Many societies use architecture for symbolic expression, and often buildings or other constructions constitute maps of a culture's worldview. Archaeological identification of such ideational expressions is receiving renewed attention, in the Maya area as in many other regions. Excavations in Este articulo describe el modelo y las pruebas arqueologicas, e indica las implicaciones interpretativas de los resultados, por el contexto mas dmplio de estudios corrientes en la epigrafia, la iconografia, y la arqueotogia.Symbolic manipulation of space is a common theme in architecture the world over (e.g., Blier 1987; Fernandez 1977;Lawrence and Low 1990;Tuan 1977). Even the most mundane components of the built environment have often been shown to convey rich symbolic messages. Diverse analysts have demonstrated that, in many cultures, house layouts define separable locations for activities associated with different genders and with variable levels of ritual purity, domestic intimacy, social standing, and the like. In this manner, house interiors often constitute microcosms, or worldview maps, providing ever-present spatial charts of the emic structure of social and ideological relationships (e.g., Bourdieu 1973Bourdieu , 1977Donley 1982; Douglas 1972; Hodder 1984 Hodder , 1987 Hodder , 1990Nabakov and Easton 1989).Comparable analyses of symbolically structured space have focused at both smaller and larger scales, from burials and other relatively compact ritual deposits, to entire communities and wider landscapes (e.g., Benson 1981; Coe 1988; Fritz 1978; Hodder 1984 Hodder , 1990 Tacon 1991;Taylor 1987;Tuan 1977). Within this overall range of foci, public buildings and building complexes (including elite, chiefly, or royal domiciles) have likewise been identified as microcosms (e.g., Leach 1983), and as among the least subtle in their symbolic portrayal of cosmic and social structuring. Such civic architecture frequently focuses on placing political and/or religious leaders in locations which themselves convey authority; lest any miss the point of such placement, the locations are often marked with multiple and redundant messages signaling authority, via symbols appropriate to the
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org. This content downloaded from 195.34.79.79 on Thu, 12 Jun 2014 17:44:14 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and ConditionsAncient civic centers materialize ideas of proper spatial organization, among the Maya as in other societies. We argue that the position and arrangement of ancient Maya buildings and arenas emphatically express statements about cosmology and political order. At the same time, the clarity of original spatial expression is often blurred in the sites we observe archaeologically.Factors responsible for such blurring include multiple other influences on planning and spatial order, prominently the political life history of a civic center. Specifically, we argue here that centers with relatively short and simple political histories are relatively easy to interpret spatially. Those with longer development, but relatively little upheaval, manifest more elaborate but relatively robust and internally consistent plans. Sites with longer and more turbulent political histories, however, materialize a more complex cumulative mix of strategies and plausibly, therefore, of varying planning principles invoked by sequent ancient builders. We examine evidence for these assertions by reference to civic layouts at Copa'n, Xunantunich, Sayil, Seibal, and Tikal.En los antiguos centros cfvicos se materializan ideas acerca de la organizacion espacial adecuada, tanto entre los mayas como entre otras sociedades. En este estudio se propone que la ubicacion y la disposicion de antiguos edificios y espacios abiertos mayas expresan enfaticamente ideas respecto a la cosmologfa y el orden polftico. Al mismo tiempo, la claridad de la expresion espacial original a menudo es difusa en los sitios arqueologicos, debido a muchas otras in;Quencias en la planeacion y el orden espaciales, sobre todo la historia de la vida polftica de cada centro cfvico. Espeefficamente proponemos que los centros que tienen historias polfticas cortas y simples son relativamente faciles de interpretar espacialmente, mientras que aquellos con desarrollos mas prolongados, aunque con agitacion polftica limitada, presentan una planeacion interna mas elaborada y relativamente fuerte. Sin embargo, en los asentamientos con historias polfticas largas y mas turbulentas, se materializa una mezela ma's compleja de estrategias y, presumiblemente, en consecuencia quienes los construyeron se basaron en una amplia variedad de principios de planeacion. En este estudio exploramos las evidencias para fundamentar estas propuestas refiriendo a la disposicion cfvica de Copan, Xunantunich, Sayil, Seibal y Tikal.Recognizing and interpreting spatial order has a long and rich history, with inquiries from varied perspectives and many disciplines (e.g...
Concerns with spatial dimensions and social inference have long histories in archaeology. However, the two histories are not always conjoined. This article considers changing understandings of space in archaeology in the last half century, and the variable nature of what "social" has denoted and connoted during that same span. The review highlights recurring calls for a social archaeology, and the degree to which, in such instances, social inference has been expressed in spatial terms, especially as these have recognized people's "decisions and dispositions" as shaping the archaeological record. Life histories of place receive special attention as ways of discerning the existence and social impact of such decisions and dispositions. These life histories constitute an arena in which archaeologists from diverse theoretical perspectives can offer complementary insights. Moreover, they exemplify ways in which social and spatial inferences in archaeology contribute to wider understanding of human experience. [Keywords: archaeology, social, space, place, life history]
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