Za mu gaya muku game da gano manyan shugabannin Olmec da Matthew W. Stirling ya yi a gabar Tekun Mexico, tsakanin 1938 da 1946.
A CIKIN BINCIN SARKIN OLMEC
Tun gamuwarsa da misalin a super kayan rufe fuska –Ya ce ya wakilci “jariri mai kuka” - Matthew W. Stirling ya rayu yana mafarkin ganin gigantic shugaban, an sassaka shi cikin salo iri ɗaya kamar na mask, wanda José María Melgar ya gano a 1862.
Yanzu yana gab da cika burinsa. Washegarin ranar da ya isa garin Tlacotalpan mai kayatarwa, inda Kogin San Juan ya haɗu da Papaloapan, a gefen kudancin Veracruz, kuma ya sami damar hayar mai jagora, hayar dawakai, da siyo kayayyaki. Don haka, kamar Don Quixote na zamani, ya kasance a shirye ya tafi zuwa Santiago Tuxtla, don neman mafi mahimmancin kasada na rayuwarsa. Ya kasance ranar ƙarshe ta Janairu 1938.
Yin gwagwarmaya da bacci sakamakon tashin zafin rana da rawar dokin dokinsa, Stirling yayi tunani game da gaskiyar cewa Kan Melgar bai dace da kowane salon wakilcin duniyar pre-Columbian baA gefe guda kuma, bai gamsu sosai cewa kai da gatari mai jefa kuri'a ba, kuma daga Veracruz, wanda Alfredo Chavero ya buga, suna wakiltar baƙar fata. Abokinsa Marshall saville, daga Gidan Tarihi na Tarihin Tarihi na Amurka a New York, ya gamsar da shi cewa gatari irin na Chavero wakiltar allahn Aztec Tezcatlipoca a cikin jaguar form, amma Ban yi zaton Aztec ne ya sassaka su ba, amma ta wata kungiyar bakin ruwa da aka sani da Olmecs, wato, "Mazaunan ƙasar roba". A gare shi, gano Tiger Necaxa ta George Vaillant a cikin 1932, ya tabbatar da fassarar Saville.
Kashegari, a gaban babban Olmec shugaban Hueyapan, Stirling ya manta da sakamakon yin sa'o'i goma na tafiya a kan dawakai, ba don sabawa da barci a cikin hammo, na sautukan daji: kodayake an binne rabi, shugaban Olmec yafi birgewa fiye da hotuna da zane, kuma ba zai iya ɓoye mamakinsa ba yayin da ya ga cewa sassaka yana tsakiyar cibiyar adana kayan tarihi tare da tudun ƙasa, ɗayansu ya kusan tsayin mita 150. Bayan dawowarsa Washington, hotunan da ya samu na shugaban Olmec da wasu abubuwan tarihi da tuddai suna da matukar amfani wajen samun tallafin kuɗi don rami daga Tres Zapotes, wanda Stirling ya fara a watan Janairu na shekara mai zuwa. Ya kasance a lokacin kakar na biyu a Tres Zapotes cewa Stirling ya sami damar ziyartar babban fataccen shugaban wanda Frans Blom da Oliver Lafarge suka gano a cikin 1926. Stirling, tare da matarsa, da masanin ilmin binciken kayan tarihi Philip Druker da mai ɗaukar hoto Richard Steward, sun ci gaba da gabas a cikin motar su tare da hanyar da kawai za'a iya yin tafiya a lokacin rani. Bayan sun tsallaka gadoji uku masu ban tsoro, sun isa Tonalá, daga inda suka ci gaba cikin jirgin ruwa zuwa bakin Kogin Blasillo, kuma daga nan, a ƙafa zuwa La Venta. Sun tsallaka yankin da ke da dausayi tsakanin wurin da bakin kogin sai suka ci karo da rukunin masana ilimin kasa da ke neman mai, wadanda suka jagorance su zuwa La Venta.
Washegari sun sami lambar yabo saboda wahalar hanyar: manyan duwatsu masu duwatsu sun fito daga ƙasa, kuma daga cikinsu akwai kan wanda Blom da Lafarge suka gano shekaru goma sha biyar da suka gabata. Farin ciki ya tayar da hankula kuma nan da nan suka yi shirin haƙa ƙasa. Kafin lokacin damina na 1940 ya fara balaguron Tsutsa wani La Venta dake kuma haƙa abubuwan tarihi da yawa, gami da manyan shugabannin Olmec guda huɗu, duk sun yi kama da na Melgar, in banda salon hular kwano da nau'ikan abin rufe kunne. Yana cikin yankin da ba a samo dutse ba. wadannan shugabannin Olmec sun kasance masu ban sha'awa saboda girman su –Babu mafi girma a mita 2.41 kuma mafi ƙanƙanta a mita mita 1.47 – kuma don haƙiƙa ta gaskiya. Stirling ya kammala da cewa hotunan su ne shugabannin olmec kuma yayin da yake buɗe waɗannan abubuwan tarihi masu nauyin tan da yawa, batun asalinsu da canja wurinsu ya zama daɗa matsawa.
Saboda shigowar Amurka cikin Yaƙin Duniya na II da Stirlings Ba za su iya komawa La Venta ba sai 1942, kuma an sake samun falala a kansu, saboda a cikin watan Afrilun shekarar abubuwan ban mamaki ya faru a cikin La Venta: a sarcophagus tare da jaguar da aka sassaƙa da kabari tare da ginshiƙan ginshiƙai, duka tare da kyawawan hadayu na jaka. Kwana biyu bayan waɗannan mahimman binciken, Stirling ya tashi zuwa Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Chiapas, don halartar teburin zagaye na ilimin ɗan adam akan Mayans da Olmecs wanda ke da alaƙa da abubuwan da ya gano.
