Society for American Archaeology

Power without Bounds? Middle Preclassic Political Developments in the Naco Valley, Honduras Author(s): Patricia Urban, Edward Schortman, Marne Ausec Source: Latin American Antiquity, Vol. 13, No. 2 (Jun., 2002), pp. 131-152 Published by: Society for American Archaeology Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/971911 . Accessed: 29/01/2011 10:20

Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp. JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use provides, in part, that unless you have obtained prior permission, you may not download an entire issue of a journal or multiple copies of articles, and you may use content in the JSTOR archive only for your personal, non-commercial use.

Please contact the publisher regarding any further use of this work. Publisher contact information may be obtained at . http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=sam. .

Each copy of any part of a JSTOR transmission must contain the same copyright notice that appears on the screen or printed page of such transmission.

JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].

Society for American Archaeology is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Latin American Antiquity.

http://www.jstor.org -

POWERWITHOUT BOUNDS? MIDDLE PRECLASSIC POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTSIN 1HE NACOVALLEY, HONDURAS

PatriciaUrban, Edward Schortman, and MarneAusec

Recently completed investigations in the Naco Valley,located within the Rio Chamelecondrainage of northwesternHonduras, suggest that, by 1200 B. C., emergent elites were experiencing variable success in their efforts to construct sociopolitical hierarchies. Thoughable to harness labor in the construction of large platforms, these scions apparentlydid not monopolize cru- cial economicprocesses nor could theycommand the exclusive allegiances of their subordinatesover protracted periods. Political centralization, social heterogeneity,and boundaryformation processes were, therefore,not mutually reinforcingand the polities that resulted were small and ephemeral. Comparisonof Naco's trajectory with contemporarydevelopments in neighbor- ing portions of southeastern Mesoamerica hint at the varied developmentalpaths that ultimately laid the foundation for the emergence of relatively stable, hierarchically organizedpolities in the subsequent Classic period (A.D. 200-900).

Las investigacionesque recientementese concluyeronen el Vallede Naco, que se localiza en la cuenca del Rfo Chameleconen el noroestede Honduras,indican que allf habfa un desarrolloprecoz en te'rminospolfticos. Hacia 1200 a. C. se fundan centrosadmin- istrativos,cada uno al menos con una plataformade 3 m de altura, quefungen comofocos polfticos para la poblacion que hab- itabaen caserfospequenos. Las e'litesemergentes experimentaron un e'xitovariable en la conformacionde jerarqufas sociopolfticas, y aun cuandopudieron dirigir los trabajosencaminados a la construccionde plataformasgrandes, al parecer no monopolizaron procesos economicos cruciales ni fueron capaces de controlar la devocion exclusiva de sus subordinadosdurante periodos pro- longados. En consecuencia, los procesos de centralizacionpolftica, de heterogeneidadsocial y de formacion de fronteras, no se reforzaronmutuamente y las unidades sociopolfticas que resultaronfueron pequenas y effmeras.Al compararla trayectoriade Naco con la de desarrollos contemporaneosen zonas proximas del sureste de Mesoame'rica,se observa que existierondistintas vfas de desarrollo quefinalmente constituyeronla base para el surgimientode unidades sociopolfticas relativamenteestables y jerarquicamenteorganizadas durante el periodo Clasico (200-900 d. C.).

The MiddlePreclassic (1100-400 B.C.) wit- nents may or may not have been relatedin specific nessedthe initial development of sociopolit- cases. We mustalso eschew the temptationto let our ical complexity in many portions of knowledge of how the story ends determine our Mesoamerica.Though there is significantagreement understandingof its beginning.That hierarchically on thispoint, it is oftenunclear what the statement organized, socially heterogenous polities would means."Complexity" is a proteanconcept consist- eventuallybe establishedthroughout Mesoamerica ingof variableswhose expressions and interrelations by the Classicperiod (A.D. 20S900) does not imply are historicallycontingent (de Montmollin1989; that their developmentwas inevitable,uniform, or Feinmanand Neitzel 1984; McGuire 1983; Nelson free of setbacks.Identifying failed effortsto estab- 1995;Roscoe 1993). Understanding when, how, and lish complex polities is as importantas recognizing why people forgedthe novel politicalrelations successfuloutcomes. glossedas "complexity"requires clarifying what we The present essay reviews evidence for the meanby this termand specifying how its compo- appearanceof sociopoliticalcomplexity during the

Patricia Urban * Anthropology/SociologyDepartment, Kenyon College, Gambier,OH, 43022; [email protected] Edward Schortman * Anthropology/SociologyDepartment, Kenyon College, Gambier,OH, 43022; [email protected] Marne Ausec * Departmentof Anthropology,University of Massachusetts,Amherst, MA 01003; [email protected]

Latin AmericanAntiquity, 13(2), 2002, pp. 131-152 CopyrightC)2002 by the Society for AmericanArchaeology

131 LATINAMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 13, No. 2, 2002 132

MiddlePreclassic Achiote phase in the Naco Valley, and Peregrine 1997:6-7). This variable concerns northwestern Honduras, and compares these impedimentsto transactionsoccurring among peo- processeswith ouremerging understanding of com- ple withdifferent political allegiances. Boundedness parable developments throughout contemporary is a complex phenomenonthat refers both to who southeastern Mesoamerica (eastern Guatemala, interacts with whom and what passes among the westernHonduras, and E1 Salvador). Three elements interactors. Variation along the first dimension integralto this process will be examinedbecause of extendsfrom situations in whichcontacts are monop- their general importancein modeling complexity olizedby a particularfaction to thosewhere all social and our abilityto addressaspects of themusing data membersare free to establishextra-polity ties. The from Naco and southeasternMesoamerica gener- second continuum encompasses a wide range of ally. The factorsin questionare politicalcentraliza- interpolitytransfers associated to varying degrees tion, social heterogeneity,and social boundaries. with different population segments. For our pur- Political centralization refers to the extent to poses, we distinguishonly two types of connections: which power, defined as the ability to direct the those throughwhich goods andideas pass. The arti- actions of others,is differentiallydistributed across ficialityof this divisionis immediatelyapparent and factions within a social unit largerthan the domes- we hastento acknowledgethat the two categoriesare tic group (Balandier1970; Roscoe 1993:113-114; not mutually exclusive. There is some analytical Webster1990). This variableis measuredhere by the advantageto the distinctionin the Naco case, how- presence,dimensions, and numbers of monumental ever, allowing us to discernthe kinds of cross-bor- constructions(platforms rising at least 1.5 m) data- der contacts that valley inhabitants might have ble to the MiddlePreclassic at Naco sites. Recourse maintainedand the developmentalsignificance of to this criterionpresupposes that power is oftenused those ties. to mobilize laborin raisingconstructions associated Goods transfersare recognized through the iden- withrulers and the polities they lead. The morepower tificationof importsin local assemblages,their ide- magnatesaccrue, the largerand more elaborateare ologicalcounterparts being manifest by artifactstyles the buildings they commission (Hirth 1993:123; of foreigninspiration. Styles, those aspects of human Starkand Hall 1993). creationswhose forms and combinationsare deter- "Social heterogeneity"is a gloss for the degree mined more by choice than functionalor techno- to whichpopulations are divided into interestgroups logical necessity, are sufficientlyfree of utilitarian by anynumber of factors(McGuire 1983 :92; Roscoe constraintsto expressconcepts of varyingsorts (Carr 1993). Of particularconcern in this case aredistinc- 1995; Hegmon 1992; Sackett1982; Wiessner 1983, tions based on wealth and occupation.The latteris 1984). Stylisticpatterning, therefore, is a crudeesti- evaluatedusing evidence of varying commitment matorofidea flows, eventhough we mayneverknow amongsite residentsto diversecrafts, reflected in the whatprecepts were expressedthrough the analyzed differentialdistribution of productiondebris, tools, motifs. and, where appropriate,manufacturing facilities Tightlybounded sociopolitical entities are those (e.g., Costin 1991). Wealthdiscrepancies can be dis- in which cross-bordereconomic and ideological cerned by chartingthe prevalenceof valued items transfersare restricted, resulting in highly localized among sites or portionsof largersettlements (Smith materialand stylistic patterning. At the otherextreme 1987). An object's value is crudely estimatedhere thereis a total absenceof such regionaldistinctions, based on the time and expertiseneeded to fashion styles and goods being widely dispersedacross and the artifactand/or acquireit from a distant source within sociopoliticalunits. Arrayedbetween these (Feinman 1980; Hirth 1993:138; Smith 1987: poles areconditions in whichideas and objects move 312-314,318, 320-322; Starkand Hall 1993:260). with variableease amongrepresentatives of distinct Varyingproportions of such esteemedgoods within population segments. Estimating the differential excavatedMiddle Preclassic assemblages will, there- prevalenceof exotic items and motifs across con- fore, be used to approximatethe ancient material temporarysites in a region providesa preliminary statusesof theirowners. means of deciding where withinthat range specific Boundedness refers to the degree to which a polities fall. polity's limits are clearly circumscribed(Blanton Clearly,the above factors are related.Achieve- Urban, Schortman, and Ausec] POWER WITHOUTBOUNDS? 133 mentof politicalcentralization frequently gives suc- is also likely to depend,at least in part,on such fac- cessfulfactions the chanceto accumulatevalued tors as local topographyand communicationtech- itemsthrough exactions levied on followers(e.g., nologies. Ruggedterrain coupled with a relianceon Earle1991, 1997).Such tribute can thenbe used, foot travelwill likely conspireto weakenthe capac- forexample, to financeartisans whose products may ity of magnatesto superviseand controlthe actions be employedas symbolsof elite distinctionor as of their subordinates,especially those living on a "gifts"to subordinateswho, in turn,repay this realm'smargins. largessewith additional labor and surpluses (D'A- One route to complexity, therefore, links troyand Earle 1985; Friedman and Rowlands 1978; processes of political centralization,social hetero- Kristiansen1987). In the latter case, tribute not only geneity,and boundary definition in a mutuallyrein- begetsmore tribute through the medium of special- forcingmanner. Alternative pathways exist, however, ized productionbut can be a meansof concentrat- combiningvariable degrees of power,wealth, occu- ing power,"aggrandizers" using monopolies over pationalspecialization, and boundedness in anynum- esteemedgoods to attractand hold clients (Arnold berof historicallycontingent patterns. Understanding 1995;Hayden 1995). Boundaries are often created, the differentroutes to complexity, and the varied or at least reinforced,by elites attemptingto lay ways in which these processes can be decoupled, exclusiveclaim to theloyalty and labor of a partic- requirestreating each of the abovefactors as distinct ulargroup of supporterswhile simultaneously deny- continua of variation(deMontmollin 1989:12-16; ing competitorsaccess to this power base (de Feinmanand Neitzel 1984:72-73). Doing so allows Montmollin 1989; Ferguson and Mansbach us to gauge the formcomplexity assumed in Middle 1996:21-22).Placing limits on interpolitytransac- PreclassicNaco andto comparethose developments tionsmay also be partof elitemaneuvers to monop- with contemporaryprocesses in neighboringpor- olizelocal access to politicallysignificant imported tions of southeasternMesoamerica. goodsand ideas (Ekholm 1972; Friedman andRow- lands1978; Peregrine 1991). Setting Socialcomplexity, therefore, might well result The NacoValley covers 96 km2of floodplainand ter- fromintrasocietal power struggles in whichsuc- races located at 10s200m asl. This flat to gently cessfulfactions secure privileged access to valued rollinglandscape is ringedby the steep,rugged slopes commodities,both locally made and imported items, of the Sierrade Omoaand watered by the Rio Cham- usingthis economic lever to obtain the undivided loy- elecon. The latterriver courses southwest-to-north- alty of theirfollowers. The outcomeof thesecon- east across the valley, dividing Naco into a larger testswould be a clearlybounded society internally westernportion, containing roughly 80 percentof the dividedby wealth,power, and occupation.Com- level terrain,and a smallereastern segment. plexityneed not takethis form,however, and the Passes connectNaco with nearbyzones thatsus- interconnectionsdescribed above are not inevitable tainedvarying levels of sociopoliticaldevelopment (de Montmollin 1989; Feinman and Neitzel duringthe MiddlePreclassic (Figure 1). The Cham- 1984:77-78;McGuire 1983). Local circumstances elecon cuts a narrowfissure linking Naco with the canupset the posited connections. Social leaders, for vastSula Plain, ca.15 km to thenortheast. The nature example,might wield the powerto createpublic of MiddlePreclassic developments here is suggested monumentsbut be unable,or unwilling,to convert by the diverseburials recovered from the site of Playa communitylabor and surpluses into private wealth de los Muertos(Gordon 1898; Kennedy 1981; Pope- (Feinmanet al. 2000; Peregrine2001; Renfrew noe 1934; Strong et al. 1938) and data emerging 1974:74-78).Similarly, some degree of socialhet- from ongoing researchat PuertoEscondido (Joyce erogeneitycan be achievedthrough individual ini- and Henderson 2001). Lake Yojoa and the tiativebut may not be enshrinedwithin permanent Comayaguavalley, ca. 47 km and 100 km to the hierarchies.So-called Big Mansocieties, for exam- southeast,respectively, witnessed the founding of ple,are riven by competitionsover wealth and pres- majorcenters (Los NaranjosandYarumela [LP-1]) tigethat produce volatile, but not inheritable, political that were capitals of sizable polities (Baudez and andmaterial distinctions (Keesing 1983; Strathern Becquelin 1973; Canby 1949; Dixon 1989, 1992; 1971).The degree to whichboundaries can be sealed Dixon et al. 1994; Joesink-Mandeville 1987). 134 LATIN AMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 13, No. 2, 2002

