Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant: Obsidian Exchange in the South Central Andes

在Mark Aldenderfer博士的监督下，Nicholas Tripcevich将调查和测试秘鲁南部高地一个大型黑铁矿来源附近的考古遗址。研究表明，秘鲁的科尔卡山谷在8000多年的时间里一直是安第斯山脉中南部地区人们黑铁矿的主要来源。在距离源头数百公里的考古遗址的挖掘中，研究人员在与从早期觅食群体到强大的提瓦纳库州的文化相关的遗址中发现了这种化学上截然不同的黑铁矿物质。最近才确定了这一黑铁矿的地质来源，特里佩维奇在这一黑铁矿来源附近的调查将建立在迄今已进行的初步研究的基础上。数千年来，地区对黑玉岩需求的变化将如何影响人们访问源头的活动？在古代晚期(公元前480年)和形成后期(公元前500年)之间，该地区黑铁矿消费的社会政治背景发生了重大变化，社会等级制度和东部的喀喀湖盆地出现了戏剧性的公共建筑。黑麻岩的采购和交换是否与喀喀湖畔的新兴精英密切相关？人类学理论表明，异地社交网络和外地商品的流通是服务于有抱负的领导人的政治野心的重要组成部分。这项研究将侧重于黑铁矿在源头的初始处理过程中的变化，从而从一个角度探讨黑铁矿采购和需求性质的变化。这项研究项目将在采石场和邻近的河谷测量70平方公里，并将在采石场和两个分层地点进行有限的试掘。将通过高海拔黑岩源头及其附近的岩屑减少战略、来自试验挖掘的地层证据和来自调查的定居模式数据来记录对源区黑岩的史前开发。通过研究黑铁矿源头的岩屑加工策略的变化，以及附近河谷聚落模式和碎屑分布的变化，该项目将把岩屑采购区和居民区科尔卡山谷的行为与已知发生的地区政治变化联系起来。拟议的科尔卡地区黑岩生产调查代表了一个案例研究，研究了石材采购和交换之间的关系，以及社会复杂性的演变，将与世界其他地区相媲美。这一研究项目的一个中心方法论目标是整合新的地理技术来处理空间分析问题。在整个项目的组织、设计、购置和分析阶段，遥感和地理信息系统将发挥核心作用。该项目旨在促进在国际上使用这些技术方面的更大的学术合作，并教育有兴趣的秘鲁和外国背景的学生将地理信息系统应用于人类学研究问题。这项研究的结果将准备在参考期刊上发表，并通过项目网站向学者和公众传播。此外，参与该项目的研究生和本科生将通过参与该项目获得现场和分析经验。

Under the supervision of Dr. Mark Aldenderfer, Nicholas Tripcevich will survey and test archaeological sites in the vicinity of a large obsidian source in the highlands of southern Peru. Research has shown that the Colca Valley of Peru was a primary source of obsidian for people in the south-central Andes for over 8,000 years. In excavations at archaeological sites hundreds of kilometers away from the source itself, researchers have found this chemically distinct obsidian material in sites associated with cultures ranging from early foraging groups to those of the powerful Tiwanaku state. The geological source of this obsidian was only recently identified and Tripcevich's survey in the vicinity of this obsidian source will build on the preliminary research that has been conducted to date. How would changes in regional demand for obsidian affect the activities of people visiting the source over the millennia? Significant changes in the socio-political context of obsidian consumption in the region occurred between the Late Archaic (4,800 BC) and the Late Formative (AD 500) with the appearance of social hierarchy and dramatic public architecture in the Lake Titicaca Basin to the east. Was obsidian procurement and exchange closely tied to the emerging elite on the shores of Lake Titicaca? Anthropological theory suggests that long-distance social networks and the circulation of non-local commodities are significant components serving the political ambitions of aspiring leaders. This study will provide a perspective on the changing nature of obsidian procurement and demand by focusing on changes in initial processing of the obsidian at the source. This research project will survey 70 km2 at the quarry and in the adjacent river valley, and will conduct limited test excavations at the quarry and at two stratified sites. Prehistoric exploitation of obsidian in the source region will be documented through lithic reduction strategies at and near the high-altitude obsidian source, stratigraphic evidence from test excavations, and settlement pattern data from survey. By examining changes in lithic processing strategies at the obsidian source, as well as shifts in settlement pattern and debitage distributions in the nearby river valley, this project will connect behavior in the lithic procurement area and the residential Colca valley with political changes known to have taken place regionally.The proposed investigation of obsidian production in the Colca area represents a case-study of the relationship between lithic procurement and exchange, and the evolution of social complexity that will be comparable to other regions in the world. A central methodological aim of this research project is the integration of new geographical technology for approaching spatial analysis problems. Throughout the organization, design, acquisition, and analysis phases of the project remote sensing and geographical information systems (GIS) will have played a central role. This project aims to foster greater scholarly cooperation in the use of these technologies internationally and to educate interested students of both Peruvian and foreign backgrounds about the application of GIS to anthropological research questions. The results of this research will be prepared for publication in refereed journals as well as for dissemination to scholars and to the public through the project website. Additionally, the graduate and undergraduate students involved in the project will gain field and analysis experience through participation in this project.