Chemical Signatures of Ancient Maya Activities at the Ta’ab Nuk Na Salt Works, Belize

Abstract Ancient activities are evaluated at Ta’ab Nuk Na, one of the largest sites of the Paynes Creek Salt Works (Belize), where 10 pole-and-thatch buildings are preserved below the sea floor. Inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) analysis of marine sediment samples reveals spatial variation in elements associated with salt production, a residence, and other activities such as fish processing and brine enrichment. Sediment chemistry underscores the value of chemical signatures for identifying ancient activities at submerged terrestrial sites.