Figure 1. Southeastern Mesoamerica showing sites and areas mentioned in the text.

Approximately 60 km southwest along the Rio tional work until John Hendersonof Cornell Uni- Chamelecon,investigations in the La Ventaand La versity began the Naco ValleyArchaeological Pro- Floridavalleys yielded evidence of scatteredMid- ject in 1975. Hendersondirected field researchhere dle Preclassic settlements(Nakamura et al. 1991). through1977 (Hendersonet al.1979), thetwo senior The Copan valley, ca. 115 km southwestof Naco, authorscontinuing investigations for eight more sea- supportedmore complex sociopolitical relations, sons (between 1978 and 1996 [the 1979 season was hintedatby variationsinburial treatment (Fash 1985, conducted with A. Wonderley]; Schortman and 1991). More distantstill is the majorpoliticaUcerev Urban1994; Schortman andUrbaneds.1994; Urban monialcenter of Chalchuapa,roughly 200 km south 1986a,1986b;Wonderley 1981). A totalground sur- of Naco (Sharered. 1978). Passage from Naco to vey of thevalley and its immediateenvirons recorded Lake Yojoa, Comayagua,Chalchuapa, and Copan 463 prehistoricsites of which 65 have been exca- requirestraversing different physiographic zones that vated.Analysis of roughly 845,000 artifactsforms may havebeen homes to distinct,independent Mid- the basis for defining an occupationsequence that dle Preclassicpolities but for whichrelevant archae- spansthe Middle Preclassicthrough to the Spanish ological data is currently lacking. Naco was, Conquestin the sixteenthcentury. therefore,potentially linked by unknownnumbers Componentsof 23 Naco sites are assignedto the of intermediariesto a diversearray of sociopolitical Achiote phase (Figure2). Identificationof deposits formations. and constructionspertaining to this earliestknown As with so many portions of southeastern period of valley settlementis based largely on the Mesoamerica,systematic archaeological investiga- recoveryof ceramicsdiagnostic of the intervalfrom tions in Naco were late in starting.Cursory recon- excavatedcontexts. Achiote phase materialsrarely naissance and test-excavationscarried out in 1936 appearin the sparsesurface collections secured from (Strong et al. 1938) were not succeeded by addi- Naco sites, probablybecause relevantdeposits are Urban,Schortman, and Ausecl POWER WITHOUT BOUNDS? 135

Figure 2. Naco Valley sites with evidence of Middle Preclassic occupation; one such settlement, Site 338, is located ofTthe map, 5 km northeast of Site 262. LATINAMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 13, No. 2, 2002 136

Table 1. Carbon-14Assessments Relevantto Naco's Middle Preclassic.

Lot Date Provenience 123FF/53 2040 + 50 B.P. conventionalradiocarbon age From a rock-filled pit, dug .44 m into the summit of Site 123's Achiote phase earthenterrace. 487B/30 3000 + 50 B.P. conventionalradiocarbon age From charcoalfound with a posthole associated with the penultimatesummit floor of Structure487-1. 414D/64 2530 + 50 B.P. conventionalradiocarbon age From a midden predatingthe final constructionphase of Structure414-8. 414D/07 2370 + 40 B.P. conventionalradiocarbon age From a midden predatingthe final constructionphase of Str.414-8. 99H/06 2590 + l lO B.P. conventionalradiocarbon age From a midden predatingvisible Late Classic architecture at Site 99. 123AD/35 2500 + 40 B.P. conventionalradiocarbon age From the earthenfill of Site 123's Achiote phase terrace, overlying (within .4m of) the cobble platformsof the second construction stage. Note: All dates are given in their uncalibratedform followed by a one sigma spread(Beta- Analytic Laboratories).Lots are col- lection units from which samples were taken;the numericalprefix of each lot indicates the site where the materialwas excavated. deeply buried.Exacerbating the identificationprob- Chronology lem is the enduringNaco fervor to recycle earlier debris into later edifices, therebydestroying build- Temporalplacement of theAchiote phase within the ings andmixing deposits.Achiote phaseNaco habi- MiddlePreclassic is basedon comparisonsof recov- tations were, therefore, almost certainly more eredartifacts (primarily ceramics) with findings pub- numerousthan the currentsample indicates. lished from nearby areas, the resultingestimation ExcavatedAchiote phase materialsderive from tested andrefined through 14C assays of six organic three contexts: middens, terminal debris (objects samples (Table 1). Type-variety-modeanalyses of associatedwith a site's or structure'sfinal occupa- roughly19,000 Naco sherdsform the basis for defin- tion),and construction fill. The lastcategory includes ing the Manchagualacomplex of the Achiote phase the hearting of Achiote phase platforms, where and specifyingits chronologicalposition. Particular admixturesfrom other periods are nonexistentto attentionwas devotedin thesestudies to surfacetreat- minimal, and those of more recent edifices where mentand decorative variables, stylistic elements sen- Achiote phase items are outnumberedby diagnos- sitive to temporalshifts (see Urban 1993; Willey et tics of laterintervals. In the lattercase, Achiote phase al. 1967 describesthe relevanttaxa). objectscan only be used to identifythe formerexis- The Manchagualacomplex is dominatedby vari- tence of a settlementpertaining to this span some- ations on two ceramic themes: highly burnished, where close by, leaving the size and natureof that unslippedblack to palebrown vessels (theChaguites occupationin doubt.Such variations in recoverycon- group and its component types/varieties) and texts pose interpretiveproblems as does the lack of smoothedto lightly burnished,reddish-brown con- in situ contextswherein associations among objects tainers (Penonas, Campo Alegre, Las Yayas, and resultingfrom use and/orstorage patterns are pre- Sajarialcategories; Figures 3-7). Decorationin both served. Small sample sizes deny us the luxury of cases consistsof red-paintedstripes and a red-orange excludingobjects found in behaviorallyquestionable wash applied over vessel exteriorsand, for bowls, contexts, such as fill, from analysis. Consequently, interiors;striations; brushing; patterned burnishing; we draw cautiouslyon all the studied materialsto incised geometricdesigns; and modeled appliques. inferconditions along the threecontinua of sociopo- Pastesare generally medium to coarse,hard, and fre- litical complexityoutlined above. quentlypreserve a firingcore. Flaringand vertical- neckedand neckless jars (tecomates) are found along Findings with cylinders, open-mouthed bowls, and a few The following discussion is organizedaround the plates. centralissues of chronology,political centralization, The Manchaguala complex fits comfortably social heterogeneity,and politicalboundaries. withinthe range of variationexhibited by MiddlePre- a

