Cahokia: North America’s First City北美首城卡霍基亞

歐文·亞魯什

Cahokia was a city that， at its peak from A.D. 1050-1200， was larger than many European cities， including London. The city was spread out over six square miles （16 square kilometers） and encompassed at least 120 mounds and a population between 10，000 and 20，000 people.

Located across the Mississippi River from modern-day St. Louis， it was the largest pre-Columbian city north of Mexico. The inhabitants of Cahokia did not use a writing system， and researchers today rely heavily on archaeology to interpret it. The name “Cahokia” is from an aboriginal people who lived in the area during the 17th century.

Cultural finds from the city include evidence of a popular game called “Chunkey” and a caffeine loaded drink. Artistic finds include stone tablets carved with images （such as a birdman） as well as evidence of sophisticated copper working， including jewelry and headdresses.

Recent research shows that many of the people who lived at Cahokia were immigrants who came from across the Midwest， possibly traveling from as far away as the Great Lakes and Gulf Coast， a study of their teeth shows. To the south of Cahokia a settlement that archaeologists call Washausen became abandoned around the time Cahokia was at its peak around A.D. 1100， a study published recently in the Journal of Archaeological Science Reports found. It’s possible that some of the residents at Washausen， and other sites located near it， moved to Cahokia.

The city’s growth may have been aided by warmer temperatures. At the time Cahokia flourished， temperatures across the Earth were unusually warm， resulting in increased rainfall in the American Midwest， wrote archaeologists Timothy Pauketat and Susan Alt in a paper published in the book “Medieval Mississippians： The Cahokian World” （School for Advanced Research Press， 2015） 1. “An increase in average yearly precipitation accompanied the warmer weather， permitting maize farming to thrive，” Pauketat and Alt wrote.

The city fell into decline after 1200， around the time that a flood occurred， becoming abandoned by 1400. Much of the city lies buried under 19th- and 20th-century developments， including a highway and the growth of the city of St. Louis. Over the past few decades， efforts have been made to preserve what remains， with Cahokia’s core now part of a state historic site.

Monks Mound

The most awesome example of architecture at Cahokia is the 100-foot （30-meter） tall “Monks Mound”—the name given to it because a group of Trappist2 monks lived near it in historic times.

It was built with four terraces， covering about 17 acres （6.8 hectares） at its base， the mound towering over the city. Archaeologists have found giant postholes at the top indicating the presence of what may have been a temple， presumably made of wood， measuring 104 feet （31 m） by 48 feet （15 m）. Its postholes are over 3 feet （1 m） in diameter， the building being perhaps 50 feet （15 m） tall.

Monks Mound， along with a grand plaza and a group of smaller mounds， was walled in with a 2-mile-long （3.2 km） wooden palisade. As many as 20，000 wooden posts were used to construct it.

Woodhenge

To the west of Monks Mound is a series of five circles， each originally made of red cedar wood posts， constructed at different times between A.D. 900 and 1100. They vary in size from 12 to 60 posts， the latest one being the smallest. Archaeologists refer to these structures as a “woodhenge，” a reconstruction of which now exists.

These posts would likely have been used as a calendar of sorts marking the solstices， equinoxes and festivals important to the inhabitants. A priest could have stood on a raised platform in the middle.

The sunrise during the equinox， when it rises to the east， is said to be particularly spectacular from this spot. A post aligns with the front of Monks Mound and the massive structure looks like it “gives birth” to the sun， according to a modern account recorded on the Cahokia Mounds state historic site website.

Human sacrifice

Mound 72 is a 10-foot-high （3 m） structure located less than a half-mile south of Monks Mound. It dates between 1050 and 1150 and holds the remains of 272 people， many of them sacrificed—the largest number of sacrificial victims ever found north of Mexico.

The mound’s archaeology is complicated but several instances of human sacrifice can be made out. In one case， 39 men and women were executed “on the spot，” wrote Pauketat in the book “Cahokia： Ancient America’s Great City on the Mississippi” （Penguin， 2010）. “It seemed likely the victims had been lined up on the edge of the pit... and clubbed one by one so that their bodies fell sequentially into it.”

In another episode of sacrifice， 52 malnourished women between the ages of 18 and 23 appear to have been sacrificed at the same time， along with a woman in her 30s. It’s not known why these women were sacrificed. A study of the teeth of the women indicates that many of them are from the local area， suggesting that they were not captured during a war.

The burial mound also has the remains of a man and woman who were found buried with 20，000 shell beads， likely the remains of a garment（s）. They may have been a couple that had a great amount of power at Cahokia. Near their remains archaeologists found the burials of 12 other people including several male-female couples as well as the remains of a child.

Cosmology

The absence of written records makes it difficult for researchers to understand all the religious and spiritual beliefs that the residents of Cahokia had. However， “new evidence suggests that the central Cahokia precinct was designed to align with calendrical and cosmological referents—sun， moon， earth， water and the netherworld，” wrote a team of archaeologists in an article published in 2017 in the journal Antiquity.

