Feasibility Study of the Chunchucmil Regional Economy

在国家科学基金会的支持下，布鲁斯·达林博士和安东尼·安德鲁斯博士将在位于墨西哥尤卡坦地区的Chunchucmil遗址进行探索性考古研究。尽管在这个由一群玛雅遗迹组成的遗址上已经进行了初步工作，但人们对它或周围腹地的了解相对较少。甚至还不清楚它到底是何时有人居住的，占领是持续的还是断断续续的。Dahlin根据航拍照片进行的初步工作表明，它支持了大量人口。这是一项计划时间更长的研究的第一阶段，达林博士和安德鲁斯博士将进行可行性研究。他们将对该地点进行初步检查，以确定绘制地图的最佳方式。他们还将对周围地区进行初步勘察，以确定较小地点的类型和密度，并决定如何最好地设计区域调查。一些地区，如相关的低地沿海沼泽，很难进入，因此非常不为人所知。在这一季实地研究的基础上，将设计一个更大的长期项目。玛雅人在今天人口非常少的地区建造了拥有大规模公共建筑的城市。根据考古证据，史前的密度可能比现代的密度高得多，考古学家希望了解这些古代玛雅人采用的生存策略。初步分析表明，如果仅依靠当地的农业生产，Chunchucmil地区缺乏支持史前人口的承载能力。Dahlin希望重建史前人口密度，确定这种环境的生产潜力，并最终试图理解所采用的生存战略。这个项目之所以重要，有几个原因。它将增加我们对史前玛雅文明的了解。它还有望提供对这类环境的当今利用有用的信息。

With National Science Foundation support, Drs. Bruce Dahlin and Anthony Andrews will conduct exploratory archaeological research at the site of Chunchucmil which is located in the Yucatan region of Mexico. Although preliminary work has been done at this site which consists of a cluster of Mayan ruins, relatively little is known about it or the surrounding hinterland. It is even unclear exactly when it was inhabited and whether occupation was continuous or episodic. Preliminary work by Dahlin based on aerial photographs suggests it supported a large population. In this, the first stage of a longer planned study, Drs. Dahlin and Andrews will conduct a feasibility study. They will carry out a preliminary examination of the site to determine the best way to map it. They will also undertake a preliminary reconnaissance of the surrounding region to determine the types and densities of smaller sites and decide how best to design a regional survey. Some areas, such as the associated lowland coastal swamps are difficult to access and consequently very poorly known. On the basis of the results of this one season of field research, a larger long term project will be designed. The Mayans built cities with massive public architecture in regions which today support very low human populations. Based on the archaeological evidence, prehistoric densities were likely much higher than their modern counterparts and archaeologists wish to understand the subsistence strategies these ancient Mayans employed. Preliminary analysis indicates that the Chunchucmil region lacked the carrying capacity to support the prehistoric population if one relied on local agricultural production alone. Dahlin wishes to reconstruct prehistoric population densities determine the production potential of this environment and finally try to understand the subsistence strategies employed. This project is important for several reasons. It will increase our understanding of prehistoric Mayan civilization. It will also hopefully yield information useful for the present day utilization of environments of this type.