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Paper Information:
Type: Paper
Paper Title: BLURRING THE COMMONER/ELITE BOUNDARY: EVIDENCE FOR NON-ELITE RITUAL ENGAGEMENT OF A PUBLIC MONUMENTAL SHRINE AT EL PERÚ-WAKA'
Author: OLIVIA NAVARRO FARR (Southern Methodist University)   
Date/Time: Sun., 8:45 AM
Co-Author(s): OLIVIA NAVARRO FARR (Southern Methodist University) 
Abstract: Excavations from Structure M13-1 at El Perú-Waka’ have revealed a series of dense surface deposits in association with this monumental shrine. I suggest the evidence in these deposits represents not only ritual activity, but in fact multiple episodes of varied ritual acts carried out by non-elite Wakeños throughout the end of the Late Classic and into the subsequent early Terminal Classic Period. I have identified non-elite diversity by examining contextual and material variations in the deposit contents, locations, and architectural associations. Evidence for non-elites ritually engaging a major public shrine in the site center suggests a circulatory pattern involving both diverse individuals and their ritual foci. This pattern challenges the boundaries of a strictly defined dichotomous model that distinguishes core/elite space from peripheral/non-elite space. Such evidence of non-elite Maya ritual is not frequently identified in core area public monumental contexts. While I have argued elsewhere against characterizing the materials from these deposits as de facto refuse, I also question their designation as strictly ritual termination activity. A clearer understanding of the behaviors that led to these complex above-floor deposits at Structure M13-1 therefore demands a range of conceptual tools to build useful interpretations. I draw upon ethnoarchaeological analogs and review the implications of these patterns not only as challenges to the commoner/elite dichotomy but also as potential sources of information on how non-elite people responded and/or adapted during this transitional time in the southern Maya lowlands.

Program Number: 5-0195
Session Title: MAYAN POLITICS AND POWER
Session Sponsor: Archaeology Division
Session Date/Time: Sun., 8:00 AM-9:45 AM
Organizer(s): ANNUAL MEETING PROGRAM COMMITTEE (AAA) 
Chair(s): KRISTIN LANDAU (Northwestern University)  
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