Prehistoric Caves of Yagul and Mitla in the Central Valley of Oaxaca
Located on the northern slopes of the Tlacolula Valley in central subtropical Oaxaca, the property consists of two pre-Hispanic archaeological complexes and a series of prehistoric caves and rock shelters. Some of these shelters provide archaeological and rock art evidence of the progression of nomadic hunter-gatherers to early farmers. Ten-thousand-year-old cucurbit seeds from the Guilá Naquitz cave are considered the earliest known evidence of domesticated plants on the continent, while corncob fragments from the same cave are said to be the earliest documented evidence of maize domestication. The cultural landscapes of the Yagul and Mitla prehistoric caves demonstrate the connection between man and nature that led to the domestication of North American plants and thus to the rise of Mesoamerican civilizations.