Mesoamerica (Geographic Keyword)
2,276-2,300 (2,387 Records)
Archaeological record of 27 years of research at the ancient site Tak’alik Ab’aj at the southwestern pacific piedmont of Guatemala have summed evidence of a wide range of different ritual activities and patterns, which as well are represented through a huge diversity of materials and artistic or handicraft skills employed. The pivotal role of Tak’alik Ab’aj as a long distance trade center and precocious cultural and religious "mecca" with "international flair" is reflected in the materials and...
Upstream, Downstream, Sacred Worlds (2016)
Archaeological study of ancient water management has grown tremendously in recent decades. Vern Scarborough has contributed centrally to advances in this domain, in the Maya area of Mesoamerica, as well as in cross-cultural examinations extending to the U.S. Southwest, and more distantly, South and Southeast Asia. Even his early concerns with ancient American ballcourts and ballgames link to water, with regard to the watery underworld to which the courts were entry portals. Scarborough’s...
Urban Agriculture within the Valley of Oaxaca: Investigations and Implications of Agricultural Terracing at Monte Albán (2015)
The use of GIS to determine the spatial boundaries between terracing and the ceremonial center at Late Classic Monte Alban (250-700 CE), will validate or falsify current Late Classic population estimates. The determinants for what defines agricultural versus residential terracing and whether both types are present at Monte Alban, has been highly contested. Archaeological investigations yielding residential debris, does not indicate the total sum use of an individual terrace, nor does it indicate...
Urban Carnivores, Rural Vegetarians? Faunal discrepancies over time and space at Mayapan (2017)
A usually predictable attribute of Postclassic Maya settlements (in Belize and Yucatan) is the abundance of faunal remains relative to preceding Classic Period contexts. This discrepancy is not attributable to taphonomy or bone age, given the recovery of human bone from both periods and the abundance of fauna in even earlier Preclassic deposits. Robust forest environments, balanced human predation levels, and variable animal husbandry practices represent the best explanations for the wealth of...
The Urban Origins Project at Quiotepec-Oxtotitlán, Guerrero (2016)
The large Early to Late Formative site of Quiotepec-Oxtotitlán, best known for Oxtotitlán Cave and its associated Middle to Late Formative polychrome murals, is the site of on-going archaeological research since 2012 by the Urban Origins Project. Our goal is twofold: to develop a richly detailed documentation of the art and its physical and chronological context at Quiotepec-Oxotitlán and to investigate the political economic underpinnings of the artistic production and possible elements of a...
Urbanism and Domestic Life in the Tlajinga District, Teotihuacan: New Research (2016)
Teotihuacan’s Tlajinga district comprises a cluster of neighborhoods of primarily common status apartment compounds, covering approximately 1km2 in the south of the city. Previous investigations at one of them, 33:S3W1 or “Tlajinga 33,” provided valuable information concerning daily life in the urban periphery. The Proyecto Arqueológico Tlajinga Teotihuacan (PATT) has thus far involved excavations at two other compounds (designated 17:S3E1 and 18:S3E1) and along the southern extension of the...
Urbanism in the Purepecha Heartland at Angamuco, Michoacan (2016)
Despite over 70 years of research in the Lake Patzcuaro Basin of Michoacan, there has been limited work focusing on pre-Purepecha and Purepecha urbanism in the region. In this paper, we discuss how recent survey and excavation data from the ancient city of Angamuco (c. 250-1530 CE) is helping us to evaluate whether suggested urban models from different parts of Mesoamerica are applicable in western Mexico. Alternatively, is there evidence for a distinct type of west Mexican or Purepecha city?...
Us vs Them: Identity Formation in Pre-Hispanic Tlaxcala (2015)
Tlaxcala occupies a unique position in the history of New Spain, due both to its alliance with Cortés against the Aztec and to its mid-16th century flourishing as a model republica de Indios. Spanish and indigenous chroniclers throughout the colonial period spoke of the tlaxcaltequidad—the strong regional identity and patriotism that characterized the state. We believe that this is not merely the product of Spanish favoritism and elite opportunism post-Conquest, but rather, the development of a...
