Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant: Interregional Interaction and Social Identity in Mesoamerica, 1200-1000 BC: A Possible Olmec Enclave in Chiapas, Mexico

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Under the supervision of Dr. Barbara L. Stark, David Cheetham will analyze data collected during excavations at a possible early Olmec period (1150-1000 BC) colony called Canton Corralito. For more than 50 years, and without reaching consensus, archaeologists have investigated the kinds of long-distance interaction underlying the simultaneous appearance of "Olmec style" objects in separate regions of Middle or Meso-America. The Gulf Olmec culture of Veracruz, Mexico-famous for its exceptionally large stone sculptures and advanced social and political structure-certainly played a role in the circulation of this distinctive style, but the magnitude and nature of its involvement remain speculative and highly contestable. Resolution of these issues demands explicit knowledge of social relations between the Gulf Olmec and distant cultures before and during the spread of the Olmec style, a goal that can only be achieved though detailed comparison of archaeological materials on a case-by-case basis since written records are lacking for this early era.This project will investigate the nature of social relations between the Gulf Olmec and Mokaya peoples of Pacific Coastal Chiapas, Mexico-an archaeological culture located 450 km south of Veracruz. Excavations at the site of Canton Corralito, located in the heart of Mokaya territory, yielded an unprecedented 5-6,000 early Olmec style objects like elaborate fired-clay figurines and ceramic vessels decorated with carved icons. The quantity and quality of this material suggest that Canton Corralito was an Olmec colony, perhaps the first colony in the Americas. Five hundred objects from Canton Corralito, neighboring sites, and the largest Gulf Olmec site in Veracruz will be submitted for Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis (INAA). This technique will separate locally produced and imported objects on the basis of chemical composition. Most important, it will anchor a series of comparative stylistic and morphological (shape) analyses of the resulting groups. The coupling of chemical fingerprinting and meticulous comparison of several artifact classes provides the most powerful means for determining the social identity of the potential enclave's occupants, thereby clarifying the nature of early long-distance interaction between the Gulf Olmec and one distant region of Meso-America.This project will add a level of detailed comparison that is currently lacking in early Olmec studies, but its merit is not limited to the immediate findings or future value to Meso-American scholars. The results will be significant to worldwide studies of social identity manifest in material culture and the role of ethnic enclaves in cases of stylistic convergence over great distances. The study will be valuable for its general anthropological and archaeological utility. The results will be published in academic journals, books, and popular formats readily accessible to the general public (e.g., magazines).The broader impacts of this project are many, including international cooperation. A graduate student from The Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico (UNAM) was part of the field crew and has access to archaeological materials from Canton Corralito. Another UNAM student has access to the human remains for a planned DNA study. Such recruitment and intellectual property sharing will be intensified in the future. For example, a grant from the Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies (FAMSI) will enable several hundred Olmec style objects from Canton Corralito to be illustrated and permanently posted on their website. This will benefit Mexican researchers and scholars worldwide for years to come.