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Research Year:  2002
Culture:  Maya
Chronology:  Pre-Classic and Classic
Location:  Copán, Honduras
Sites:  El Paraíso, Petapilla, and Las Sierras

Table of Contents

Abstract
Goals of Paleobotanical Research in Copán
Sediment Core Extraction
Methodology
Extraction of sediment cores from lagunas
Analysis of fossil pollen samples
Preliminary Results
La Laguna de Petapilla
Tierra Blanca Joven
Pond in the village of Las Sierras
Pond near La Laguna outside of El Paraíso
Conclusions
Acknowledgments
List of Figures
Sources Cited

Abstract

A grant from the Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, Inc., (FAMSI), was used to fund Accelerator Mass Spectrometry dating of sediment cores recovered from three bodies of water in the Copán Valley and the adjoining area of El Paraíso, and for comparative analysis of a tephra layer recovered from one of the sediment cores. Sediment cores from two of these bodies of water, Petapilla and Las Sierras, contain pollen records covering the Preclassic and Classic periods. Sediment from the base of a third core extracted from a laguna near El Paraíso had a modern date.

Submitted 10/15/2003 by:
Cameron L. McNeil
cameronlm@yahoo.com

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