Usability of LiDAR data for archaeological survey in the Uaxactun area, North Peten, Guatemala. (2017)
The paper deals with validation and quality estimation of spatial data acquired in the focus area of the project "Proyecto arquelogico regional – Uaxactun" as a part of a LIDAR project supported by the PACUNAM. The project has 2 high-quality 3D models of the pre-classical city of Uaxactun and the site of Dos Torres acquired by detailed topographical survey of the focus area at its disposal. The DEMs serve as basis for the evaluation of spatial accuracy of the LiDAR DSM and an etalon for...
Use and Symbolism of Copper Axes in Tarascan Society during the Late Post-Classic Period in modern day Michoacán, México (2017)
The cultural core of the Tarascan society settled in the region of what is now Michoacán, western Mexico. For the Tarascans, gathering firewood was a sacred activity, and the maintenance of a never-ending fire within their temples or "cues" was an essential part of their religion. This sacred element was an offering for their most venerated god, Curicaueri. Collecting wood was an activity so sacred that even the tools used to retrieve it were transformed into consecrated objects sharing the same...
Use Areas Final Map (2010)
The aim of the LEAP projects was to publish multi-layered e-publications and develop and link them to associated digital archives. The original LEAP project was funded by the AHRC while the LEAP II, A Trans-Atlantic LEAP, was supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. This final map project is part of a 2011 LEAP II project "Placing immateriality: situating the material of highland Chiriquí" by Karen Holberg. The files contained in this record include an .mxd map project and an image of the...
Use-wear Analysis and Obsidian Tool Functions Before and After Teotihuacan (2016)
Obsidian was one of the most important commodities for residents of ancient central Mexico before and after the great city of Teotihuacan. While previous research on stone tools in Mesoamerican archaeology has focused mostly on identifying production sequences, workshop locations, and market exchange, this presentation highlights how different technological forms of obsidian tools were actually used by household residents for specific tasks. A sample of 464 obsidian artifacts from the sites of...
Use_Areas Shapefile (2010)
The aim of the LEAP projects was to publish multi-layered e-publications and develop and link them to associated digital archives. The original LEAP project was funded by the AHRC while the LEAP II, A Trans-Atlantic LEAP, was supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. This shapefile is part of a 2011 LEAP II project "Placing immateriality: situating the material of highland Chiriquí" by Karen Holberg. All files associated with this record must be downloaded to ensure that the shapefile...
Using 3D Geographic Information Systems to Understand Settlement Decisions at Calakmul (2015)
In 1982, fifty years after the Carnegie Institution of Washington surveyed and mapped sections of Calakmul, a project under the direction of William J. Folan began mapping the site. The completed map published in 2001 covers 30 square kilometers of the ancient site. Many printed maps or datasets like those from Calakmul created with laser total stations or conventional surveying equipment can provide the essential geospatial information to produce accurate topographic maps and 3D map objects...
Using archaeological data and historic documents to reconstruct a colonial landscape (2015)
La conquista española conllevó importantes trastornos en el paisaje del antiguo México. En la región de Acámbaro (Guanajuato), estos cambios se reflejaron ya desde una fase muy precoz, puesto que la colonización fue temprana y los especies animales y vegetales introducidos por los europeos se adaptaron rápidamente. Por otro lado, el dominio de los conquistadores sobre el territorio se acompañó de una renovación del patrón de asentamiento, que tuvo por consecuencia liberar numerosas tierras...
Using Archaeology to Pursue Social Justice at Punta Laguna, Mexico (2016)
Over the last several decades, the citizens of Punta Laguna, Mexico have developed a successful ecotourism venture in the spider monkey preserve in which they live. However, recent challenges to the usufruct agreement through which the preserve operates have jeopardized the future of the community's business. At present, the archaeological site of Punta Laguna, which lies within the preserve's boundaries, is little more than a passive backdrop to other tourist activities. We propose developing...
