Local or Non-local: Reassessing Material Exchange in Southern California

Summary

Previous studies on material exchange have provided valuable insights about the complexity of long-distance networks once established by prehistoric cultures. Fueled by the presence of middlemen throughout the region, these elaborate and intricate networks of interaction and trade allowed easier acquisition and exchange of materials (local and non-local) over the years. Given the extensiveness of materials (i.e. lithics, beads, ochre) repeatedly entering and exiting Southern California by land or sea, how and when do materials no longer become non-local or exotic? When are remote cultures and materials sources no longer remote or unobtainable? Focusing on Southern California, this paper looks at both reassessing the role material exchange played in uniting people and landscapes, and how constant social, political, and economic relations affected material value.

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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