Dissertation Research: Study of an Ancient Maya Bajo Community in Northwestern Belize

在帕特里克·卡尔伯特博士的指导下，朱莉·库宁女士将为她的博士论文收集数据。在一季初步田野工作的基础上，她将继续在La Milpa考古遗址进行调查和挖掘。位于伯利兹西北部的这个大型低地玛雅人聚居地包含了一系列大小不一的建筑，从家庭规模的小土丘到大型纪念性建筑。也许最有趣的是一个水库和排水系统的存在，这些系统调节着水的储存和释放到场地的不同区域。这意味着高度集中的水管理和控制。与该遗址相关的还有地势低洼的沼泽地带，也被称为巴霍斯。这些特征一直是人们猜测的焦点，因为许多研究人员认为，这些地区被有目的的人类改造显著改变，成为了高产的农田系统。他们认为，巴乔农业使玛雅人达到了在热带低地环境中不同寻常的人口密度。库能将在一个巴霍进行广泛的挖掘，以寻找文化上的变化。她将准备一份详细的植被地图，因为有证据表明，植被模式的细粒度变化提供了人类操纵土壤的迹象。在她的前期工作中，库南女士找到了一些位于巴霍边缘的遗址，她将对它们进行调查和挖掘。她想了解史前拉米尔巴居民的社会组织，并希望检验这样一种观点，即家庭规模和地位的变化是由他们在地形上相对于农业资源的相对位置决定的。因为她的工作是一个更大项目的一部分，她将能够将她挖掘的定居点与位于非巴乔地区的定居点进行比较。这项研究之所以重要，有几个原因。它将阐明史前玛雅人如何用相对简单的技术在资源匮乏的环境中实现高人口密度。它可能会为玛雅社会组织的原则提供新的见解，并将有助于培养一位有前途的年轻科学家。

Under the direction of Dr. Patrick Culbert MS Julie Kunen will collect data for her doctoral dissertation. Building on one season of preliminary fieldwork, she will continue survey and excavation at the archaeological site of La Milpa. Located in northwestern Belize this large lowland Mayan settlement contains a range of structures which vary in size from small household size mounds to major monumental structures. Most interesting perhaps is the presence of a system of reservoirs and drainages that regulated the storage and release of water to different areas of the site. This suggests a high degree of centralized water management and control. Also associated with the site are low-lying swampy areas known as `bajos.` These features have been the focus of much speculation because many researchers believe that these areas were significantly altered by purposeful human modification and served as highly productive field systems. They believe that bajo agriculture allowed Mayan peoples to achieve population densities unusual in lowland tropical settings. MS Kunen will conduct extensive excavation in one bajo to search for cultural modifications. She will prepare a detailed vegetation map since evidence indicates that fine grained variation in vegetation patterns provides indications of human manipulation of soil. During her preliminary work MS Kunen located a number of sites located near the edge of the bajo and she will survey and excavate them. She wants to understand the social organization of the prehistoric La Milpa inhabitants and wishes to test the idea that variation in household size and status is determined by their relative placement on the landscape in relation to agricultural resources. Because her work is part of a larger project, she will be able to compare the settlements she excavates to those located in non-bajo areas. This research is important for several reasons. It will shed light on how the prehistoric Maya with a relatively simple technology were able to achieve high population densities in a resource poor environment. It may provide new insight into the principles of Mayan social organization and will assist in training a promising young scientist.