For instance， there is a place that archaeologists call the “Emerald Acropolis，” which marks “the beginning of a processional route” that leads to central Cahokia， the archaeologists wrote in the journal article. At least 12 mounds along with the remains of wooden buildings （some of which were likely used as “shrines”） have been identified at this acropolis， the archaeologists wrote， noting that the mounds and wooden buildings have “l(fā)unar alignments.”

Additionally， water may have played a role in the rituals performed at the acropolis. Some of the buildings were ritually “closed” with “water-redeposited silts” put over them， the archaeologists wrote. In a few cases， mats or hides were burned inside the buildings before silt was put over them. A burial of an infant was found in one of the buildings and may have been placed inside as an “offering”， archaeologists wrote.

Chunkey

Cahokia supported a rich variety of art and cultural activities. Among them are stones used for a once wildly popular game called “Chunkey.”

Archaeologists cannot be certain what the exact rules were at the time Cahokia thrived. Accounts of the game in the 18th and 19th century tell of a stone disc， called a “chunkey stone，” that would be rolled on a playing field with people throwing giant sticks， larger than themselves， at it， trying to land them as close to the stone as possible. Points would be given depending on how close they came. Gambling on the outcome of this game was common， according to writers who lived in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Pauketat envisions Chunkey being played as a team sport at Cahokia in the plaza beside Monks Mound. In an Archaeology Magazine article， he writes that “the chief standing at the summit of the black， packed-earth pyramid raises his arms. In the grand plaza below， a deafening shout erupts from 1，000 gathered souls. Then the crowd divides in two， and both groups run across the plaza， shrieking wildly. Hundreds of spears fly through the air toward a small rolling stone disk...” Spectators would cheer them on， witnessing a great sport that captivated the North American city.

在其鼎盛時期（1050—1200），卡霍基亞比包含倫敦在內(nèi)的許多歐洲城市還要大，占地面積超過6平方英里（16平方千米），包含至少120個土丘，人口數(shù)量在1萬至2萬之間。

卡霍基亞位于密西西比河沿岸，與如今的圣路易斯市隔河相望，是前哥倫布時代墨西哥北部最大的一座城市?？ɑ艋鶃喌木用駴]有統(tǒng)一的書寫系統(tǒng)，如今的研究人員極大地依賴于考古學(xué)來解讀其文字。其名“卡霍基亞”來源于17世紀生活在這片土地上的土著居民。

這座城市的文化發(fā)現(xiàn)包括一款叫“擲矛擊石”的通俗游戲和一種咖啡因飲料，藝術(shù)發(fā)現(xiàn)包括刻有圖案（比如鳥人圖案）的石匾、精美的黃銅制品（比如珠寶和頭飾）。

最近研究顯示，許多卡霍基亞的居民是穿越美國中西部而來的移民;一項關(guān)于居民牙齒的研究表明，他們可能來自五大湖區(qū)和墨西哥灣沿岸。最近發(fā)表在《考古科學(xué)報告》上的一項研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，卡霍基亞南部的一處聚居地——考古學(xué)家稱之為瓦肖森——在公元1100年左右荒廢，而這一時間正是卡霍基亞的繁盛時期，有可能瓦肖森及其附近的居民在這一時期移居卡霍基亞。

溫暖的氣候是這座城市發(fā)展的一個推動力?？脊艑W(xué)家蒂莫西·?？颂睾吞K珊·阿爾特在《中世紀密西西比人：卡霍基亞世界》（高級研究院出版社，2015）一書的一篇文章中提到，在卡霍基亞的繁榮時期，地球出現(xiàn)罕見的溫暖氣象，導(dǎo)致美國中西部降水量增加。保克特和阿爾特寫道：“溫度攀升帶來的年均降水量增加促進了玉米種植業(yè)的繁榮?！?/p>

卡霍基亞自1200年起開始走向衰落，當(dāng)時，城市發(fā)了一場洪水，最終在1400年荒廢。城市的大部分在19世紀和20世紀的發(fā)展中被掩埋，包括一條高速公路的建設(shè)和圣路易斯市的發(fā)展。在過去的幾十年中，人們付出諸多努力保護遺留的卡霍基亞核心地帶，該部分如今已成為國家歷史遺跡。

修道土丘

卡霍基亞最雄偉的建筑是100英尺（30米）高的修道土丘，因一群特拉普派修道士曾在某一歷史時期在其附近居住而得名。

修道土丘由四座平臺建成，底部占地約17英畝（6.8公頃），俯瞰整座城市?？脊艑W(xué)家發(fā)現(xiàn)其頂部有巨大的柱坑，表明這里曾經(jīng)一度用作廟宇，很可能是木質(zhì)結(jié)構(gòu)，104英尺（約31米）長，48英尺（約15米）寬。其柱坑直徑超過3英尺（約1米），整個修道土丘高約50英尺（約15米）。

修道土丘與一座大廣場和一堆小土丘一同被2英里（3.2千米）長的木柵欄包圍，該木柵欄由多達2萬根木樁組成。

巨木陣

修道土丘向西是一列五個圓環(huán)，在公元900年至1100年的不同時間由紅雪松木樁組成，大小從12根至60根木樁不等，最后建的那個體積最小?？脊艑W(xué)家稱這種結(jié)構(gòu)為“巨木陣”，其復(fù)原品如今仍存在。

