GEOARCHAEOLOGICAL AND PALEOLIMNOLOGICAL ANALYSES OF LONG-TERM ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE AND HUMAN-ENVIRONMENTAL INTERACTIONS TWENTY KILOMETERS DOWNWIND OF TIKAL, GUATEMALA

The El Zotz region of Guatemala’s northern Petén lies along the Buenavista Fault and was a key conduit for the ancient Maya during the late Holocene, twenty kilometers west of Tikal. The settlements that inhabited this fluviokarst landscape relied upon nearby sinks and wetlands for basic needs and for agricultural purposes within this seasonally wet environment. Within this region, perennially ponded lowland sinks receive freshwater inputs from seasonal precipitation and perched groundwaters across the 151 km² watershed that promotes increased surface waters during the rainy season and dry conditions when water levels recede. Previous studies here indicated a landscape of intensive farming from copious charcoal and many types of economic pollen taxa near one of these basins beginning in the Archaic period (3,450 BP) and lasting until well after the major population had moved away (1,000 BP) and lake sedimentation declined. This paper reports on hydrologic modeling of flows, recent coring efforts within three of the valley’s sinks and excavations of its key water management features including wetland fields and a dam and defensive works complex. In the wetlands we show evidence of prograding sediments along the shores of the largest sink with lacustrine sediments underlying modern soil layers formed above the water table. The artifact record from the shores of that sink suggest intensive late Preclassic (2,250 – 1,700 BP) activity based on ceramic evidence and ancient wetland field maintenance through the presence of lithic tool assemblages. We will present geochemistry (elemental and isotopic), plant wax biomarkers, aDNA, and AMS dating to answer questions of chronology, landscape formation, and land use.