Urban,Schortman, and Ausec] POWER WITHOUTBOUNDS? 137

- - -

29cm t 23cm

_ b

- - t

1 9cm 1 _ 1 4cm ] // d

w Pattern [ burnish

/i e

l l l l l l 0 5cm

Figures 3. Forms and decorative modes associated with Achiote phase Chagtuites vessels. classic ceramics found in surrounding areas. sherdsdating to Lo de VacaI (700-300 B.C.) in the Chaguitescontainers, in particular,are nearlyiden- Comayagua Valley (Baudez 1966). Red-slipped tical to El Congo group potteryfrom the Tok and and/orwashed vessels are morerarely attested to at Colos (1200-900 B.C.,900 650B.C.) complexesat Jaralphase Los Naranjos(Baudez and Becquelin Chalchuapa(Sharer 1978a: 13-15) andthe LateXox 1973:151-152). CoquimaRed from Chalchuapa's and Max ceramiccomplexes from the SalamaVal- Colos complexmay be a distantanalogue to Campo ley in the northernGuatemalan highlands (1000-800 Alegre (Sharer 1978a:20). Pattern-burnishing B.C., 800-500 B.C.; Sharer and Sedat 1987: appearsfrequently inYarumela II depositsat the site 279-280). MoguetePoli, a minoritytype fromJaral- of the samename in theComayaguaValley (80s300 phase Los Naranjos(800400 B.C.), is comparable B.C.;Canby 1951 :80-81; Dixon et al.1994) andhas to Chaguites(Baudez and Becquelin 1973: 15S158) a long historyat PuertoEscondido where it stretches as may be the "polished black and gray" vessels backto at leastthe OcotilloPhase (1400-1100 B.C.) reportedfrom Puerto Escondido's Chotepe Phase and continuesto characterizethe MiddlePreclassic (1100-900 B.C.; Joyce and Henderson2001:10). Chotepe and Playa de los Muertos assemblages Naco'sCampoAlegre Red-Washed generally resem- (1100-700 B.C.; Joyce and Henderson2001). bles the numerousred-decorated taxa from Playa de In contrast,the Naco collectionyielded little evi- los Muertos (600-200 B.C.; Kennedy 1981: dence for white-slippingand zoned decoration,pro- 221-229), PuertoEscondido (Joyce andHenderson cedures known from contemporaryLos Naranjos 2001), materialfound in the La Venta and Florida andthe Comayaguavalley, nor are thereclear signs valleys (900400 B.C.; Group II, Sato 1993), and of thedifferential firing reported from Chotepe-phase LATINAMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 13, No. 2, 2002 138

c/7 28cm1 ^ ' 1 2cm l >= b W) \ a

14cm 1

v o ' o

X O //

e I

14cm 1 'et,), 3Incision o

5cm Figure 4. Forms and decorative modes associated with Achiote phase Chaguites vessels.

PuertoEscondido (Joyce and Henderson2001:10). fashionedfrom locally availableperlite (96 percent), On the otherhand, brushing and striationappear to chert(2 percent),and a varietyof poorlyrepresented havebeen rarelypracticed outside Naco at this time. othermaterialssuch as quartz,tuff, andbasalt (1 per- Overall,the Manchagualacomplex is characterized cent in all). Only 83 examplesof importedobsidian, by distinctiveattributes (such as pattern-burnishing) 44 in blade form, were identifiedin good Achiote and coherentassociations among stylistic features phase contexts. A percussion-flake industry is (representedby Chaguitestaxa) thatlink Naco with reported for Copan's Uir phase (900-400 B.C.; MiddlePreclassic phases in both nearbyand distant Sweeny 1983), and this form of tool productionis areas. apparentlywidespread throughout large portions of The vast majorityof the 9,845 analyzedAchiote MiddlePreclassic southern Mesoamerica (e.g., Clark phase lithics are simple tools and debris generated andLee 1984).Chalchuapa's Middle Preclassic lithic within a percussion-flakeindustry (studied by N. assemblage,however, is based on blades fashioned Ross, 1997). Most of these casual implementsare from imported obsidian cores (Sheets 1978:74). Urban, Schortman, and Ausec] POWER WITHOUTBOUNDS? 139

28cm 1

1 \ 22cml

I a //

, 22m

_ / d \\

A l l A

A / I A

B \ J I I f B B \ \ 9

l l l l l l g Incision o 5cm Figure 5. Achiote phase Penonas vessels decorated with pattern burnishing.

Chotepephase depositsat nearbyPuerto Escondido penultimateversion of a massive earthenplatform. also yielded blades made on obsidianderived from This date is somewhatearlier than expected. Still, the distantIxtepeque and E1 Chayal flows (Joyceand themostrecentend ofthe sample'srange,1045B.C., Henderson 2001:12). Achiote phase casual flake is not an unreasonableplacement for the early por- tools, therefore, conform to productionstrategies tion of the Achiote phase. The two Site 414 collec- seen elsewhere in Middle Preclassic southeastern tions fall near the end of the expected range. This Mesoamericaand contrastwith the obsidianblade- findingtentatively confirms field-based estimates of dominatedindustries that characterize Naco through- Site 414's late placementwithin the Achiote phase out the Classic and Postclassic periods (A.D. basedon theprevalence of ceramicattributes, includ- 20() 1500; Ross 1997). ing form shifts. Samples 123AD/35 and 99H/06 Dates obtainedfrom 14Cassessments of organic occupya middleposition vis-a-vis the Sites 487 and samples derived from Sites 99, 123, 414, and 487 414 collections, a findingin keeping with analyses generallyfall within the rangepredicted by artifact of potteryfrom those settlements.Sample 123FF/53 comparisons(Table 1). The oldest sample,487B/30, was recoveredfrom a .44 m deep,rock-filled pit sunk comes fromcharred material associated with a post- into the top of the principalAchiote phaseconstruc- hole that was partof the superstructuretopping the tion at Site 123. Pottery recovered from the 9

[Vol.13,No. 2, 2002 LATINAMERICAN ANTIQUITY 140

% 22cm 1 - 27cm 1 -

a \\

/ - 20cm 1 - 1&m 1

// / / d 23cm1 t 6cm 1

t\ e

HRed paint // - E<3fResist

t Incision \\

H Applique l l l l l l o 5cm phase Penonas vessels. modes associated with Achiote Figure6. Forms and decorative Centralization long after the Political concavitypointed to its excavation had been abandoned.This sites contains Achiotephase building small collectionof Achiotephase a terminusante quem The mod- 14Cassay, therefore, provides amountof variation.Eighteen were phase occupation. asurprising datefor Site 123's Achiote loci without preservedarchitecture. confirmchrono- estresidential Radiocarbonassays, therefore, southwestvalley margin,however, basedon arti- Site459 on the placementof theAchiote phase 1 m2tuff slab into the level logical us that consistsentirely of a ca. andcross-ties. They also remind depressionswere factanalyses surfaceof which 15 cup-shaped settlementsare likely to have diameter notall Achiote phase The latterrange from .03-.2 m in a suppositionthat is carved. at beenoccupied simultaneously, m deep. The stone extendsdown in ceramic andare .02-.16 by the aforementionedchanges groundsurface and seems seconded place- least 1 m below current 14Cassessments, temporal othersigns of occu- attributes.Lacking to be partof local bedrock.No within the Middle Preclassic area. The ment of components pation were identifiedin the immediate large ceramicsamples from rel- phase requiresanalyzing modificationis dated to the Achiote Naco settlementsdid not slab's stones evant deposits. As most generalsimilarity to "cupulated" or materialsuit- basedon its collections of sufficientsize, to Late Preclassictransition yield a gen- assignedto the Middle testing,they can only be assigned and Sedat 1987: ablefor 14C in the Salama valley (Sharer eralAchiote phase date. a

Urban, Schortman, and Ausec] POWER WITHOUTBOUNDS? 141

XA__I

t-.rr..M.-.sser, 5 1 5cm l

( 1 2cml l l

in ,.,,,w.-4r x X l l b

> : , | d S |

4 12cml

m > 12cml

26cml 1 7cm 1 1 7cm 1

/ / ^ tm l l l l l l ^1 1 1z1intensities ZiY] 0 5cm Elbf pnajsthernlS Incision l l Figure 7. Forms associated with Achiote phase Penonas vessels.

