LAS OFRENDAS DE COTZUMALGUAPA, GUATEMALA, EN EL CLÁSICO TARDÍO (650/700-1000 D.C.) ERIKA MAGALI GÓMEZ GONZÁLEZ

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LAS OFRENDAS DE COTZUMALGUAPA, GUATEMALA, EN EL CLÁSICO TARDÍO (650/700-1000 D.C.) ERIKA MAGALI GÓMEZ GONZÁLEZ Instituto Politécnico de Tomar – Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro (Departamento de Geologia da UTAD – Departamento de Território, Arqueologia e Património do IPT) Master Erasmus Mundus em QUATERNARIO E PRÉ-HISTÓRIA Dissertação final: LAS OFRENDAS DE COTZUMALGUAPA, GUATEMALA, EN EL CLÁSICO TARDÍO (650/700-1000 d.C.) ERIKA MAGALI GÓMEZ GONZÁLEZ Orientador: Prof. Davide Delfino Co-Orientador: Dr. Oswaldo Chinchilla Júri: Ano académico 2010/2011 RESUMEN Se estudió un conjunto de artefactos que conforman las ofrendas de las estructuras y espacios de patios, de un conjunto arquitectónico descubierto en las inmediaciones del sitio El Baúl, localizado en la Zona arqueológica de Cotzumalguapa, departamento de Escuintla, Guatemala. Las 21 ofrendas tratadas, constituyen el primer hallazgo relativamente masivo de este tipo, localizado en esta zona, gracias a las excavaciones realizadas por el Proyecto Arqueológico Cotzumalguapa durante los años 2002, 2006 y 2007. Aquellas son manifestaciones de los comportamientos rituales de una parte de la sociedad costeña del sur, durante el periodo Clásico Tardío (650/700-1000 d.C.). Estos objetos habían sido tratados en forma breve en un artículo reciente (Méndez y Chinchilla s.f.). Sin embargo, la presente investigación se concentró en ciertos aspectos del propio contexto y en su comparación con los de otras áreas, para tratar de entender la intencionalidad de los depósitos. Existe variedad en los artefactos componentes de cada ofrenda. Se trata entonces de objetos de cerámica, en su mayoría vasijas, de servicio y en menor cantidad hay formas utilitarias, además de una figurilla. También hay objetos de obsidiana, exceptuando un núcleo prismático todos los demás son navajas prismáticas. A la vez, con carácter excepcional, hay un objeto de basalto con la forma de un hongo. Los tipos de ofrenda van desde una sola vasija hasta combinaciones de dos a ocho objetos. Dentro de esta variedad, es visible un arreglo reiterado, se trata de la forma de navaja de obsidiana contenida en una vasija. Así, una búsqueda de casos similares para otros sitios arqueológicos, permitió concebir una propuesta de intencionalidad de los depósitos. A la vez, ellos son vistos en el contexto de los otros arreglos, así como en relación a los rasgos arquitectónicos del conjunto, entre otros. En base a la comparación con los contextos de ofrendas de otros sitios arqueológicos y eventualmente con datos etnográficos se ha propuesto que los objetos estudiados son depósitos de consagración del espacio arquitectónico. Además de las ofrendas, otros elementos del contexto denotan que el emplazamiento pudo ser el ambiente en el que varios usuarios participarían en manifestaciones rituales. Palabras clave: Ofrendas, ritual, Cotzumalguapa, Clásico Tardío, cerámica, obsidiana. ABSTRACT A group of offerings from the structures and courtyards of an architectural complex located in the site of El Baúl, in the archaeological Zone of Cotzumalguapa, department of Escuintla, Guatemala, is studied. The 21 offerings form the first relatively massive finding of this kind from the zone. They were discovered, thanks to the excavations carried out by the Proyecto Arqueológico Cotzumalguapa during the years 2002, 2006 and 2007. These are evidences of ritual behavior of a part of the south coastal society during the Late Classic period (650/700-1000 d.C.). The objects are discussed briefly in a recent article (Méndez and Chinchilla n.d.). However, in the present study an effort is made to have a deep insight of certain aspects studied within the context and through comparisons with other archaeological sites to have a better understanding of the intentionality of the deposits. There are a variety of artifacts among these offerings. These include ceramics, mostly service vessels and less utilitary forms, and a figurine. Also obsidian samples are found. Except for a prismatic core, all of them are prismatic blades. An artifact made of basalt in the shape of a mushroom is also part of the deposit. The types or arrangements of the offerings include those with a single vessel or multiple items. Within this variation, there is a recurring pattern of an obsidian blade inside a vessel. Thus, looking for similar cases in other archaeological sites allows proposing the intentionality of the offerings. At the same time, the arrangement of the other types of offerings and architectural features in the specific context, among others, were taken into account. Based on analogy with deposits of other sites and some ethnographic information, it is proposed that the studied objects are consecration offerings within architectural space. These