Gary M. Feinman

Who is Gary M. Feinman?

Gary M. Feinman is an American archaeologist, and Curator of Mesoamerican and Central American Anthropology at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. He was a part of the Valley of Oaxaca Settlement Pattern Project which focused on the evolution of the Monte Albán state and shifts in settlement in the region over three millennia. He has conducted research in the Valley of Oaxaca for over 30 years, most recently in the lands of the communities Mitla, Matatlán, and Ejutla. These studies focused on household excavations at three sites. Since 1995 he has also been conducting archaeological survey in coastal Shandong Province, China in conjunction with Shandong University. The coastal Shandong settlement pattern research, spearheaded by Feinman, Linda Nicholas, and Professor Fang Hui has had a seminal role in introducing this field methodology to Chinese archaeology.

Feinman is the author of numerous articles, books, and book chapters. He is the co-editor of the Journal of Archaeological Research, past editor of Latin American Antiquity, and a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.