Marilyn A. Masson

Office: Arts & Sciences Building, Room 109
Ph: (518) 442-5199
E-mail: massonma@albany.edu

Ph.D., University of Texas, 1993

Interests: Archaeology, ancient economies and urbanism, political organization, human ecology, ancient religion, zooarchaeology, lithic analysis
Areas: Mesoamerica, North America

Curriculum Vitae

Research Statement

I am a Mesoamerican archaeologist whose work is currently focused on the Postclassic period of the Maya lowlands under the auspices of the Belize Postclassic Project (formed in 1996) and the Economic Foundations of Mayapán Project (formed in 2001).

The Economic Foundations of Mayapán Project is examining the social and economic dimensions of production and exchange for Mayapán, the largest city of the Postclassic Maya world (click here to read the report to NSF for the 2001-2004 seasons ). Our work in Belize led us to Mayapán’s gates, as the timing of amplification of long distance trade, Postclassic political hierarchy formation, and elite-sponsored ritual activities in northern Belize coincided with the rise of the great northern city to power. Although the Carnegie Institution performed an extensive settlement project at the city during the 1950's, little is known about the organization of production, social diversity, and trading activities that formed the basis of Mayapán's confederation. Along with my colleagues Carlos Peraza and Timothy Hare, I am currently mapping, surface collecting, and excavating residential houselots from across the city’s 4.5 square kilometer walled area. Surveys outside of the city wall by Bradley Russell reveal that Mayapán was larger and more diverse than previously thought. This project will provide a core perspective on Postclassic Maya political economy that is a complementary data set to the northeast Belize hinterland.

A new phase of research at Mayapán began in 2008. We are investigating the urban administration and social complexity of the city's landscape. This work focuses on the degree of interdependence of domestic and ritual dimensions of the city's economy. We track occupational heterogeneity and wealth across social class boundaries. This phase of research targets administrative features (temples, halls, elite houses, and market faciliites) in addition to selected, occupationally diverse commoner houses.

The Belize Postclassic Project performs community analysis of Maya populations that occupied northeastern Belize from the 11^th-16^th centuries (click here to view photos from our fieldwork). Evidence from seven years of work (1996-2002) suggests that this area was heavily settled after the 10^th century collapse of southern lowland polities of the Classic period. In the 11^th century, this region appears to have become a hub of settlement, economic production, and coastal trading activities. This Postclassic florescence was linked to its participation in a maritime network of exchange that operated around the Yucatan Peninsula. The Belize Postclassic Project documents this long-term cycle of growth, prosperity, and stability that are indicated by our study of three lagoon settlements.

In graduate and undergraduate courses at the University at Albany, I like to cover a range of topics that intersect with the research interests described above. A list of courses that I have taught at since 1996 includes the following:

• Zooarchaeology
• Introduction to Archaeology
• Archaeological Field School in Belize
• Archaeology of Religion
• Ethnohistory and Archaeology of Yucatan
• Stone Tool Analysis
• Seminar in Mesoamerican Archaeology
• Precolumbian Maya Political Organization
• Computer Applications in Archaeology
• Maya Art and Archaeology
• The Archaeology of Political Structure
• The Archaeology of Social Upheaval
• Current Theories about the Ancient Maya
• Ancient cities and towns
• Aztec, Inca, Maya
• The Archaeology of Social Identity

Select Publications Since 2000

Books

In preparation:
Masson, Marilyn A. and Carlos Peraza Lope. Kukulkan’s Realm: The Postclassic Maya City of Mayapán. Contracted with the University Press of Colorado, Boulder.

2000
In the Realm of Nachan Kan: Postclassic Maya Archaeology at Laguna de On, Belize. University Press of Colorado, Boulder.

Edited Volumes

2002
Masson, Marilyn A. and David A. Freidel (eds). Ancient Maya Political Economies. Altamira Press, Walnut Creek, California.

2000
Smith, Michael E. and Marilyn A. Masson (eds). Ancient Civilizations of Mesoamerica: A Reader. Blackwell Press, Malden.

Selected Journal Articles and Book Chapters

2008
Marilyn A. Masson and Carlos Peraza Lope. Animal use at Mayapán. Quarternary International 191:170-183.

2007
Marilyn A. Masson and Carlos Peraza Lope. Kukulkan/Quetzalcoatl, Death God and Creation Mythology of Burial Shaft Temples at Mayapán. Mexicon XXIX: 77-85.

