The Zooarchaeology of LA 20,000

Summary

Identity is a complex entity that is constantly being remade and altered, so to understand the development of the New Mexican identity in the 17th century, one must understand the various parts that make up an identity. This poster examines one of these parts: the foodways of New Mexico. Specifically, this project is examining the faunal deposits from LA 20,000, the largest Spanish estancia in early colonial New Mexico (1598-1680). The meat-component of the diet from a 17th century Spanish colonial site in New Mexico has never been analyzed in depth, so understanding how colonists and natives conceptualized, prepared, and consumed livestock and local foods can reveal much about identities and status, and how those were affected by food availability, traditional food practices, and interactions between different social and ethnic groups. Since 17th century New Mexican foodways have been understudied, this research represents an in-depth look at how Spanish colonists and local Native Americans cultures first came together through the medium of food and how these interactions helped to develop the foundation for the New Mexican identity. Understanding the development of foodways in early colonial New Mexico will open up possibilities to explore diachronic changes in food and identity.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 83rd Annual Meeting, Washington, DC (2018)

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Spatial Coverage

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 21825