Contribuciones de la ciencia del suelo a la investigacion arqueologica: el caso de Teotihuacan | Soil science contributions to the archaeological research: Teotihuacan, the case study
2005
Gama-Castro, J.E. | Solleiro-Rebolledo, E. | McClung, E. | Villalpando, J.L. | Sedov, S. | Jasso-Castaneda, C. | Palacios-Mayorga, S. | Hernandez, D.
Based on the analysis of selected soil properties considered indicators of soil memory in the Teotihuacan Valley, this research purports to contribute to the study of: i) environmental dynamics in the Teotihuacan Valley from the Late Pleistocene to the present; ii) human impact in the area during the period from the first settlements through the colonial period to the present; and iii) the probable causes of the partial abandonment of the prehispanic city around A.D. 650. Our results indicate that the memory of soils and paleosols record different periods of landscape stability/instability since approximately 22 000 years B.P. Regional dynamics are also reflected in palynological studies of lacustrine sediments and the analysis of phytoliths present in soils. During the period of Teotihuacan occupation, increased demographic pressure, subsequent changes in land-use and the systematic exploitation of forests may have stimulated severe erosion together with associated changes in humidity manifest in drier conditions. The evidence obtained thusfar through a multidisciplinary approach permits the development of hypotheses with respect to the ecosystem and sociocultural traits present during the period of dominance by the Teotihuacan state, but do not solve the mystery of its collapse. However, it provides spatial and multitemporal elements of considerable relevance to understanding the problem.
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