Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant: Excavation at a Secondary Site Below Monte Alban: Local Elites in the Early State

在Joyce Marcus博士的指导下，Christina Elson女士将为她的博士论文收集数据。她将继续在位于墨西哥瓦哈卡河谷的圣马丁蒂尔卡杰特遗址进行考古研究。考古学家希望了解导致社会复杂性发展的过程，埃尔森女士的工作集中在这一进程的后期：国家的兴起。证据清楚地表明，早期国家在世界上许多地方独立出现，科学家认为，通过对个别例子的比较，可以辨别出一般的潜在过程。从这个角度来看，瓦哈卡地区很重要，因为它见证了大约2000年前萨波特克国家的崛起。虽然在首都蒙特阿尔班进行了大量的研究，但对中央集权统治下的内陆地区知之甚少，埃尔森女士的研究解决了这个问题。她在圣马丁蒂尔卡杰特二级偏远中心的工作将有助于通过调查当地精英及其与蒙特阿尔班首都精英的关系，了解精英在治理中所起的作用。学者们认识到，前拉丁美洲的中美洲精英是一个强大的群体，只占总人口的很小一部分。尽管他们做出的决定对他们自己和他们的追随者产生了深远的影响，但很难获得必要的考古数据来记录他们决策行为的全部变化。阿尔班山的精英们使用了许多不同的政治、经济和意识形态策略，将先前独立的政治整合到早期的国家中。然而，虽然挖掘数据显示在圣马丁蒂尔卡杰特存在类似的群体，但他们的行为却没有清晰的画面。由于该遗址在被纳入萨波特克国家之前是一个独立的实体，因此了解这个群体在这一根本变化中是如何适应的将是有价值的。在之前的工作中，Elson女士发现了一处精英住宅，在国家科学基金会的支持下，她将继续挖掘，从公共建筑和普通家庭等其他环境中获得比较数据。在此基础上，可以对早期的州级行政有一个更全面的认识。这项研究很重要，因为它将产生许多考古学家感兴趣的数据。它将为复杂社会的兴起提供新的线索，并有助于培养有前途的年轻科学家。

Under the direction of Dr. Joyce Marcus, MS Christina Elson will collect data for her doctoral dissertation. She will continue ongoing archaeological research at the site of San Martin Tilcajete, located in the Oaxaca Valley of Mexico. Archaeologists wish to understand the processes which lead to the development of social complexity and MS Elson's work focuses on a latter stage of this progression: the rise of the state. Evidence clearly indicates that early states arose independently in many parts of the world and scientists believe that through comparison of individual examples general underlying processes can be discerned. The Oaxaca region is important from this perspective because it saw the rise of the Zapotec state approximately 2,000 years ago. While considerable research has been conducted at Monte Alban, the capital, relatively little is known about the hinterland regions which came under centralized rule and MS Elson's research addresses this issue. Her work at the secondary outlying center of San Martin Tilcajete will contribute to an understanding of the role elites played in governance through investigation of local elites and their relationship to elites at the capital of Monte Alban. Scholars recognize that prehispanic Mesoamerican elites were a powerful group who comprised a very small percentage of the overall population. Although they made decisions that had far reaching consequences for themselves and their followers, it is difficult to acquire the archaeological data necessary to document the full range of variety in their decision making behavior. The elite at Monte Alban used many different political, economic and ideological tactics to integrate previously independent polities into the early state. However, while excavation data have revealed the presence of a similar group at San Martin Tilcajete, a clear picture of their behavior is not available. Since the site existed as an independent entity prior to incorporation into the Zapotec state it would be valuable to know how this group adapted during this fundamental change. In prior work MS Elson uncovered an elite residence and with NSF support she will continue her excavations to obtain comparative data from other contexts such as public buildings and commoner households. On this basis a more comprehensive picture can be developed of early state level administration.This research is important because it will yield data of interest to many archaeologists. It will shed new light on the rise of complex societies and assist in training a promising young scientist.