Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant: Symbolic Capital and Ceramic Prestige Goods in the Terminal Preclassic Period Holmul Region, Guatemala

在弗朗西斯科·埃斯特拉达-贝利博士的指导下，迈克尔·卡拉汉将分析2000-2005年范德比尔特·霍尔穆尔考古项目收集的陶瓷材料。Holmul地区位于危地马拉Peten的东北部，最著名的是在危地马拉Holmul遗址发掘的第二组B号建筑，其中包含三个前古典时期（公元0-400年）的玛雅坟墓。墓葬中有许多橙色光泽的容器，展示了前古典时期（公元前300年-公元前0年）和古典时期（公元400-950年）之间的过渡风格，包括最早出现的彩色绘画。在其他玛雅遗址中，这些船只相对稀少，它们独特的外观，以及它们可以追溯到公元0-400年的可靠日期，使得玛雅考古学家们测试并拒绝了许多关于它们与古典玛雅文明出现关系的理论。目前的研究以政治经济学为基础，并测试了一个假设，即橙色光泽容器是在公元前三个世纪的政治危机时期采用的一种新的精英权力战略的物化。这项研究对考古学和人类学具有重要意义，因为它将描绘很少研究的前古典末期玛雅陶瓷经济，并准确地将橙色光泽陶器与古典时期文明的出现联系起来。橙色光泽陶器出现时，旧的政治权力网络正在崩溃，这可以从许多玛雅遗址的战争迹象以及许多前古典晚期中心的崩溃中看到。橙色光泽陶器的生产和交换可能是精英们获得或维持当地政治权力的一种方式。这种策略类似于古典时期的政治经济，在古典时期，控制彩陶的生产和分销是古玛雅政治的一个标志。彩绘罐在精英送礼或再分配网络中流通，就像社会资本一样，巩固了地区间的军事、政治或经济联盟。前古典末期的橙色光泽陶器可能是这种后古典时期权力策略的第一个表现。结合借用考古学（陶瓷模态和标准化分析）、地质学（岩石学分析）和化学（仪器中子活化分析）等领域的陶瓷分析技术，本研究将检验一个假设，即末期前古典时期的橙色光泽陶器是在一个与古典时期相似的精英声望商品网络中生产和分销的。这项研究还将产生重大的社会影响，因为它将有助于美国研究生和危地马拉本科生的考古培训。与此同时，卡拉汉将在实验室磨练他的陶瓷分析技能，他将得到危地马拉瓦莱大学考古项目本科生的协助。学生们将学习在他们的学校里没有教过的高级陶瓷生产分析。这项研究不仅有助于训练美国和危地马拉的学者，还将促进两个群体之间的密切互动，从而导致今后在考古项目和分析方面的合作。

Under the supervision of Dr. Francisco Estrada-Belli, Michael Callaghan will analyze ceramic material collected in the 2000-2005 seasons of the Vanderbilt Holmul Archaeological Project. The Holmul Region is located in the northeastern department of Peten, Guatemala and is best known for the excavation of Building B, Group II at the site of Holmul, Guatemala which contained three Terminal Preclassic period (AD 0-400) Maya tombs. The tombs held a number of orange gloss vessels exhibiting a transitional style between the Preclassic (300 BC - 0) and Classic (AD 400-950) periods - including the earliest appearance of polychrome painting. The relative scarcity of these vessels at other Maya sites, their unique physical appearance, and secure dating to AD 0-400 has led Maya archaeologists to test and reject numerous theories concerning their relationship to the emergence of Classic Maya civilization. The current research is grounded in political economy and tests the hypothesis that orange gloss vessels were the materialization of a new elite power strategy adopted at a time of political crisis during the first three centuries AD.This research is significant to archaeology and anthropology because it will characterize the little studied Terminal Preclassic period Maya ceramic economy and accurately relate orange gloss pottery to the emergence of Classic period civilization. Orange gloss pottery appeared at a time when old networks of political power were crumbling as seen in signs of warfare at many Maya sites as well as the collapse of many Late Preclassic centers. The production and exchange of orange gloss pottery may have been a way for elites to gain or maintain their local political power. This strategy resembles political economy of the Classic periods where control of the production and distribution of polychrome pottery was a hallmark of ancient Maya politics. Polychrome pots circulated in elite gift-giving or redistribution networks functioning like social capital to cement intersite military, political, or economic alliances. Orange gloss pottery of the Terminal Preclassic period may be the first manifestation of this later Classic period power strategy. Using a combination of ceramic analytical techniques borrowed from the fields of archaeology (ceramic modal and standardization analysis), geology (petrographic analysis), and chemistry (Instrumental Neutron Activation analysis) this research will test the hypothesis that Terminal Preclassic orange gloss pottery was produced and distributed within an elite prestige goods network similar to the Classic period.The research will also have a significant social impact as it will contribute to the archaeological training of American graduate students as well as undergraduate Guatemalan students. At the same time that Callaghan will be honing his ceramic analytical skills in the laboratory, he will be assisted by undergraduate students in the archaeological program at Universidad del Valle, Guatemala City. The students will learn the type of high level ceramic production analysis not taught in their home institution. Not only will this research help train both American and Guatemalan scholars, it will promote close interaction between the two groups which will result in future collaboration in archaeological projects and analyses.