84 Geoarchaeology of Sites to Landscapes: Current Research on Long-Term Water and Soil Management and Maladaptation, Part I

This session brings together geoarchaeological projects from around the world that study ancient water and soil or agricultural management. This session will compare techniques, timing, and evidence for adaptation to past and present environmental changes.

Monday, 20 October 2025
8:00 AM - 12:00 PM
HBGCC, 214D

Persistent Places in the Maya Lowlands: a Case for Reframing Responses to Social and Climate Change during the Postclassic Transition

Paper number: 84-4
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 8:55 AM – 9:10 AM

Authors

Abstract

This presentation is about a Postclassic Maya site excavated at the Birds of Paradise (BOP), a long-occupied riparian wetland complex initially identified by Lidar survey. The site’s location allowed for the unique preservation of wood architecture, lasting through the Terminal Classic “collapse” (CE 800–1000) and into the Postclassic (CE 1000–1500), as evidenced by radiocarbon, sedimentary, and archaeological data. Using a Bayesian chronological model, updated with 14 new dates from this village, we have narrowed the history of occupation for the broader BOP wetlands. Sedimentological analyses allowed us to contextualize the wooden posts uncovered, along with their associated faunal, ceramic, and lithic assemblages. Altogether, these various lines of evidence attest to significant landscape modification investments, local resource use, and regional connectivity between BOP and other Maya sites. We argue that our findings provide unprecedented evidence of Maya Classic to Postclassic persistence within tropical wetland fields despite periods of large-scale societal and climate change.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 57, No. 6

doi: 10.1130/abs/2025AM-414225

© Copyright 2025 The Geological Society of America (GSA), all rights reserved. Permission is hereby granted to the author(s) of this abstract to reproduce and distribute it freely, for noncommercial purposes. Permission is hereby granted to any individual scientist to download a single copy of this electronic file and reproduce up to 20 paper copies for noncommercial purposes advancing science and education, including classroom use, providing all reproductions include the complete content shown here, including the author information. All other forms of reproduction and/or transmittal are prohibited without written permission from GSA Copyright Permissions.