Death, ritual, and social space in the Cuitzeo Basin, Michoacán, México.

Summary

The Cuitzeo Basin in Northern Michoacán was a key area at the local and supralocal levels for its rich lacustrine resources, and its geographic position that facilitated interaction between the Central Highlands and West Mexico. Mortuary rites were fundamental for the social reproduction of regional elites. The continuous occupation of some sites for more than a thousand years underscores the ritual and religious significance for the lacustrine societies. The comparative study of both biological and social death, and their associated material culture and rites, reveals that the use of ritual space was highly symbolic and reflected processes of culture change and sociopolitical complexity. Through references to specific archaeological sites it is suggested that ritual activities defined a specific social space which formed part of the lacustrine way of life.

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This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)   •
• El hombre en la cuenca del rio Lerma. Pasado y presente

Keywords

Spatial Coverage