Coxcatlan Cave facts for kids

Coxcatlan Cave is an ancient site in Mesoamerica, located in the Tehuacán Valley, Puebla, Mexico. It was found by Richard MacNeish in the 1960s. This cave is important because it showed the first signs of three important plants being grown by people in Mexico. Besides plants, Coxcatlan Cave also had many ancient stone tools.

A Home for Ancient People

People used Coxcatlan Cave for over 10,000 years, especially during a time called the Archaic period. It was a shelter and a meeting place during the rainy season. Groups of hunter-gatherers (people who found their food by hunting animals and gathering plants) as large as 25 to 30 individuals would stay there.

Coxcatlan Cave is one of several similar cave sites in the Tehuacan Valley. All these caves have similar remains of ancient plants and tools. This suggests that the people living there were part of a trading community.

These larger groups, made up of smaller family groups, would live in the caves when there was plenty of food. Finding lots of food remains in the caves suggests that they were used for collecting and storing plants after harvests. Some of the foods found included small corn cobs, pieces of squash, chili, avocado, beans, and bottle gourds.

Discovering the Past

Much of what we know about Coxcatlan Cave comes from the detailed studies by Dr. Richard MacNeish. He helped us understand the history and culture of the people who lived there, especially during the Archaic period when the cave was most used.

The cave also showed signs of domesticated plants (plants grown by humans) from between 5,000 and 3,400 BC. This time is known as the Coxcatlan Phase. During this phase, people and animals in the Tehuacan Valley split their time between small hunting camps and larger, temporary villages.

Where the Cave Is

The Coxcatlan Cave was formed by water flowing through rock. It is located in the highlands of the Tehuacan Valley. This area has dry thorn forests, which are common in the Sierra Madre mountains. The cave and other nearby sites are separated by mountains from the coastal plains where the ancient Olmec people lived.

Scientists found at least 42 different levels where people lived within 2 to 3 meters of dirt inside the cave. They found ancient fireplaces, storage pits, ash, and other organic remains.

The Story of Corn

Maize (corn) was very important for ancient people to settle down and build villages. Finding corn remains in Coxcatlan Cave and other sites is a big deal for understanding the history of this area. Growing crops like corn helped people get and store more food.

The corn remains found in the cave were first thought to be the earliest evidence of fully domesticated corn, dating back to 5000 BC. However, later studies showed that the first fully domesticated corn appeared around 2700 BC. This discovery helps archaeologists understand when farming started to develop in Mesoamerican cultures. The time after corn farming began is called the Coxcatlan Phase, which lasted from 5700 to 3825 BC.

Amazing Finds

Some interesting items found in the cave include:

• A corn cob from around 5000 BC.
• Evidence of squash, beans, and bottle gourds.
• An ink pen and containers made from materials before pottery was invented.

Later, Bruce D. Smith did a more complete study of the items from the cave that were kept in museums. He used a special method called radiocarbon dating to find out the age of the materials. This study showed that people lived in the cave during 42 different times, in 28 living areas, and through seven cultural periods. As of 2005, scientists had 71 radiocarbon dates to help them understand the cave's history.

The top seven layers of the cave show signs of people living there during times when pottery was used. These top layers also have the most remains of ancient plants. In 2021, scientists dated animal bones found in the cave to 30,000 years ago. These animals might have been hunted and eaten by humans. This new dating could mean that humans arrived in the Americas much earlier than previously thought!

See also

In Spanish: Cueva de Coxcatlán para niños