bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Archaeological Interpretations of West Mexican Ceramic Art From the Late Preclassic Period: Three Figurine projects
Authors: Day Jane Stevenson , Butterwick Kristi , Pickering Robert B. 
Published: October 2008

AbstractScholars of West Mexico generally rely on the ceramic figurine tradition found in shaft tombs for interpreting the prehistory of the Late Preclassic period. Three new projects on shaft-tomb ceramics seek to advance our understanding of the Late Formative culture and societies of this region. First, ceramic figures are examined for evidence of the ball game in West Mexico; second, for cultural information about domestic and community organization; and third, for ways to differentiate authentic figures from modern reproductions.
Technological Change: Ceramic Mortuary Technology in the Valley of Atemajac From the Late Formative to the Classic Periods
Authors: Aronson Meredith 
Published: October 2008

AbstractThis study investigates prehistoric West Mexican mortuary activities as technological systems. Specifically, the production, distribution, and use of mortuary ceramics are considered within a social context. Technological changes occurring between the Late Formative and Classic periods (200b.c.–a.d. 700) at the site of Tabachines are compared to changes occurring at the center of the Teuchitlan tradition, 50 km away. At Tabachines, all aspects of the technology point to profound social change: tomb construction, treatment of the dead and offerings, and the approach to the production and use of mortuary ceramics. These changes are considered within a regional scope.
The Sayula Basin: Lifeways and Salt Flats of Central Jalisco
Authors: Valdez Francisco , Liot Catherine , Acosta Rosario , Emphoux Jean Pierre 
Published: October 2008

AbstractRecent research in the Sayula Basin of central Jalisco is gradually presenting a fuller view of the lifeways that characterized the people who lived on this thoroughfare, traditionally known for its vast salt flats. Salvage excavations undertaken at two major sites have supplied a number of new elements that are confirming and expanding previous knowledge of the chronological sequence, the ceramic complexes, the uses of space within an apparently closed area, and the possible sphere of interactions developed by the pre-Hispanic inhabitants of this part of western Mexico. Special attention is given to evidence relating to the study of native salt production.
Monkey Business at Northern River Lagoon: A coastal–Inland Interaction Sphere in Northern Belize
Authors: Mock Shirley Boteler 
Published: October 2008

AbstractOngoing fieldwork at the coastal site of Northern River Lagoon (NRL) in northern Belize, a specialized saltmaking community, has revealed a consumer relationship with the large, inland, stone-tool-producing center of Colha during the Late to Terminal Classic. Artifact distribution suggests that this economic partnership involved the movement of salt, salted products, and trade goods to Colha in exchange for stone tools. This inland–coastal partnership was enhanced by a shared ideology reflected in the iconography of identical Palmar Orange-polychrome plates. The presence of the ideologically imbued plates in both elite and nonelite contexts suggests they were intended to strengthen group allegiance and reinforce territorial boundaries during this troubled time. This study stimulates new insights into the structure of ancient Maya coastal–inland interaction spheres in northern Belize, thereby facilitating comparisons between local areas within a regional context.
Decapitated Lunar Goddesses in Aztec Art, Myth, and Ritual
Authors: Milbrath Susan 
Published: October 2008

AbstractAztec images of decapitated goddesses link the symbolism of astronomy with politics and the seasonal cycle. Rituals reenacting decapitation may refer to lunar events in the context of a solar calendar, providing evidence of a luni-solar calendar. Decapitation imagery also involves metaphors expressing the rivalry between the cults of the sun and the moon. Huitzilopochtli's decapitation of Coyolxauhqui can be interpreted as a symbol of political conquest linked to the triumph of the sun over the moon. Analysis of Coyolxauhqui's imagery and mythology indicates that she represents the full moon eclipsed by the sun. Details of the decapitation myth indicate specific links with seasonal transition and events taking place at dawn and at midnight. Other decapitated goddesses, often referred to as earth goddesses with “lunar connections,” belong to a complex of lunar deities representing the moon within the earth (the new moon). Cihuacoatl, a goddess of the new moon, takes on threatening quality when she assumes the form of atzitzimimeattacking the sun during a solar eclipse. The demonic new moon was greatly feared, for it could cause an eternal solar eclipse bringing the Aztec world to an end.
The Vanderbilt Petexbatun Regional Archaeological Project 1989–1994: Overview, History, and Major Results of a Multidisciplinary Study of the Classic Maya collapse
Authors: Demarest Arthur A. 
Published: October 2008

