Visibility, Perception and Power at the Marana Platform Mound: A Spatial Analysis (original) (raw)

2004

Abstract

Evidence from archaeology, ethnohistory, and ethnography suggests that the raised architectural complexes known as platform mounds played a central role in the organization of Hohokam society during the Classic Period (approximately AD 1150-1450). In particular, many studies focus attention upon platform mounds' potential as venues for community ritual. This spatial analysis of the platform mound complex at the Marana Platform Mound site builds upon the clues provided by artifacts, architecture, and ethnography to examine how these community rituals might have unfolded. Using the Marana mound's remnant architecture as its primary evidence, this study reconstructs visibility and access throughout the mound complex, suggesting which parts of moundtop ceremonies might be perceptible to all observers and which might be partially or totally hidden from view. Taken together, the findings from this analysis offer insights into how the rituals performed at the Marana mound complex might have helped bring the residents of the surrounding community together even as they emphasized the power and authority of an exclusive few.

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