With pollutants, toxic levels are often associated With the modern industrial wastesThese discoveries were made in some of the most unlikely archaeological locations.
Before conquistadors came from far-off countries introduced disease and decay to war and peace, Maya cultures had been sprinkling the soils in their urban centers of heavy metals long before they arrived. mercury.
Researchers are advised by the FDA to be vigilant to safeguard their health.
“Mercury pollution is often found in modern urban areas and industrial environments.” Duncan CookGeoarchaeologist at Australian Catholic University, and the lead author of a review on the Maya’s environmental legacy.
Cook and a team from the UK and US reviewed data from 10 Classic Period Maya digs and their surroundings. This included environmental mercury measurements.
Comparing readings from the region, seven sites were found to have at least one area contaminated by mercury levels that exceeded or equaled current toxic levels.
“It is difficult to understand the discovery of mercury deep in soils or sediments in ancient Maya towns. But, if we start to look at the archaeology of this region, it becomes clear that the Maya have been using mercury for hundreds of years.”
Mercury, in its purest form, is a lustrous gray metal that melts at low temperatures, making it a thick fluid. This was once called quicksilver.
But compounds that contain mercury have been used in many industries and cultures throughout history. One of the most famous compounds that contains mercury is mercuric-nitrate. It was used to stiffen felt for hats and was claimed to have been used in over 4,000 years. Poisoning the nervous systemIt was used by 19th-century artisans.
The crystal mercury sulfide is perhaps the most commonly used form of mercury throughout the ages. It is also known as Cinnabar.
The mercurial pigment is found in areas of volcanic activity and near hot springs. Since time immemorial, it has been used as an agent to color art.
Cinnabar was much more than a pretty color of red for Maya, who is blood-obsessed.
“Objects may contain items for the Maya.” ch’ulel“, or the soul-force, that resided in blood.” “Nicholas Dunning, University of Cincinnati geoarchaeologist
“Hence, the bright red pigment of Cinnabar was an invaluable and sacred substance. But unbeknownst it to them, it was also deadly. Its legacy continues in soils and sediments surrounding ancient Maya sites.”
Curiously, the limestone foundations upon which the Maya infrastructure was built aren’t suitable for cinnabar production. You would need to travel to the Maya edge to find a source of the mineral.
Archaeological evidence suggests that Central America was mining cinnabar as early as the second millennia BCE. Olmec culture flourished.
Around the third century CE, the Maya began to build monuments to their gods. Cinnabar was already common in the land. It was used mostly in powdered form to color decorative pieces or in burials.
Rarely, the purified metal has been found, often in association with elite funerals or ritual caches. Just how the Maya got their hands on this purified form of the element – whether through trade or their own methods of chemistry – is still something of a mystery.
Although it isn’t clear to what extent the Maya were exposed to mercury sulfide, growing numbers of studies indicate that the toxic element was at the very least making its way into their bones.
The Maya city of Tikal’s last ruler, a king known as Dark Sun, was notable for being obese. A clue?To a metabolic disorder commonly caused by mercury poisoning.
The researchers point out that past health concerns aside, archaeologists must take precautions to avoid exposure to toxic metals as they dig through Maya culture’s multilayered history.
“This is just more proof that we live in the same way today as this result.” AnthropoceneThere was also a Maya anthropocene or Mayacene.” “Tim Beach is a geoarchaeologist at the University of Texas.
“Metal contamination appears to have been [an]Human activity has had an impact on history.”
This research was published in Frontiers in Environmental Science.
