The Pristine Myth: The Landscape of the Americas in 1492
- W. Denevan
- History
- 1 September 1992
The myth persists that in 1492 the Americas were a sparsely populated wilder- ness, "a world of barely perceptible human disturbance." There is substantial evidence, however, that the Native American…
The domestication of Amazonia before European conquest
- C. Clement, W. Denevan, W. Woods
- Environmental ScienceProceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological…
- 7 August 2015
It is argued that the Amazonian anthrome was no less socio-culturally diverse or populous than other tropical forested areas of the world prior to European conquest.
A Bluff Model of Riverine Settlement in Prehistoric Amazonia
- W. Denevan
- Environmental Science
- 1 December 1996
In Amazonia, prehistoric settlement was especially concentrated along the major rivers. This has been explained by the superior soil and wildlife resources of the floodplain (varzea) compared to the…
Cultivated Landscapes of Native Amazonia and the Andes
- W. Denevan
- Environmental Science
- 29 March 2001
PART I. FIELDS AND ASSOCIATED FEATURES 1. Introduction: research on indigenous cultivation in the Americas 2. Classification of field types 3. Crops, tools, and soft technology PART II. AMAZONIAN…
The Columbian Encounter and the Little Ice Age: Abrupt Land Use Change, Fire, and Greenhouse Forcing
- R. A. Dull, R. J. Nevle, W. Woods, D. Bird, Shiri Avnery, W. Denevan
- Environmental Science, Geography
- 31 August 2010
Pre-Columbian farmers of the Neotropical lowlands numbered an estimated 25 million by 1492, with at least 80 percent living within forest biomes. It is now well established that significant areas of…
Semi-Intensive Pre-European Cultivation and the Origins of Anthropogenic Dark Earths in Amazonia
- W. Denevan
- Environmental Science
- 2004
Anthropogenic dark earths are widespread in the uplands (terra firme) of Amazonia, in patches covering a hectare or less up to several hundred hectares. The blacker form (terra preta) seems to have…
Ancient Ridged Fields in the Region of Lake Titicaca
- C. T. Smith, W. Denevan, P. Hamilton
- Environmental Science
- 1 September 1968
Minor landscape features which are apparently the result of pre-Columbian cultivation on poorly drained ter ain h v recently b en describ d in various parts of lowland South America. The most…
Aboriginal Drained-Field Cultivation in the Americas
- W. Denevan
- Geography, MedicineScience
- 14 August 1970
The three main types of land reclamation in aboriginal America were irrigation, terracing, and drainage, which was practiced in varied environments, including high-land basins, tropical savannas, and temperate flood plains.
...
...