An Evaluation of Obsidian Projectile Point Chronology and Possible Sourcing in the Tehuacan Valley, Mexico

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Innovations and Transformations in Mesoamerican Research: Recent and Revised Insights of Ancestral Lifeways" session, at the 88th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Obsidian, a volcanic glass, was widely used in Mesoamerica for cutting tools, weapons, jewelry, and ritual objects since the Paleoindian period (ca. 9000 BC). Because its sources have unique chemical signatures, obsidian provides a durable and measurable index of interactions across space and time. Our research draws on the data gathered by The Tehuacan Archaeological-Botanical Project, directed by Richard S. MacNeish in the 1960s, to understand how exchange networks in Mesoamerica formed and transformed in conjunction with the development of urban society. MacNeish and colleagues collected over 3,000 obsidian artifacts from numerous caves and terrestrial surveys throughout the Tehuacan Valley; 114 diagnostic obsidian artifacts, including projectile points and knives, from the Robert S. Peabody Institute of Archaeology at Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, were subjected to nondestructive X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis with a Bruker Tracer 5i analyzer. From the sample, we have identified 11 (possibly 12) sources of volcanic obsidian. Our research shows that obsidian sources shifted over time, granting the foundation for considerable insights into long-term economic exchanges throughout early Mesoamerica. Significantly for Mesoamerica, there is no other well-documented collection of continuous obsidian artifacts spanning from the Paleoindian (ca. 9000 BC) through the historical (ca. AD 1521) periods.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Innovations and Transformations in Mesoamerican Research: Recent and Revised Insights of Ancestral Lifeways   •
• Society for American Archaeology 88th Annual Meeting, Portland, OR (2023)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 35626.0