Dissertation Research: An Investigation of Land, Water Use, and Social Organization at Guijarral, NW Belize

论文研究：伯利兹西北部吉贾拉尔的土地、用水和社会组织调查

• 批准号: 9528428
• 负责人: E. Wyllys Andrews
• 金额: $ 1.2万
• 依托单位: Tulane University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 1995
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 1995-12-01 至 1996-11-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=9528428&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Dissertation; Research; Investigation; Land; Water

Under the direction of Dr. E. Willis Andrews, Mr. Paul Hughbanks will collect data for his doctoral dissertation. Mr. Hughbanks has conducted two field seasons of archaeological research at Guijarral, a Mayan site located in Northwestern Belize. Excavations to date indicate that it was occupied during the Classic Mayan period. The site itself is located in the head of a small watershed and contains numerous landscape features apparently related to water management. These include both contour terracing and small scale cross-channel terraces. Earth/stone ridges which run both parallel and across slope contours appear constructed to channel water flow and an apparent reservoir has also been located. With support from the National Science Foundation Mr. Hughbanks will conduct an additional field season to complete this mapping work and to excavate a series of habitation structures. He wishes to determine the social context within which water control occurred and through excavation and analysis of artifacts collected, he can both determine the relative status of household inhabitants and the relationship between status and water control. Archaeologists who wish to understand how complex societies developed have often focused on the relationship between social organization and the control of scarce resources. It has been postulated that in the Near East the rise of early civilizations is intimately associated with the development of irrigation systems and that the central function of the high status priestly class was to control water distribution. In many parts of Middle America water is a scarce resource and water related features such as those observed at Guijarral are present. Mr. Hughbanks wants to determine through spatial analysis of the site the extent to which household status and water management are related. Because the site is relatively small, covering ca. 45 hectares, it provides an excellent context for this kind of study. This research is important for several reasons. It will provide data of interest to many archaeologists. It will shed new light on human-environment interactions and assist in training a promising young scientist.

在E·威利斯·安德鲁斯博士的指导下，保罗·休班克斯先生将为他的博士论文收集数据。休班克斯在位于伯利兹西北部的玛雅遗址吉贾拉尔进行了两个考古季节的实地考察。到目前为止的发掘表明，它是在古典玛雅时期占领的。该遗址本身位于一个小流域的头部，包含许多明显与水管理有关的景观特征。这些梯田既包括等高线梯田，也包括小规模跨海峡梯田。平行和横跨斜坡轮廓的土石山脊似乎是为了引导水流而建造的，而且还发现了一个明显的水库。在国家科学基金会的支持下，休班克斯先生将进行额外的实地考察季节，以完成这项测绘工作，并挖掘一系列居住结构。他希望确定治水发生的社会背景，并通过挖掘和分析收集的文物，既可以确定住户的相对地位，也可以确定地位与治水之间的关系。考古学家希望了解复杂社会是如何发展起来的，他们往往把重点放在社会组织和对稀缺资源的控制之间的关系上。据推测，在近东，早期文明的兴起与灌溉系统的发展密切相关，地位较高的祭司阶层的中心职能是控制水的分配。在中美洲的许多地区，水是一种稀缺资源，与水有关的特征，如在吉贾拉尔观察到的那样，都存在。休班克斯希望通过对场地的空间分析，确定家庭状况与水资源管理之间的关联程度。由于遗址相对较小，占地约45公顷，因此为这类研究提供了极好的背景。这项研究之所以重要，有几个原因。它将提供许多考古学家感兴趣的数据。它将为人类与环境的相互作用提供新的线索，并有助于培养一位有前途的年轻科学家。