Agency and Practice in the Classic Maya Collapse: Excavations of the Terminal Classic Royal Palace at Seibal, Guatemala

Drs。Takeshi Inomata和Daniela Triadan与一个国际合作者团队将在危地马拉的Seibal玛雅中心进行一个为期三年的项目，研究公元9世纪左右的政治解体过程，通常被称为经典的玛雅崩溃。通过广泛挖掘该遗址的终端古典宫殿遗迹，研究人员将重点关注皇室精英在这一社会变革中的行动和策略。哈佛大学在20世纪60年代对塞巴尔进行了广泛的调查，记录了它在9世纪独特的繁盛时期，而其他许多中心都在衰落。从那时起，塞巴尔就被认为是研究经典玛雅崩溃的关键地点。随后在该地区的考古研究和碑文破译方面的发展增加了大量的数据，使得重新检查这个重要的中心非常值得。关于西巴尔的一个重要信息仍然缺失，那就是经典终点站的皇家住宅建筑群。最近的调查表明，西巴尔的东庭很可能是最终的古典皇家宫殿。通过对经典航站楼的考察，项目成员将考察以下问题：1)经典航站楼期间新建的东庭是否代表着对之前王朝传统的突破？2)随着时间的推移，宫殿的结构以及相互作用的模式是如何变化的？3)皇室的意识形态和象征是如何通过建筑装饰来表达的？4)宫殿遗迹如何反映西巴尔王朝的衰落？通过广泛的挖掘、深沟和隧道的结合，他们将研究早期宫殿建筑群的存在、空间结构的变化、人工沉积物、灰泥雕塑和其他建筑装饰所反映的活动类型，以及废弃的过程。该项目有望为统治精英如何应对不断变化的社会和自然环境提供新的见解，无论是通过设计新的政治互动形式和新的意识形态，还是通过保持旧的传统。这项研究还将揭示这些努力最终是如何失败的。该项目的结果将有助于理解古典玛雅政治解体的社会动态和社会变化的人类学研究。该项目将涉及研究生和本科生以及危地马拉学生，为他们提供培训和研究的机会。此外，项目成员将继续与该地区的当地社区合作，进行自20世纪90年代以来一直在发展的文化和自然保护。自20世纪90年代末，非法占用者开始砍伐受保护的国家公园的大部分森林以来，塞巴尔的考古遗迹一直受到严重威胁。拟议的项目将帮助和促进当地的意识和主动性，这对于成功保护Seibal公园是必不可少的。

Drs. Takeshi Inomata and Daniela Triadan, with an international team of collaborators, will conduct a three year project at the Maya center of Seibal, Guatemala, to examine processes of political disintegration around the 9th century AD, often called the Classic Maya collapse. By extensively excavating the Terminal Classic palace remains at this site, the researchers will focus on actions and strategies of the royal elite during this social change. Harvard University extensively investigated Seibal in the 1960s, documenting its unique florescence during the 9th century while many other centers were declining. Since then, Seibal has been considered a key site in the study of the Classic Maya collapse. Subsequent developments in archeological research in the region and in epigraphic decipherment have added substantial data, making the reexamination of this important center highly desirable. A critical piece of information still missing from Seibal is the royal residential complex of the Terminal Classic. Recent investigations have shown that the East Court of Seibal most likely served as the Terminal Classic royal palace. By examining the Terminal Classic palace, the project members will examine the following questions: 1) Was the East Court newly constructed during the Terminal Classic, representing a break from the previous dynastic tradition? 2) How did the configurations of the palace, along with the patterns of interactions, change through time? 3) How were royal ideologies and symbolisms expressed through architectural decorations? 4) How is the decline of the Seibal dynasty reflected in the palace remains? Through a combination of extensive excavations, deep trenches, and tunnels, they will examine the presence of an earlier palace complex, changes in spatial configurations, types of activities reflected in artefactual deposits, stucco sculptures and other architectural decorations, and the process of abandonment. The project promises to provide new insights into how the ruling elite tried to cope with the changing social and natural environments, either by devising new forms of political interactions and new ideologies or by maintaining old traditions. The research will also shed light on how these efforts ultimately failed. The results of the project will contribute to the understanding of the social dynamics of Classic Maya political disintegration and the anthropological study of social change. The project will involve graduate and undergraduate students, as well as Guatemalan students, offering them opportunities for training and research. Moreover, the project members will continue their collaboration with local communities in the region for cultural and natural conservation, which they have been developing since the 1990s. The archaeological remains of Seibal have been under serious threat since illegal occupants began deforesting a substantial part of the protected national park in the late 1990s. The proposed project will aid and promote local awareness and initiative, which are indispensable for the successful protection of the Seibal park.