Doctoral Dissertation Research: Communities and Sociopolitical Integration in Pre-Columbian Dominica, West Indies

在Michael Heckenberger博士的指导下，Isaac Searn将对多米尼加进行为期一年的考古研究，多米尼加是小安的列斯群岛南部的一个火山岛，以其强烈的地形多变性、崎岖的海岸线、高降雨量、茂密的热带森林和肥沃的火山土壤而闻名。该项目的主要目标是描述微小区域内和微小区域之间的聚落模式和文物变异性，以确定多米尼克陶器时代晚期(约公元1000-1500年)社区之间的融合程度。该项目为谢恩先生的博士论文研究提供了基础。与该地区大多数其他岛屿相比，多米尼加前哥伦布时期的考古工作相对较少。这项拟议的研究是对该岛长期考古调查的首次重大综合。拟议的研究将有助于解决当代加勒比考古学中的重要问题，并测试新的地理空间方法，以确定岛屿考古记录中的社区。通过将当代社区考古学理论应用于特定地区的问题，本研究将促进对区域社区组织的理解，以及人类学中围绕社区概念的更广泛的理论和方法论问题。特别是，这个项目将有助于确定小安的列斯群岛较小、富裕的岛屿的社会政治融合的性质，以及它们是否代表着小规模的复杂社会，这对理解世界其他地区的类似环境具有广泛的相关性。这项研究的三个主要研究问题指导着这项研究：1)微区域内的多个地点是整合的社区还是代表基本自治的当地社区？2)微区域内的社区是自治的，还是它们与其他微区域的其他此类社区整合成更高秩序的区域社区？3)如果整合，在社会政治等级和/或微观区域内部和之间的异质性方面，较高级别的社区是如何组织起来的？为解决这些问题，拟议研究的具体目标包括：确定地点；描述地点大小和结构的变异性；根据距离、可见度和地理环境确定微区域内地点之间的关系；收集人工制品，以提供相互作用的证据，包括岛屿内和岛屿间的交换。将在多米尼克的三个微区内进行挖掘和系统的地面收集，以提供每个微区和每个微区内多个地点的可比数据集。分析将表明社区是否具有等级特征，如专门的社会政治、仪式或经济活动中心，还是更具异构性，涉及结构相似和/或自治的当地群体。拟议的研究将包括旨在通过提高对该岛美洲印第安人历史和考古遗址作为文化资源的价值的认识来促进文化遗产管理的重大公共宣传举措；并促进地方参与研究的执行、解释和提出。为了实现这些目标，谢恩先生将在社区中心和学校举办讲座，并参加电台广播；制作宣传海报和展品，在村庄社区中心和国家公园展出；为多米尼克博物馆设计展览；为学生和其他人提供参与研究的所有阶段的机会，并设计传播成果的方法。

Under the direction of Dr. Michael Heckenberger, Isaac Shearn will conduct a one-year archaeological study of Dominica, a volcanic island in the southern Lesser Antilles noted for its intense topographic variability, rugged coastline, high rainfall, dense tropical forests, and fertile volcanic soils. The main objective of the project is to characterize settlement patterns and artifact variability within and between micro-regions in order to determine the degree of integration between communities on Dominica during the Late Ceramic Age (ca. A.D. 1000-1500). The project provides the basis for Mr. Shearn's doctoral dissertation research.Relatively little archaeological work has been done on the pre-Columbian period in Dominica in comparison to most other islands in the region. The proposed research represents the first major syntheses of long-term archaeological investigations on this island. The proposed research will help resolve important problems in contemporary Caribbean archaeology, as well as test new geospatial methods for identifying communities in the archaeological record of the islands. By applying contemporary theory on the archaeology of communities to region-specific problems, this research will advance both the understanding of regional community organization, and broader theoretical and methodological issues surrounding the concept of community in Anthropology. In particular, this project will help identify the nature of socio-political integration in smaller, rich islands of the Lesser Antilles, and whether they represent small scale complex societies, which has broad relevance to understanding similar settings in other world areas.Three primary research questions guide the study: 1) Were multiple sites within micro-regions integrated communities or do sites represent basically autonomous local communities?; 2) Were communities within micro-regions autonomous or were they integrated with other such communities in other micro-regions into higher-order regional communities?; and 3) If integrated, how were higher-order communities organized with respect to sociopolitical hierarchy and/or heterarchy within and between micro-regions? To address these questions, specific objectives of the proposed research include: identification of sites; characterization of variability in terms of site size and structure; characterization of relations between sites within the micro-region based on distance, intervisibility, and geographic setting; and collection of artifacts to provide evidence of interaction, including intra- and inter-island exchange. Excavations and systematic surface collections will be conducted within three micro-regions of Dominica to provide comparable datasets from each micro-region, and from multiple sites within each micro-region. The analysis will indicate whether communities included hierarchical characteristics, such as centers for specialized socio-political, ritual or economic activities or were more heterarchical, involving structurally similar and/or autonomous local groups.The proposed research will include significant public outreach initiatives designed to promote cultural heritage management by raising awareness about the island's Amerindian history and the value of archaeological sites as cultural resources; and promote local participation in the execution, interpretation, and presentation of the research. To accomplish these objectives, Mr. Shearn will present lectures at community centers and schools, and participate in radio broadcasts; produce informational posters and exhibits for display in village community centers and national parks; design an exhibit for the Dominica Museum; and provide opportunities for students and others to participate in all stages of the research and design methods for the dissemination of the results.