Abstract
Socioeconomic status is often associated with differential access to both resourcesand food. Ancient Maya groups from the Upper Belize Valley during the Classic period
(700- 900 years ago) demonstrated distinct social stratification and possibly differential
food access. Although direct dietary observations are not possible for past populations,
because we understand masticatory processes, enamel features associated with molar
macro and microwear can provide evidence of the type (hard, tough, or soft) and quantity
of food, and food processing. This study assessed macro- and microwear of maxillary and
mandibular first, second and third molars from royals (n=7), sub-royals (n=9), and
commoners (n=5) from the urban center of Buenavista del Cayo. We predicted that royals
and sub-royals would show wear patterns associated with a tough food diet while
commoners would show features associated with a soft food diet. Standard scoring for
macrowear was used to assess the entire surface of all teeth. Microwear analyses focused
on wear facet nine within the distobuccal quadrant on mandibular first molars. Results
indicated no significant differences across social groups. Climate fluctuations may have
influenced resource availability within the community regardless of social status, helping
to explain similarities in dietary composition. However, descriptive statistics of both
macro and microwear suggest a level of differential resource access but with more
overlapping dietary components than originally predicted. These individuals likely
followed a corporate group pattern, meaning multiple social groups worked together to
share resources and responsibilities within the community. These frequent interactions
across social groups help explain the only slight difference in wear patterns. Higher
status individuals consuming larger quantities of tough foods require multidirectional jaw
movements associated with a higher level of complexity. While the simpler and more
repetitive mastication cycle of lower status individuals whose diet mainly consists soft
foods, typically presents with higher levels of anisotropy. The lack of statistical
significance implies a high level of interaction between social groups who likely shared
similarities in dietary compositions but perhaps differed in the quantity of each food
type.