(Calgary) The use of infrared light has allowed archaeologists to bypass the rainforest to study the remains of an ancient Maya city nearly twice the size of Vancouver.
Posted at 12:24pm
Bill Graveland The Canadian Press
LIDAR stands for Laser Distance Detection and Estimation. This technique consists in analyzing the properties of a beam of light that is sent back to its emitter. It is similar to radar, except that it uses light instead of radio waves. This makes it possible to generate precise and three-dimensional information about the earth’s surface and its properties.
“It just changed the situation,” says University of Calgary archaeologist Kathryn Reese-Taylor. Attempts can be made to survey and map hidden locations in the rainforest, but it takes years. LIDAR can do this in days by flying over large regions. »
Professor Reese-Taylor has been collaborating for several years with the Bajo Laberinto Archaeological Project, managed by the University of Calgary in collaboration with Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH).
More than a decade ago, she and a colleague visited the ancient Mayan city of Calakmul, in what is now Mexico.
We had to walk 13 kilometers to get there. We marveled at the sight before us: preserved ruins that had neither been excavated nor looted. And we came back.
Pre Reese-Taylor, archaeologist
“Being there, climbing these structures and admiring the landscape was an amazing experience. We may have been the first people to visit them in over 1000 years. It’s really exciting. »
Reese-Taylor says that Calakmul was the new capital of the powerful Kanu’l (or Serpent) dynasty that ruled the Maya lowlands by controlling several vassal kingdoms.
LIDAR has provided a better picture of urban settlement and changes at the Calakmul site, she adds.
“Some people might think it’s just a big hill, but we know that there’s, for example, a big temple or a palace there. We can see everything. Residential buildings have been identified in this area. Some had as many as 60 individual apartments. They crowded around temples, shrines, and maybe markets. Calakmul was one of the largest cities in America in the 7th century.
The archaeologist emphasizes that the researchers were able to establish a connection between the city’s population and the changes in a physical place. The terrain is covered with canals, terraces and dikes.
“Every time we use LIDAR, it’s like opening one of our Christmas presents. You never know what to expect. It is an extraordinary gift to see this now. »
Reese-Taylor plans to visit the site after the fall semester in April. She hopes to stay there for two months until the rainy season.
The area of Calakmul covers at least 195 square kilometers.
“It was really one of the largest cities in America back then,” says the archaeologist. We could accommodate the city of Vancouver twice. Washington, Amsterdam and Brussels have roughly the same area. »
The first excavations were modest, despite the presence of temples and palaces.
“I’d really like to dig into the new temple, really.” But I think for now we have to focus on apartments. After all, we already have information about the history of temples and other public buildings, but we have no data about the people who lived here. »