XOCHIMILCO.- Imagine a time when the bustling canals of Xochimilco were a vast, shimmering lake, dotted with small islands. Now, archaeologists have uncovered fascinating evidence of how the people who lived on those islands over 6,000 years ago transitioned from nomadic hunter-gatherers to settled farmers – with corn playing a key role.
Essential data for Mesoamerican archaeology research. Click here to explore "Archaeological Settlement Pattern Data from the Chalco, Xochimilco..." on Amazon and access key information on settlement patterns in the Basin of Mexico.
At the San Gregorio Atlapulco archaeological site, located on what was once an islet in the heart of Lake Xochimilco, researchers have discovered remnants of corn, beans, and other domesticated plants on ancient grinding stones. This remarkable finding sheds new light on a crucial period in human history, between 8,000 and 5,500 years ago, when communities in the Southern Basin of Mexico first began to settle down and cultivate crops.
For nearly a decade, archaeologists have been carefully excavating and studying this important site. Now, laboratory analysis of grinding tools unearthed between 2013 and 2015 has provided concrete proof of early agricultural practices. Using experimental archaeology – recreating ancient techniques – and microscopic analysis, a team of scientists from the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) and the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) identified microscopic plant residues clinging to the artifacts.
This groundbreaking research, which employs a starch analysis method used for the first time in Mexico, revealed traces of sweet potato, bean, corn, tomato, chili pepper, and yam. By comparing these residues to a carefully created catalog of modern plant samples, the researchers were able to confidently identify the ancient plants.
"It's like finding a 6,000-year-old recipe book," says one researcher involved in the project. "These findings tell us what these early inhabitants were eating and how they were processing their food."
The discoveries indicate that these ancient societies relied on a combination of wild plant gathering and the cultivation of domesticated crops, including corn. This dietary shift occurred during a period of favorable climate change, just before the appearance of the earliest pottery in central Mexico.
These studies at San Gregorio Atlapulco offer a valuable window into the lives of hunter-gatherers during their transition to settled village life between 6,000 and 3,500 BCE. The use of grinding stones to process plants played a vital role in this transformation.
This research, part of the larger project "Settlement, Initial Agriculture and Village Societies in the Basin of Mexico," is helping to refine our understanding of the pre-ceramic period and underscores the crucial role of lacustrine communities in the development of early sedentary lifestyles and the adoption of agriculture.
The full details of this exciting discovery will be published in the February 2025 edition of the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, in an article titled “Archaic grinding stone tools in the basin of Mexico. A study through use-wear analysis and micro-residues.” The full text is available online until February 3rd.
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