Journal Article

Patterns of ceramic exchange during the classical and historic periods in the Jemez area : evidence from early excavations at Amoxiumqua and Giusewa

Arbolino, Risa Diemond, Nelson, Kit

2014

Overview

The dynamic period that spans the Classic to the Historic in the Jemez Area is documented in the sites of Amoxiumqua and Giusewa. Based on re-evaluations of maps, notes, and pottery collections from the 19101911 excavations of these sites, held at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, different spheres of interaction, as they are represented in the ceramic record, are revealed. Both sites share similar architecture, are within the Jemez culture area, are occupied during the same time periods, and their pottery assemblages are dominated by Jemez Black on White. Even with these many similarities, distinct patterns emerge through time in the non-local pottery types present revealing different networks of interaction. Giusewa has an extended network that, although fluctuating through time, is consistently more diverse than that of Amoxiumqua. The non-local pottery of Amoxiumqua is not only less diverse, but continually restricted to the directly adjacent Rio Grande Glaze Ware area. This variability is not explained solely by the presence and the exchange system of the colonial mission system at the site of Giusewa, but instead is a pattern that begins during the earliest occupation of the site. Thus although broadly similar, these sites represent varying roles in regional interaction. [Publication Abstract]