Using LiDAR and Ground Survey to Understand Regional Settlement Patterns in Terminal Classic Central Yucatan (2017)
The first research performed by the Proyecto de Interaccion Politica del Centro de Yucatan centered on understanding the impact of Chichen Itza in the region to the southwest of this Terminal Classic city. Working in an area of roughly 500 square kilometers around the site of Yaxuna we performed traditional ground reconnaissance and mapping at numerous centers in the region from 2007 to 2013 to better understand regional settlement patterns and how they changed with the establishment and growth...
Using Natural Breaks to Work Together: Compositional Analysis of Archaeological Ceramics using Petrography and NAA (2015)
Historically, the application of petrographic techniques and NAA to the compositional analysis of archaeological ceramics in the New World emerged from two very distinct intellectual foundations. Initially, petrographers focused on studying temper to characterize the types of materials used, their geological sources, and their coarseness in an effort to reconstruct the cultural development of potting traditions and interaction among cultures. NAA, on the other hand, was originally used to...
Using pXRF to test for the market exchange of obsidian at Postclassic Santa Rita Corozal, Belize. (2016)
This poster discusses the levels of access to various obsidian sources and source regions as a prerequisite to testing a market exchange model for the distribution of obsidian during the Postclassic period (A.D 1150 - 1530) at Santa Rita Corozal, Belize. A sample of 247 obsidian artifacts dating to the Postclassic period were assayed using portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (pXRF) to determine the obsidian sources being exploited. Five sources were identified in the assemblage, including...
Using VR Phenomenological Landscape Analysis to explore Diachronic Ritual Space at Cerros, Belize (2015)
The Oculus Rift virtual reality headset used alongside 3D site reconstructions provides a huge potential for a phenomenologically based landscape analysis. This presentation explores the methods and results of a study using these technologies that focuses on understanding the diachronic changes in the construction of ritual space at the Maya site of Cerros, Belize. Site maps were modeled in 3D according to each historic phase and converted for use in a highly immersive and interactive video game...
Using X-radiography to Reveal an Ancient Zapotec Urn (2015)
Since the inception of thermoluminescence dating we have known that a significant number of Zapotec effigy vessels in museum collections are fakes, manufactured sometime in the early twentieth century. Some of these forgeries are composites that combine ancient and recent materials, but it is not clear how they were assembled, or how a conservator could restore such an object. In order to fully understand how these composites were manufactured and in what way they differ from ancient ceramics,...
The Utility of Nestedness in Zooarchaeological Assemblages: A Study from the Northern Maya Lowlands (2017)
Nestedness analysis suggests that the presence of specific ichthyofauna in assemblages from seven different sites from the northern Yucatán peninsula may be a result of the life-histories of those species or cultural preferences rather than being driven by environmental barriers. The results suggests that the assemblages may be derived from different populations suggesting that they are not coming from the same source. I argue that while trade is playing a role, it is also likely that ancient...
Utilization and Field Testing of LiDAR in the Maya Hinterlands (2018)
Airborne LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) is an active remote-sensing technique which records the surface of the earth using laser scanning. The recent acquisition of LiDAR data for a portion of the Three Rivers regions in northwestern Belize offered the opportunity for a new way to analyze settlement and landscape utilization by the ancient Maya. This paper will focus on the systematic analysis of the dataset, ground verification, and post-processing methodologies. ArcGIS was used for the...
Valley of Mexico As a Regional System (1981)
This resource is a citation record only, the Center for Digital Antiquity does not have a copy of this document. The information in this record has been migrated into tDAR from the National Archaeological Database Reports Module (NADB-R) and updated. Most NADB-R records consist of a document citation and other metadata but do not have the documents themselves uploaded. If you have a digital copy of the document and would like to have it curated in tDAR, please contact us at comments@tdar.org.
Variation and Similarity in Obsidian Tool Styles and Technologies at the Zaragoza-Oyameles Source Area, Puebla, Mexico (2015)
The nature and degree of interaction between the Classic period centers of Teotihuacan and Cantona is investigated through two types of obsidian artifacts that characterize Early to Late Classic period obsidian use in the central-east highlands of Mexico: prismatic blades and bifacial dart points. At the Zaragoza-Oyameles source area in eastern Puebla, Mexico the recovery of dart point preforms next to obsidian quarries, combined with chemical analysis indicates that these points were crafted at...