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Science 8 February 1991:
Vol. 251. no. 4994, pp. 658 - 662
DOI: 10.1126/science.251.4994.658
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Articles

A Water Storage Adaptation in the Maya Lowlands

VERNON L. SCARBOROUGH 1 and GARY G. GALLOPIN 2

1 Department of Anthropology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45221
2 Department of Anthropology, State University of New York, Buffalo, NY 14222

Prehispanic water management in the Maya Lowlands emphasized collection and storage rather than the canalization and diversion accentuated in highland Mexico. Reexamination of site maps of the ancient Maya city of Tikal, Guatemala, has revealed an important, overlooked factor in Maya centralization and urban settlement organization. In a geographical zone affected by an extended dry season and away from permanent water sources, large, well-planned reservoirs provided resource control as well as political leverage.

Submitted on September 27, 1990
Accepted on January 3, 1991


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