Paper short abstract:

I will summarize anthropological research questions that I have asked in Maya lithic study and their answers, and propose what should be done in the rest of my career and by next generations of Maya scholars.

Paper long abstract:

The panel, the Future with/of Maya Anthropology, will be an international session to be held in Japan for the first time to discuss and think about the future of Maya studies as anthropology in general but also as various specialized studies (e.g., archaeology, epigraphy, iconography, physical anthropology, ethnology) covering different areas for debate. I will summarize anthropological research questions that I have asked in Maya lithic study and their answers, and propose what should be done in the rest of my career and by next generations of Maya scholars. The results of nearly 30 years analysis on more than 180,000 lithic artifacts from the Copán region, Honduras, and the Aguateca and Ceibal region, Guatemala are summarized and discussed. The objectives of this regional-scale analysis were to elucidate the socioeconomic and political aspects of (1) procurement, exchange, and production of obsidian utilitarian goods; (2) the relationship between Late Classic Maya political boundaries and the boundaries of obsidian exchange; (3) chipped stone weapons and warfare; (4) the variability of artistic and craft production; as well as (5) royal ritual as theatrical performance.