Charting the Evolution of the Tres Zapotes Polity: Results of the RRATZ 2014–2016 Field Seasons
Part of: Society for American Archaeology 82nd Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC (2017)
The Olmec and Epi-Olmec center of Tres Zapotes boasts a continuous occupation that spanned over two millennia. For over half that time, between 800 B.C. and A.D. 300 it ruled as the capital of one of the most resilient polities of the Mesoamerican Gulf lowlands, surviving and flourishing after the collapse of Olmec capitals to the east. Subsequently, the area supported a dynamic political landscape occupied by smaller competing polities. In 2014, with NSF support, we initiated a settlement study to place the rise, fluorescence, and decline of Tres Zapotes in its regional context, combining traditional pedestrian survey and surface collection with high-resolution LiDAR-assisted survey. This symposium presents results of the 2014-2016 fieldwork and ongoing laboratory analysis. Participants will present the theoretical foundations and methods of the survey, reflections on community engagement and the social context of regional survey, an overview of settlement patterns, and new information on interregional interaction, Classic period formal architectural layouts, variation in obsidian production and use, and an unexpectedly robust Postclassic occupation.
Other Keywords
Tres Zapotes •
Resilience •
Architecture •
Settlement Pattern •
Obsidian •
Survey •
Ceramic •
Craft Production •
Veracruz •
Classic Period
Geographic Keywords
Mesoamerica •
United Mexican States (Country) •
Republic of El Salvador (Country) •
Belize (Country) •
Republic of Guatemala (Country) •
North America (Continent)
Resources Inside This Collection (Viewing 1-8 of 8)
- Documents (8)
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Challenges and opportunities to the lidar mapping of the Tres Zapotes region (2017)
DOCUMENT Citation Only
The Olmec polity of Tres Zapotes, which developed on the southern gulf lowlands of the present day state of Veracruz in Mexico, is nestled between the Papaloapan river delta and the Tuxla Mountains. Topographic, geological, ecological and cultural context of the region presents unique challenges and opportunities to archeological prospecting using airborne lidar mapping due to extensive cultivation of sugar cane which can hinder the capability of the lidar to map the ground beneath it; cultural...
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Charting Long-Term Social Stability in the Tres Zapotes Region: Theory, Method, and Settlement Patterns (2017)
DOCUMENT Citation Only
In 2014 we initiated the Recorrido Regional Arqueológico de Tres Zapotes (RRATZ) to implement the NSF-funded project, "Long-term Social Stability in the Tres Zapotes Region." The goal of this project was to better understand the resilience of a tropical lowland polity through a millennium of political, economic, and environmental challenges, to document the preconditions that gave rise to this Olmec and Epi-Olmec polity, and to document the transformations that occurred in the wake of its...
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Classic Period Architectural Variation and Interregional Interaction: A View from the Tres Zapotes Hinterland (2017)
DOCUMENT Citation Only
During the Protoclassic (A.D. 1-300) and Early Classic (A.D. 300-600) periods, the Eastern Lower Papaloapan Basin (ELPB) experienced an important reorganization. The political influence of the large center at Tres Zapotes began to wane and a series of new centers were established across an increasingly independent, but fragmented political landscape. Eschewing the architectural cannons of the Tres Zapotes polity, these new centers are characterized by diverse configurations revealed by...
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Documentando la Destrucción de Montículos con Detección Remota (2017)
DOCUMENT Citation Only
En 1965 Michael Coe opinó que el sur de Veracruz constituía una de las zonas arqueológicas más ricas del mundo, en donde se podía manejar por 11 km en el camino entre Ángel R. Cabada y Lerdo de Tejada "y nunca dejar de ver montículos." A partir de 2014 el proyecto RRATZ ha documentado numerosos asentamientos y elementos arquitectónicos en esta región, La configuración actual de los asentamientos, incluyendo aquellas cuestiones específicas como dimensiones, orientación, número y disposición de...
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Dune Settlement in the Wake of Tres Zapotes (2017)
DOCUMENT Citation Only
As the Tres Zapotes polity’s economic and political power diminished in the Early Classic, the eastern lower Papaloapan Basin (ELPB) became a political frontier as sites in this contested region strengthened ties to both Classic Veracruz and Central Mexico. It is during this time that a series of near-coastal paleodunes and estuarine lakes see an increase in occupational intensity. The ecological diversity of the dune landscape provides a unique setting to explore how the intersection of...
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Intraregional Variation in the Obsidian Industry of the Eastern Lower Papaloapan Basin of Mexico (2017)
DOCUMENT Citation Only
The Tres Zapotes regional systematic survey, conducted from 2014-2016, yielded an obsidian assemblage spanning across the Formative and into a Postclassic occupation. Furthermore, similarities and differences in technology and sources utilized were observed within the RRATZ assemblage, facilitating an examination into the intraregional variation in obsidian artifact production and use. In addition, one unusual artifact type was recovered that may reflect specialized scraping activities and that...
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Paradox no More? Postclassic Mazapa and its Regional Context (2017)
DOCUMENT Citation Only
During the 2014 through 2016 field and laboratory seasons of the RRATZ Project, the archaeological site of Mazapa was recorded, mapped, and its pottery and obsidian artifacts analyzed. These efforts reveal that Mazapa, located near Chonegal, Veracruz, is one of the largest Late Postclassic sites known for the southern Gulf lowlands; it contains approximately 170 structures that range from low housemounds to platforms measuring 7 meters high. Although sizeable Postclassic settlements have been...
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You’re Not from Around Here, Are You? Ceramic Figurines and Interregional Interaction in the Tres Zapotes Region (2017)
DOCUMENT Citation Only
The multi-year study of the ceramic figurines of Tres Zapotes recovered from archaeological explorations at the site center and the surrounding area indicate patterns of interactions throughout the development of the region. Supplemental museum specimens from past excavations at Tres Zapotes, residing in the National Museum of Natural History of the Smithsonian Institution, were also incorporated into laboratory analysis. The data are examined for evidence of exchange with other communities,...