Hallowed Creatures: A Zoontological Perspective of Human-Animal Interaction in Maya Ritual (WGF - Dissertation Fieldwork Grant)
Part of the Wenner-Gren Foundation Grant Application Collection Metadata (DRAFT) project
Author(s): Ian Roa
Year: 2022
Summary
This resource is an application for a Dissertation Fieldwork Grant from the Wenner-Gren Foundation.
This project investigates ritual engagement with animals from well-documented, previously excavated ritual contexts at four major Maya polities - Baking Pot, Cahal Pech, Lower Dover, and Xunantunich in the Belize River Valley. In contrast to much previous Maya zooarchaeological research, this project takes ritual economy and social zooarchaeology approaches in a multi-sited comparative study to provide a "zoontological" perspective on sociopolitical variability across the local region. This project focuses on two critical periods: Middle/Late Preclassic (300 BC-AD 300) when the lineaments of Maya political structure, center development, and ceremonial practices were codified, and the Late/Terminal Classic (AD 750-900/1000) when Belize Valley residents responded to social and ecological challenges (particularly drought) that ultimately resulted in political collapse. This research aims to review the role played by ritual manipulation of animals (physical and symbolic) in these developments. From this material, a sample of 189 specimens will be utilized for stable isotope analysis providing information on animal diet, geographic origins, and climate conditions. This large, evenly distributed sample will make it possible to address a number of current hypotheses concerning the extent of unique processes of Maya ritual engagement with socially valued animals.
Cite this Record
Hallowed Creatures: A Zoontological Perspective of Human-Animal Interaction in Maya Ritual (WGF - Dissertation Fieldwork Grant). Ian Roa. 2022 ( tDAR id: 490504) ; doi:10.48512/XCV8490504
This Resource is Part of the Following Collections
Keywords
Investigation Types
Bioarchaeological Research
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Methodology, Theory, or Synthesis
General
Ancient Maya
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Archaeology
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Dissertation Fieldwork Grant
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Ritual economy
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social zooarchaeology
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Stable Isotope Analaysis
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Zooarchaeological studies
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Zoontology
Geographic Keywords
Baking Pot
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Belize
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Cahal Pech
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Lower Dover
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Mexico and Central America
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Xunantunich
Temporal Keywords
Late Classic Period
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Middle Preclassic period
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Terminal Classic Period
Temporal Coverage
Calendar Date: 750 to 1000 (Late/Terminal Classic Period)
Calendar Date: -300 to 300 (Middle/Late Preclassic Period)
Spatial Coverage
min long: -89.159; min lat: 17.058 ; max long: -89.096; max lat: 17.116 ;
Individual & Institutional Roles
Contact(s): Wenner-Gren Foundation
Notes
Rights & Attribution: This resource is an application from the Wenner-Gren Foundation and has been approved by the grantee solely for pedagogical purposes. Please do not cite, circulate, or duplicate any part of these documents without the express written consent of the author.
File Information
| Name | Size | Creation Date | Date Uploaded | Access | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ian-Roa_Dissertation-Fieldwork-Grant.pdf | 11.26mb | Nov 29, 2023 9:52:32 AM | Public |