371-373) and to the MiddlePreclassic in Veracruz, ity duringwhich roughly 2 m and 1 m of earthfill Mexico (Cobean 1996). The locally uniqueappear- were added to the heights of Structures104-1 and anceof the stone,coupled with the absence of domes- 487-1, respectively.Clearing 3 m2 on the former's tic debris,implies that Site 459 was a special-purpose summitrevealed that the expansionwas cappedby settlement. a .1 m thick earthenfloor thathad been intensively Foursites aredistinguished by monumentalcon- firedover most (probably all) of its extent.The major- structions.Sites 104 and487 areeach dominatedby ity of Structure487-1 's 90.5 m2summit was exposed, a single, conical earthenstructure. These buildings revealinga heavilyburnt earth floor averaging .11 m ascendca. 3 m abovecurrent ground surface and have thick.Six postholes,.25-.45 m in diameter,were pre- diametersof 41.5 m and49 m (Structures104-1 and servedin this surface.Four of these entitiesdefine a 487-1, respectively).Excavating 123 m2of Achiote quadrilateralmeasuring roughly 1.15 m x 1.45 m on phase depositsaltogether on these edifices revealed the summit's southeastmargin. A .24 m high, U- that the platformswere each the productof seven shapedcobble construction, encompassing 1.1 x 1.3 buildingphases (Figures 8 and9). Bothconstructions m and open to the southeast,partially overlaps one began on a small scale, consisting of platforms of these postholes and is one of the few stone con- cappedby earthfloors at least some of which were structionsrecorded on eitherbuilding. Earthen ter- purposefullyburnt to enhancetheir hardness. With races may have ascendedStructure 487-l's flanks, exposures of the earliest levels restrictedto 1 m2 elusive remnantsof the uppermostelements being probes,all thatcould be discernedwas thatthe first recognized.32 m and.6 m below the summit'snorth- five phasesin Structure487-1 andthree in Structure east and southwestmargins. 104-1 addeda totalof .2-1.2 m to the heightsof their Considerableeffort was investedin raisingStruc- predecessors. tures 104-1 and 487-1 to their height of 2.2 m, as This sequence of incrementalgrowth was suc- well as in fashioningtheir extensive earthen summit ceededby a significantupsurge in constructionactiv- floors. The superstructuresthat rose above those ,S,t * ; W ' x-sl-,KEY* @ . v"@ t- t * '9$+ S i ** *S I .,;,t,,_| * * I I . _ W_t s fRo .- td - Oo. 1 ,, 2o0 4 ffi *c 60

142 LATINAMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 13, No. 2, 2002

SITE 487

Detail of Sddle Preclassic Fbor Sce

M / =. 4 ' ' ' ' ^ ' ' ' - ' ' ' ' ' - t - ° ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ° 4 4" - gjC?° ° 20

b _

Oo_wd _"faoe' v * . * ,' . .- SCALE

; '., ."; .','- | O l OOcgl}

. | # .

-; .- . -. -. '. ' "

C _ from o_ *r

. . -. . 'R"'"@" O (t_calitt ,e.,!;,,,>;,,6t-,-.,;>,,3,X,,,,6-,i>,1>,,,,e,'t, o 9_ Rode :- : j,, ,.,,, ., <} C.t &ndPt 8BJIEIS'#8#

Figure 8. Construction sequence revealed within Structure 487-1. surfaces were fashioned primarily of perishable includethe remainsof what appearto be two stone- materials,probably bajareque (wattle and daub). An facedplatforms built over the midden. These edifices additionalca. 1.1 m of earthfill was added,over the arepreserved to .5 m high andeach measuresat least courseof severalbuilding phases, to the tops of both 6 x 6 m. A 1 m-long block of oxidized mud is the edifices.Due to theirproximity to currentground sur- only sign of a bajarequeconstruction raised atop face, mostfeatures associated with the latestversions ancient ground surface adjacentto the platforms. are lost to erosion. I*hreeburnt, rectangular mud bricks (each measur- Excavationof ca. 60 m2of Achiotephase deposits ing .05 x .15 m) recordedin section immediately at Site 123 revealeda somewhatdifferent construc- above the platformsare the only such blocks identi- tion history(Figure 10). Locateda scant325 m west fied for any time periodin Naco. of Site 487, this settlementwas a majorTerminal Pre- Approximately2 m of earthfill buriesthe afore- classic (A.D. 1-200) administrativecenter. Raising mentionedcomplex. Though the resultingconstruc- the 24 monumentalplatforms that dominate the Ter- tion'sform is difficultto reconstruct,this final version minalPreclassic site may well have damagedand/or is apparentlya massiveearthen terrace built into a nat- destroyedearlier edifices. Evidence of Achiotephase uralsouth-to-north ascent away from the nearbyRio constructionis currentlyknown from only the south- Manchaguala.There is no sign of a hiatusinterrupt- west cornerof Site 123 where deep tests unearthed ing depositionof the terracefill, suggestingthat the a complex occupation and constructionsequence edifice was raised to its final height in one major divisibleinto threephases (Clarket al. 1991; Urban buildingeffort. Faint outlines of at least one pit with 1986a). Use of the investigated area begins with taperingsides, sunk minimally 1.25 m into the ter- accumulationof a .2-.5 m thickmidden directly atop race's summit, were discernedin excavations.Pit culturally sterile, river-deposited,coarse, yellow contentsdiffered little from materials recovered in the sands.A mass of cobbles covering 10.5 m by 16 m surroundingfill, suggesting that the excavationin Urban,Schortman, and Ausec] POWER WITHOUTBOUNDS? 143

SITE 1t}4 Sub-ratens E & H W"t F

SCALE

I I 1 1. ;, I O lOOcm

Figure 9. Construction sequence revealed within Structure lW-l. questiondid not long postdateterrace construction. on Structure414-7, atop stone foundations.Struc- Site 414 differsfrom the Achiote phase compo- ture 414-6 was apparentlynot a purposefullycon- nentsof Sites 104, 123, and487 in thatno one con- structedplatform but a ca. 1.4-m-thick trash deposit. structiondominates this settlementon the southwest Constructionsequences at Structures104-1, 487- valley margins (Figure 11). Instead, five sizeable 1, and the Site 123 terraceshare certain features. In platformsare dispersedover 32,100 m2here. Three each case, relativelydiminutive buildings are suc- of these edifices are loosely aggregatedaround a ceeded by a single constructioneffort that radically patioopen to the southeast(Structures 414-7,8, and transformedthe edifice throughthe additionof 1-2 10). Site 414 buildings are extensive, covering m of earthenfill. Subsequentconstruction continued 250-880 m2,but rise only .45-1.66 m abovecurrent to enhancethe dimensionsof Structures104-1 and groundlevel. 487-1, thoughon a moremodest scale thanthat char- Approximately54 m2of Achiote phase deposits acteristicof the previousbuilding effort. There is no were excavatedoverall in three Site 414 buildings evidencethat the Site 123 terracewas expandedfol- (Structures414-6 through8). Structures414-7 and lowing the thirdbuilding phase. The result in each 8 are earthenplatforms faced with walls fashioned case was the creationof a single, massive earthen of unmodifiedriver cobbles andangular stones. The constructionthat dominated its respectivesite. Site formeris a reconstructed1.9 m tall while the latter 414's buildersdiverged from this pattern.Here, the rose no more than .85 m. Superstructuresin both singleplatform rising in splendidisolation is replaced cases were made of perishablematerial set, at least by at least five edifices, none of which approaches 144 LATINAMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 13, No. 2, 2002

SITE 123

Sub-Operation AB

North Face South Face West Face East Face 64° E of N mag , 251e E of N mag s 343° E of N mag =15rEofNmas

X2^ l C) Cobble XRoot Q 1QOcm ° Gravel t Bajareque Figure 10. Construction sequence revealed within Site 123's Achiote phase monumental terrace. the aforementionedbuildings in size. Surroundedby the significantdisruptions caused by reuse of the otherconstructions, even a relativelylarge platform platformsfrom the MiddlePreclassic to the present such as Str. 414-7 does not have the same visual day. An extensive, maximally .7 m thick, midden impactas Structures104-1, 487-1, and the Site 123 located off the northeastface of the summitof Str. terrace.Site 414's Achiote phase buildingsare also 487- l 's finalversion suggests the performanceof at faced with stone retainingwalls, a patternnot repli- least some quotidianactivities on this platform.To cated at Sites 104 and 487. whatextent this pattern can be generalizedto Achiote Overall,the pace and magnitudeof construction phasemonumental constructions at Sites 123 and 104 at Sites 104,123, and487 pointto limitedperiods of is not clear.The Site 414 buildingsmay representa intensebuilding activity, tentatively implying equally move towardthe creationof separatefacilities for restrictedspans during which significant control over specificbehaviors, a patternthat characterizes mon- laborwas exercisedby those supervisingthe work. umentaland nonmonumental Naco settlementsfrom Dispersalof productiveefforts among more numer- this point onward. Site 414's occupationnear the ous, smalleredifices at Site 414 may hintat less cen- end of the Achiote phase makes an argumentfor tralizedcontrol over labor or the provisionof distinct changes in activitypatterning plausible. Excavated physicalfacilities for activitiesaggregated on a sin- materialsassociated with Site 414 structures,how- gle, largerplatform at the otherthree settlements. ever,do not indicateif andhow behaviorswere vari- Deciding among these alternatives,as well as ably distributedacross the center. investigatingthe extent to which would-be aggran- Availableevidence, therefore, indicates the exis- dizers commanded labor to meet their own, as tence of a two-tier settlementhierarchy during the opposed to community,needs, requiresidentifying Achiote phase, settlementsat differentlevels dis- the activities pursuedon each excavatedbuilding. tinguishedby the amountof laborinvested in their This effortis complicatedby the absenceof objects componentbuildings. Early in this span, pinnacle recoveredfrom use-related contexts associated with settlementscontained one massive platform.Later all but the final versionsof investigatededifices and on, constructionefforts at the apical center were : ? ; 0 o

