Assessing Ceramic Production and Exchange in the Early Monte Albán State (Oaxaca, Mexico)

Summary

In this paper we present the results of an ongoing study of ceramic production and exchange in the Valley of Oaxaca, Mexico, during the Late to Terminal Formative (500 BC–AD 200)—the period when the Monte Albán state formed and consolidated control over its hinterland and surrounding regions. We have found that adopting a multifaceted approach that combines chemical (INAA) data with detailed qualitative and quantitative mineralogical (petrographic) data enables us to differentiate cultural from natural factors affecting paste composition, and is more effective than a single analytic technique for establishing ceramic provenance in the geologically complex Oaxaca Valley. Detailed analyses of natural clays collected throughout the valley, as well as sherds from Monte Albán and other key archaeological sites in the Valle Grande subregion, have allowed us to identify 12 distinct ceramic production loci and to track the movement of different pottery wares within the heartland of this early state.

SAA 2015 abstracts made available in tDAR courtesy of the Society for American Archaeology and Center for Digital Antiquity Collaborative Program to improve digital data in archaeology. If you are the author of this presentation you may upload your paper, poster, presentation, or associated data (up to 3 files/30MB) for free. Please visit http://www.tdar.org/SAA2015 for instructions and more information.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)   •
• Advances in the Method and Application of Ceramic Petrography: international perspectives on key archaeological questions, Part I

Keywords

Spatial Coverage