Chronology, Subsistence, and the Earliest Formative of Central Tlaxcala, Mexico

2006 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 474-492 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard G. Lesure ◽  
Aleksander Borejsza ◽  
Jennifer Carballo ◽  
Charles Frederick ◽  
Virginia Popper ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
General Model ◽  
Central Mexico ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Maize Agriculture ◽  
Ceramic Chronology ◽  
Agricultural Areas

We propose that pottery-using villages did not appear in the upland Apizaco region of central Tlaxcala, Mexico, until after 1000 B.C., centuries after such developments in choice locations for maize agriculture. We excavated at two of the earliest known Formative sites in the region. That work revealed abundant intact refuse deposits, allowing us to evaluate an existing ceramic chronology with new radiocarbon dates as well as characterize Formative subsistence. Our results support a more general model of emerging sedentism in central Mexico involving population dispersions from prime agricultural areas to zones of higher elevation. The earliest pottery-using agriculturalists in Apizaco were probably migrants from adjacent regions.

CERAMIC SEQUENCE, CHRONOLOGY, AND CULTURAL DYNAMICS OF THE UCAREO-ZINAPÉCUARO, MICHOACÁN OBSIDIAN SOURCE AREA

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Dan M. Healan ◽  
Christine Hernández
Keyword(s):  
Source Area ◽  
Central Mexico ◽  
Cultural Dynamics ◽  
Postclassic Period ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Pottery Analysis ◽  
Ceramic Chronology ◽  
Cross Dating ◽  
Obsidian Source

Abstract This article presents the ceramic sequence and chronology resulting from a multi-year program of survey, excavation, and analysis of pre-Hispanic settlement and exploitation within the Zinapécuaro-Ucareo (“U-Z”), Michoacan obsidian source area. Pottery analysis and classification aided by seriation analysis identified nine ceramic complexes and seven ceramic phases and sub-phases that both expand and refine the ceramic sequence previously established for the region by Gorenstein's (1985) investigations at nearby Acámbaro, Guanajuato. Initially established by ceramic cross-dating, the U-Z ceramic chronology has been largely confirmed by 30 radiocarbon dates and spans over 2,000 years of pre-Hispanic settlement, which included at least two notable episodes of trait-unit and site-unit intrusion from the eastern El Bajío and central Mexico. One of these episodes involved the appearance of two enclaves settled by individuals from the Acambay valley c. 90 km to the East, most likely from the site of Huamango, which our data indicate would have been occupied during the Middle Postclassic period.

Early Irrigation on the Colorado Plateau near Zuni Pueblo, New Mexico

2002 ◽  
Vol 67 (4) ◽  
pp. 665-676 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan E. Damp ◽  
Stephen A. Hall ◽  
Susan J. Smith
Keyword(s):  
New Mexico ◽  
Agricultural Landscape ◽  
Colorado Plateau ◽  
Irrigation Canals ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Maize Agriculture ◽  
Zuni Pueblo

The introduction of maize agriculture into the Southwest and onto the Colorado Plateau was accompanied by irrigation techniques. Twenty-six radiocarbon dates at two sites, K'yana Chabina and K'yawa:na'a Deyatchinanne, in the Zuni area of New Mexico, establish the use of irrigation canals to between 3,000 and 1,000 years ago. Associated features and the presence of nearby habitation sites independently corroborate the chronology of canal building. The geomorphology of the Zuni landscape and the morphology of the irrigation canals are consistent with the artificial construction of the canals. Pollen evidence points to an agricultural landscape and the cultivation of maize.

Migration and the Coyotlatelco Ceramic Tradition

2019 ◽  
pp. 88-108
Author(s):  
Christine Hernández ◽  
Dan M. Healan
Keyword(s):  
Source Area ◽  
Central Mexico ◽  
Late Classic ◽  
Deep Roots ◽  
West Mexico ◽  
Ceramic Chronology ◽  
History Of ◽  
Late Formative ◽  
Non Local ◽  
Geometric Designs