Urban, Schortman, and Ausecl POWER WITHOUTBOUNDS? 145

f - Su:; i: - : X

00 : t 0 + *02

t00 i;;000 000i xi); : 0;*04 +'

:: i; i 0 :00e:X:; X. s

a : -: :f:000000:: ::::f:;:0:0 t ::70000:*::Entt ::fi:L t : ; 0:::ti A d C 0 000 f 0 N;:}

: 0Sx 0 0 0 < :

:;m t0 : ;w; ;0ow : :XiV;0:f::00:t

: : ::it:; : : : : C :: : :

;00 14: 0 0 0 0;0.e:^ :7: X : 0 0$;iE f:4013040

;: ::::

Sl:l00 Sl: A0:::: o::

Figure 11. Site 414. Note that the cluster of buildings associated with Structure 1-4 seems to date to the Late Classic (A.D. 60s950); the temporal placement of Structures 1214 is unknown. divided among several more diminutive, though ters.We havealready noted that Site 414 is the most still substantial,edifices. As impressiveas some of recent of the four apical sites. While Site 104's the buildings were, labor control may have been chronological position vis-a-vis the other centers slow in developing and ephemeral.Site 104, 123, cannotbe establishedby technicalmeans, based on and487 constructionhistories all documentan ini- artifactanalysis, it seems likely that no more than tial, probably protracted,interval during which two politicalnodes existed simultaneouslyin Naco. modest edifices were erected, none of which Politicalcentralization, manifest through labor con- requiredconsiderable exertion from largenumbers trol, was, therefore,relatively evanescent, power of people to fashion. Subsequentdramatic meta- changinghands several times throughout the interval. morphoses of the dominant structurebespeak a We hypothesize,therefore, that the relativelydis- locally unprecedentedchange in labor mobiliza- persedAchiote phase populationswere dividedby tion regimes as many hands were needed to exca- theiraccess to power.A minoritycould organize and vate, transport,and deposit large quantitiesof fill. directthe productiveefforts of the majorityin rais- Site 123's terracewas notmodifiedthereafter. Addi- ing large-scaleedifices thatwere probablynodes of tions made to Structures104-1 and 487-1 pale in sociopoliticalintegration, as well as residencesof the comparisonto earlier exertions.Whatever faction aggrandizersthemselves. Such political preeminence commissionedthese edifices, therefore,apparently was not long-lasting, however, and labor control had trouble maintainingtheir hold over labor. In shifted among the residentsof various settlements addition,there is some evidence thatpolitical cen- throughoutthis long span.The apparentreorganiza- ters shiftedduring the Achiote phase. Radiocarbon tion of administrative/integrativeactivities implied assays tentatively suggest that initiation of sub- by Site 414's novel structuralarrangement may have stantialconstruction at Site 123 postdates similar been partof an effortto fashionmore durable power activitiesat Site 487. This temporaldisjunction may relations.It is difficultto ascertainhow successful accountfor the physicalpropinquity of the two cen- this strategywas. Thatall subsequentNaco political LATINAMERICAN 146 ANTIQUITY [Vol. 13, No. 2, 2002

centerspossess cores where activitieswere distrib- economically.Imports are rare, most artifactsbeing uted among multiple,large-scale constructions sug- fashionedfrom raw materialsfound within the val- gests thatthe organizationalscheme initiated by Site ley's confines. 414's builders had an enduringappeal. Turningto the dimensionof idea flows, as manifest Social Heterogeneity in thedistribution of ceramicstyles, Naco is any- thing but a well-delimited unit. As noted in the Datain hand indicatethat occupants of eachAchiote discussionof chronology,Achiote phase populations phase site were more-or-less economically freely participatedin networks throughwhich an autonomous. Even allowing for the existence of extensiverange of ceramicmotifs were distributed. undiscovered settlements,population seems to have In the case of Chaguites vessels, Naco residents been dispersed acrossfertile, well-watered portions adopteda coherentsuite of relatedattributes tying of the valley. Organicremains unearthed in Achiote them to people living over broadareas of southern phase excavations also tentatively point to wide- Mesoamerica.Specific decorativetreatments, trav- spread involvementin the same subsistenceregime. eling independentlyof any "designpackage," also All Naco residentsat this time apparentlyrelied on link Naco with a wide rangeof variablydistant soci- an economy thatcombined agriculture with hunting eties. Patternburnishing, red-washing, and the use and exploitationof riparianspecies. There is littleevi- of simple, incised geometricdesigns are examples dence for occupationalspecialization, each domes- of these attributes.If Achiote phase ceramic pro- tic unit probablyfurnishing most, if not all, of the ductionwas as decentralizedas we suspect, then basicgoods needed to ensurephysical survivaland motifsacquired from afarmust have been available social reproduction.Raw materialsand skills essen- foremulation by a large segmentof the total popu- tialto fabricatingessential items could be acquired lation.This surmisecorresponds to the observation readilyby all Naco inhabitants. madeearlier that no one faction enjoyedprivileged Wealthdifferences are also minimallyexpressed. accessto externalcontacts. No clear status markers,imported or locally made, Transactionsconducted across social borders wererecovered from excavatedcollections at any were seemingly unobstructedand open, if not to site. Instead, assemblages everywhere consist of everyone,then at least to a significantproportion of essentiallythe same repertoireof utilitarianceram- Naco'sresidents. Insofar as boundariesare cultural ics,chipped, and a few ground,stone implements. creationsdesigned, in part,to circumscribezones of Burials,often key sourcesof informationon wealth control,the vagueness of Achiote phase frontiers distinctions, were rarely encounteredand did not impliesrelatively weak political centralizationin clearlyindicate statusdistinctions. Naco(Ferguson and Mansbach 1996:21-22). Main- Though the results are far from definitive,there tenanceof externalcontacts affords options to relo- ispresently no evidence to suggest that those who cateif andwhen demands of socialleaders are judged soughtpower exercisedprivileged control over basic excessive.This opportunity,realized or not, would local resources, imported goods, and the skills havebeen an effective brake on the overweening neededto fashionitems valued by all Naco residents. ambitionsof aggrandizers. Withoutsuch monopolies, power seekers would have beenhard-pressed to ensnarepeople in dependency Comparisons and Surmises relations,thereby convertingequals into indebted . clients(e.g.,Arnold 1995; Earle 1991; Hayden 1995; Comparlsons Paynter1989). Leaders,therefore, lacked the eco- Thisbrief review of publishedmaterial on Middle nomiclevers with which to pryloyalty and labor out Preclassicdevelopments in southeasternMesoamer- of subordinates.This perennialdifficulty may well icafocuses on processes of politicalcentralization, havecontributed to the shifting power relations socialheterogeneity, and boundedness (see Figure1 hintedat in constructionsequences. forthe locationof relevantsites). Significantpower Boundedness andwealth concentrations are attested to at Chalchuapa,Los Naranjos,and Yarumela (Baudez Giventhe pointspresented above, the Achiote phase andBecquelin 1973; Canby 1949,1951; Dixon 1989, Naco Valley seems to have been relativelyisolated 1992;Dixon et al. 1994; Sharered. 1978). Impres- Urban,Schortman, and Ausec] POWER WITHOUT BOUNDS? 147

