Guy David Hepp
My primary research emphasis is early complex societies of Mesoamerica. Since 2009, I have directed the La Consentida Archaeological Project (LCAP), which is focused on the study of the Early Formative period (2000–1000 BCE) village site of La Consentida in coastal Oaxaca, Mexico. La Consentida has produced evidence of early pottery, mounded earthen architecture, and a diet incorporating significant quantities of maize and wild fauna. Institutions such as the National Science Foundation and the Fulbright Program have generously funded this work. Initial results of the project appear in my doctoral dissertation, which was awarded the 2016 Society for American Archaeology Dissertation Award.
In related work, I study ancient Mesoamerican figurines, musical instruments, and masks, as well as mortuary contexts and evidence for ritual specialization. Broadly, I am interested in the native peoples of the Americas and in the changes in settlement, subsistence, social organization, and cosmology that were integral to the establishment of early villages.
Courses taught:
ANTH 1400 World History to c. 1500
ANTH 3201 The Archaeology of the Senses
ANTH 3006R Mesoamerican Archaeology
ANTH 4021L Archaeological Laboratory Analysis
ANTH 3701R Cultures of Mexico and Central America
ANTH 5000 Senior Seminar in Anthropology
ANTH 6021L Advanced Archaeological Laboratory Analysis
ANTH 6005 Archaeological Research, Methods, and Proposal Design
ANTH 6004 History and Theory of Archaeology
In related work, I study ancient Mesoamerican figurines, musical instruments, and masks, as well as mortuary contexts and evidence for ritual specialization. Broadly, I am interested in the native peoples of the Americas and in the changes in settlement, subsistence, social organization, and cosmology that were integral to the establishment of early villages.
Courses taught:
ANTH 1400 World History to c. 1500
ANTH 3201 The Archaeology of the Senses
ANTH 3006R Mesoamerican Archaeology
ANTH 4021L Archaeological Laboratory Analysis
ANTH 3701R Cultures of Mexico and Central America
ANTH 5000 Senior Seminar in Anthropology
ANTH 6021L Advanced Archaeological Laboratory Analysis
ANTH 6005 Archaeological Research, Methods, and Proposal Design
ANTH 6004 History and Theory of Archaeology
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Journal Articles by Guy David Hepp
In this paper, we consider bioarchaeological and mortuary evidence for the origins of formal cemeteries and changing skeletal health during the Early Formative period (2000–1000 BCE) in coastal Oaxaca. Excavations at the village site of La Consentida (1950–1525 cal BC) have recovered 14, or possibly 15, individuals in 12 burials. The dating of these burials is based on a radiocarbon sample from a femur processed with XAD purification, the association of that dated burial with burials and features surrounding it, and additional radiocarbon dates. Offerings recovered with these burials, which are among the earliest known in Oaxaca, along with patterns of mortuary treatment, suggest a community with distinct social roles but without formalized hereditary hierarchy. Stable isotope values, microbotanical evidence, and faunal remains suggest a mixed diet incorporating maize and wild resources. An increase over time in dental attrition, along with changes in ground stone and ceramic artifact use, appear to contradict stable isotopic evidence for relative stability in maize consumption. We interpret these findings as indicative of a culinary change from the consumption of maize in liquid form to that of flour processed with grinding stones. On the basis of consistencies in body positioning and orientation, along with patterns in burial offerings, we suggest that La Consentida’s burials indicate the establishment of the first formalized funerary contexts in coastal Oaxaca.
Book Chapters by Guy David Hepp