Ceramic Analysis of Guatamalan Archaeological Materials

Drs。Frederick Bove和Hector Neff将对来自危地马拉太平洋海岸的考古陶瓷进行分析，这些陶瓷可以追溯到公元250年之前和之后的时期，这一时期标志着从一组被称为“晚期形成”的文化到另一组被称为“早期经典”的文化的突然变化。该团队将对大约400块陶片进行仪器中子活化分析，其中大部分来自巴尔贝尔塔遗址的分层沉积物。他们还将从该地区的粘土沉积物中收集和分析200个原材料样本。结合已有的数据，以及双目显微镜检查、膏体颜色分析、类型和属性分析，应该可以追踪陶瓷生产和分布在这个时间边界上的变化。尽管其他考古学家已经注意到这种从形成到古典的突然转变，但对此的解释各不相同。一些人认为，一些灾难性的自然事件，如火山爆发，导致了文化的迅速变化。也有人认为，与墨西哥中部的长距离文化接触发挥了重要作用。最后，有人认为区域内或地方进程是造成这种变化的原因。这个问题很重要，因为早期古典标志着等级组织的中央集权国家的出现，取代了更统一和广泛分布的组织形式。接下来的问题是，是什么过程导致了美国中部低地州的崛起。陶瓷分析应该揭示生产和贸易的组织，这反过来应该提供洞察社会和政治组织的变化。这项研究很重要，因为它将揭示国家产生的过程，并导致像我们这样的复杂社会的发展。它也将增加我们对新大陆史前的了解。

Drs. Frederick Bove and Hector Neff will conduct analyses of archaeological ceramics from the Pacific coast of Guatemala which date to the periods immediately preceding and following 250 A.D. This date marks an abrupt change from a group of cultures termed "Terminal Formative" to another set termed "Early Classic." The team will conduct instrumental neutron activation analysis on approximately 400 potsherds, most from the stratified deposits at the site of Balberta. They shall also collect and analyze 200 raw material samples from clay deposits in the region. Together with data already in hand, as well as binocular microscope examination, paste color analysis, and typological and attribute analysis, it should be possible to trace changes in ceramic production and distribution across this time boundary. Although the abrupt Formative-Classic transition has been noted by other archaeologists, explanations for this have varied. Some have suggested that some catastrophic natural event such as a volcanic eruption caused rapid culture change. It has also been suggested that long-distance culture contacts with central Mexico played a significant role. Finally, it has been argued that intra-regional or local processes are responsible for this change. The issue is important because the Early Classic marks the appearance of hierarchically organized centralized states which replace a more uniform and widely distributed form of organization. The question then is what process is responsible for the rise of the state in lowland Middle America. The ceramic analysis should shed light on organization of production and trade and this, in turn, should provide insight into changes in social and political organization. This research is important because it will shed light on the processes which gave rise to the state and led to the development of complex societies such as our own. It will also increase our understanding of the prehistory of the New World.