sive constructionsare raised at all threecenters dur- was quite young, hinting at means for acquiring ing this span. StructureE3-1-2nd at Chalchuapa,a wealthnot dependent on individualachievement over 22-m-highstone-faced earthen cone, dominatesthat a long life. Thatthe very young are so distinguished center.Large-scale building efforts at Los Naranjos in deathneed not imply inheritanceof exalted sta- include the raising of two sizeable platforms,3 m tus.The pattern does suggest,however, that an impor- and6 mhigh, as well as diggingamassive ditch 1,300 tantcomponent of an individual'scharisma derived m long, 15-20 m wide, and 6.5 m deep. Egalitarian from their familial associations. The diversity of relations in the Early Preclassic at Yarumela(ca. dress and ornamentationon contemporaryPlaya de 1000 B.C.) gave way to a hierarchicalstructure by los Muertosclay figurinesalso supportsthe existence the end of the Middle Preclassic(1000-400 B.C.). of social distinctions (Agurcia 1978; Healy This shift is strongly suggested by recovery at 1984:125). Differentialburial treatment may be par- Yarumelaof five plaster-coatedplatforms 2-20 m alleled by architecturalvariation. Humble wattle- high, an elite domesticcomplex, and the unearthing and-daubbuildings raised directly on groundsurface of imported,high-value commodities such as jade characterize Playa de los Muertos (Kennedy beadsand marble vessels. Elite burialsassignable to 1981:51-52).At PuertoEscondido in the SulaPlain, Chalchuapa'sMiddle Preclassic were not found,but however, a "large,stepped earthenplatform" was a richinterment was uncoveredwithin the fill of one builtduring the transitionfrom the Chotepeto Playa of Los Naranjos's monumental platforms (T.8, phases(ca.900 B.C.;Joyce and Henderson 2001: 10). Sepulture2). Included as offerings here are large Associated with this locally unprecedentedcon- stone ornamentsas well as a necklace and belt of structionis at leastone depositof jade ornamentsand jadeite beads (Baudezand Becquelin 1973). "two humanburials with tracesof pigment"(Joyce The contemporaryCopan and Sula valleys yield and Henderson2001:10). These constructionsand evidenceof some wealthdifferences associated with associated offerings contrast with the edifices modest signs of laborcontrol. Though Copan's Uir unearthedat Playade los Muertosand may point to phase settlement generally consists of small, dis- an emergingpolitical hierarchy.As of this writing, persedhamlets, deep probes dug beneathGroup 9N- however,the magnitudeof this distinctiondoes not 8 in the valley bottom revealed 32 interments appear to be on the order of that witnessed at enclosed within the fill of two substantialcobble- Chalchuapa,Los Naranjos,orYarumela. faced platforms (Fash 1985:138; Viel and Cheek MiddlePreclassic occupation in the LaVentaand 1983:563,566,569,57>575,588). Mostoftheburi- La Florida valleys consists of small hamlets dis- als are secondaryinterments with few to no associ- persed near reliable water sources (Nakamura atedgoods. BurialVIII-27, however, contained large 1991:251-252). Power and wealth differentialsdo quantitiesof stone beads and engravers,jade effigy not seem to have been marked,though an unexca- teeth, and four ceramic vessels. This individual's vatedsite with two earthenplatforms standing 1.5 m youth may imply thatthe deferencereflected in the highmight have been an administrativecenter (Naka- offerings was ascribed.At the very least, the pres- mura 1991:251). tige of parentswas seeminglyimparted to theiryoung Mindfulof thepatchy nature of the availabledata, childrento some degree (Hayden 1995). The sizes severalhypotheses concerning sociopolitical devel- of the platformsthemselves, one is over 20 m long, opments in Middle Preclassic southeastern suggesta moderateamount of laborcontrol, perhaps Mesoamericacan be offered.Political centralization exercisedby the factionburied with such pomp. and wealth differentiationwere variablyadvanced BurialNo. 8 at Playa de los Muertosin the Sula throughoutthe zone. Social leadersat Chalchuapa, Plain is distinguishedfrom otherMiddle Preclassic Los Naranjos,and Yarumela had apparentlyhit on intermentsat the site by the richness of its associ- successful labor control strategies,harnessing the atedofferings (Gordon 1898; Kennedy1981; Pope- exertionsof subordinatesto raise truly impressive noe 1934;Strong et al.1938; see Healy 1984).These edifices. The paucity of relevant burials at includenecklaces and belts of jadeiteand shell beads Chalchuapaand Yarumela leaves the issue of wealth along with four elaboratelydecorated pottery ves- distinctionsin doubt,though exotics recoveredfrom sels and two ceramic figurines (Popenoe these centershint at the ability of rulersto acquire 1934:73-74). Once again,the individualso honored prized items. Aggrandizersin the Copan and Sula LATIN 148 AMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 13, No. 2, 2002

valleys may have been less successful in directing andat what scales these workshops operated we can- laborbut were adeptat collecting valuables.What- not tell in most cases. Data recentlyretrieved from ever prestige accruedfrom and/orwas built on this PuertoEscondido does indicatethat jade was worked advantage apparentlyextended beyond individual at this nascentcenter during the Chotepe/Playatran- leadersto encompassat least some of those directly sition (Joyce and Henderson 2001:13). Obsidian associatedwith them,presumably family members. blade productionat Chalchuapawas probablycon- LaVentaand La FloridaValleyoccupants were seem- ductedby residentartisans as well, but questionsof ingly more successfulat thwartinglabor and wealth scale and intensity are unresolved in both cases control strategies than were their counterpartsin (Clark1986). nearby areas. Naco's magnatesfall between these As notedearlier, contacts were apparentlyfreely extremes, exercisingsome, perhapsfleeting, control maintainedamong all southeasternMesoamerican over laborbut not wealth. populations.A limited subsetof exotics mighthave Distinctions betweenareas characterized by mon- beenacquired and used exclusively by particularfac- umental constructionsand those with relativelyrich tionsin some societies(such as thejade/jadeite beads burialsbut lacking impressive architecturecould andshells associatedwith a few burials),but ceramic reflectdifferent political strategies.Emergent elites designswere widely shared. at Chalchuapa, Los Naranjos,Yarumela, and Naco Evidencefor moreremote contacts is providedby possibly created hierarchiesbased on centralized theappearance of stylesin a numberof mediathat have controlover performanceof community-wideinte- analoguesthroughout much of Mesoarnericaat this grative activities enacted atop the monumental time(those pertaining to the so-called"Olmec hori- earthen platformsthat dominate their centers (Blan- zon"; Grove 1993; Sharer and Grove 1989). ton et al.'s "corporatestrategy" [1996]; Feinman Chalchuapa'sresidents incorporated motifs associ- 1995;Feinman et al.2000; Peregrine2001; Renfrew ated with this phenomenon in ceramics (Sharer 1974). Competitorsfor power in the CopanValley 1974:169-170; 1978a:12>125), figurines(Dahlin andSula Plain, however,may have soughtpreemi- 1978:175-176; Sharer1974: 169), public architecture nencethrough wealth acquiredvia connectionsmain- (Sharer1978b:73), and sculpture(Anderson 1978). tainedwith compatriotsin other areas (termed a Inhabitantsof othersoutheastern areas exhibit more "networkstrategy" by Blanton et al. [1996]; Fein- diffuseconnections with the networksthrough which man 1995; Renfrew 1974). The rich interment thesestyles spread,manifest primarily in the formsof unearthedat Los Naranjostentatively implies a com- certainelaborate burials (at Copan and Los Naranjos) binationof network andcorporate strategies by mag- and,more commonly, the incorporationof exotic natesat this center, a tactic possibly replicatedat designsin local ceramicdecorative repertoires (seen Chalchuapa andYarumela.Middle Preclassic south- atCopan, Los Naranjos, the Sula Plain, and the eastern Mesoamerica,therefore, might well have CuyamelCaves on Honduras's northeast coast witnesseda numberof differentefforts to achieve [Baudezand Becquelin 1973; Fash 1985:138-140; political ascendancyby elites deploying a diverse Healy1974; JoyceandHenderson 2001]; Nacoceram- arrayof resources.That success was not assuredis icsare too fragmentaryto reconstructancient motifs). suggestedby the way in which power apparently The behavioralsignificance of the "Olmec"styl- changedhands in Naco throughout the Achiote istichorizon is much debated(see papersin Sharer phase.Even Chalchauapasuffered a hiatusin mon- andGrove 1989). All we would argue here is that umental constructionfrom 600-200 B.C. (Sharer identificationof "Olmec" styles in southeastern 1978b:122), hinting at aprotracted,albeit temporary, Mesoamericasuggests that local populationswere declinein elite powerat this capital.The extantdata variablyconnected to the networkthrough which the mayreflect numerous experiments in hierarchy- motifsspread (see also Joyce and Henderson buildingwith variableresults. 2001:13, 20). Chalchuapa'sinhabitants, in particu- Craft specializationwas not well-developed in larthe leaders who commissionedStructure E3-1- anyof the studied areas.The jade/jadeitebeads and 2nd and large stone monuments, were the shellsfound in severalsites were fashionedby peo- southeasternpotentates most thoroughlyintegrated plewell-versed in the necessaryskills, but whether withinthe web. Furthernorth, ties becamemore dif- theylived where the finishedartifacts were unearthed fuseas reflectedin the reductionof media in which Urban, Schortman, and Ausec] POWER WITHOUTBOUNDS? 149 the styles appearand the low frequenciesin which This intervalwitnesses the firstclear expressions of theyare expressed. Such discrepancies hint at the var- inequality known from the area and its study ious uses to which foreigndesigns might have been promisesinsights into a volatileperiod of intrasoci- put.At Chalchuapa,exotic styles in monumentcarv- etalcompetitions that gave way only aftermany cen- ing andlarge-scale platform construction were seem- turies to relatively secure hierarchicalformations ingly usedto distinguishrulers from ruled (Demarest (though see Joyce and Henderson2001 for a dis- 1989;Demarest and Sharer 1986). Residents of other cussion of the possible Early Preclassic roots of southeasternMesoamerican areas may have turned sociopoliticalcomplexity in southeasternMesoamer- importeddesigns to more parochialconcerns expe- ica). The hypotheses advancedhere will likely be rienced by a wider range of people (e.g., Marcus superceded.Hopefully, they suggest topics, and ways 1989). of addressingthem, thatwill proveuseful in efforts

