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Temple mountains, sacred lakes, and fertile fields: ancient Maya landscapes in northwestern Belize

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2015

Nicholas Dunning ,
Vernon Scarborough ,
Fred Valdez ,
Sheryl Luzzadder-Beach ,
Timothy Beach  and
John G. Jones
Nicholas Dunning
Affiliation:
Department of Geography, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati OH 45221-0131, USA
Vernon Scarborough
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati OH 45221-0380, USA
Fred Valdez
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, University of Texas, Austin TX 78712, USA
Sheryl Luzzadder-Beach
Affiliation:
Department of Geography & Earth Science, George Mason University, Fairfax VA 22030, USA
Timothy Beach
Affiliation:
School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University, Washington DC 20057, USA
John G. Jones
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Texas A & M University, College Station TX 77843-4352, USA
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Extract

Forty-three years later these words still ring true, but are too seldom followed (Fedick 1996). For several years, we have been engaged in a multidisciplinary programme of research in northwestern Belize and neighbouring areas of Guatemala, eliciting a comprehensive, integrated picture of changing ancient Maya landscapes (Scarborough & Dunning 1996; Valdez et al. 1997). Our goals include a reconstructive correlation of environmental and cultural history, including the relationship between changes in water and land management and political economic organization. This work is still in progress and our understanding is far from complete (Dunning & Scarborough 1997).

Keywords

Maya archaeologycultural ecologylandscape analysis
Type
Special section
Information
Antiquity , Volume 73 , Issue 281 , September 1999 , pp. 650 - 660
Copyright
Copyright © Antiquity Publications Ltd. 1999

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