AAA Annual Meeting Program
AAANET Home  >  Annual Meeting  > Program Search 

AAA Annual Meeting Program Details

<< Back to Search Results  |  Start New Search >>

View Session Details
Paper Information:
Type: Paper
Paper Title: INTERACTION AND CERAMIC INNOVATION IN THE LATE POSTCLASSIC TUXTLA MOUNTAINS OF VERACRUZ, MEXICO
Author: MARCIE VENTER (Missouri State University)   
Date/Time: Thu., 2:30 PM
Co-Author(s): MARCIE VENTER (Missouri State University) 
Abstract: Innovation in cooking technology characterizes ceramic assemblages of the Late Postclassic Tuxtla Mountains of Mexico. The use of tortilla griddles (comals) by lowland groups is generally considered the result of interactions with or migrations by highland populations, some of which may have settled in the region during episodes of Aztec expansion, disease, or famine. Despite their late adoption, griddles enjoyed a surprisingly wide distribution in the western Tuxtlas and are one of the key markers of the period. Here, I assess ceramic attributes from Totogal that characterize technological choices associated with the acquiring and processing of raw materials and the fashioning and firing of vessels. It has been suggested that particular aspects of ceramic acquisition and manufacture processes can relate to different facets of identity. I address the question of migration in this paper and discuss whether highland-originating populations, if living alongside native groups at Totogal, can be discerned by way of the embedded ceramic learning networks represented within the new comal assemblage, and to what extent a ceramic ecological approach to innovation can inform processes of interaction within the Mesoamerican Gulf lowlands.

Program Number: 2-0840
Session Title: CERAMIC ECOLOGY XXIV: CURRENT RESEARCH ON CERAMICS 2010
Session Sponsor: Archaeology Division
Session Date/Time: Thu., 1:45 PM-5:30 PM
Organizer(s): CHARLES KOLB (National Endowment for the Humanities) 
Chair(s): CHARLES KOLB (National Endowment for the Humanities)  
View Session Details


Schedule-at-a-Glance

If you have any questions about the program, please contact the AAA Meetings Department at aaameetings@aaanet.org.