Award Abstract # 0530158
Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant: Early Contact Period Interaction in the Western Spanish Borderlands - A Ceramic Technological Study

NSF Org: BCS
Division of Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences
Recipient: UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO
Initial Amendment Date: June 14, 2005
Latest Amendment Date: June 14, 2005
Award Number: 0530158
Award Instrument: Standard Grant
Program Manager: John Yellen
jyellen@nsf.gov
 (703)292-8759
BCS
 Division of Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences
SBE
 Directorate for Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences
Start Date: August 1, 2005
End Date: July 31, 2007 (Estimated)
Total Intended Award Amount: $11,980.00
Total Awarded Amount to Date: $11,980.00
Funds Obligated to Date: FY 2005 = $11,980.00
History of Investigator:
  • Ann Ramenofsky (Principal Investigator)
    aramenof@unm.edu
Recipient Sponsored Research Office: University of New Mexico
1 UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO
ALBUQUERQUE
NM  US  87131-0001
(505)277-4186
Sponsor Congressional District: 01
Primary Place of Performance: University of New Mexico
1 UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO
ALBUQUERQUE
NM  US  87131-0001
Primary Place of Performance
Congressional District:
01
Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): F6XLTRUQJEN4
Parent UEI:
NSF Program(s): Archaeology
Primary Program Source: app-0105 
Program Reference Code(s): SMET, 9150, 9179
Program Element Code(s): 139100
Award Agency Code: 4900
Fund Agency Code: 4900
Assistance Listing Number(s): 47.075

ABSTRACT

Under the supervision of Dr. Ann Ramenofsky, Ms. Jennifer Boyd will conduct her doctoral research addressing disruption and innovation in Pueblo Indian groups at European contact as reflected in ceramic technological change. The contact period was a time when vastly different worlds collided, stimulating a complex process of interaction among different groups of people, technologies, material goods, ideas, and diseases. Native American-Spanish interactions took different forms in various parts of the Americas resulting in locally distinct continuity and change. This study will look at changes in Pueblo Indian lifeways in the western Spanish Borderlands (now modern New Mexico) from initial contact in the 16th century through the Pueblo Revolt of 1680. New Mexico is a unique place to study Native American-Spanish interaction because of its remote location in the northernmost Borderlands and may provide an important counterpoint to other areas where there was a high degree of Spanish domination and simultaneous decimation of Native American groups.

Pueblo Indians were not just victims of European dominance. They were active participants in shaping interactions. The development of colono wares represents one such indigenous response to an empire-wide need for European vessel forms. Colono wares are ceramics with attributes from hand-coiled, low-fired Native American ceramic traditions and medieval European vessel forms. These ceramics, found throughout the Spanish Empire, mark the appearance of new vessel forms in the indigenous ceramic repertoire. Unfortunately, little is known about these ceramics, especially what technological changes may have accompanied vessel form changes. Mineralogical, chemical, and formal analyses will be used to determine the nature of technological changes in Pueblo Indian ceramics, especially colono wares. This study will distinguish between two types of technological change to make interpretations in terms of disruption and innovation. Change in highly conservative attributes related to motor skills of potters or the successful production sequence will be interpreted as reflecting disruption due to discontinuity in potter group structure, breakdown in cultural transmission, and/or indigenous population loss. In contrast, change in attributes not directly related to the successful production sequence and visible on a finished vessel will be interpreted as reflecting Pueblo Indian innovation.

The intellectual merit of this study is that it will advance knowledge regarding Pueblo Indian-Spanish interactions and the early colonial history of New Mexico. This will be the first comprehensive technological study of colono wares in the American Southwest and will provide a robust means of determining disruption and innovation in Pueblo Indian groups by comparing a variety of mission and non-mission settings.

The broader impacts of this study will be the dissemination of information regarding early Pueblo Indian-Spanish interaction and ceramic technological change in the western Spanish Borderlands. This project will also provide the author with significant, additional professional training. The results of this study will be shared with professional and public audiences, including modern Pueblo Indian groups, through published papers and professional and public talks. The results will also be used to enhance museum displays and interpretive brochures at the Palace of the Governors Museum and Pecos National Monument.

Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.

Print this page

Back to Top of page