Newly Analyzed Postclassic Ceramic Data from Cerro Portezuelo and Surrounding Sites

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Papers in Honor of Deborah L. Nichols" session, at the 90th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Deborah Nichols’ profound impact on the study of Postclassic ceramic exchange and production in the Basin of Mexico is characterized by her extensive collaboration and mentorship of emerging researchers. Building on the Cerro Portezuelo Reanalysis Project’s established Neutron Activation Analysis program, led by Nichols (Dartmouth) and Cowgill (ASU), this analysis summarizes our final dataset of 215 Postclassic ceramic submitted for Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis (INAA at MURR) from UCLA’s collections of Cerro Portezuelo and Texcoco survey sites. We submitted 86 comal specimens reflecting the site’s Postclassic occupational history. Samples were selected to reflect variation in paste and form within this category of utilitarian service ware. The remaining vessels represent Epiclassic and Early Postclassic traditions from nearby survey sites, aiming to enhance our understanding of regional economic practices, especially in the relationship between rural sites and the large center of Cerro Portezuelo. Despite their potential significance, these compositional data have largely remained unexplored and these newly analyzed data aim to contribute to a more nuanced understanding of ceramic production and trade in the region.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 90th Annual Meeting, Denver, CO (2025)   •
• Papers in Honor of Deborah L. Nichols

Keywords

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 50008