Social life of bateyes: Archaeology, preservation and heritage in Puerto Rico.
详细信息
- 作者：Rodriguez Melendez ; Yasha N.
- 学历：Doctor
- 年：2007
- 导师：Henderson, John S.
- 毕业院校：Cornell University
- 专业：Anthropology, Archaeology.;Architecture.
- CBH：3254663
- Country：USA
- 语种：English
- FileSize：25567415
- Pages：432
文摘
Bateyes in Puerto Rico are being destroyed at an alarming rate as a result of agriculture, urban development, looting and other pressures. Lack of management and preservation efforts further contribute to their endangerment. To date, Puerto Rico has the largest number of bateyes documented in the Caribbean.;While bateyes are commonly alluded to, scientific investigation of these structures is surprisingly scant. They are usually interpreted as the Caribbean counterpart of Mesoamerican ball courts and explained by reference to widely distributed ball games. While ethnohistorical data indicate not only ball playing, but also dance, and other group activities, took place within such spaces, these activities have been relegated to sporadic mention in favor of stressing a ritual and sacred nature generally ascribed to the ball game. The over-emphasis on analogy and the assumed primacy of ball playing leave little room for a discussion of different interpretations of bateyes and their role within the aboriginal society.;Data produced by investigation of the archaeological sites of Muntaner and Sonadora, batey sites in Puerto Rico, revealed differences between them though the structures seem very similar. The evidence for bateyes as elite installations is slight, and there is no evidence that suggests that either of these two sites was a ceremonial center. Throughout this document bateyes are interpreted not as locations for specialized rituals accessible to only a few, but as community social spaces familiar to the population at large. The argument is that all partook, to some degree, in the activities there conducted. The evidence from Sonadora further suggests that at least this site was habitational in nature, again reinforcing the idea that bateyes were part of the lives of all within the community. Furthermore, it is argued that bateyes exhibit regional characteristics in the imagery incorporated and that this might in effect reflect socio-political differences. Also, it is argued that some bateyes are more complex in design and decoration due to the importance of the particular site; elite identifiers or more rare or complex artifacts would also be expected in the assemblage. Site hierarchy, thus, is also argued as very likely within a specific region and at an island-wide level.;This study analyzes bateyes as ancient public social spaces, and as resources for Puerto Rican society today. It is imperative that the scope of archaeology be redefined to address the need for study and management of these key features of the island's aboriginal culture.