Sociology and Anthropology

While most tourists arrive to Copán to see the Hieroglyphic Stairway, three-dimensional sculptures, and royal tombs, archaeological ruins are scattered widely across the landscape. An ancient neighborhood on the south side of the Valley is now receiving attention from local students.

Spatial logics are guiding ideals for how space should be structured, as determined by the
culturally embedded decisions of architects and builders. I test various spatial logics within
sub-communities at the city of Copan, Honduras, to better understand principles behind
the planning of paired groups. Results support a prevailing cosmological logic, in keeping
with work on concepts of directionality, and particularly with the significance of north and
salience of a north–south building axis. The anthropology of space and place has gained
much from an increased reliance on archaeological literature, as well as the closely related
fields of geography and empirical Geographic Information Systems (GIS) analyses. Because
we shape and are shaped by landscapes, consideration of spatial relationships should help
us evaluate and refine our conceptions of social relations.

This dissertation addresses issues of state integration for ancient residents of the city of Copán and the contemporary Chortí-Maya of Honduras through a community archaeological project. Today a UNESCO World Heritage site, Copán was a major center of ancient Maya commerce and ideology during the Classic Period (AD 400-900). My research shows how specific Copán kings chose to exert control over a wide area in the eighth century, and how local residents creatively negotiated the state’s involvement in their lives. I build on the rich history of archaeological fieldwork at Copán by involving local community members through a sustained educational effort. I incorporate scholarship in political anthropology with urban studies and practice theory to argue that the intermediate scale of a neighborhood is well suited for assessing citywide political dynamics.

Fieldwork included remapping the urban neighborhood of San Lucas, and excavating four households within it to document their dynamic life history. I focus on changes at these households over time, attending to episodes of landscape engineering, architectural construction, and trends in ceramics, obsidian, and other material culture. I chronologically articulate my findings at San Lucas with political
events recorded by the hieroglyphs at Copán’s center. I use this synthesis as a proxy for the state’s tight or loose integration with surrounding communities to demonstrate moments when the state was more or less centralized. Sometimes political events at the city center did not perceptibly affect everyday life in San Lucas, other times new state policies forever changed the local social and economic landscape.

Concurrent with fieldwork, I co-taught a 10-month introductory anthropology course for 20 indigenous high school students, and discovered how questions of state integration in the past are also meaningful for young adults in present-day Copán. As the Pan-Maya Movement gains momentum in Honduras, the Chortí-Maya indigenous councils of Copán negotiate between their newly won autonomy
and simultaneous reliance on local governments and state power. My work demonstrates how and why neighborhoods are an ideal venue to understand the social processes that maintain states, a challenge for the contemporary world and for archaeologists as well.

Este proyecto explora las relaciones dinámicas entre poder centralizado y la organización de un barrio periférico en una sociedad compleja. La investigadora ha solicitada fondos de varias agencias para apoyar dos temporadas de campo y de laboratorio para investigar el barrio de San Lucas del UNESCO World Heritage Site de Copán, dentro del área maya del occidental de Honduras. Las metas mayores son (1) examinar como la fuerzas centralizadas y descentralizadas afectaban la vida diaria en el barrio de San Lucas, y (2) explorar como la vida podría haber cambiada en San Lucas a relación a la subida y caída de la dinastía de Copán. Se alcanzan estas metas a través de un estudio diacrónico de tres aspectos de la organización de barrios que ilustran como los residentes interactuaban con el poder central: (1) el nivel de autonomía político-económico de los residentes de San Lucas, (2) la organización social interna del barrio, y (3) el manejo de un área de oratorio dentro del barrio, conocido como Los Sapos. Un mapeo comprehensivo, excavaciones de grupos arquitectónicos de una escala “micro”, y métodos del laboratorio enfocados en la cronología ofrecerán una historia local de este barrio periférico, la cual complementa nuestro conocimiento detallado de gobernantes reales e inscripciones jeroglíficas. Como uno de las ciudades más estudiadas en el mundo antiguo, Copán presta una oportunidad increíble aprender como un barrio local reaccionaba e influía poder central desde su establecimiento hasta el abandono.

Hypotheses generated by PAPAC suggest a distinct urban plan for Late Classic Copan, one based on relationships between the architecture and stelae of the Great Plaza and the construction plans of specific architectural complexes outside of the Principal Group of ruins. This paper discusses the heart of this hypothetical plan by addressing the processional nature of Waxaklahun-Ubah-K'awil's Great Plaza stelae and their association with astronomical information and the quadripartite motif in Maya world-view and mythology.

This presentation carefully analyzes the Classic Maya (A.D. 250-900) use of astronomy and basic astronomical principles at the archaeological site of Copán, in Honduras, Central America. Specifically I address (1) how and in what ways astronomically significant buildings and standing monuments were commissioned, (2) reasons for, and (3) possible results of their erection. By "astronomically significant, " I refer to the tendency of Maya rulers to align structures with each other and astronomical phenomena, such as the setting sun on the longest day of the year (i.e. summer solstice), as well as the celestially symbolic inscriptions carved on the monuments themselves. After 2.5 years of research regarding the ancient Maya and their astronomy and extensive fieldwork at Copán, this work, composing my senior Honors Thesis, represents the culmination and synthesis of both primary and secondary literature as well as archaeological investigation.