2006
Marilyn A. Masson, Timothy S. Hare, and Carlos Peraza Lope. Postclassic Maya Society Regenerated at Mayapán Late Postclassic Economic Transformations at Mayapán. In After Collapse: The Regeneration of Complex Societies. Glenn M. Schwartz and John J. Nichols (eds); pp. 188-207. University of Arizona Press.

Peraza Lope, Carlos, Marilyn A. Masson, Timothy S. Hare, Pedro Candelario Delgado Ku. The Late Postclassic Chronology of Mayapán: New Radiocarbon evidence. Ancient Mesoamerica 17:153-176.

2005
Masson, Marilyn A. and Robert M. Rosenswig. The Evolution of Postclassic Maya Pottery Traditions in Northern Belize. Submitted to Latin American Antiquity (16:355-384).

2004
Masson, Marilyn A. and Carlos Peraza Lope. Commoners in Postclassic Maya Society. In Ancient Maya Commoners. Jon Lohse and Fred Valdez (eds). Pp. 197-224. Austin: University of Texas Press.

Masson, Marilyn A. and Shirley Boteler Mock. Maya Cultural Adaptations from the Terminal Classic to Postclassic Period at Lagoon Sites in Northern Belize as Reflected in Changing Ceramic Industries. In The Terminal Classic in the Maya Lowlands: Collapse, Transition, and Transformation. Don S. Rice, Prudence M. Rice, and Arthur A. Demarest (eds). Pp. 367-401. Boulder: University of Colorado Press.

Fauna Exploitation from the Preclassic to the Postclassic Periods at Four Maya Settlements in Northern Belize. In Maya Zooarchaeology: New Directions in Method and Theory. Kitty F. Emery (ed). Los Angeles: Institute of Archaeology Press.

2003
Postclassic Economic Patterns in Northern Belize. In The Postclassic Mesoamerican World. Michael E. Smith and Frances F. Berdan (eds). Pp. 269-281. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press.

The Late Postclassic Symbol Set in the Maya Area. In The Postclassic Mesoamerican World. Michael E. Smith and Frances F. Berdan (eds). Pp. 194-200. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press.

Berdan, Frances F., Marilyn A. Masson, Janine Gasco, and Michael E. Smith. An International Economy. In The Postclassic Mesoamerican World. Michael E. Smith and Frances F. Berdan (eds). Pp. 96-108. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press.

Laguna de On and Caye Coco: Postclassic Political and Economic Scales of Integration at Two Island Communities in Northern Belize. In The Social Implications of Ancient Maya Rural Complexity. Gyles Iannone and Samuel V. Connell (eds). Pp. 119-130. Monograph 49. Los Angeles: Cotsen Institute of Archaeology.

2002
Robert M. Rosenswig and Marilyn A. Masson. Postclassic Maya Monumental Architecture from Caye Coco, Northern Belize. Ancient Mesoamerica13:1-23.

Postclassic Maya Community Economy and the Mercantile Transformation in Northeastern Belize. In Ancient Maya Political Economies. M. Masson and D. Freide (eds). Pp. 335-364. Walnut Creek, CA: Altamira Press.

2001
Changing Patterns of Ceramic Stylistic Diversity in the Pre-Hispanic Maya Lowlands. Acta Archaeologica 72:159-188.

The Economic Organization of Late and Terminal Classic Period Maya Stone Tool Craft Specialist Workshops at Colha, Belize. Lithic Technology 26:29-49.

El Sobrenatural Cocijo y Poder de Linaje en La Antigua Sociedad Zapoteca. Mesoamerica 41:1-30.

Segmentary Political Cycles and Elite Migration Myths in the Postclassic Archaeology of Northern Belize. In The Past and Present Maya: Essays in Honor of Robert M. Carmack. John M. Weeks (ed). Pp.89-106. Lancaster, CA: Labyrinthos Press.

2000
Masson, Marilyn A. and Henry Chaya. Obsidian Trade Connections at the Postclassic Maya Site of Laguna de On, Belize. Lithic Technology 25:135-144.