Mapping Pathways To Urbanism And Social Complexity

Tulane University, New Orleans LA

Investigators

Abstract

Dr. Tatsuya Murakami of Tulane University will conduct archaeological research on the origins and development of one of the first cities in Central Mexico. Once built, cities tend to grow in size and complexity, and it is observed that many modern cities keep attracting people from rural areas. However, urban formation is by no means a necessary consequence of population growth and/or technological, economic, and political development. Recent investigation has shown that there are many different forms of cities, and thus multiple pathways to urbanism. While some early cities were created as a result of the incentive of powerful individuals and groups, other cities were formed without a strong central authority. Understanding causes and consequences of early urbanism has great implications for reconsidering the current state of urban societies in historical and comparative perspectives and for better understanding the human nature. This study forms part of a long-term research program that explores how social distinctions (e.g., social inequality, division of labor) and social integration are simultaneously achieved and are constituted by different kinds of material culture. The project will provide an empirical basis for such endeavor and will serve to generate testable hypotheses. Dr. Murakami, in collaboration with Mexican and Japanese scholars, will carry out surface reconnaissance, manual auger testing, and excavations of residential areas at the archaeological site of Tlalancaleca in the modern state of Puebla, which was one of the largest settlements during the Formative Period (800 BC-AD 200) in Central Mexico. The Central Mexican urban traditions during the later periods can be characterized by compact, high-density settlements, and cities such as Teotihuacan and Tenochtitlan served as seats of ruling elites. Investigation at Tlalancaleca will shed an important light on how these urban traditions were created in specific cultural and historical settings. Was the creation of the first city in Central Mexico an outcome of political centralization? Or was the early city an aggregate of more or less independent communities? To what extent were various individuals and groups integrated into a single urban community? To answer these significant questions, this study will examine diachronic changes in the extent of urban settlement, population size and density, neighborhood organization, and the extent of monumental construction. All these variables are closely associated with the nature of intra-urban communication, and their assessment will illuminate the nature and degree of social integration in terms of the relative role of actions of powerful individuals and groups as well as commoners. This study will specifically address the role of cooperation and collective action in the genesis and transformation of urban settlement. This project actively involves both undergraduate and graduate students from the US and Mexico for professional development and enhances international collaborations. Public outreach and the training of local people in archaeological practice are also an essential part of the project and will contribute to community development in a rural area of Mexico.