Under the supervision of Dr. Heather McKillop, E. Cory Sills will conduct dissertation research to clarify the organization of craft production at one Early Classic (A.D. 300-600) and one Late Classic (A.D. 600-900) ancient Maya salt work in Paynes Creek National Park, Belize. Ms. Sills seeks to identify evidence of salt production and/or other activities. Were the sites dedicated to a single activity, household workshops, or used in "multicrafting"? Ms. Sills conducted her dissertation fieldwork as part of the ongoing NSF "Ancient Maya Wooden Architecture and the Salt Industry" project directed by Dr. McKillop. Wooden architecture and ceramics are preserved underwater on the sea floor in a peat bog at the Paynes Creek salt works. The peat has preserved wood, botanical remains, and large ceramic vessels, but not bone. Ongoing research indicates the sites were salt works identified from the large quantities of briquetage - pottery used to boil brine over fires to make salt. This evidence suggests that the salt works may be specialized and not associated with households, an interpretation that will add a new aspect to the study of economic production and distribution for the ancient Maya and other ancient civilizations.
In a broader context the research is significant because it will provide insight into the intersection of economic and social realms in a traditional society and how these changed over time. Archaeology provides the ability to examine change over long time scales - centuries and millennia - and thus discern patterns which might otherwise be invisible. In many traditional societies in the world today, production proceeds in a family context and the results of this research may provide increased understanding of such situations.
The importance of salt production in the ancient Maya economy is known. In order to evaluate the organization of production, transect excavations were conducted at two of the Paynes Creek salt works by Ms. Sills in June of 2010. In this NSF grant, Ms. Sills will use chemical analysis of marine sediment along excavated transects to detect if there is evidence of household waste not preserved in the peat. Neutron activation analysis will identify if the pottery is of local or non-local manufacture. The results of the compositional analysis of ceramics will aid in determining if the salt works were organized locally or integrated into a larger production and exchange system. The 3D imaging of pottery sherds will help to define the shapes and sizes of containers. Clusters of wooden posts from both sites will be radiocarbon dated to refine site chronology since the briquetage is not temporally sensitive.
The broader impacts are multiple. Project participants will promote the results of the project within the United States and internationally. The researchers will publish reports and data obtained in their project to a diverse array of interested stakeholders including both public and professional audiences. Public outreach efforts in Belize will include producing replicas of artifacts for displays in Punta Gorda, Belize as part of an Archaeological Institute of America Site Preservation Grant to Dr. McKillop. These efforts will seek to improve public understanding of the ancient Maya through the development of science, archaeology, and anthropology. This project will further the mentorship and scientific training of undergraduate and graduate students working in the archaeological lab and Digital Imaging and Visualization in Archaeology (DIVA) lab at Louisiana State University by involving them in the analysis of artifacts and development of public outreach in southern Belize.
Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE The goal of this research was to clarify the organization of craft production at an Early Classic (A.D. 300-600) and a Late Classic (A.D. 600-900) ancient Maya salt works in Paynes Creek National Park, Belize. The project focused on identifying evidence of salt production and/or other activities at the underwater sites where wooden structures are preserved due to the oxygen-free peat that formed the marine sediment below the seafloor. Were the sites dedicated to the single activity of salt production (as suggested by the artifacts from excavations), or were they household workshops, or used in multi-crafting?" In order to evaluate the organization of production the NSF Dissertation grant allowed for chemical analysis of marine sediment along previously excavated transects to identify evidence of household waste not preserved in the slightly acidic peat matrix. Petrographic analysis of pottery was undertaken to determine if the salt works were organized locally or integrated into a larger production and exchange network. The 3D imaging of pottery was undertaken in Belize and at Louisiana State University’s Digital Imaging and Visualization in Archaeology (DIVA) lab to fulfill the broader impacts and create a record of the pottery before destructive analysis by cutting pieces for petrographic study. Clusters of wooden posts from both sites were radiocarbon dated to refine the site chronology. The intellectual merit of the research centers on the nature of the economy in ancient civilizations such as the Maya: The chemical analyses of marine sediment corroborated the focus on salt production associated with the wooden buildings, but also indicated that other activities took place at the salt work, including cleaning or storage of fish or shell. The results underscore that the Classic Maya did indeed have a complex economy of production of basic resources such as salt, where some locations were devoted to production by workers who lived elsewhere. The Paynes Creek salt works are atypical of the household workshops where producers distributed goods to the subsistence economy. The salt works are distinct from workshops connected to urban centers where the ancient Maya at attached workshops produced goods for the royal elite. The composition of the clay used to make pots and the decorations indicate ties with inland cities where salt was in short supply. The intellectual merit of the research at the salt works refines our understanding of the place of production by connecting the salt producers to the wider Maya economy. The broader impacts are numerous. Results of the NSF dissertation project have been presented to professionals and students at conferences in the United States and at the Belize Archaeology Symposium. The project furthered the mentorship and scientific training of undergraduate and graduate students working in the archaeological lab and the Digital Imaging and Visualization in Archaeology (DIVA) lab at Louisiana State University by involving them in the analysis of artifacts, selection of samples, and preparation and development of public outreach in southern Belize. Students created 3D images of pottery and utilized various software programs to create digital replicas of the artifacts from the Paynes Creek salt works. The students participated in printing and painting of the 3D replicas produced in the DIVA lab for exhibits in Belize. Public outreach was carried out in Belize, with opening of exhibits featuring 3D printed replicas of artifacts from the project, workshops and public talks, with additional funding from an Archaeological Institute of America Site Preservation Grant to the PI. These efforts improved the public understanding of the ancient Maya in southern Belize by informing the local community about the Paynes Creek salt works located nearby.
