Hydrological Landscape Analysis of a Sinuous Depression, Yaxnohcah, Mexico

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dc.contributor.advisorReese-Taylor, Kathryn
dc.contributor.authorMilley, David Steven
dc.contributor.committeememberOetelaar, Gerald A.
dc.contributor.committeememberMcDermid, Gregory J.
dc.date2020-06
dc.date.accessioned2020-02-03T18:59:14Z
dc.date.available2020-02-03T18:59:14Z
dc.date.issued2020-01-30
dc.description.abstractYaxnohcah is a large site in Campeche, Mexico with evidence of continual occupation from the early Middle Preclassic into the Postclassic. In 2014, the Yaxnohcah Archaeological Project commissioned a high resolution LiDAR scan of the region, which has allowed for accurate modeling of surface hydrology and significantly contributed to our understanding of hydrological landscape modification at the site. One feature of particular interest was an irregularly shaped, deeply etched sinuous depression located in the Bajo Tomatal, just south of the narrow drainage that connects it with the Bajo Laberinto. The aim of this research was to ascertain whether this sinuous depression is a cultural or natural feature, and if cultural, what it can tell us about how the ancient lowland Maya at Yaxnohcah modified the hydrology of their natural landscape to sustain urban settlements in the dense and inhospitable rainforests of the Yucatan. In 2017 and 2018, I modeled and analysed the hydrology of the sinuous depression, and in the 2018 field season performed excavations of the feature. The excavations showed that, while the sinuous depression may originally have been a natural feature, it was extensively modified, with clear evidence for considerable refurbishment during the Postclassic and data suggesting an earlier date for initial construction. Furthermore, the modelling indicates that the sinuous depression formed part of system of hydrological features that was accretional developed throughout the Preclassic into the Early Classic as control mechanisms for redirecting, buffering, and capturing water around the Brisa complex. This system underwent considerable refurbishment during the Postclassic.en_US
dc.identifier.citationMilley, D. S. (2020). Hydrological Landscape Analysis of a Sinuous Depression, Yaxnohcah, Mexico (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.en_US
dc.identifier.doihttp://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/37550
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1880/111612
dc.language.isoengen_US
dc.publisher.facultyArtsen_US
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Calgaryen
dc.rightsUniversity of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.en_US
dc.subjectMayaen_US
dc.subjectCanalen_US
dc.subjectWater Managementen_US
dc.subjectUrban Agricultureen_US
dc.subjectAgro-Urban Landscapesen_US
dc.subjectlidaren_US
dc.subjectGISen_US
dc.subjectMilleyen_US
dc.subject.classificationEducation--Agriculturalen_US
dc.subject.classificationArchaeologyen_US
dc.subject.classificationGeographyen_US
dc.subject.classificationHydrologyen_US
dc.titleHydrological Landscape Analysis of a Sinuous Depression, Yaxnohcah, Mexicoen_US
dc.typemaster thesisen_US
thesis.degree.disciplineArchaeologyen_US
thesis.degree.grantorUniversity of Calgaryen_US
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Arts (MA)en_US
ucalgary.item.requestcopytrueen_US
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