Lies the Spaniards Told

Summary

This is an abstract from the "After Cortés: Archaeological Legacies of the European Invasion in Mesoamerica" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

The Spaniards characterized the northeast corner of Yucatán state as being demographically depleted and possessed of unhealthy terrain and a lack of exploitable minerals. This picture has been perpetuated by historians, who lack independent lines of evidence against which to check it. Yet archaeological information from extensive regional and full-coverage surveys, combined with a close reading "against the grain" of relevant native and Spanish documents, reveals the Spaniards’ claims as fictions aimed at gaining additional lands, labor, and rights to resources as well as covering up Spanish cowardice. By examining multiple strands of evidence I am able to reveal a much different picture of this region in the colonial epoch, with higher population than the written record suggests, very fertile lands, rich mineral resources – and rebellious natives who fought the Spaniards and their scions tooth and nail, essentially driving them out of the area for over three centuries.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• After Cortés: Archaeological Legacies of the European Invasion in Mesoamerica   •
• Society for American Archaeology 84th Annual Meeting, Albuquerque, NM (2019)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 23580