. to model complex processesof competitionwithin, Sus7nlses and cooperationacross, emerging borders. Variationsin power centralization,wealth accumu- lation,and the creation of politicalboundaries reflect, Acknowledgments.The Naco Valley Archaeological Project in part,the differentialabilities of emergentelites to has been generously supported by: the National Science convertequals into clients who surrenderedlabor, Foundation (BNS-8919272, 9022247, 9121386, and SBR- loyalty,and surpluses as partof theirenduring oblig- 9407751); the National Endowmentfor the Humanities(RO- ations to patrons (e.g., Arnold 1995; Earle 1991; 21897-89); the National Geographic Society (4208-89); the Friedmanand Rowlands 1978; Hayden 1995;Payn- Fulbright, Wenner-Gren, and Margaret Cullinan-Wray Foundations;and Kenyon College. All research in the Naco ter 1989). Achiote phase Naco populationsappar- Valley has been carriedout in collaborationwith the Instituto ently maintained a high degree of economic Hondurenode Antropologiae Historia,and we are very grate- autonomythat provided an effective base from which ful for the encouragementand unstintingsupport of its direc- to resist dominationstrategies. The greatersuccess tors, Lic. Victor Cruz, Dr. Jose Maria Casco, and Dra. Olga enjoyed by paramountsat Chalchuapa,Yarumela, Hoya, and staff, especially, Dr. George Hasemann,Dra. Gloria Lara, Lcda. Carmen Julia Fajardo,Lic. Vito Veliz, and Juan andLos Naranjosin advancingprivileged claims to Alberto Duron. A large and talented staff contributedsignifi- power and wealth may suggest less local self-suffi- cantly to the Naco investigationsof whom we would like to ciency. single out V. Clark, M. Kneppler,J. Morrison, M. Morrison, The general vagueness of social boundariesin and M. Turekfor their invaluablecontributions to the Middle Middle Preclassicsoutheastern Mesoamerica, cou- Preclassic investigations. The people of Naco worked long, hard, and with considerable skill to bring the prehistory of pled with the paucityof evidence for craft special- their valley to light, J. Bueso, L. Nolasco, D. Paz, and E. ization here, imply that nowherewas power firmly Rodriguezholding special places in our memories.We are also establishedin the handsof a single faction.Leaders grateful for the thoughtful, detailed, and tactfully phrased did not have the surplusat their disposal to under- comments on the ideas expressed in this paperprovided by K. write coteries of artisansgenerating wealth from Schreiberand four anonymousreviewers. To all of these indi- viduals and groups we are deeply indebted. All errors and importedand local raw materials.Similarly, these lapses of reason are, of course, our faults alone. same aggrandizerscould not circumscribetheir fol- lowerswithin well-defined borders. A wide rangeof References Cited people maintainedextra-local ties through which Agurcia,Ricardo stylesand, presumably, ideas flowed. The behavioral 1978 Las figurillasde Playade los Muertos,Honduras. Yaxkin 2:221-240. significanceof these links is hard to gauge. They Anderson,Dana might,at least,have provided contacts to whichpeo- 1978 Monuments.In ThePrehistory of Chalchuapa,El Sal- ple could turnwhen dissatisfiedwith conditionsat vador, edited by RobertSharer, pp. 155-180. The Univer- sity of PennsylvaniaPress, Philadelphia. home. Maintainingan option to remove to another Arnold,Jeanne locale if elite demandsbecame excessive would have 1995 Social Inequality, Marginalization, and Economic been a powerfulweapon in the arsenalof thoseresist- Process. In Foundationsof Social Inequality,edited by T. Douglass Price and Gary Feinman, pp. 87-103. Plenum ing the pretensionsof would-beparamounts. Press, New York. Clearly,there is much to do before we can real- Balandier,Georges istically model Middle Preclassic southeastern 1970 PoliticalAnthropology. Penguin Books, Middlesex. Mesoamericansociopolitical forms and processes. Baudez, Claude 150 LATINAMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 13, No. 2, 2002

1966 Niveauxceramiques au Honduras:une reconsideration Demarest,Arthur, and RobertSharer de l' evolutionculturelle. Journal de la societe des Ameri- 1986 Late Preclassic CeramicSpheres, Culture Areas, and canistes 55:299-341. Cultural Evolution in the Southeastern Highlands of Baudez,Claude, and PierreBecquelin Mesoamerica.In TheSoutheast Maya Periphery,edited by 1973 Archeologie de Los Naranjos, Honduras. Mission PatriciaUrban and EdwardSchortman, pp. 194-223. Uni- Archeologique et Ethnologique Francai se au Mexique, versityof TexasPress, Austin. EtudesMesoamericaines 2. Mexico City. de Montmollin,Olivier Blanton,Richard E., and PeterN. Peregrine 1989 TheArchaeologyof PoliticalStructure. Cambridge Uni- 1997 MainAssumptions and Variables for EconomicAnaly- versityPress, Cambridge. sis Beyondthe Local System.In EconomicAnalysisBeyond Dixon, Boyd theLocal System, edited by RichardBlanton, Peter Peregrine, 1989 A PreliminarySettlement Pattern Study of a Prehistoric DeborahWinslow, and Thomas Hall, pp. 3-12. University CulturalCorridor: The ComayaguaValley, Honduras. Jour- Press of America,Lanham, Maryland. nal of FieldArchaeology 16:257-271. Blanton,Richard E., GaryM. Feinman,Stephen A. Kowalewski, 1992 Prehistoric Political Change on the Southeast and PeterN. Peregrine MesoamericanPeriphery. Ancient Mesoamerica 3:1 1-25. 1996 A Dual-Processual Theory for the Evolution of Dixon, Boyd, Leroy Joesink-Mandeville,Nobukatsu Hasebe, MesoamericanCivilization. CurrentAnthropology 37:1-14. Michael Murcio,William Vincent, David James,and Ken- Canby,Joel neth Petersen 1949 Excavationsat Yarumela,Spanish Honduras.Unpub- 1994 Formative-PeriodArchitecture at the Site of Yarumela, lished Ph.D. dissertation,Dept. of Anthropology,Harvard CentralHonduras. Latin American Antiquity 5-70-87. University. Earle,Timothy 1951 Possible Chronological Implications of the Long 1991 The Evolution of Chiefdoms. In Chiefdoms:Power, Ceramic Sequence Recoveredat Yarumela,Spanish Hon- Economy,and Ideology,edited by TimothyEarle, pp. 1-15. duras.In TheCivilization of AncientAmerica,edited by Sol CambridgeUniversity Press, Cambridge. Tax,pp. 79-85. Universityof ChicagoPress, Chicago. 1997 How ChiefsCome to Power: ThePolitical Economy of Carr,Christopher Prehistory.Stanford University Press, Stanford. 1995 A UnifiedMiddle-Range Theory of ArtifactDesign. In Ekholm,Kasje Style, Society,and Person, edited by ChristopherCarr and 1972 Power and Prestige: The Rise and Fall of the Kongo Jill Neitzel, pp. 171-258. PlenumPress, NewYork. Kingdom.SKRIV Service,AB, Uppsala. Clark,John Fash,William 1986 FromMountain to Molehills:A CriticalReview of Teoti- 1985 La secuencia de ocupaci6n del Gr 9N-8. Yaxkin huacan'sObsidian Industry. Research in EconomicAnthro- 8:135-149. pology, Supplement2:23-74. 1991 Scribes, Warriors,and Kings: The City of Copan and Clark,John, and ThomasLee the AncientMaya. Thamesand Hudson,London. 1984 FormativeObsidian Exchange and the Emergenceof Feinman,Gary M. Public Economies in Chiapas, Mexico. In Trade and 1980 TheRelationship BetweenAdministrative Organization Exchangein EarlyMesoamerica, edited by KennethHirth, and CeramicProduction in the Valleyof Oaxaca. Mexico. pp. 235-274. Universityof New MexicoPress, Albuquerque. Ph.D. dissertation,City Universityof New York.University Clark,Victoria, Edward Schortman, and PatriciaUrban Microfilms,Ann Arbor. 1991 The Rootsof SociopoliticalComplexity in theNaco Val- 1995 The Emergenceof Inequality:A Focuson Strategiesand ley, NorthwesternHonduras: The 1990Excavations at Santo Processes.In Foundationsof Social Inequality,edited by T. Domingo. Ms. on file in the archivesof the InstitutoHon- Douglas Priceand GaryM. Feinman,pp. 255-279. Plenum dureno de Antropologia e Historia, Tegucigalpa, and at Press, New York. KenyonCollege, Gambier,Ohio. Feinman,Gary M., KentG. Lightfoot,and SteadmanUpham Cobean,Robert 2000 Political Hierarchiesand OrganizationalStrategies in 1996 La Oaxaquena,Veracruz: un centroOlmeca menor en the PuebloanSouthwest. American Antiquity 65:449-470. su contexto regional. In Arqueologfamexicana, edited by Feinman,Gary M., and Jill Neitzel Alba Mastache,Jeffrey R. Parsons,Robert S. Santley,and 1984 Too Many Types:An Overviewof SedentaryPrestate MariPuche, pp. 37-61. InstitutoNacional de Antropologia Societies in the Americas. Advances in Archaeological e Historia,Mexico. Methodand Theory7:39-102. Costin, CathyLynn Ferguson,Yale, and RichardMansbach 1991 CraftSpecialization: Issues in Defining,Documenting, 1996 Polities:Authority, Identities, and Change.University and Explainingthe Organizationof Production.In Archae- of South CarolinaPress, Columbia. ological Methodand Theory,edited by MichaelB. Schiffer, Friedman,Jonathon, and MichaelRowlands pp. 1-56. Universityof ArizonaPress, Tucson. 1978 Notes Towardan EpigeneticModel of the Evolutionof Dahlin,Bruce H. Civilization In The Evolutionof Social Systems,edited by 1978 Figurines. In The Prehistoryof Chalchuapa,El Sal- JonathonFriedman and Michael Rowlands,pp. 201-276. vador, edited by RobertSharer, pp. 13$21 1. The Univer- Universityof PittsburghPress, Pittsburgh. sity of PennsylvaniaPress, Philadelphia. Gordon,George D'Altroy,Terrence N., and TimothyK. Earle 1898 Researches in the Uloa Valley,Honduras. Peabody 1985 StapleFinance, Wealth Finance, and Storage in the Inka Museumof Archaeologyand Ethnology, Memoir 1(4), Har- PoliticalEconomy. Current Anthropology 26: 187-206. vardUniversity, Cambridge. Demarast,Arthur Grove,David 1989 The Olmec and the Rise of Civilization in Eastern 1993 "Olmec"Horizons in FormativePeriod Mesoamerica: Mesoamerica.In Regional Perspectives on the Olmec,edited Diffusionor Social Evolution?In Latin American Horizons, by RobertSharer and David Grove, pp. 303- 344. Cambridge edited by Don Rice, pp. 83-111. DumbartonOaks, Wash- UniversityPress, Cambridge. ington,D.C. Urban, Schortman, and Ausec] POWER WITHOUT BOUNDS? 151

