Volcanic Glass and Iron Nails: Shifting Networks of Exchange at Postclassic and Colonial Achiutla, Oaxaca, Mexico

Summary

In this paper I present data from recent excavations at the highland Mixtec site of Achiutla, Oaxaca, Mexico, to shed light on how indigenous residents there negotiated changes and continuities in exchange relationships from the Postclassic (AD 900-1521) to Early Colonial (AD 1521-1650) periods. Various lines of evidence demonstrate that Achiutla had significant economic ties to both the Basin of Mexico and the Oaxaca coast, and that the site was an important locus along trade routes between the two regions. The site may not only have attracted travellers due to its geographic location, but also through its status as a center of pre-Hispanic religious pilgrimage.

Ethnohistorical data indicate that residents of Achiutla acquired significant quantities of goods from the coastal lowlands, while excavations have revealed the presence of a large obsidian workshop there, primarily utilizing material imported from Pachuca. I argue that Achiutla utilized its geographic position and political ties to play an important intermediary role in facilitating highland and lowland exchange. Further, this continued into the Colonial period despite historical rupture, as data from domestic middens show that natives continued to acquire and manufacture Pachuca obsidian, despite also having access to metal cutting tools introduced by the Spanish.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 81st Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL (2016)   •
• E pur si muove: Exploring Mobilities in Latin America

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