AbstractThe background, research design, structure, personnel, and history of investigations of the Vanderbilt Petexbatun Archaeological Project are summarized and critiqued. The major findings of each of the dozen subprojects of this multidisciplinary investigation of Maya civilization in the southwestern Peten region of Guatemala are reviewed. Subproject results include important new evidence on Classic Maya history, warfare, ecology, nutrition, cave ritual, social organization, and trade. These are summarized with particular emphasis on the implications of the Petexbatun findings for theories of the decline of southern lowland Maya civilization at the end of the Classic period.
Classic Maya Defensive Systems and Warfare in the Petexbatun Region: Archaeological Evidence and Interpretations
Authors: Demarest Arthur A. , O'Mansky Matt , Wolley Claudia , Van Tuerenhout Dirk , Inomata Takeshi , Palka Joel , Escobedo Héctor 
Published: October 2008

AbstractFrom 1989 to 1996, excavation and surveys were carried out at dozens of sites and intersite areas in the southwestern Peten by the Defensive Systems Subproject of the Vanderbilt Petexbatun Regional Archaeological Project and by subsequent related Vanderbilt investigations. The excavations and analyses explored fortification systems, related settlement, and artifactual evidence. Beginning at abouta.d. 760, the major centers of the Classic Maya civilization in the Petexbatun region were fortified by a massive expenditure of labor on defensive walls of masonry, usually surmounted by wooden palisades. As warfare accelerated, major centers and later even small hilltop villages were located in highly defensible positions and were fortified by walls, palisades, moats, and baffled gateways. Despite these efforts, all major centers were virtually abandoned by the early ninth century. Bya.d. 830, only the island fortress of Punta de Chimino and a very reduced and scattered population remained in the Petexbatun region.
The Paleoecology and Ancient Settlement of the Petexbatun Region, Guatemala
Authors: Dunning Nicholas , Beach Timothy , Rue David 
Published: October 2008

AbstractThe Petexbatun region has a series of upland ridges surrounded by lowland wetlands. In Preclassic times, ancient Maya peoples began colonizing the region along waterways. Although few in number, they cleared large areas of upland tropical forest for agriculture and induced significant soil erosion. Population contracted in the region during the Early Classic, and mature tropical forest growth returned. During the Late Classic, population expanded rapidly across the region, forest clearance resumed, and desirable, intensively cultivated, upland areas were divided by an elaborate wall system. Upland agriculture during the Late Classic included the use of several types of terracing that significantly checked soil erosion during this period. Considerable variation may have existed between the urban agriculture practiced in the region's three major centers—Dos Pilas, Tamarindito, and Aguateca.
Biological Perspectives on the Collapse of the Pasión Maya
Authors: Wright Lori E. 
Published: October 2008

AbstractThis paper reviews bioarchaeological research that aimed to test the biological correlates of ecological explanations for the Maya collapse using human skeletal remains from five sites in the Pasión region. Stable isotope ratios of bone collagen and alkaline earth ratios in bone minerals do not support the expectation of increased reliance on maize and declining meat consumption during the final years of Pasión occupation. Moreover, skeletal pathology does not illustrate any increment in anemia, infectious disease, or dental growth disruption that is predicted to have been a consequence of high population density and deteriorating nutrition. Instead, changes in the social distribution of foods during the Terminal Classic supports the mounting evidence that the Pasión collapse was fueled more by sociopolitical transformations than environmental ones.
Changing Ceramic Production and Exchange in the Petexbatun Region, Guatemala: Reconsidering the Classic Maya Collapse
Authors: Foias Antonia E. , Bishop Ronald L. 
Published: October 2008

