Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant. A Study of Late Classic Maya Port Function: Investigations at Trinidad de Nosotros, El Peten, Guatemala.

在E.Wyllys Andrews五世博士的监督下，Matthew D.Moriarty将在特立尼达de Nosotros古玛雅遗址进行考古调查。特立尼达位于危地马拉佩滕伊萨湖的北岸，大约在公元前600年至公元1525年被占领。最近的调查收集了极好的初步证据，证明特立尼达是一个古老的玛雅港口。这一研究项目旨在确认特立尼达作为港口的作用，并考察影响长途贸易组织的社会、政治和经济因素的相互作用。调查将评估特立尼达居民随时间推移获得特定贸易货物(例如黑铁矿、玉石、海贝壳)的程度，并与附近其他定居点的居民进行比较。其他调查将侧重于确定与贸易有关的设施(例如，港口、仓储和市场综合体)，并描述港口中常见的专门经济活动(例如，工艺生产和原材料加工)。对一个古代港口的研究提供了一个不同寻常的机会，可以同时直接讨论经济组织的多个方面。作为将当地经济与更大的区域间经济系统联系起来的功能节点，港口对其相关腹地的人口或经济组织的变化高度敏感。此外，港口职能的战略性质往往使港口高度政治化，在这种环境中，有关贸易组织的政治决定将发挥作用。特立尼达的调查将提供对获取非当地资源的长期模式和影响贸易的多种因素的新见解。尽管玛雅人研究的最新进展彻底改变了我们对古代玛雅人的理解，但这两个话题都是持续辩论的焦点。这项研究的结果将对古代玛雅人的学生和研究政治经济学和贸易与交换制度的更大科学界的成员感兴趣。贸易与更大的社会、政治和经济力量之间的关系是社会科学中的基本问题，对于研究古代经济制度的联系尤为关键。为了促进跨学科和跨文化的研究，这些调查的数据将在考古期刊和通讯上发表，并在社会科学中有更广泛的应用。该项目将通过提高当地对考古遗产的认识而产生更广泛的影响。圣何塞镇是危地马拉最后的伊扎玛雅社区之一，目前正在经历一场文化复兴。当地的公众宣传活动将包括在特立尼达举办口译游客日，在圣何塞市政厅举行公开讲座，以及编制公开形式的网站游客指南。该项目还将有助于培训和发展美国和危地马拉考古学学生。危地马拉学生通过参与可适用于其学位要求的实地和实验室研究来获得学分。美国学生接受实践技术培训，同时通过参与当地社区活动获得生活经验。该项目的数据还将为五名美国研究生的博士论文研究做出贡献。

Under the supervision of Dr. E. Wyllys Andrews V, Matthew D. Moriarty will conduct archaeological investigations at the ancient Maya site of Trinidad de Nosotros. Trinidad is located on the north shore of Guatemala's Lake Peten Itza and was occupied from approximately 600 B.C. to A.D. 1525. Recent investigations collected excellent preliminary evidence that Trinidad was an ancient Maya port. This research project is designed to confirm that Trinidad functioned as a port and to examine the interplay of social, political, and economic factors affecting the organization of long-distance trade. Investigations will assess the level of access Trinidad's residents had to specific trade goods (e.g., obsidian, jade, marine shell) through time and in comparison to the residents of other nearby settlements. Additional investigations will focus on identifying trade-related facilities (e.g., port, storage, and market complexes) and describing specialized economic activities commonly found in ports (e.g., craft production and raw material processing).The study of an ancient port provides an unusual opportunity to directly address multiple aspects of economic organization simultaneously. As functional nodes linking local economies with larger interregional economic systems, ports are highly sensitive to changes in the demographic or economic organization of their associated hinterlands. Further, the strategic nature of port function often makes ports highly politicized environments where political decisions regarding the organization of trade are played out. Investigations at Trinidad will provide fresh insights into both long-term patterns in the acquisition of non-local resources and into the multitude of forces affecting trade. Although recent advances in Maya studies have revolutionized our understandings of the ancient Maya, both of these topics are the focus of continuing debate.The results of this research will be of interest to both students of the ancient Maya and members of the larger scientific community studying political economy and systems of trade and exchange. The relationships between trade and larger social, political, and economic forces are fundamental concerns in the social sciences and are particularly critical to studies examining the articulation of ancient economic systems. To facilitate inter-disciplinary and cross-cultural research, data from these investigations will be published in both archaeological journals and newsletters and publications with broader applications in the social sciences.This project will have a broader impact by increasing local awareness of archaeological patrimony. The town of San Jose, one of the last Itza Maya communities in Guatemala, is currently undergoing a cultural renaissance. Local public outreach efforts will include interpretive visitors' days at Trinidad, public lectures in the San Jose town hall, and the preparation of a public format visitor's guide to the site. This project will also contribute to the training and development of American and Guatemalan archaeology students. Guatemalan students gain academic credits through their involvement in field and laboratory research that can be applied to their degree requirements. American students receive hands-on technical training while gaining life experience through their involvement in local community activities. Data from this project will also contribute to the doctoral dissertation research of five American graduate students.