Kirk French is a professional archaeologist and an authority on ancient Maya water management systems. He was a
senior member of the Palenque Mapping Project and headed up the team's water management research.
His 2002 University of Cincinnati Master Thesis,
Creating Space Through
Water Management at the Classic Maya Site of Palenque, Chiapas, Mexico (PDF), documented dozens of newly discovered water
features and presented compelling evidence that Palenque expanded its habitable land by controlling the flow of water.
In the spring and summer of 2001 French travelled to twelve different classic Maya sites while assisting a monkey population
and habitat study. During those travels he was able to personally investigate the water management features of each site. At
the sites of Bonampak and Lakamha he encountered undocumented evidence of features similar to those found in Palenque.
French has presented his thesis work at multiple professional conferences and written half a dozen spin off articles.
Currently, he is in the Pennsylvania State Ph.D. program and continues to pursue studies of Maya water management.
Kirk French
