Beyond the buildings: Formation processes of ancient Maya houselots and methods for the study of non-architectural space

Scott R. Hutson, Travis W. Stanton, Aline Magnoni, Richard Terry, Jason Craner

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

68 Scopus citations

Abstract

The success of activity areas research in domestic contexts has highlighted the need for archaeologists working in the tropics to explore both indoor and outdoor spaces. The preservation of houselot boundaries at ancient Chunchucmil, Yucatán, Mexico, provides an ideal environment to explore methods for the investigation of broad spaces beyond buildings, to test ethnoarchaeological models of activity areas and refuse disposal, and to demonstrate the importance of open spaces to understanding ancient economic organization. The results of methodological experiments reported in this paper favor the use of systematic subsurface sampling (as opposed to surface collections) for characterizing specific uses of space around houses. Formation processes dictate that soil chemistry, paleoethnobotany, and other laboratory techniques should supplement excavations. Our explorations of three houselots suggest that ethnoarchaeological models of the use of space in contemporary houselots serve as successful templates for interpreting the use of space in ancient times. Post-abandonment deposition within houselots, however, can confuse these interpretations. This paper therefore reports a new ethnoarchaeological study that helps illuminate the nature of post-abandonment discard. After resolving critical issues of methodology and formation processes, this paper assesses the economic contribution of houselot activities. Given Chunchucmil's agricultural marginality, such home economics played an important role in the subsistence needs of this urban center.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)442-473
Number of pages32
JournalJournal of Anthropological Archaeology
Volume26
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 2007

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
A portion of this paper was presented at the Congreso Internacional de Cultura Maya in 2001 in Mérida, Yucatán. We thank the organizers of that conference, Ruth Gubler and Alfredo Barrera Rubio. We also thank the INAH Consejo de Arqueología for permission to conduct this research and the support of the INAH Regional Center in Yucatán. This study is part of the Pakbeh Regional Economy Project (PREP). At the time of fieldwork, the PREP was directed by Bruce Dahlin and Traci Ardren, and we owe them a great debt for their encouragement and support. Funds for field and lab research came from a National Science Foundation grant awarded to Dahlin and Ardren and an NSF Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant awarded to the first author. Finally, completion of the paper was supported by a Richard Carley Hunt postdoctoral fellowship awarded to the first author by the Wenner-Gren Anthropological Foundation. We also thank Tara Bond, Takeshi Watanabe, Dan Mazeau, Jessica Conroy, Zak Wood, Anthony White, Eugenia Mansell, and Timoteo Rodriguez for help in the field and lab. We extend our appreciation to the people of Kochol, Yucatán, who worked with us in the field. In our choice of field and lab methods, we acknowledge a debt to Cynthia Robin, Christine Hastorf, and Rosemary Joyce. We thank the two anonymous reviewers for helpful comments.

Keywords

  • Activity areas
  • Biomarkers
  • Chunchucmil
  • Coprostanol
  • Ethnoarchaeology
  • Formation processes
  • Maya
  • Refuse
  • Space

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Human Factors and Ergonomics
  • Archaeology
  • History
  • Archaeology

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