Long-Distance Exchange of Obsidian in the mid-Atlantic United States

Dillian, Carolyn; Bello, Charles A.; Shackley, M. Steven

doi:10.1007/978-1-4419-1072-1_2

Cited by 6 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…Similar long-distance Neolithic exchanges are attested in other parts of the world, although the precise mechanisms involved sometimes remain unknown (Renfrew 1977; Dillian et al . 2010; Düring 2014; Freund & Batist 2014; Gibaja et al . 2014).…”

Section: Conclusion: An Emerging Neolithic Trade Networkmentioning

confidence: 99%

The long-distance exchange of amazonite and increasing social complexity in the Sudanese Neolithic

et al. 2018

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Section: Conclusion: An Emerging Neolithic Trade Networkmentioning

confidence: 99%

The long-distance exchange of amazonite and increasing social complexity in the Sudanese Neolithic

et al. 2018

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“…This incredibly sharp, easily knappable volcanic glass is an excellent lithic raw material to elucidate and track SW/NW-Mesoamerican connections because each obsidian source on the landscape has its own unique geochemical signature. Consequently, characterizing the trace elemental composition of obsidian artifacts using one of the many analytical methods available can reliably lead to the identification of individual obsidian sources with confidence, ultimately allowing archaeologists to connect people to places to things on continental scales (Barker et al 2002; Dillian et al 2010; Dolan et al 2018).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Pachuca Obsidian Blades from the U.S. Southwest: Implications for Mesoamerican Connections and Coronado's Mexican Indian Allies

Dolan¹,

Shackley

2021

Am. Antiq.

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The connection between people in the prehispanic U.S. Southwest / Northwest Mexico (SW/NW) and Mesoamerica is one of the most debated research topics in American archaeology. SW/NW groups used objects from Mesoamerica, but did they also trade for obsidian? Archaeologists have yet to find Mesoamerican obsidian from confirmed prehispanic SW/NW contexts, but here we discuss four green obsidian prismatic blades from New Mexico and Arizona. Using EDXRF spectrometry, we demonstrate that the blades are from the Pachuca source in Mesoamerica. The blades were found at four sites that the Spanish and their Mexican Indian allies used or potentially visited beginning in AD 1540. Using lithic technological organization and historical narratives, we assess the credibility of the different hypothesized models of prehispanic SW/NW-Mesoamerican interaction and obsidian use by the Mexican Indian allies. We suggest that green Pachuca blades would have been traded into the SW/NW if interaction with Mesoamerica had occurred more frequently. We also offer reasons why archaeologists have found so few Mesoamerican obsidian blades at post-1540 sites. This research is relevant because it expands our knowledge about SW/NW-Mesoamerican connections and the Mexican Indian allies of the Spanish, who are an underrepresented group in the archaeological and historical records.

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Introducing the Peabody-Yale Reference Obsidians (PYRO) sets: Open-source calibration and evaluation standards for quantitative X-ray fluorescence analysis

Frahm

2019

Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports

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Long-Distance Exchange of Obsidian in the mid-Atlantic United States

Cited by 6 publications

References 30 publications

The long-distance exchange of amazonite and increasing social complexity in the Sudanese Neolithic

The long-distance exchange of amazonite and increasing social complexity in the Sudanese Neolithic

Pachuca Obsidian Blades from the U.S. Southwest: Implications for Mesoamerican Connections and Coronado's Mexican Indian Allies

Introducing the Peabody-Yale Reference Obsidians (PYRO) sets: Open-source calibration and evaluation standards for quantitative X-ray fluorescence analysis

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