Archaeologists Discover Ancient Camp Where Maya Ate Cooked Snails

Archaeologists have announced the discovery of a pre-Hispanic camp in Mexico where the ancient Maya cooked and ate snails.

The researchers uncovered the camp during excavations in the municipality of Telchac Pueblo, which is just off the northern coast of the Yucatán Peninsula in the southeast of the country, Spanish news agency EFE reported.

The Maya civilization dominated what is now southeastern Mexico, Guatemala, Belize and the western areas of El Salvador and Honduras for more than 3,000 years until the era of Spanish colonization.

The ancient Maya were notable for their striking architecture and art; an advanced calendar, mathematics and astronomical system; and for creating the only fully developed writing system in pre-Hispanic America.

Excavations at a site in Telchac Pueblo have revealed several pre-Hispanic structures scattered over an area of more than 23 hectares (57 acres). The structures included "unusual mounds of Earth" that were found to be full of ash and charcoal, one of the archaeologists, Mario Alberto Garrido, told EFE.

There are no registered archaeological sites near the area, which is why the discovery of the structures is "very important" for the archeology of the region, Garrido said.

In addition to the structures, the researchers found more than 100 fragments of ancient pottery. Most of the ceramics date to the Early Classic period of Mesoamerican history (A.D. 250-600), although a small proportion date to the Late Preclassic period (400 B.C.-A.D. 200), according to the researchers.

The site of the camp is in "the middle of nowhere" and difficult to reach, Garrido told EFE. It is likely that the Maya used the camp only during the dry season, according to the researchers.

The archaeologists also found the remains of a "large number of snails" in the area, Alicia Beatriz Quintal, a researcher with Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History, told EFE.

The remains include complete snail shells that had been modified as well as many fragments. The Maya took advantage of the snails to feed themselves and make utensils such as spoons, according to the researchers.

Although the ancient economy of the ancient Maya civilization in this region was principally based on the cultivation of staples such as maize, beans and squash, there is evidence that they were also proficient fishers, hunters and gatherers.

For example, some previous research has shown that the Maya exploited freshwater snails from the genus Pachychilus. These mollusks were not only eaten but have also occasionally been found in Maya ritual deposits, according to a study published in the journal Latin American Antiquity.

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