Books and Monographs by Chelsea Blackmore
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Journal Articles by Chelsea Blackmore
SAA Archaeological Record, 2016
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SAA Archaeological Record, 2016
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Critique of Anthropology, 2016
Maya archaeology continues to be defined by a schism between ‘politic/s and state’ and ‘everyday ... more Maya archaeology continues to be defined by a schism between ‘politic/s and state’ and ‘everyday life and ordinary people.’ The purpose of this paper is to deconstruct this dichotomy by considering the intellectual history and theoretical perspectives that continue to reify these boundaries and its connections to modern neoliberal discourses. How we conceive of the state - of what it is, and how it interacts with the rest of society - is at the heart of neo-evolutionary models of state formation; these impact our understanding of how ancient Maya society operated and the ways in which power, politics and class function. Archaeological fascination with elites and rulers, both in scholarly and public circles, creates a narrative focused on individual achievement, a quest for wealth and material access; values lauded by the neoliberal state. Alternative readings of complexity illustrate that everyday life of ordinary people is nuanced, intentional, and inherently political. Such work forces us to reconsider this dichotomy and recognize it as a dialectical and mutually constitutive process.
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SAA Archaeological Record, 2014
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Archaeologies, Journal of the World Archaeological Congress, 2011
A queer archaeology is often equated to looking for ancient homosexuality. As a challenge to het... more A queer archaeology is often equated to looking for ancient homosexuality. As a challenge to heteronormative practice, queer theory, instead, provides a framework for engaging with all aspects of identity formation and the processes and behaviors that mediate it. This article examines how queer theory can inform discussions of archaeological identity, first with respect to its place in broader feminist and archaeological literature; second in its correspondence to theoretical models of identity formation and the construction of difference; and finally in its applicability to models of ancient Maya social organization and commoner identity.
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Latin American Antiquity, 2011
For the ancient Maya, social organization remains largely understood as a two class system — that... more For the ancient Maya, social organization remains largely understood as a two class system — that of commoner and elite. While these categories reflect the extreme ends of known social strata, they inadequately characterize the reality of day-to day interactions. This has led to tacit assumptions that commoners did not participate in or comprehend the political and social complexity of the world around them. This paper examines how occupants of a Late Classic Maya neighborhood employed ritual and public practices as a means of social differentiation.
Excavations at the Northeast Group, part of the ancient Maya site of Chan, Belize, identified considerable diversity between households, suggesting that occupants shaped status and identity through the control and centralization of ritual. Understanding how people distinguished themselves within the context of a neighborhood provides direct evidence of class complexity, challenging traditional models of commoner behavior and more importantly the role they played in ancient Maya society as a whole.
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Florida Anthropologist, 2000
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Chapters in Edited Volumes by Chelsea Blackmore
Ancient Maya Commerce: Multidisciplinary Research at Chunchucmil, 2017
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Chan: An Ancient Maya Farming Community, 2012
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Chan: An Ancient Maya Farming Community, 2012
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Papers of the 2006 Belize Arhcaeology Symposium, Belompan, Belize, 2007
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Archaeological Investigations in the Eastern Maya Lowlands: Papers of the 2004 Belize Archaeology Symposium, 2005
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Encyclopedia Entries by Chelsea Blackmore
International Encyclopedia of Human Sexuality, 2015
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The International Encyclopedia of Human Sexuality, 2015
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Encyclopedia of Archaeology, 2010
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Selected Other Publications by Chelsea Blackmore
Queer Archaeology (website), 2018
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Research at the Northeast Group explores how the malleability of commoner identity is crucial to ... more Research at the Northeast Group explores how the malleability of commoner identity is crucial to interpretations of ancient Maya society. The purpose of this dissertation is two-fold: first to demonstrate how residents of the Northeast Group used materials and architecture to distinguish themsleves from others in the neighborhood, and second to examine the implications of comomners as agents of history. Fundamental to this is the deconstruction of what archaeologists mean by commoner and the theoretical and methodological assumptions built into these definitions. Regardless of extensive research in settlement and household studies, interpretations of ancient Maya society continued to be framed with reference to elites. As elites are defined as the motor of change within civilization, commoners, in contrast, are characterized as static and passive. As I argue, however, these models do not accurately reflect who commoners were and their impact in the construction of ancient Maya society as a whole.
Evidence from the Northeast Group, one of several neighbrohoods identified at the site of Chan, Belize, illustrates how commoners consciously controlled and manipulated their social staus in much the same way that elites did. The use of ritual, the organization of space, and access to certain goods allowed commoners to create social solidarity while differentiating themselves from their neighbors. Because commoners were unable to amass goods in the same way as elites, the majority of artifacts and materials recovered often reflect functional and economic-types of focus. As I demonstrate, detailed examinations of material culture within even the smallest of commoner settings can and do reflect the diversity of people and identities present.
