Archaeological Investigations at La Quemada, Zacatecas, Mexico

在国家科学基金会的支持下，本·纳尔逊博士将在位于墨西哥北部的拉奎马达遗址继续他的考古研究。他还将把调查范围扩大到邻近的较小的卫星社区皮拉里洛。迄今为止的研究表明，拉奎马达是一个主要的史前中心，大约在公元600-750年间被占领。它包括礼仪性的球场，一座寺庙和其他主要建筑。在两个野外季节的过程中，纳尔逊博士和他的合作者将进行一系列挖掘。他们将继续曝光仪式结构。此外，他们还将在盛产陶瓷和其他文化遗迹的中部沉没一些测试单位。最后，测试单元也将在梯田之间的区域开放，那里的表面看不到结构的证据。这样做的目的是为了验证这样一个命题，即由易腐烂材料建造的“低地位”建筑散布在更精致的建筑中。在皮拉里洛遗址，将收集表面材料并绘制地图。在此基础上，将选定区域进行挖掘。利用这些数据，将解决几个问题：宏观区域和区域年表是什么？最大的遗址拉奎马达是什么社会组织，发挥了什么作用？这个史前群体的生存基础是什么？他们是如何适应并反过来影响他们的环境的？多年的研究使考古学家对史前墨西哥中部文化和更南边的玛雅地区有了相当多的了解。同样，在美国西南部也做了很多工作，在那里，像查科峡谷这样的大片遗址已经被广泛挖掘。然而，人们对介于其间的墨西哥北部地区知之甚少。如果没有这些数据，就很难研究相互作用这个有趣的问题，以及西南文化在多大程度上受到南方同时代人的影响或作为南方同时代人的异常值。纳尔逊博士的工作将为墨西哥北部地区提供一个框架，并表明它是起到了屏障还是管道的作用。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。它将增加我们对复杂社会和区域间网络如何发展的理解，以及美国西南部史前社会自主发展的程度。

With National Science Foundation support Dr. Ben Nelson will continue his archaeological research at the site of La Quemada which is located in Northern Mexico. He will also expand his investigation to the neighboring smaller satellite community of Pilarillos. Work to date has indicated that La Quemada served as a major prehistoric center and was occupied at approximately 600-750 AD. It includes ceremonial ball courts, a temple and other major structures. Over the course of two field seasons Dr. Nelson and his collaborators will conduct a series of excavations. They will continue to expose the ceremonial structure. In addition they will sink a number of test units in middens which are rich in ceramic and other cultural remains. Finally test units will also be opened in areas between terraces where no evidence of structures is visible on the surface. The purpose of these is to test the proposition that "low status" structures built of perishable materials were interspersed among the more elaborate buildings. At the site of Pilarillos surface materials will be collected and a map made. On this basis areas will then be selected for excavation. With these data several questions will be addressed: What is the macroregional and regional chronology? What was the social organization and what role was played by La Quemada which is the largest site? What was the subsistence basis for this prehistoric group and how did they adapt to and in turn affect their environment? Years of research have given archaeologists considerable knowledge about prehistoric Central Mexican cultures and of Mayan regions further to the South. Likewise much work has been done in the American Southwest where large sites such as those at Chaco Canyon have been extensively excavated. However relatively little is known about the intervening northern Mexico area. Without this data it is difficult to examine the intriguing question of interaction and the extent to which Southwestern cultures were influenced by or served as outliers of their southern contemporaries. Dr. Nelson's work will provide a framework for the northern Mexico region and show whether it acted as barrier or conduit. The research is important for several reasons. It will provide data of interest to many archaeologists. It will increase our understanding of how complex societies and inter regional networks develop and the extent to which Southwestern U.S. prehistoric societies developed autonomously.