- Production and exchange at a prehispanic site in Oaxaca.
Gary Feinman, MacArthur Curator of Anthropology, and Linda Nicholas, Adjunct Curator of Anthropology, have published the newest Fieldiana Anthropology (# 48) as part of the BAR International Series. Domestic Multicrafting for Exchange at Prehispanic Ejutla, Oaxaca, Mexico presents results of archaeological investigations at the prehispanic Ejutla site in Oaxaca, Mexico. The discoveries have had a foundational role in reframing our perspectives on Mesoamerican economies, specifically craft specialization. The volume reports on the excavations of a residential complex located at the southern limits of the Valley of Oaxaca system, where evidence was recovered for multiple craft activities associated with a single non-elite domestic unit. The residential occupants crafted a variety of ornaments from marine shell, mostly sourced to the Pacific Coast, but few were consumed by the householders themselves. In addition, the Ejutla craftworkers produced a range of ceramic vessels, including domestic wares and figurines, as well as small lapidary objects. Many of the craft goods produced were destined for exchange, circulating in both local and longer-distance networks. The findings have laid a basis for new theorizing on prehispanic economic production and the revision of prior notions that presumed principally local economies, in which specialized production for exchange was centered in nondomestic workshops. The authors wish to thank the Negaunee Integrative Research Center for supporting their research efforts, and Field Museum Anthropology Illustrator Jill Seagard for her invaluable help during the process of manuscript production. The monograph is published Open Access and can be downloaded
here.
- Population dynamics and imperial expansion in eastern Shandong (China) during the last millennium BCE. Gary and Linda are also co-authors of a newly published collaborative paper (bearing that title) in the journal Archaeological Research in Asia, with colleagues from Shandong University. The article reports on the latest findings from their regional survey while integrating those discoveries into a broader perspective, drawing on surrounding archaeological studies and relevant texts, to discuss five millennia of history along the Shandong coast (China). The paper can be downloaded at no cost until October 16, at this link.
September 6. 2024
