Indigenous Pottery Technology of Central Mexico during Early Colonial Times

Bibliographic Data

ID20076711
AuthorsGilda Hernández Sánchez (0000-0002-3104-1476, corresponding author)
Year2019
Pages284-307
Publication date2019-04-05
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeCHAPTER
VenueMaterial Encounters and Indigenous Transformations in the Early Colonial Americas (SOURCE_BOOK)
PublisherBrill (PUBLISHER • NL)
DOI10.1163/9789004273689_014
OpenAlexW2965107569
ISBN9789004273689
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited18

The Spanish colonization dramatically interrupted the autonomous development of ancient Mesoamerican culture. Nevertheless, indigenous societies learnt to live with the conquest. It was not only a time of crisis, but also an extraordinary creative time period in which material culture reflected indigenous people’s varied responses and adaptations to the changing circumstances. This works presents insights into the process of cultural continuity and change in the indigenous world by focusing on pottery technology of Central Mexico region during the early colonial period (ad 1521–1650). The analysis is based on the integration of previous research on ceramics, as well as on the consulting of several archaeological collections of early colonial ceramics from many contexts in the Valley of Mexico. These materials show that after the conquest the pre-Hispanic ceramic tradition persisted. The collapse of the Aztec empire, the new colonial society and the introduction of the Spanish ceramic tradition (e.g., potters’ wheel, glazing and majolica ware) did impact native technology, but the various dimensions of ceramic-making reacted in different ways. Clay recipes, method of forming and firing technology were maintained without change. In contrast, surface finishing and decoration evidenced great creativity

Aesthetics · Ancient history · Archaeology · Art · Colonial period · Colonialism · CONQUEST · Empire · Ethnology · Geography · Indigenous · Pottery · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Archaeology and Natural History · History · Latin American history and culture · Ecology

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Open DOIOpen Access