AbstractThe typological, modal, and chemical analyses of the pottery from the Petexbatun region of southwestern Peten, Guatemala, are used to establish a regional ceramic chronology and to assess three theories used to explain the Classic Maya collapse of the ninth and tenth centuriesa.d.The three explanations are based on: (1) foreign invasion; (2) commercialization; and (3) internal warfare. Each of these theories suggests different changes in the regional ceramic-production and -exchange systems of the Petexbatun. Shifts in the ceramic production system are monitored using a standardization study, while instrumental neutron-activation analysis (INAA) is used to model changes in interregional exchange. The results of these analyses indicate that there was a continuity in the ceramic assemblage from the Late Classic Nacimiento phase (a.d.600–830) to the Terminal Classic Sepens phase (a.d.830–950). Together with little change in architectural, mortuary, and other artifactual styles, this finding suggests that no foreign groups invaded the Petexbatun region, and therefore did not lead to the collapse in the Pasion region. The small decreases in pottery standardization and the minor shifts in interregional exchange do not support the second theory that a major reorganization of Maya economy undercut the power base of the Maya elite class. On the other hand, these small decreases in standardization and in the scale of exchange do support the third theory, which suggests that internal warfare between the regional polities disrupted exchange, leading to more localized production. The stability of the ceramic production and exchange systems in the Petexbatun region throughout the collapse also suggests that the political and economic systems were largely disconnected. These findings suggest that internal political processes leading to an increase in competition and to intensified warfare were important factors in the Classic Maya collapse of the Petexbatun region in Peten, Guatemala.
Reconstructing Classic Maya Socioeconomic Differentiation and the Collapse at Dos Pilas, Peten, Guatemala
Authors: Palka Joel W. 
Published: October 2008

AbstractThree field seasons of extensive residential archaeology at Dos Pilas, Peten, Guatemala, provide important data for the examination of ancient Maya social structure and the Classic Period collapse in the Petexbatun region. A sampling strategy guiding excavations in structures of different size and architectural configuration enables us to reconstruct the multifaceted, segmented nature of Maya social inequalities and helps to elucidate the effects of the collapse on the lives of people of various socioeconomic ranks and statuses. Other significant findings of the project include hieroglyphic vessels and stone sculptures in nonroyal elite domestic compounds, postcollapse occupation in the settlement, as well as continued craft production and interregional trade into Terminal Classic times and after elite abandonment of the site. The results of household archaeology at Dos Pilas, which demonstrate that elites were affected first and foremost during the collapse, support theories of intensified elite competition, socio-political instability, and warfare for the Maya downfall in the Petexbatun Region, and not environmental degradation or breakdowns in interregional trade.
Arroyo de Piedra: Sociopolitical Dynamics of a Secondary Center in the Petexbatun Region
Authors: Escobedo Héctor L. 
Published: October 2008

AbstractArroyo de Piedra occupies a strategic position between the sites of Dos Pilas and Tamarindito, the dominant polities in the Petexbatun region. Temples, palaces, sculptured monuments, quarries, and a defensive wall reflect the importance of this small site. Archaeological and epigraphic investigations conducted by Vanderbilt University from 1990 to 1994 demonstrate that Arroyo de Piedra was founded and ruled by members of the royal family of Tamarindito during the Early Classic. In the Late Classic, Arroyo de Piedra was absorbed by the expansionistic Dos Pilas dynasty through a matrimonial alliance. The marriage was apparently imposed by means of coercion as suggested by evidence of intentional destruction of local sculpture. The center was abandoned during the Terminal Classic, after the fall of Dos Pilas.
Glimpses of the Dark Side of the Petexbatun Project: The Petexbatun Regional Cave Survey
Authors: Brady James E. , Scott Ann , Cobb Allan , Rodas Irma , Fogarty John , Sánchez Monica Urquizú 
Published: October 2008

