Teopantecuanitlan
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Teopantecuanitlan is an archaeological site in the state of Guerrero, Mexico. Teopantecuanitlan shows definite Olmec influences far to the west of the Olmec heartland of the Gulf Coast. Roughly contemporary with the well-known Olmec sites of La Venta and San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán, Teopantecuanitlan shows an unexpectedly early development of complex societies in late prehistoric Guerrero. Before the discovery of this site in the early 1980's, little was known about the region's social organization during the Early Formative period.
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[edit] Location
Teopantecuanitlan (Nahuatl, "place of the temple of the jaguar") is located in the state of Guerrero, Mexico, at . The site is five miles from the convergence of the Amacuzac and Mezcala Rivers, which provided an environment for trade and travel. Teopantecuanitlan occupies some 160 - 200 hectares (500 acres), and is situated at the foot of an important elevation.
[edit] Art and architecture
Teopantecuanitlan was occupied between 1400 and 500 BCE, peaking in population and complexity between 1000 and 800 BCE. During this climax of Teopantecuanitlan society, these residential areas consisted of groups of four houses, constructed of perishable materials with a stone foundation, surrounding a courtyard. Within these residential quarters artifacts such as imported shell and obsidian artifacts, as well as Olmec-influenced ceramics, have been found. These artifacts provide material evidence that the Teopantecuanitlan community was a part of an interregional trading network.[1]
In addition to the residential areas, Teopantecuanitlan is notable for its monumental architecture, art, and agricultural terraces, in particular one of the first civil-ceremonial structures in all of Mesoamerica, "El Recinto" ("the enclosure"), also known as the Sunken Patio. The Sunken Patio is built on a base of yellow clay, dressed with travertine blocks. There is a monolith present within the Sunken Patio that is possibly Mesoamerica’s first concept of a calendar. This monolith has a flower and two bars depicted which may represent a certain date in time. There are also two stone sculptures on either end of the Sunken Patio that, on the spring equinox, allow the sun to pass directly through its center. These two stone sculptures also carry probable relations to a calendrical system of some sort.
This site also consists of two ball courts. One miniature ball court is located within the Sunken Patio itself while the other is located elsewhere in the site. At one end of the mini ball court there is an adobe sweat bath. This sweat bath was most likely used as a social bonding environment for the developing elite class of Teopantecuanitlan.
Teopantecuanitlan is also home to the oldest known Mesoamerican dam. This dam was constructed around 1200 BCE and built of rough uncut rocks. This dam was known as a gravity dam meaning that it relies on gravity to bring water to the agricultural land. Canals, or channels, made of large flat stone slabs are also present in Teopantecuanitlan. The lining of these canals were of benefit to the domestication of plants by being a means of irrigation. These canals prevented erosion damage, loss of water also acted as a sewer.
This site is also the first in Mesoamerica to utilize the architectural feature known as a corbelled vault. This vault allowed for high ceilings without the use of trapezoidal cut stone. These corbelled vaults were used in ancient structures such as the tombs of the elite and in temples.
Teopantecuanitlan society was not egalitarian -- otherwise such monumental structures would not have been built. There was a leader in place to oversee the building of these structures as well as instruct the laborers and ensure that all the necessary resources were available.
[edit] The site
Teopantecuanitlan was discovered, and subsequently named, by archaeologist Martinez Donjuán in 1983, after reports of looting at this Guerrero site. She was assisted in this effort by, among others, Christine Niederberger. Niederberger focused in particular on the residential areas known as the Lomerios zone, or as Tlacozotitlán.
The Teopantecuanitlan site is open to from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 17:00 hours.
[edit] Olmec influence
Olmec influence is seen in many of the monuments of Teopantecuanitlan. Four large slabs, 2 each on opposite sides, surround the Sunken Court, featuring engraved portraits with the almond-shaped eyes and downturned mouths of the were-jaguar. In addition three Olmec style monuments rested on what is known as the North Platform and Olmec style or Olmec-influenced artifacts have been found throughout the site.
There are several theories regarding how such Olmec motifs and designs -- perhaps even deities -- came to be at a site hundreds of miles/kilometers from the Olmec heartland. Martinez Donjuán believes that the roots of the Olmec culture lie in Teopanecuanitlan, and a splinter group left Teopanecuanitlan to colonize what we call the Olmec "heartland".[2] a revival of Miguel Covarrubias's hypothesis. Noted archaeologist Michael D. Coe has said that this "position is contradicted by the environmental constraints" imposed by the semi-arid Guerrero highlands.[3]
Niederberger finds Olmec influence only in the monumental architecture, with the rest of the culture derived from indigenous sources.[4]
[edit] Footnotes
[edit] References
- Coe, Michael (1994), Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs, 4th edition, Thames & Hudson, NY.
- Diehl, Richard A. (2004) The Olmecs: America's First Civilization, Thames & Hudson, NY.
- Evans, Susan Toby (2004) Ancient Mexico & Central America: Archaeology and Cultural History, New York: Thames & Hudson.
- Reilly, F. K., (2000), "Tlacozotitlán (Guerrero, Mexico)" in Evans, Susan , Archaeology of Ancient Mexico and Central America, Taylor & Francis.
- Donjuan, Guadalupe Martinez, "Teopantecuanitlan", in Arqueologia y Etnohistoria del Estado de Guerrero, Roberto Cervantes-Delgado, ed., Instituto de Antropologia e Historia of Mexico, pp 55-80.
[edit] External links
- The National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) Teopantecuanitlan website
- Architecture through the Ages, with a brief description of the architecture of the Olmec.
