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ResearchHumans and our ability to create the incredible (and stupid) have always fascinated me. Anthropology gives us a theoretical and methodological means of studying humanity’s triumphs and foibles to understand where we have and have not succeeded. I employ a four-field anthropological approach, and seek to incorporate the knowledge from linguistics, ethnology, and physical anthropology with archaeology, which is my main focus. My main research addresses how evolutionary theory can be bridged with praxis theory (agency-based approaches) to better understand human behavior. Having received my education from kindergarten through Ph.D. in New Mexico, I naturally developed a great interest in the many cultures present in the Land of Enchantment. This love of Southwestern cultures is reflected in my research, which has focused largely on Casas Grandes pottery, the topic of my dissertation research. Through my studies, I have developed a deep admiration for the Casas Grandes artisans, and I seek to identify the social, political, and cosmological themes that permeate their pottery using design and semantic analysis. This in turn has led me to study iconographic systems and shamanic and gender practices throughout northern Mexico and the American Southwest. I have been involved with the Janos Archaeological Project, a collaborative field project between the University of Missouri-Columbia and the University of North Florida. The project is designed to provide information about the political organization and religion of the Medio period Casas Grandes system, and to provide students with additional archaeological fieldwork experience. We gratefully acknowledge the generosity of the University of Missouri Research Council, the University of Missouri Arts and Sciences Alumni Association, and the University of North Florida College of Arts and Sciences Dean’s Leadership Council Faculty Fellowship, all of which have helped defray the costs of the project. |
 Casas Grandes pottery sherds (click for larger image)  Casas Grandes pot catalog #59-9-201 courtesy of El Paso Museum of Archaeology |
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christine vanpool | department of anthropology | college of arts & science | university of missouri
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