Human Sacrifice During the Epiclassic Period in the Northern Basin of Mexico

Abstract

This article examines changes in ritual practices during the Epiclassic period in central Mexico. It presents data recovered from recent excavations of a shrine discovered in Lake Xaltocan in the northern Basin of Mexico. Pottery and AMS dates place the construction and use of the shrine in the Epiclassic period. The shrine was first built during or soon after the collapse of the Teotihuacan state. With the decline of Teotihuacan and the emergence of competing centers, ritual practitioners began human sacrifice: the remains of over 30 individuals were documented, including 13 complete severed crania. This practice suggests conflict as the political landscape became decentralized. Despite how broader processes may have affected behavior, the shrine, ritual practice was fundamentally local. We present archaeobotanical evidence of offerings of food, incense, and flowers that elucidates the microlevel nature of ritual at the shrine.

Everyday Action and the Rise and Decline of Ancient Polities: Household Strategy and Political Change in Postclassic Xaltocan, Mexico

“…Further, the Aztec I inhabitants of Xaltocan spun primarily maguey fiber thread as suggested by the predominance of spindle whorls for spinning maguey during this period. Finally, the range of Xaltocan's former domain closely overlaps with modern day Otomi-speaking populations in the northern Basin of Mexico (Carrasco Pizana 1950:259;Morehart 2012). Additionally, historic accounts indicate that Xaltocan was the capital of the Otomi people (Alva Ixtlilxóchitl 1975-1977.…”

“…Historic accounts state that upon its conquest the Otomi people fled Xaltocan (Alva Ixtlilxóchitl 1975Ixtlilxóchitl -1977 and the city remained uninhabited until a.d. 1435 when it was incorporated into the Aztec empire and was resettled by tribute paying Aztec peasants (Hicks 1994b). DNA analysis of burials from before and after the Aztec period indicates that there was a demographic shift following Xaltocan's incorporation into the Aztec empire (Mata-Míguez et al 2012); however, it is unclear whether there was complete abandonment of the site by its original inhabitants, or if it only affected a segment of the population, such as elites (Hicks 1994b;Miller 2007:28; Morehart 2012). Archaeological evidence suggests that there may have been some occupational continuity throughout this supposed period of abandonment (Miller 2007;Overholtzer 2013).…”

“…Although when viewed in retrospect the supremacy of the Aztec empire may seem inevitable, Morehart (2012) recently argued that any number of circumstances could have resulted in a different outcome, including one where Xaltocan could have become the dominant power within the Basin of Mexico. Founded by a.d. 900, Xaltocan quickly rose to become an important and powerful pre-Aztec city-state in the northern Basin.…”

8 Sustainability as a Relative Process: A Long‐Term Perspective on Sustainability in the Northern Basin of Mexico

“…, ), systematic surface collections and excavations in and around the settlement of Xaltocan (Brumfiel ; De Lucia ; De Lucia and Overholtzer ; Morehart ; Morehart and Crider ; Morehart et al. ; Overholtzer ; Overholtzer and De Lucia ; Rodríguez‐Alegría , , ) and the Municipio of Tonanitla to the south of Xaltocan (Millhauser ), and salvage excavations throughout the region (Sánchez Vázquez ). Because few studies have directly investigated the paleoenvironment of Lake Xaltocan (Frederick et al.…”

“…). However, Morehart and colleagues () identified a shrine dating to this period in the lakebed on the eastern side Lake Xaltocan, not far north of where a series of perennial springs fed the lake with fresh water. For over 300 years, people placed ritual offerings at the shrine, an activity that may have helped to form and sustain social and political relationships among the lake's inhabitants.…”