the Maya lowlands.”
“What if the rest of the Maya region is much more rural and what we've mapped so far is the exception rather than the rule?”
The team's results provide compelling evidence of a Maya landscape that was more complex and diverse than previously thought.
“Rider teaches us that, like many other ancient civilizations, the Lowland Maya built a diverse tapestry of towns and communities on a tropical landscape,” said Marcello Canuto, a professor at Tulane University. “I'm grateful for that,” he said.
“Some areas have vast expanses of farmland and are densely populated, while others have only small communities.”
“Nevertheless, we can now see how much the ancient Maya modified their environment to support a long-lasting and complex society.”
a paper The findings were published in the journal October 29, 2024. ancient.
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luke old-thomas others. 2024. Running out of space: Environmental riders and the crowded ancient landscape of Campeche, Mexico. ancient 98 (401): 1340-1358;doi: 10.15184/aqy.2024.148
Source: www.sci.news