AbstractThe Petexbatun Regional Cave Survey (PRCS) is the first large cave study to be undertaken as part of a major archaeological expedition. The survey's primary objective was assessing the extent to which surface architecture at Dos Pilas was configured by features in the sacred landscape. All three of the major architectural complexes at the site had a direct relation to caves, and a number of important secondary buildings and even residential units were deliberately laid out to incorporate caves. Excavation revealed evidence of Preclassic utilization of all of the major caves, indicating that their status as sacred landmarks had been established long before the eighth century florescence of the site. The importance of the caves in site configuration was mirrored in the artifact assemblage. Despite the survey's much smaller size, the cave investigations recovered 20–50% more of the overall assemblage at Dos Pilas in an array of artifact categories. A review of the archaeological literature suggests that the importance ascribed to caves at Dos Pilas in both site configuration and local economy can be found elsewhere and probably reflects a much wider pattern of utilization.
Punta Canbalam in Context
Authors: Dahlin Bruce H. , Andrews Anthony P. , Beach Timothy , Bezanilla Clara , Farrell Patrice , Luzzadder-Beach Sheryl , McCormick Valerie 
Published: October 2008

AbstractInvestigations at Punta Canbalam on the Gulf Coast of Campeche reveal it is probably the largest of several important but underreported trading sites on the pan-Mesoamerican maritime trade route. The coastline has been unstable for the last thousand years, subjecting the site to sea level changes and repeated episodes of beach erosion and redeposition. The relatively dense scatter of temporally mixed, highly weathered sherds and other artifacts on an exceedingly narrow, modern beach indicates that it is all secondarily deposited and that its original location was offshore. An interdisciplinary team is beginning to recognize clues in its environmental and cultural contexts as to where this peripatetic site was originally located and the extent to which it depended upon exchanges of salt, petty commodities from inland, and canoe-borne exotics from afar. This predominantly Terminal Classic and Early Postclassic site likely served as a port of entry for obsidian, jade, fine-paste ceramics, and other goods for the nearby inland city of Chunchucmil. It also probably supplied the interior with marine and estuarine food and ornamental and ritual products in exchange for inland agricultural products and other items.
The Lowland Maya “Protoclassic”
Authors: Brady James E. , Ball Joseph W. , Bishop Ronald L. , Pring Duncan C. , Hammond Norman , Housley Rupert A. 
Published: October 2008

AbstractThe term “Protoclassic,” employed regularly but inexplicitly in the literature of lowland Maya archaeology, has become increasingly nebulous and ambiguous in both meaning and usage. This paper reviews the history and use of the term and presents a formal redefinition of the Protoclassic as a ceramic stage based explicitly and exclusively on ceramic criteria. Some suggestions regarding future use of the term also are offered. The paper further addresses and resolves a number of persisting questions regarding Protoclassic orange wares, including problems concerning the actual existence of the “Aguacate ceramic group.” and the relationships of Aguacate-group pottery to other emergent orange wares of the terminal Late Preclassic and initial Early Classic periods. The nature and significance of the “Holmul I Style,” the “Floral Park Ceramic Sphere.” and the relationships of the two to each other and the larger, redefined “protoclassic” ceramic stage also are examined. A spatial distribution for protoclassic ceramics considerably expanded over what has ever been reported previously is described, and Chronometric data are presented to support a revised chronology for the protoclassic ceramic stage. Finally, ceramic data are offered that suggest a real subdivision of the protoclassic ceramic stage into an early, emergent facet originating entirely within Late Preclassic lowland traditions, and a later, fully “Classic” facet corresponding to the early Tzakol (Tzakol 1) ceramic horizon.
Community Organization in the Parroquia de Yaxcaba, Yucatan, Mexico, 1750–1847
Authors: Alexander Rani T. 
Published: October 2008

