New Methods, Old Data: Reanalysis of Diets of the Copán Classic Maya Using Stable Isotope Mixing Models

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Innovations and Transformations in Mesoamerican Research: Recent and Revised Insights of Ancestral Lifeways" session, at the 88th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Sex and age factor into ancient diets. This poster revisits the largest single Maya polity paleodiet study using approaches that have been developed since the original data were collected, and to incorporate newer knowledge of Maya foodways in developing a better reconstruction of Late Classic Copán diets. Results of Stable Isotope Mixing Models (SIMM) of ancient Copán foodways reinforces and augments prior conclusions for a maize-rich diet at all social levels with key group differences between adult males and females, and between the younger and oldest females, indicative of dietary changes that corresponded to age-related social responsibilities. SIMM analysis has become increasingly sophisticated and versatile for quantifying food web attributes. The capabilities of SIMMs can provide uncertainty levels to account for variability in consumer or food isotopic values, rather than simplistic dietary proportions of two or three food sources. More recently, Bayesian SIMMs have been developed that allow flexible model specification in a rigorous statistical framework incorporating some or all of these features: uncertainties, concentration dependence, larger number of sources, etc. With alternative linear programming approaches, it is possible to use ranges of isotopic values to determine ranges of source contributions even in underdetermined situations.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Innovations and Transformations in Mesoamerican Research: Recent and Revised Insights of Ancestral Lifeways   •
• Society for American Archaeology 88th Annual Meeting, Portland, OR (2023)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 35800.0