This chapter argues that the Late Classic/Epiclassic ceramic style known as Coyotlatelco has roots in the eastern El Bajío of Near West Mexico. Coyotlatelco became a widespread ceramic tradition in Epiclassic Central Mexico. Its chief defining characteristic is its suite of unsupported and tripod-supported vessels decorated with red-painted geometric designs on plain brown or cream slipped pottery. Ceramic data and radiocarbon dating produced from Tulane University’s Ucareo-Zinapecuaro (U-Z) Project (1989-1995) shed additional light on the ongoing debate regarding whether or not the Coyotlatelco style originates with the native population or if it shows evidence of the migration of non-local people into the central highlands of Mexico. The ceramic chronology for the U-Z source area throughout the Late Formative and Classic periods in NE Michoacan begins a discussion about shared decorative modes among red on brown ceramic types that connect Michoacan with societies in both the El Bajio and the Basin of Mexico regions, including Teotihuacan. The conclusions drawn suggest that the Coyotlatelco ceramic style has deep roots in the pottery traditions of the eastern El Bajio and, given the equally long history of various modes of regional and back migration, there seems little need to look beyond Central Mexico for the origins of Coyotlatleco.

The Stable- and Radio-Isotope Chemistry of Western Basketmaker Burials: Implications for Early Puebloan Diets and Origins

2007 ◽  
Vol 72 (2) ◽  
pp. 301-321 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joan Brenner Coltrain ◽  
Joel C. Janetski ◽  
Shawn W. Carlyle
Keyword(s):  
Nitrogen Isotope ◽  
American Southwest ◽  
Bone Collagen ◽  
Stable Carbon ◽  
Large Collection ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Carbon And Nitrogen ◽  
Maize Agriculture ◽  
Great House ◽  
Four Corners

The timing and degree of reliance on maize agriculture in the Four Corners region of the American Southwest has been a central issue in studies that examine the origins of Puebloan society. Both diffusionist (various, but see Wills 1995) and migrationist (Berry and Berry 1986; Matson 1991) models have been proposed to explain the processes responsible for the movement of maize (Zea mays) north into the Four Corners region. This paper reports bone collagen stable carbon and nitrogen isotope values with paired accelerator radiocarbon dates on a large collection of human remains from western Basketmaker II/III sites in Marsh Pass and other areas of northeastern Arizona, as well as data on a small number of Puebloan remains including Chacoan Great House burials. The results make clear that Basketmaker II people were heavily dependent on maize by 400 B.C. Moreover, their degree of dependence is similar to that of Pueblo II and III farmers of the Four Corners region. These findings and the apparent rapidity of maize dependence support a migrationist model for the origins of maize farming in the northern Southwest.

REVISITING SUN PYRAMID CERAMIC AND RADIOCARBON DATES FROM TEOTIHUACAN: COMMENT ON SLOAD

2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 398-400
Author(s):  
Nawa Sugiyama ◽  
Saburo Sugiyama ◽  
Alejandro Sarabia G.
Keyword(s):  
The Sun ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Ceramic Chronology

Sload (2015) disregards stratigraphic data from the Sun Pyramid and misinterprets our radiocarbon dates that re-evaluates Teotihuacan ceramic chronology.

Challenging the Evidence for Prehistoric Wetland Maize Agriculture at Fort Center, Florida

2013 ◽  
Vol 78 (1) ◽  
pp. 181-194 ◽  
Author(s):  
Victor D. Thompson ◽  
Kristen J. Gremillion ◽  
Thomas J. Pluckhahn
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Archaeological Site ◽  
South Florida ◽  
Pollen Data ◽  
Historic Period ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Eastern Woodlands ◽  
Work Site ◽  
Maize Agriculture ◽  
Early Evidence

AbstractThe early evidence (2400 ± 105 B.P.) for wetland maize agriculture at the archaeological site of Fort Center, a large earth-work site in South Florida, USA, is frequently cited in discussions of the emergence of agriculture in the Eastern Woodlands of North America. The evidence for maize, however, rests on controversial pollen data; some researchers accept it, others remain skeptical of its identification or chronological placement. We present microbotanical data (pollen and phytoliths), macrobotanical data, and radiocarbon dates from recent excavations from this site. We argue that maize agriculture did not occur until the historic period at this site and that the identification of maize in earlier deposits is likely a result of contamination.

scholarly journals Effects of habitat type on bird nesting in the desert grasslands of central Mexico: conservation implications

Oryx ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 44 (3) ◽  
pp. 448-454 ◽  
Author(s):  
César Posadas-Leal ◽  
Leonardo Chapa-Vargas ◽  
José Tulio Arredondo-Moreno ◽  
Elisabeth Huber-Sannwald
Keyword(s):  
Nest Survival ◽  
Grassland Birds ◽  
Habitat Type ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Central Mexico ◽  
Habitat Types ◽  
Passerculus Sandwichensis ◽  
Conservation Implications ◽  
Study Sites ◽  
Agricultural Areas

