Dr. Masson is an archaeologist whose research contributes to the theme of spatial demography. In the most recent period, she has focused on the Postclassic period of the Maya lowlands as Principal Investigator of the Economic Foundations of Mayapán Project. This project analyzes the social and economic dimensions of production and exchange for Mayapán, the largest city of the Postclassic Maya world and one of the most highly urbanized political centers in ancient Mesoamerica. Along with colleagues Carlos Peraza Lope of the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia and Dr. Timothy Hare (Morehead State University), Masson is analyzing GIS mapping, surface collection, and excavation data from over 160 residential houselots distributed across the city’s 4.5 square kilometer walled area. The team’s surveys outside of the city walls have also revealed that Mayapán was larger and more diverse than previously thought. This research directly pertains to the organization of labor, occupational specialization, health, wealth disparities, and class structure in a crowded demographic setting.
Masson and Peraza are currently preparing a book, Kukulkan’s Realm: The Postclassic Maya City of Mayapán, under contract with the University of Colorado Press, and a data monograph, Urban Life at Mayapan, to be submitted to the University of Pittsburgh Press. Recent publications from these projects have appeared or will soon appear in the journals, Mexicon, Ancient Mesoamerica, and Latin American Antiquity (2005). Numerous books chapters have been written during this period.
During 2003-2005, Masson was the sole PI of a National Science Foundation grant, “The Economic Foundations of Mayapán.” In 2005, she received a grant from Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies (“Isotopes and Ethnicity at Mayapán) for skeletal isotope studies of Mayapan.
Work in progress and
pending/planned research projects
With the monographs from the Mayapán work well underway, Masson will shortly submit grants for a new cycle of field research at Mayapán. Currently under preparation are proposals to the National Science Foundation and the National Geographic Society. Subsequently, proposals will be prepared to the National Endowment for Humanities, the Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, and the Wenner Gren Foundation. The proposals are for fieldwork that will take place starting in the spring of 2008.
As an archeologist, Masson contributes expertise in the study of ancient urban patterns from site surveys, mapping, excavation, and artifact analysis. Masson collaborates with Dr. Timothy Hare, of Morehead State University, an expert in mapping and the application of GIS technology to archeological problems. She provides non-western and historical perspectives on urban demography.
Masson uses technical equipment and personnel to print large-scale maps of Mayapan’s settlement. She plans to use the analysis capacities of the Statistical and Computing Core for more complicated statistical manipulations, once large data sets are ready. She may use the assistance available for proposal writing.