Suchergebnisse

It is suggested that traditional views of maize as the cornerstone of prehistoric lowland Maya civilization may be erroneous. Previous research largely ignored Yucatan's peninsular geographical position and the wealth of marine resources available. Ecological, archaeological, and documentary evidence are examined for the subsistence and religious utilization of marine resources and compared to data for maize and other foods. Some possible ramifications of a marine‐oriented Maya society are briefly stated and a "Yucatecan Symbiotic Region," with highly sophisticated exploitation of both marine and terrestial resources as a subsistence base, rather than single crop dominance, is proposed.