Har ilayau tare da matarsa da Philip Drucker, bazara ta 1946 ta sami Stirling yana jagorantar haƙawa a cikin garuruwan San Lorenzo, Tenochtitlán da Potrero Nuevo, a bankunan Kogin Chiquito, wani ƙwararren mashahurin Coatzacoalcos. Can gano manyan zane-zane goma sha biyar, duka a cikin tsarkakakkun salon Olmec, ciki har da biyar daga cikin manyan kuma mafi kyaun shugabannin Olmec. Mafi burgewa duka, wanda aka sani da "El Rey", ya auna tsayin mitoci 2.85. Tare da wadannan binciken Stirling ya kammala shekaru takwas na aiki mai ƙarfi akan ilimin kimiya na kayan tarihi na Olmec. Abin da ya fara da tashin hankali na wani saurayi don ɗan ƙaramin abin rufe fuska wanda aka sassaka shi a cikin salon da ba a sani ba, ya ƙare a gano wayewa daban-daban wanda, a cewar Dr. Alfonso Caso, ya kasance "Tsarin al'adun uwa" na duk daga baya Mesoamerican.
TAMBAYOYI GAME DA JAGORAN OLMEC
Tambayoyin da Stirling yayi game da asali da jigilar duwatsun monolithic sune batun binciken kimiyya wanda Philip Drucker da Robert Heizer suka yi a cikin 1955. Ta hanyar nazarin ƙananan ƙwayoyin cuta da ƙananan duwatsu da aka cire daga abubuwan tarihi, yana yiwuwa a tantance cewa dutsen ya fito ne daga tsaunukan Tuxtlas, fiye da kilomita 100 yamma da La Venta. Gabaɗaya an yarda da cewa manyan bulodi na dutsen bawul, masu nauyin tan da yawa, an ja su ta ƙasa fiye da kilomita 40, sa'annan aka sanya su a tsaka-tsalle kuma rafin Kogin Coatzacoalcos ya kai bakinsa; sannan a gefen tekun zuwa Kogin Tonalá, kuma a ƙarshe tare da Kogin Blasillo zuwa La Venta a lokacin damina. Da zarar an sami dutsen da aka yanke dutsen da wuri, sai ya kasance ya sassaka shi gwargwadon siffar da ake so, a matsayin babban adadi na mutum wanda yake zaune, a matsayin "bagade", ko kuma a matsayin babban kai. Ganin injiniyanci da matsalolin kayan aiki da ke tattare da yankewa da jigilar irin waɗannan lamura - ƙarshen shugaban ya kai nauyin 18 a matsakaita - masana da yawa sun yanke shawarar cewa irin wannan aikin zai iya cin nasara ne kawai saboda masu iko suna mamaye yawancin mutane. Bayan wadannan dalilai na siyasa, masana kimiyya da yawa sun yarda da fassarar Stirling cewa manyan shugabannin Olmec hotunan masu mulki ne, har ma suna nuna cewa zane-zanen da ke kan hular kwanorsu sun gano su da suna. Don yin bayani game da shigar da fuska, kogwanni, da ramuka masu kusurwa huɗu da aka sassaka a cikin kawunan da yawa, an yi ta rade-radin cewa bayan mutuwar mai mulki ana iya lalata hotonsa, ko kuma cewa "an kashe shi ne" saboda magaji
Akwai tambayoyi da yawa a kusa da waɗannan fassarar, gami da Stirling's. Ga al'ummar da ba ta da rubutu, a zaton cewa an yi rijistar sunan mai sarauta ta hanyar zane a kan kwalkwali shi ne yin watsi da cewa yawancin waɗannan ba su da sauƙi ko kuma nuna alamun lissafi wanda ba za a iya gano su ba. Game da alamun yanke jiki ko kuma ganganci hallaka, kawuna biyu ne kawai daga cikin goma sha shida suka gaza kokarin yi musu bayani dalla-dalla don mayar da su wuraren tarihi da ake kira "bagadai". Ramuka, shigarwar kamannin kofi da yajin da ake gani a kawunansu suma suna cikin "bagadan", kuma waɗannan biyun na ƙarshe - kofuna da striae - sun bayyana a cikin duwatsu na gidan ibada na Olmec na El Manatí, kudu maso gabashin San Lorenzo, Veracruz.
A cewar karatun kwanan nan akan fasahar Olmec da wakilci, manyan shugabannin Olmec ba hotunan masu mulki bane, amma na saurayi da manya, waɗanda masana kimiyya ke kira fuskar jariri, wanda rashin haihuwa wanda yau aka san shi da suna Down Syndrome da sauran masu alaƙa da shi. Wataƙila an yi la'akari mai tsarki ta OlmecsWaɗannan mutane-fuskokin jaririn an yi musu sujada cikin manyan bukukuwan addini. Sabili da haka, alamun da ke bayyane a kan hotunanku bai kamata a ɗauka a matsayin lalata ko lalata abubuwa ba, sai dai shaidar shaidar ayyukan ibada, kamar ɓarnatar da makamai da kayan aiki da ƙarfi, maimaita su sau da yawa akan abin tunawa, ko hakowa ko nika dutsen don barin rami ko tara "ƙura mai tsarki", wanda za a yi amfani da shi wajen ayyukan tsafi. Kamar yadda ake iya gani daga muhawara mara iyaka, waɗannan maɗaukakiyar kawunan Olmec, babu irinsa a tarihin wayewar pre-Columbian, ci gaba da ba mutane mamaki da makirci.