If social identity and status are malleable, then categories such as commoner and elite cannot adequately capture the variability and complexity inherent in such a dynamic structure. Rather than considering rural settlements as redundant units of economic and social behavior, these areas are better contextualized as fluid social milieus. By exploring the relationships, behaviors, and identities of people living in the Northeast Group, we can begin to refine archaeological interpretations of social identity, and give agency to commoners as active and fully cognizant participants of Maya society.
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Selected Conference Papers by Chelsea Blackmore
Presented at the Belize Archaeology Symposium, 2018
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Presented at the Annual Meeting for the Society for American Archaeology, Washington, DC, 2018
We volunteer and engage with the public because we believe that history matters; that visibility ... more We volunteer and engage with the public because we believe that history matters; that visibility of the everyday, of peoples and pasts marginalized and made invisible should be central to what we do. We can use our work, pre- and post-contact, as a means for public engagement and to dismantle political discussions rooted in ahistorical notions of human behavior and morality. But in serving the public interest, how do we also serve our membership, both in protecting their rights as human beings and as professionals? What responsibilities do we and the SAA have to our colleagues, students, mentors, and friends? In particular, how do our actions continue to marginalize people of color within our membership as well as minimize the importance of racial justice actions? This paper examines how white privilege and calls for scientific "objectivity" ignore the structural violence that continues to impact our practice as well as our participation in current political and social activism.
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Books and Monographs by Chelsea Blackmore
Journal Articles by Chelsea Blackmore
Excavations at the Northeast Group, part of the ancient Maya site of Chan, Belize, identified considerable diversity between households, suggesting that occupants shaped status and identity through the control and centralization of ritual. Understanding how people distinguished themselves within the context of a neighborhood provides direct evidence of class complexity, challenging traditional models of commoner behavior and more importantly the role they played in ancient Maya society as a whole.
Chapters in Edited Volumes by Chelsea Blackmore
Encyclopedia Entries by Chelsea Blackmore
Selected Other Publications by Chelsea Blackmore
Evidence from the Northeast Group, one of several neighbrohoods identified at the site of Chan, Belize, illustrates how commoners consciously controlled and manipulated their social staus in much the same way that elites did. The use of ritual, the organization of space, and access to certain goods allowed commoners to create social solidarity while differentiating themselves from their neighbors. Because commoners were unable to amass goods in the same way as elites, the majority of artifacts and materials recovered often reflect functional and economic-types of focus. As I demonstrate, detailed examinations of material culture within even the smallest of commoner settings can and do reflect the diversity of people and identities present.
If social identity and status are malleable, then categories such as commoner and elite cannot adequately capture the variability and complexity inherent in such a dynamic structure. Rather than considering rural settlements as redundant units of economic and social behavior, these areas are better contextualized as fluid social milieus. By exploring the relationships, behaviors, and identities of people living in the Northeast Group, we can begin to refine archaeological interpretations of social identity, and give agency to commoners as active and fully cognizant participants of Maya society.
Selected Conference Papers by Chelsea Blackmore
Excavations at the Northeast Group, part of the ancient Maya site of Chan, Belize, identified considerable diversity between households, suggesting that occupants shaped status and identity through the control and centralization of ritual. Understanding how people distinguished themselves within the context of a neighborhood provides direct evidence of class complexity, challenging traditional models of commoner behavior and more importantly the role they played in ancient Maya society as a whole.
Evidence from the Northeast Group, one of several neighbrohoods identified at the site of Chan, Belize, illustrates how commoners consciously controlled and manipulated their social staus in much the same way that elites did. The use of ritual, the organization of space, and access to certain goods allowed commoners to create social solidarity while differentiating themselves from their neighbors. Because commoners were unable to amass goods in the same way as elites, the majority of artifacts and materials recovered often reflect functional and economic-types of focus. As I demonstrate, detailed examinations of material culture within even the smallest of commoner settings can and do reflect the diversity of people and identities present.
If social identity and status are malleable, then categories such as commoner and elite cannot adequately capture the variability and complexity inherent in such a dynamic structure. Rather than considering rural settlements as redundant units of economic and social behavior, these areas are better contextualized as fluid social milieus. By exploring the relationships, behaviors, and identities of people living in the Northeast Group, we can begin to refine archaeological interpretations of social identity, and give agency to commoners as active and fully cognizant participants of Maya society.