The Role of Social Organization in the Organization of Complex Society

南伊利诺伊大学的岛田规美博士将与同事们一起对社会和政治融合的性质和方式进行研究，强调亲属关系和共同宗教的重要性。关于这一主题的早期研究强调了政治经济学的作用以及对资源和生产的控制、强制性行动或对公共活动的赞助。亲属关系和合作行为被淡化。由此产生的模型相应地强调了社会政治组织的高度集中和等级性质。考古学，特别是与互补领域的合作，很好地阐明了促进稳定和有效的社会政治融合的因素和过程，这一主题一直是过去和现在复杂社会研究中普遍关注的问题。与以前的研究不同，这项研究强调亲属关系或遗传亲缘关系对真实或虚构的祖先以及共同的宗教信仰和仪式的程度和性质的重要性，从而大大拓宽了实现这种融合的因素和等级和非等级手段的视角。这项研究不仅促进了国际和跨学科的对话与合作，而且还促进了美国和秘鲁的学生和博士后培训。此外，它还将丰富四川国家博物馆的公开展示，这代表着与秘鲁和非秘鲁公众有效地分享研究成果。过去和现在由许多复杂的社会建造的纪念性建筑是一个令人印象深刻的、持久的象征标志，象征着相关群体的权力、声望和身份。那么，在同一地点建造多座在时间和空间上接近的共存纪念碑，对于建造它们的群体(S)意味着什么？这个问题指导着岛田博士和他的团队在秘鲁北海岸的兰巴耶克地区进行的实地研究。利用这座有着1000年历史的锡兰首都的纪念碑与墓地密切相关的事实，调查人员将挖掘前几个季节的田野工作中发现的墓葬，并对人类骨骼、陶瓷、金属和其他随葬品以及它们相关的风格和图像进行多次详细分析。骨骼分析的结果，包括古代DNA，发育健康的迹象，以及对牙齿进行的大量测量的统计分析，将阐明被比较个体的家谱关系和生活方式。从骨骼样本中定义的碳、氮和锶同位素的比例将反过来影响相同个体的饮食构成和地理来源。此外，确定用于制造随葬品的技术、风格、图像和/或原材料的选择进一步有助于区分工匠和他们所属的更大的群体。采用上述多学科方法，研究小组将测试关于亲属关系和共同宗教信仰的重要性的三个相互竞争的假设。测试结果将被整合到一个不断扩大的地区性葬礼、DNA和其他生物数据库中，该数据库将在未来几年作为参考基础。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Dr. Izumi Shimada, of Southern Illinois University, together with colleagues will conduct research on the nature and means of social and political integration, highlighting the importance of kinship and shared religion. Earlier studies on this topic have emphasized the role of political economy and control of resources and production, coercive actions or sponsorship of public events. Kinship connections and cooperative behaviors were downplayed. The resultant models accordingly stressed the strongly centralized and hierarchical character of sociopolitical organization. Archaeology, particularly in collaboration with complementary fields, is well placed to illuminate factors and processes that promote stable and effective sociopolitical integration, a topic that has been a pervasive concern for studies of complex societies past and present. In contrast to previous studies, this research highlights instead the importance of kinship or the degree and nature of genetic affinity to the real or fictional ancestors and shared religious beliefs and rituals, thereby significantly broadening the perspective on factors and hierarchical and non-hierarchical means of achieving such integration. Not only does this research promote international and interdisciplinary dialogue and collaboration, but also American and Peruvian student and postdoctorate training. In addition, it will enrich the public display at the Sican National Museum that represents an effective sharing of research results with both Peruvian and the non-Peruvian public. Monumental architecture built by many complex societies past and present serves as an impressive, durable symbolic marker of power, prestige and identity of associated groups. What then do multiple coexistent monuments built close in time and space at a single location signify about group(s) that built them? This question guides the field research in the Lambayeque region on the north coast of Peru by Dr. Shimada and his team. Taking advantage of the fact that monuments at the 1000-year old Sican capital have closely associated cemeteries, the investigators will excavate burials that have been located in previous seasons of fieldwork and carry out multiple detailed analyses of human skeletons, ceramic, metal and other funerary objects as well as their associated styles and images. Results from skeletal analysis, including ancient DNA, signs of developmental health, and statistical analysis of numerous measurements taken on teeth will illuminate genealogical relationships and life style of individuals being compared. Ratios of carbon, nitrogen and strontium isotopes defined from skeletal samples will in turn inform on dietary composition and geographic origins of the same individuals. In addition, determination of choices of techniques, styles, images, and/or raw materials used in manufacturing of funerary objects further aid in distinguishing artisans and larger groups to which they pertain. Employing the above multi-disciplinary methodology, the research team will test three competing hypotheses regarding the importance of kinship and shared religious beliefs. Test results will be integrated into an expanding, regional funerary, DNA and other biological database that will serve as a referential base for years to come.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.