AbstractThe following paper examines archaeological variability in community organization of sites in the parroquia de Yaxcaba. Yucatan, Mexico, froma.d.1750 to 1847. Using historical and archaeological evidence, the course of political-economic change in Yucatan is followed from the recovery of the Indian population in 1750, through the Bourbon reforms and Independence from Spain, to the Caste War of Yucatan in 1847 in order to assess its implications for continuity or discontinuity of Maya adaptive patterns. Three settlements—a pueblo, a hacienda, and an independent rancho—were intensively mapped to reveal patterns of house lots, streets, features, plazas, and public architecture. Differences in spatial organization among the settlements can be specifically linked to variation in population growth, tax structure, and land stress coincident with changes in the colonial regime. Variation in household production strategies and the choice of tactics that minimize subsistence risk were largely dependent on the community's degree of integration with the colonial system. The evidence from Yaxcaba suggests that two key processes are particularly important in determining articulations between rural and urban areas: disenfranchisement from the means of production and the extension of credit. These two processes affect variation in the relations of production that partly explain how communities either become entangled in or remain apart from political-economic change.
The Ceramics of Cuello, Belize
Authors: Kosakowsky Laura J. , Pring Duncan C. 
Published: October 2008

AbstractThe site of Cuello in northern Belize provides a long ceramic sequence from the early Middle Preclassic, ca. 1200b.c., to the Late Preclassic, sometime in the fourth centurya.d.Excavations begun at Cuello in 1975 were completed in 1993. The initial controversy concerning the chronological placement of the earliest pottery of the Swasey and Bladen complexes is challenged by examining the 1992 and 1993 excavated material in a “blind analysis,” without benefit of stratigraphic information. The results demonstrate conclusively the stratigraphie priority of Swasey ceramics below Bladen, which in turn lie below pottery of the Middle Preclassic Lopez-Mamom complex. Cuello operated within the homogeneous Mamom ceramic sphere during the Middle Preclassic and within the Chicanel ceramic sphere during the Late Preclassic. The ultimate breakup of the Chicanel sphere resulted in Cuello's adherence to the older ceramic traditions, while other Maya sites had begun the production of polychrome pottery. Cuello represents one of the best-known Middle Preclassic Maya sites yet investigated, and it provides an important perspective on this poorly understood time period in the Maya lowlands.
Refining an Early Formative Ceramic Sequence From the Chiapas Coast of Mexico
Authors: Lesure Richard G. 
Published: October 2008

AbstractAnalysis of Early Formative ceramics from the site of Paso de la Amada, on the coast of Chiapas, Mexico, yields a refined sequence for the period 1400–1000b.c.A simple key has been developed to classify midden assemblages. Its utility for creating chronologically sensitive groupings is confirmed by multidimensional scaling of 32 units. The refined ceramic sequence provides a basis for investigating short-term sociopolitical dynamics during the Early Formative period.
Famine Vulnerability in the Contact-Era Basin of Mexico
Authors: Whitmore Thomas M. , Williams Barbara J. 
Published: October 2008

AbstractThis study simulates vulnerability to famine and food poverty among peasant households in the Basin of Mexico two decades after the Conquest. Using demographic and cadastral data recorded in theCódice de Santa María Asunción(Tepetlaoztoc), vulnerability is assessed by comparing household and patio-group (household compound) food production to consumption needs at the same scales, Modeling of food production of the principal subsistence crops (maize, beans, and maguey) uses the soil types noted for each field in the Asuncion document and a production model that accounts for soil-productivity differences. Both typical and poor years are modeled. Household and patio-group food needs are based on the codex data for each individual in the community. The study reveals that 60% of the population was at risk of famine in a poor year and that up to 16% would have suffered food poverty in a typical year. Nevertheless, even in a poor year, 40% of the population would have had adequate-or-better nutrition. Thus, this analysis supports contrasting views of early Contact-period nutrition. Because of the unequal distribution of food-production resources in Nahua society, some commoner households were usually adequately fed, while others normally suffered chronic undernutrition. Patio groups represent a possible response to this situation, as analysis by patio group indicated reduced vulnerability to food poverty. Land per capita ratios appear to be the best explanation of the differences in food poverty and famine risk among the households or patio groups.