AbstractPopulations of North American grassland birds have suffered drastic declines. The causes of these declines are only partially understood and may vary among regions. During the 2004 and 2005 breeding seasons we recorded survival information from 220 nests of four bird species in nine study sites representing three habitat types of the desert grasslands of central Mexico, where grassland birds had not yet been studied. We predicted that land-use change from shortgrass steppe to heavily grazed savannah-type grasslands and agriculture would negatively affect nesting success, number of fledglings and nest abundance. We also examined temporal effects on reproductive success. We found some evidence that nest survival of savannah sparrows Passerculus sandwichensis, loggerhead shrikes Lanius ludovicianus and white-winged doves Zenaida asiatica varied with date, and that nest survival of the dove was lowest in agricultural sites. However, confidence intervals were large, suggesting that other variables were also important. Whereas white-winged dove nests were notably more abundant in agricultural areas compared to the other habitat types, western meadowlark Sturnella neglecta nests were not found in agricultural areas. Ploughing caused the largest proportion of nest failures in agricultural areas and, on average, all species fledged fewer young per nest in agricultural areas. Therefore, minimizing agriculture and adjusting harvest times could enhance conservation of grassland-nesting birds in central Mexico. Our study also suggests that inter-annual variation in rainfall can change the onset of nesting by at least 2 months.

RESPONSE TO SUGIYAMA, SUGIYAMA, AND SARABIA G.

2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 401-402
Author(s):  
Rebecca Sload
Keyword(s):  
The Sun ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Ceramic Chronology

Contrary to Sugiyama et al., radiocarbon dates from the Sun Pyramid do not mean that the Pyramid was constructed later than current estimates, nor that the Teotihuacan ceramic chronology should be changed.

Radiocarbon Dates from the Lodaiska Site, Colorado

1961 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 114-115 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henry J. Irwin ◽  
Cynthia C. Irwin
Keyword(s):  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Maize Agriculture

AbstractSeven radiocarbon dates place the regional sequence from 3000 B.C. to A.D. 1000, validate partially the method determining complexes at the site, and date the beginning of maize agriculture in the area.

scholarly journals Initial Time Of Two High Altitude Crater Lakes (Nevado De Toluca, Central Mexico) Recorded In Subfossil Cladocera

2015 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 109-116 ◽  
Author(s):  
Krystyna Szeroczyńska ◽  
Edyta Zawisza ◽  
Marta Wojewódka
Keyword(s):  
High Altitude ◽  
Bottom Sediments ◽  
Initial Time ◽  
Central Mexico ◽  
Sediment Layer ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Crater Lakes ◽  
Subfossil Cladocera ◽  
Cladocera Remains ◽  
Nevado De Toluca

Abstract The objective of this study was the recognition and reconstruction of the origin of two high altitude lakes and the ecological conditions of their early existence based on subfossil Cladocera and chemical analyses. The study focused on the oldest lacustrine sediments from Lake Sol and Lake Luna, located in the crater of Volcano Nevado de Toluca (Central Mexico). The Nevado de Toluca crater developed approximately 12 ka yr BP. According to the literature, the volcano was last active approximately 3.3 ka yr BP, and the lakes developed after that eruption. The remains of nine Cladocera species were found in the bottom sediments of both lakes. The most dominant taxa were two endemic littoral species: Alona manueli and Iliocryptus nevadensis. The total frequency of Cladocera specimens in both of the sediment cores was very low. No Cladocera remains were recorded in the sediment layer at depths between 123–103 m from Lake Luna. The results of the lithological and geochemical analyses showed that this sediment layer was composed of allochthonous material, probably originating from slid down from the volcanic cone. This was suggested by the content of silica (up to 13%), iron (up to 12%), and titanium (up to 4%). The Cladocera remains recorded in the bottom sediments suggested that both reservoirs developed as freshwater lakes at the beginning of the sedimentation. The calibrated radiocarbon dates obtained for the bottom samples were 4040 to 3990 yr BP for Lake Luna (129 cm) and 4485 to 4485 yr BP for Lake Sol (89 cm). The obtained ages were older than the dates of the last eruption, which occurred approximately 3300 yr BP. This result was likely related to the type of radiocarbon dated materials (charcoals).

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