這些木樁可能是用來記錄對居民來說非常重要的日期：春分、夏至、秋分、冬至及各種節(jié)日。神父可能會站在中央凸起的平臺上。

據(jù)說，春分、秋分時，在這個點上可以觀賞到蔚為壯觀的旭日東升。根據(jù)國家歷史遺跡網(wǎng)站上關(guān)于卡霍基亞土丘的一個現(xiàn)代記錄，一根木樁和修道土丘前部連成一線，其形態(tài)就像“孕育”了太陽。

人祭

72號土丘位于修道土丘以南半英里內(nèi)，高10英尺（3米），建于1050年至1150年間，保存了272具遺體——大多是獻祭者的遺體，這是墨西哥北部有史以來所發(fā)現(xiàn)的祭祀遇難者數(shù)量之最。

這座土丘的相關(guān)考古工作十分復(fù)雜，但可以辨認出多處人祭的情形。?？颂卦凇犊ɑ艋鶃啠汗糯乐廾芪魑鞅群优献畲蟮某鞘小芬粫袑懙?，有一次，39人被“當(dāng)場”處死（企鵝出版社，2010）?！斑@些犧牲者看起來很可能是在土坑邊緣列隊站好，并被依次棒擊，以使他們的尸體也有序地落入土坑。

在另一處祭祀墓冢中，52名18歲至23歲營養(yǎng)不良的女性和一位30多歲的女性同時被獻祭，而她們被獻祭的原因不明。關(guān)于她們牙齒的一項研究顯示，她們大多是當(dāng)?shù)厝耍@表明她們并非戰(zhàn)俘。

這一墓冢還有一對男女的遺體以及2萬顆貝殼珠陪葬品，這些貝殼珠可能是一件或幾件衣服上的裝飾。他們可能是卡霍基亞一對握有重權(quán)的夫婦。在他們遺體的附近，考古學(xué)家還發(fā)現(xiàn)其他12個人的遺體，包括幾對夫婦及一個孩子。

宇宙學(xué)

由于文字記錄的缺失，研究者很難理解卡霍基亞居民的所有宗教和精神信仰。然而，一組考古學(xué)家在2017年發(fā)表于《古跡》雜志的一篇文章中寫道：“新的證據(jù)表明，卡霍基亞中心區(qū)域曾被用來校準日歷法和宇宙學(xué)參照物：太陽、月亮、地球、水、陰間?！?/p>

例如，考古學(xué)家在該期刊論文中寫道，有一個地方被他們稱為“翡翠衛(wèi)城”，它標志著通往卡霍基亞中心的“一條宗教游行線路的起點”。文中提到，在這座衛(wèi)城中，至少發(fā)現(xiàn)了12座土丘和一些木制建筑（有些被用作“圣壇”）的遺跡，這些土墩和木制建筑均有“月亮參照物”。

此外，考古學(xué)家還寫道，水在衛(wèi)城的宗教儀式中或許扮演了重要的角色。有些建筑因被“水積泥沙”覆蓋而儀式性地“封閉”。有幾處建筑被泥沙覆蓋前，建筑內(nèi)的墊子和獸皮已被焚燒。考古學(xué)家寫道，在其中的一座建筑內(nèi)，他們發(fā)現(xiàn)一個嬰兒被埋葬，而這個嬰兒可能被當(dāng)作“祭品”。

擲矛擊石

卡霍基亞擁有各式各樣的藝術(shù)和文化活動，包括一種曾經(jīng)風(fēng)靡的游戲“擲矛擊石”。

考古學(xué)家不能確定在卡霍基亞繁榮時期這種游戲的具體規(guī)則。在18、19世紀關(guān)于這一游戲的文字記載中介紹了一種叫“環(huán)棒石”的石盤，其玩法是人們在廣場上滾動“環(huán)棒石”，同時投擲比他們自己還要大的棍棒去擊打石頭，努力使棍棒落在距石頭盡可能近的地方，距離越近，得分越高。據(jù)生活在18世紀和19世紀作家們的描述，基于這項游戲的博彩當(dāng)時很流行。

?？颂赝茰y，“擲矛擊石”是人們在卡霍基亞修道土丘旁的廣場上所玩的一項團隊運動。在一篇考古學(xué)期刊的文章中，他寫道：“首領(lǐng)站在由土填起來的黑色尖塔塔尖，舉起雙臂，而在下面的大廣場上匯集了1000人，發(fā)出震耳欲聾的吶喊。隨后，這群人分為兩個陣營，兩隊都奔跑穿過廣場，高聲尖叫。幾百支矛在空中飛舞，刺向滾動的小石盤……”觀眾此時也會為他們助威，觀看這項使這座北美城市著迷的偉大運動。

（譯者為“《英語世界》杯”翻譯大賽獲獎選手，單位：南京師范大學(xué)）