arrangements, along with other elements in the context mark the place as an environment where several users would participate in the ritual activity. Key words: Offerings, ritual, Cotzumalguapa, Late Classic, pottery, obsidian. AGRADECIMIENTOS Se agradece a la Comisión Europea y al International Master in Quaternary and Prehistory por permitirme la participación en este programa de estudio, mediante la asignación de una Beca Erasmus Mundus. Es así que ha sido posible iniciar y llegar al término de esta investigación. Igualmente hay profesionales a quienes agradezco pues su apoyo fue muy importante desde las etapas iniciales de este estudio. El Profesor Davide Delfino del Instituto Politécnico de Tomar (IPT), en Maçao, Portugal, fue orientador de la tesis y realizó constantes revisiones e invaluables observaciones y sugerencias, en cada etapa de la presente. Asimismo el Profesor Luiz Oosterbeek (IPT), en el principio de este trabajo otorgó importantes sugerencias. En Guatemala, el Dr. Oswaldo Chinchilla, del Museo Popol Vuh, Universidad Francisco Marroquín, permitió el acceso a los materiales de este estudio, brindó orientación científica muy valiosa y compartió su amplio conocimiento de la zona estudiada, desde el inicio del presente trabajo. Se reserva también un agradecimiento especial a otras personas que colaboraron al compartir sus conocimientos y tiempo: Dr. François Gendron y Dr. Erik Gonthier, del MNHN (Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle); Dr. Eric Taladoire (Universidad de Paris 1), Dra. Chloe Andrieu, Dra. Marion Hatch, Dra. Christa Schieber. Se agradece asimismo a las arqueólogas Mónica Pellecer y Claudia Quintanilla, quienes brindaron referencias muy importantes. ÍNDICE Introducción …………………………………………………………...…………… 1 CAPÍTULO 1 CONTEXTUALIZACIÓN DE LA PROBLEMÁTICA DE LAS OFRENDAS DE LA OPERACIÓN EB9, ZONA ARQUEOLÓGICA COTZUMALGUAPA Breves antecedentes de la zona maya ………………………………………………. 3 Ubicación geográfica y generalidades del área de estudio …………………………. 4 Arqueología de la zona ………………………………………………………........... 5 La Zona Nuclear Cotzumalguapa .............................................................................. 6 Actividades rituales ................................................................................................... 7 Características del ritual ....................................................................................... 7 El concepto de ofrenda arqueológica ..................................................................... 9 Arqueología y ritual .............................................................................................. 10 Algunas características de las ofrendas de sitios principales del área maya .............. 12 Entierros ................................................................................................................. 13 Monumentos .......................................................................................................... 13 Arquitectura ........................................................................................................... 14 Antecedentes de estudios sobre ofrendas en la Zona de Cotzumalguapa .................. 15 Planteamiento del problema ....................................................................................... 16 Delimitación .......................................................................................................... 17 Hipótesis ................................................................................................................ 19 Objetivos ................................................................................................................ 19 Metodología ........................................................................................................... 20 CAPÍTULO 2 LAS OFRENDAS DEL CONJUNTO ARQUITECTÓNICO DE LA OPERACIÓN EB9 Arquitectura y Rasgos asociados ................................................................................ 21 Algunos artefactos especiales ............................................................................... 23 Las Ofrendas .............................................................................................................. 24 Los materiales y artefactos presentes de las ofrendas .......................................... 24 Cerámica ........................................................................................................... 24 Obsidiana .......................................................................................................... 32 Basalto ............................................................................................................. 36 Tipos de ofrendas según sus materiales ................................................................ 37 Tipo A (Vaso con navaja) ................................................................................
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