No Big Dudes Here: Bioarchaeology of Social Control at Aztec Ruins (

Summary

The discussion of elite leaders in the Greater Southwest has primarily focused on Chaco Canyon. This project extends that discussion to the later site to the north called Aztec Ruins. Because of its size and some architectural similarities to sites in Chaco Canyon, it has also been suggested to be a regional center with considerable political-economic power. Morris recovered a number of human skeletal remains from Aztec Ruins between 1916 and 1922. One burial in particular is of interest because Morris suggested in 1924 that this male might represent a warrior based on the items that he was buried with. The characterization of warrior status has led to some to argue he was an elite leader of the community. The intent of this research was to assess the validity of the warrior/leader hypothesis by comparing this individual to all other burials recovered from Aztec Ruins and then to compare Aztec Ruins with Chaco Canyon burials. Analysis of 55 individuals recovered from Aztec Ruins as well as prior research conducted at Chaco Canyon indicates how social control may have been carried out within a number of different social processes that does not fit a model of powerful elites and passive servants.

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This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage