Ceramic exchange networks in the south‐central Tuxtla Mountains, southern Veracruz, Mexico

Abstract

Our study situates the classic period center Matacanela, located in southern Veracruz, Mexico, within the context of shifting regional political‐economic systems. Specifically, we assess the potential for utilizing neutron activation analysis (NAA) of pottery in the study of changing interactions through a focus on three ceramic wares: Coarse Orange, Fine Orange, and Coarse Brown. NAA identified four compositional groups, suggesting that Matacanela selectively utilized ceramics from a variety of sources, but the center's inhabitants overwhelming used ceramics that were only occasionally exploited by their contemporaries in the nearby Catemaco and Tepango valleys. Instead, the center's primary ceramic exchange partners were in the southern Tuxtlas foothills. This divergent pattern of ceramic exchange parallels earlier obsidian exploitation differences that revealed participation in the networks of the western Tuxtla uplands as well as the southern foothills and centers within eastern Olman. The findings of this study contribute to (1) the geological characterization of ceramic resources used by ancient Gulf lowland societies, (2) to the comparative ceramic database in a region that was an important nexus for diverse cultural traditions spanning Mesoamerican prehistory, and (3) the refinement of our knowledge relevant to the divergent strategies employed by groups.