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Concept
Blue Creek (Belize)
Résumé
Blue Creek is a riverine system and major archaeological site located in North-Western Belize, Central America. It is situated geographically on the Belize–Mexico border and then continues south across the Guatemala–Mexico border. The river is commonly known as the Rio Azul or ‘Azul River’ in Spanish, which translates to ‘blue river’ or ‘blue creek’ in English.
It flows south-west as a tributary from its larger body known as the Rio Hondo or ‘Hondo River’. Its unique lowland environment facilitated the agricultural and economic growth of an Ancient Maya Civilization and has been a source of attention over many years, for numerous specialized archaeologists. The site boundary stops short of the Bravo Escarpment, which is a naturally occurring cliff also located in North Western Belize.
A range of artifacts recovered from the site reveal that Blue Creek was inhabited by many ancient Maya communities from the middle pre-classic period to the late-classic period in Mesoamerican chronology.
Archaeologists first investigated Blue Creek in the 20th century via a government-driven study, and it is believed that no official research was conducted before 1973. Since then, it has been investigated by various teams of scientists and agricultural experts who have analyzed the ruins of several Maya civilizations that existed over the pre-classic to late-classic period.
Data shows that the site became uninhibited at some point during the 800’s A.D. The site was then temporarily and partly occupied 200 years later at the conclusion of the classic period. While there are many theories surrounding the fall of the Maya empire, evidence suggests there was a significant decrease in population at this time and a gradual destruction of infrastructure. A 2016 case study on the role of kings at Blue Creek, suggests their responses to significant environmental issues such as drought or soil degradation and their handling of resources, may have been a factor in the society’s collapse. Others suggest that soil depletion, more generally, may have been the reason for the society’s collapse.
Source officielle
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