Kulubá Archaeological Project 2001 Field Season
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Research Year:  2001
Culture:  Maya
Chronology:  Late Pre-Classic and Early Classic
Location:  Yucatán, México
Site:  Kulubá

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements
Summary
List of Figures
List of Plates
List of Tables
Introduction
Previous Research
Environment
Project Research Questions and Goals
Project Methodology
San Pedro
Structure Descriptions
Santa Monica
Structure Descriptions
Yun Ak
Structure Descriptions
Yokat
Structure Descriptions
Ichmul de San Jose
Structure Descriptions
Conclusions
Chronology
Civic Architecture
Domestic Architecture
The Kulubá Polity and Chichén Itzá
Sources Cited

Acknowledgements

Many groups and individuals made the 2001 Kulubá Archaeological Project possible. Foremost is the Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, Inc. (FAMSI), which generously provided funding for the project. In Yucatán, Alfredo Barrera Rubio of CRY-INAH was instrumental in acquiring the necessary permits from México City and Mérida. His generous sharing of information about his own work at Kulubá was invaluable. At the University of Pittsburgh, Robert D. Drennan, chair of the Department of Anthropology, provided a key letter of support for the project. Carlos Orozco, the dueño of "Rancho Culubá" facilitated the research in ways too numerous to list. Amador Canche Mis of San Isidro (a satellite town of Tixcancal) acted as my foreman for the entire season. His intelligence, work ethic, and sense of humor were much appreciated. In Tizimín, the staff at the Mesón de Don Rodrigo Hotel need to be thanked for their hospitality and for sharing their knowledge of the town. Over the course of the summer I had the opportunity to visit the Kiuic Project (Bill Ringle and George Bey, directors), the Chunchucmil Project (Bruce Dahlin, director), and the Yalahau Project (Scott Fedick and Jennifer Mathews, directors). Thanks are due to members of these projects for providing both interesting archaeological discussions and many humorous moments. The Yalahau Project’s Fourth of July party will not be forgotten anytime soon. Fabio Esteban Amador kindly translated the project summary into Spanish. Finally, thanks are due to E. Wyllys Andrews V, director of the Middle American Research Institute at Tulane University. It was a conversation with Will at the 1997 Society for American Archaeology meetings in Nashville that convinced me to pursue my interest in Kulubá.

Summary

Fieldwork during the summer of 2001 in the Kulubá region of Yucatán has provided valuable data about this Maya polity. The central research question involved how Kulubá was related to Chichén Itzá. Previous research has demonstrated that the site of Kulubá has examples of Chichén-style architecture as well as similarities in portable artifacts such as ceramics and obsidian. To approach the question from a different perspective, focus was shifted away from Kulubá itself and to lower-order centers within its political orbit. In all, the civic centers of 5 sites within 15 km of Kulubá were mapped. None of these sites have any stylistic affiliations with Chichén Itzá. The evidence suggests that Chichén’s influence was limited to just the polity capital of Kulubá and not down its settlement hierarchy. It appears that political control on the part of Chichén Itzá at Kulubá was indirect and did not involve territorial consolidation.

Submitted 10/28/2002 by:
J. Gregory Smith, Ph.D.
Research Associate, Department of Anthropology
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
and
Senior Archaeologist,
Archaeological Investigations Northwest, Inc.
Portland, OR
jgregoriosmith@hotmail.com

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