ABSTRACT Attempts to account for the impressive and unusual archaeological record of the World Heritage site of Poverty Point have often faltered. The vast and diverse set of artifacts, the spectacular and well-designed earthworks, and the millions of baked-clay objects known as Poverty Point Objects are all distinctive and anomalous features of the site. This paper argues that the archaeological record of Poverty Point can best be explained as the product of periodic, ritualized feasting events. Drawing on diverse archaeological and anthropological studies of feasting I demonstrate that it is a useful research framework for understanding the site’s content because many of the archaeological signatures of feasting are present at Poverty Point. I argue furthermore that Poverty Point Objects were an integral component of this culture of feasting and offer hypotheses on their role in the feasts.

中文翻译：

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用贫困点对象在贫困点盛宴

摘要 试图解释贫困点世界遗产地令人印象深刻和不寻常的考古记录的尝试经常失败。大量多样的文物、壮观而精心设计的土方工程，以及数以百万计的被称为贫困点物体的烘焙粘土物体，都是该站点的独特和异常特征。本文认为，贫困点的考古记录可以最好地解释为周期性的、仪式化的宴会活动的产物。通过对宴席的各种考古学和人类学研究，我证明这是一个有用的研究框架，可以帮助理解该网站的内容，因为许多关于宴席的考古特征都出现在 Poverty Point。