With support from the National Science Foundation, Drs. Takeshi Inomata and Daniel Triadan will publish the results of archaeological investigations conducted during the first phase of the Aguateca Archaeological Project from 1996 through 2003. Extensive excavations in an elite residential area and the royal palace at the Classic Maya site of Aguateca, located in the western Peten, Guatemala, uncovered a rare case of rapid abandonment around AD 810. In situ artifact assemblages which resulted from this abandonment are unprecedented in the Maya lowlands. These remains present vivid images of Classic Maya life. To disseminate these important data, Inomata and Triadan will compile a three-volume monograph series to be published from the University of Utah Press. A subvention from the NSF will specifically support the publication of Volumes 1 and 3. (Volume 2, reporting the results of the lithic analyses by Dr. Kazuo Aoyama, has received a subvention from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science).
Investigations during the first phase of the Aguateca Project have provided new insights into elite household organization, gender roles, power relations, Classic Maya court organization, craft production, rituals, royal symbolism, and warfare. Although project members have published these findings in numerous journal articles and book chapters, they report only a small fraction of the primary data. It is critical to make these rich data available to the scholarly community and to the general public. A detailed, well-illustrated publication of the Aguateca data will serve scholars as a basis of diverse lines of research for decades to come.
Print media is more adequate than digital formats for the publication of the rich contextual and cultural information that the Aguateca data present. In addition, printed books will assure that these important data will be accessible for a long term. However, many presses are now reluctant to publish data-heavy reports because of high production costs. The grant from the NSF will allow the publication of Aguateca materials in ideal print forms. Given the large amount of funds that were invested in the Aguateca Project by the NSF and other granting agencies, the relatively small amount necessary for the publication of the results is a particularly effective use of NSF funds.
On a larger scale, the rich information on daily life and courtly activities in Classic Maya society presented by this publication will provide a valuable resource for undergraduate and graduate education and for outreach to the public. The final publication of the project results will also ensure that this invaluable cultural heritage of the region will be passed on to future generations.
