An Unexplored Realm in the Heartland of the Southern Gulf ... - Famsi

Introduction
Chapter 4. El Marquesillo Archaeological Project: Prospection Surveys
Preliminary formulation of the Marquesillo Archaeological Survey Project
occurred in the summer of 2003, following my discussions with Lourdes Hernández, an
archaeologist with the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH) in Veracruz.
Hernández was director of the salvage project that recovered the Olmec throne at El
Marquesillo in 2002 and continued the investigation of the site in 2003. The new project
would build upon Hernández’ initial work that is described in the previous chapter and
expand the scope of the investigation. The goal was to determine occupational sequences,
identify spatial patterns, and assess any evidence for sociopolitical development at the
site during the Formative period (c. 1500-100 BC). The resulting datasets could be used
to address the type and extent of El Marquesillo’s involvement in the Olmec paradigm.
They would also offer the ability to evaluate El Marquesillo against models of
sociopolitical complexity, organization, and centralization. Furthermore, the various
types of data would permit the assessments to be conducted at various scales of analysis
and from differing perspectives. Finally, it was anticipated that the results would allow
the formation of research questions that would guide future efforts.
A factor that impacted this investigation was a decision by Mexican authorities
not to allow any further excavations at the present time. Thus, the challenge was to
formulate a research design that would accomplish the objectives of the project without
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