Geophysical Prospecting of the Teotihuacan Subsoil

Summary

This is an abstract from the "What Happened after the Fall of Teotihuacan?" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

A geophysical study was carried out on the eastern flank of the Pyramid of the Sun to define the continuation of a tunnel discovered in 1974 under the western entrance of the pyramid. The investigation was carried out in the vicinity of Las Varillas cave, a structure excavated by settlers to obtain construction materials employed to build the city. Total magnetic field and vertical gradient surveys allowed to estimate a 3.3 m thick of alluvial sediment over the basaltic flow. The high-frequency magnetic gradient defined the geometry of Las Varillas Cave and the Euler deconvolution method specified the depth to the top of a tunnel (3–6 m). Two nearly parallel GPR profiles (separated 10 m) surveyed in a NW-SE direction (one passing over the known tunnel), detected the tunnel roof at a depth of 4 m. The second profile depicted a more complex morphology for the pyroclastic horizon. The anomalies associated with the basaltic flow or eruptive centers are clearly depicted. An electrical tomography profile was performed along the first GPR profile. The image showed a region of high values (1000 Ohm m), consistent with the presence of a tunnel at a depth of 4 m.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)   •
• What Happened after the Fall of Teotihuacan?

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 37737.0