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Geoarchaeological Investigations in Mesoamerica Move into the 21st Century: A Review
Author(s) -
Dunning Nicholas P.,
McCane Carmen,
Swinney Tyler,
Purtill Matthew,
Sparks Jani,
Mann Ashley,
McCool JonPaul,
Ivenso Chantal
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
geoarchaeology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.696
H-Index - 44
eISSN - 1520-6548
pISSN - 0883-6353
DOI - 10.1002/gea.21507
Subject(s) - geoarchaeology , mesoamerica , archaeology , mainstream , provenance , geography , land use , archaeological science , history , geology , ecology , paleontology , philosophy , theology , biology
Over the past thirty years, geoarchaeology has moved from the fringe to mainstream status within Mesoamerican archaeological investigations. This review focuses on works published since the year 2000. Five themes are identified as central to recent studies: (1) the correlation of environmental change and cultural history; (2) anthropogenic environmental impacts; (3) ancient land cover, land use, and diet; (4) archaeological prospection; and (5) provenance studies. These themes are often interwoven in the application of complex systems approaches that allow scientists to more accurately model the intricacies of ancient human–environment interactions.