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Abstract
This paper presents provenance data on mundane and rare artifact classes from eastern Sonora in order to revise interpretations of the political economy of late prehistoric Northwest Mexico. Previous researchers have argued that long-distance exchange was a predominantly elite activity utilized to generate economic wealth as a means to political ascendance. Data presented in this analysis contradict these previous models and indicate that all segments of society employed exchange to forge relationships for diverse reasons. Aspiring leaders rarely utilized unequal access to regionally acquired goods to attract local supporters. There is no evidence that foreign objects or symbolism imported from Mesoamerica were a component of aspirant leader strategies. Commoner households exchanged mundane artifacts to bank social capital with groups unlikely to undergo simultaneous social depredations. Overall, exchange and other data indicate a fairly balkanized landscape with few signs of elite offices.
ORCiD
Matthew C. Pailes http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9045-5671
Acknowledgments
This research was funded by the National Science Foundation [grant number 1157690], the Arizona Board of Regents, William Self Associates, Inc., and the University of Arizona, School of Anthropology. I am indebted to numerous individuals at the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia Sonora for facilitating this project, and archaeologist Dai Blanquel. The project would not have been possible without the local assistance of Diego Cordova.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Matthew C. Pailes
Matthew C. Pailes (Ph.D. 2015, University of Arizona) is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of Oklahoma. His research interests include Northwest Mexico, political economy, ceramic petrography, and quantitative methods.