Through a study of change over time, I argue that Rulers 12 (A.D. 628-695) and 13 (A.D. 695-7 38) acted as divine kings during the more than I 00-year span over which they governed. They successfully established, legitimized, and maintained authority as evidenced through the astronomically significant structures they erected. However, I also examine what the patterns of astronomical construction and the monuments themselves may reveal about changes in social and political structure and growth during this dynamic period in Copán 's history. For example, Ruler 13 periodically references his deceased divine ancestor on the structures he erected in the ceremonial center of the city. Might the inception of such a connection point to the disguised frailty of a ruler whose reign ended with capture and beheading? I consider this and other examples of defining events in the life and times of these two Copán kings and their polity through their use and manipulation of astronomy in architecture to assert and defend power.

In garnering a more holistic conception of ancient societies, archaeologists attempt to uncover material residues of power and authority and interpret how such objects and structures may have been used to sustain a ruler’s control.  In this paper, I argue first that the carefully carved stone stelae of Copán’s Great Plaza are a physical manifestation of Ruler 13’s authority, their commissioner; thus they are associated with well known methods of power maintenance, such as institutionalized ritual and ancestor veneration.  Second, I show that this ruler erected his stelae under nearly full moons, a powerful lunar phase whose occurrence evokes notions of agricultural abundance and fertility: a reassuring notion for struggling Late Classic Copanecos.  Overall, I seek to demonstrate that the Great Plaza stela circuit acted as a tool for the maintenance of kingship while its ties to astronomical events and planetary rhythms legitimized the basis for divine authority in a manner previously unknown to us.

Although archaeologists have long considered where ancient people built houses, ritual structures, whole communities and principal centers, it has been difficult to assess human circulation among these features within the natural environment. Successful mobility from one point to another is predicated on a tension between what one can see upon starting, markers along the way, and what one has the ability to access, whether constrained by practical or cultural factors. Previous research in the Maya region suggests that certain areas were highly visible, but virtually inaccessible, vice versa or neither; native cosmological paradigms and information on sociopolitical relations provide a cultural lens through which to make sense of such inequalities. Our research utilizes Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to measure the impact of both cultural and natural features on access and visibility—factors serving as proxies to (re)construct potential circulation patterns at the Late Classic (AD 600-900) center of Copán, Honduras. Interpreting the mobility patterns as indicators of social connectivity, sociopolitical control, and ultimately social inequality, we were able to reevaluate both traditional classifications of site types and previously applied indigenous spatial models. Multi-scalar settlement analysis from the level of the city to specific “paired” architectural groups reveals differential degrees of social integration and segregation based on site type, ritual importance and geographic location. Finally, our analyses prove GIS to be a productive archaeological technique to engage the study of past movement, social inequality and related anthropological questions.

Considered sacred monuments throughout the Classic Maya (AD 250-800) region, stelae (stela, singular) are tall stone obelisks, often carved in the image of a king guised as deity and adorned with iconographic motifs and hieroglyphic writing. Stelae in the Great Plaza of the site of Copán, Honduras depict the king in a perpetual state of ritual action, in eternal performance of divine rulership and power legitimation. Due to their high-relief carving, archaeologists have long used Copán’s stelae to exemplify the aesthetic height of Classic Maya artistic achievement. By primarily considering them in ancient contexts, archaeologists have overlooked the role stelae play in the representation of Copán for international and national tourism, and their significance for contemporary Hondurans. Stelae today are literally the advertising face for heritage tourism, and the proliferation of stela replicas throughout the country has prompted the “mayanization” of a prehistorically cosmopolitan society. Indeed the last three presidential inaugurations have either taken place at the archaeological park or have summoned scenes of Copán’s famous architecture for media backdrop. Because archaeologists’ interpretations of the function of stelae in ancient life are strikingly similar to how they are used today, I discuss how the very form and materiality of the stela may have contributed to such a persistent ideology of power. In so doing, I trace the 1300-year “social life” of Copán’s stelae and argue for a greater awareness of the uses of the Maya past in the Honduran present.

Although archaeologists have long researched the elite core of urban Copán, distinct communities on the outskirts lie uninvestigated. In this paper I explore the social organization of rural communities, with specific attention to eight so-called paired groups and reasons for their spatial configuration. I evaluate these reasons by performing various statistical analyses in GIS to define and measure ancient social interaction and inequality. The same methodology can be inversely applied to present-day Copán so that communities might develop more harmoniously, especially in areas where ancient ruins and modern interests intersect.

Considerado monumentos sagrados en la región Maya, estelas son altos obeliscos de piedra, a menudo talladas en la imagen de un rey bajo de la apariencia de un deidad y adornado con motivos iconográficos y escritura jeroglífica. Estelas en la Gran Plaza de Copán representan al rey en un estado perpetuo de la acción ritual, en la realización eterna de la soberanía divina y la legitimación de poder. Debido a su alto relieve tallado, los arqueólogos han utilizado estas estelas para ejemplificar la altura estética y logro artístico del Maya Clásico. Por considerándolos primeramente en contextos antiguos, los arqueólogos han pasado por alto el papel que las estelas desempeñan en la representación de Copán para el turismo internacional, y su importancia para los hondureños contemporáneos. Hoy las estelas son, literalmente, la cara de publicidad para el turismo cultural, y la proliferación de réplicas de estelas en todo el país ha estimulado la “mayanización” de una sociedad prehistóricamente cosmopolita. De hecho, los últimos tres inauguraciones presidenciales han ocurrido en el parque arqueológico o han convocado escenarios de la famosa arquitectura de Copán. Porque las interpretaciones de los arqueólogos de la función de las estelas en la vida antigua son sorprendentemente similares a la manera en que se utilizan hoy en día, se discute cómo la materialidad de la estela puede haber contribuido a esta persistencia. Trazando los 1300 años de la “vida social” de la Estela A de Copán y argumento por una mayor conciencia de los usos del pasado maya en el presente Hondureño.

La relación dinámica entre poder centralizado y la organización de barrios periféricos no es bien entendida en las sociedades complejas. La investigación arqueológica en San Lucas, Copán, está diseñado para estudiar la organización social, económica y política de los residentes de la región, y sus relaciones con los gobernantes del estado y poder centralizado. Las dos metas principales del proyecto son la examinación de cómo fuerzas políticas centralizadas y descentralizadas afectaban la vida diaria en el barrio de San Lucas, y la exploración de cómo la vida podría haber cambiado en San Lucas en relación a transiciones políticas claves a lo largo del ascenso y la caída de la dinastía de Copán. Estos objetivos se lograrán por un estudio diacrónico de (1) el nivel de autonomía política económica de los residentes de San Lucas, (2) la organización social interna del barrio, y (3) el manejo de un oratorio único dentro del barrio, conocido como Los Sapos. Un mapeo completo, excavaciones de una escala “micro” de conjuntos arqueológicos y métodos en el laboratorio enfocados en la cronología brindarán una historia de abajo hacia arriba de este barrio periférico, que complementará 170 años de investigación concentrada en los reyes divinos e inscripciones jeroglíficas. También, una historia holística de un barrio periférico tiene la potencial iluminar debates populares del ascenso y la caída de la dinastía de Copán.

The anthropology of space and place has gained much from an increased reliance on archaeological literature, as well as the closely related field of geography and empirical geographical information system (GIS) analyses. Because we shape and are shaped by the landscape, thoughtful consideration of spatial relationships should help us develop, evaluate and refine our conceptions of social relations. In this paper I build on recent discussions of ancient Maya site-planning principles through the application of models based on efficiency maximization (mean center and least cost paths) as well as those derived from Maya cosmology (elevation, viewshed). I test these models on the sub-community scale at the site of Copán, Honduras, to better understand principles behind the planning of paired groups. Whereas efficiency-based models did not offer any insight into these principles, it seems highly likely that ancient residents of Copán planned their communities according to potent symbolic belief systems. Results are in keeping with Wendy Ashmore’s (1991) paper on concepts of directionality among the ancient Maya, and particularly with the significance of north and salience of a north-south building axis. Through systematic and comparative spatial analyses, this paper empirically supports cosmological-based models of Maya site planning.

The population dynamics of the Classic Maya collapse can be studied from a macro-demographic perspective that entails broad settlement surveys in rural and urban areas, as well as micro-demographic processes that are detected from individual loci of habitation in various zones of settlement.  At Copán, Honduras, a Classic Maya (AD 250-900) center on the southeastern periphery of the Maya region of Mesoamerica, archaeological investigations over several decades have produced abundant databases that span early occupation to abandonment in multiple areas of the valley, making Copán an ideal site for addressing questions of population mobility on both the macro and micro levels. Recent investigations by Kristin Landau complement previous work by Nancy Gonlin. These data provide an evaluation of urbanizing and de-urbanizing processes that led to population mobility among the Classic Maya in the Copán Valley.

La preservación del patrimonio cultural es una labor fundamental para la investigación arqueológica tal como el orgullo y la identidad de poblaciones vivas. Sin embargo, las relaciones entre pueblos modernos, antropólogos científicos, y la protección de restos arqueológicos son frágiles y tensas. Presentamos un nuevo esfuerzo para mejorar estas relaciones a través de enseñar un curso de la antropología en un colegio local de Copán, Honduras. Cada semana, 19 estudiantes aprenden conceptos básicos de la antropología y hacen actividades a fortalecer su conocimiento, desde entrevistas etnográficas a excavación arqueológica. Hacemos el argumento que comunicación abierta entre arqueólogos y estudiantes jóvenes promoverá el entendimiento y la preservación del patrimonio cultural.