Hayden,Brian Nakamura,Seiichi, KazuoAoyama, and Eiji Uratsuji(editors) 1995 Pathways to Power: Principles for Creating Social 1991 Investigaciones arqueologias en la region de La Inequality.In Foundationsof Social Inequality,edited by T. Entrada,Copan, primera fase. 3 vols. InstitutoHondureno Douglas Price and Gary M. Feinman,pp. 15-86. Plenum de Antropologia e Historia and Sevicio de Voluntarios Press, New York. Japonesespara la Cooperacioncon el Extranjero,San Pedro Healy,Paul Sula. 1974 The CuyamelCaves: Preclassic Sites in NortheastHon- Nelson, Ben A. duras.AmericanAntiquity39:435-447. 1995 Complexity,Hierarchy, and Scale:A ControlledCom- 1984 The Archaeologyof Honduras.In TheArchaeology of parisonbetween Chaco Canyon, New Mexico, andLa Que- Lower CentralAmerica, edited by FrederickLange and mada,Zacatecas. AmericanAntiquity 60:597-618. Doris Stone, pp. 113-164. School of AmericanResearch, Paynter,Robert Universityof New Mexico Press,Albuquerque. 1989 The Archaeology of Equality and Inequality.Annual Hegmon,Michelle Reviewof Anthropology18:369-399. 1992 ArchaeologicalResearch on Style. AnnualReview of Peregrine,Peter N. Anthropology21:517-536. 1991 PrehistoricChiefdoms on the AmericanMidcontinent: Henderson,John S., IleneWallace, Anthony Wonderley, and Patri- A WorldSystem Based on PrestigeGoods. In Core/Periph- cia Urban ery Relationsin PrecapitalistWorlds, edited by Christopher 1979 Archaeological Investigationsin the Valle de Naco, Chase-Dunn and Thomas Hall, pp. 193-211. Westview NorthwesternHonduras: A PreliminaryReport. Journal of Press, San Francisco. FieldArchaeology 6: 169-192. 2001 Matrilocality,Corporate Strategy, and the Organization Hirth,Kenneth of Productionin the ChacoanWorld. American Antiquity 1993 IdentifyingRank and Socioeconomic Status in Domes- 66:3646. tic Contexts:An Examplefrom CentralMexico. In Prehis- Popenoe,Dorothy panic Domestic Units in WesternMesoamerica, edited by 1934 Some Excavationsat Playade los Muertos,Ulua River, RobertSantley and Kenneth Hirth, pp.121-146. CRCPress, Honduras.Maya Research1 :61-85. Boca Raton. Renfrew,Colin Joesink-Mandeville,Leroy 1974 Beyond a Subsistence Economy: The Evolution of 1987 Yarumela,Honduras: Formative Period CulturalCon- Social Organizationin PrehistoricEurope. In Reconstruct- servatismand Diffusion. In Interactionon the Southeast ing ComplexSocieties, edited by C. Moore,pp.69-85. Sup- MesoamericanFrontier, edited by Eugenia Robinson, pp. plementto the Bulletinof the AmericanSchools of Oriental 19S214. British Archaeological Reports, International Research,No. 20, Cambridge. Series, 327. Oxford. Roscoe, Paul Joyce, RosemaryA., and John S. Henderson 1993 Practiceand PoliticalCentralization: A New Approach 2001 Beginnings of Village Life in EasternMesoamerica. to PoliticalCentralization. CurrentAnthropology 34: 111-140. LatinAmerican Antiquity 12:5-24. Ross, Neil Keesing,Roger 1997 Cores in the Periphery:Obsidian and Socio-Political 1983 Elota's Story:The Life and Timesof a SolomonIsland Hierarchy in the Naco Valley, Northwestern Honduras. Big Man. Holt, Rinehart,and Winston, New York. UnpublishedMA thesis, Departmentof Anthropology,Ari- Kennedy,Nedenia zona StateUniversity, Tempe. 1981 The FormativePeriod CeramicSequence from Playa Sackett,James de los Muertos, Honduras. Ph.D. dissertation, Dept. of 1982 Approachesto Style in LithicArchaeology. Journal of Anthropology,University of Illinois, Chicago. University AnthropologicalArchaeology 1 :59-112. Microfilms,Ann Arbor. Sato, Etsuo Kristiansen,Kristian 1993 La EntradaRegion. In Potteryof PrehistoricHonduras: 1987 From Stone to Bronze:The Evolutionof Social Com- RegionalClassification and Analysis, edited by JohnS. Hen- plexity in NorthernEurope, 230s1200 B.C. In Specializa- dersonand MarilynBeaudry-Corbett, pp. 20- 29. Institute tion, Exchange,and ComplexSocieties, edited by Elizabeth of Archaeology,University of California,Los Angeles. M. Brumfieland TimothyK. Earle,pp. 30-51. Cambridge Schortman,Edward, and PatriciaUrban UniversityPress, Cambridge. 1994 Livingon theEdge: Core/Periphery Relations inAncient McGuire,Randall Southeastern Mesoamerica. Current Anthropology 1983 Breaking Down CulturalComplexity: Inequality and 35:401430. Heterogeneity.In Advancesin ArchaeologicalMethod and SchortmanEdward, and PatriciaUrban (editors) Theory,edited by MichaelB. Schiffer,pp.91- 142. Acade- 1994 SociopoliticalHierarchy and Craft Production: The Eco- mic Press, New York. nomic Bases of Elite Power in a Late Classic Southeastern Marcus,Joyce Polity,Part 3 (the 1992 Naco ValleySeason). Ms., Archives 1989 ZapotecChiefdoms and the Natureof FormativeReli- of the InstitutoHondureno de Antropologiae Historiaand gions. In Regional Perspectiveson the Olmecs, edited by availablefrom the editorsat KenyonCollege, Gambier,OH Robert Sharerand David Grove, pp. 148-197. School of 43022. AmericanResearch and Cambridge University Press, Cam- Sharer,Robert bridge. 1974 The Prehistoryof the SoutheasternMaya Periphery. Nakamura,Seiichi CurrentAnthropology15: 165-187. 1991 Conclusiones.In Investigacionesarqueologicas en la 1978a The Prehistory of Chalchuapa,El Salvador, vol 3. regionde La Entrada,Copan, primerafase, Volume 2, edited Universityof PennsylvaniaPress, Philadelphia. by Seiichi Nakamura,Kazuo Aoyama, and E. Uratsuji,pp. 1978b Summaryof Architectureand ConstructionalActiv- 251-291. InstitutoHondureno de Antropologiae Historia ity. In The Prehistoryof Chalchuapa,El Salvador,vol. 1, and Servicio de VoluntariosJaponeses para la Cooperacion edited by RobertSharer, pp. 121-132. Universityof Penn- con el Extranjero,San Pedro Sula, Honduras. sylvaniaPress, Philadelphia. 152 LATINAMERICAN ANTIQUITY

Sharer,Robert, and David Grove (editors) Talma,A., and J. Vogel 1989 RegionalPerspectives on the Olmec. School of Amer- 1993 A Simplified Approach to CalibratingC14 Dates. icanResearch and Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. Radiocarbon35:317-322. Sharer,Robert, and David Sedat Urban,Patricia 1987 Archaeological Investigationsin the NorthernMaya 1986a Systemsof Settlementin the PrecolumbianNaco Val- Highlands,Guatemala: Interaction and the Developmentof ley,Northwestern Honduras. Ph.D. dissertation, Department Maya Civilization.The UniversityMuseum, Universityof of Anthropology,University of Pennsylvania.Ann Arbor: Pennsylvania,Philadelphia. UniversityMicrofilms. Sheets, Payson 1986b PrecolumbianSettlement in the Naco Valley,North- 1978 The Chipped Stone Industry. In The Prehistory of westernHonduras. In TheSoutheastMaya Periphery, edited Chalchuapa,El Salvador,Volume 2, editedby RobertSharer, by PatriciaUrban and EdwardSchortman, pp. 275-295. pp. 8-26. Universityof PennsylvaniaPress, Philadelphia. Universityof TexasPress, Austin. 1984 ThePrehistory of El Salvador:An InterpretiveSummary. 1993 Naco Valley. In Pottery of Prehistoric Honduras: In The Archaeologyof Lower CentralAmerica, edited by Regional Classificationand Analysis,edited by John Hen- FrederickLange and Doris Stone, pp. 85-112. School of derson and MarilynBeaudry-Corbett, pp. 30-63. Institute AmericanResearch, University of New MexicoPress, Albu- of ArchaeologyMonograph 35. Universityof Californiaat querque. Los Angeles. Smith,Michael E. Viel, Rene, and CharlesCheek 1987 HouseholdPossessions andWealth in AgrarianStates: 1983 Sepulturas.In Introducciona la arqueologfade Copan, Implicationsfor Archaeology.Journal of Anthropological editedby C. Baudez.,pp.551-609. SECTUR,Tegucigalpa. Archaeology6:297-335. Webster,Gary Stark,Barbara, and BarbaraHall 1990 LaborControl and Emergent Stratification in Prehistoric 1993 Household Social Differentiationamong Late to Ter- Europe.CurrentAnthropology 31 :337-366. minalClassic ResidentialLocations in La Mixtequilla,Ver- Wiessner,Polly acruz, Mexico. In PrehispanicDomestic Units in Western 1983 Style andSocial Informationin KalahariSan Projectile Mesoamerica,edited by RobertSantley and KennethHirth, Points.American Antiquity 48:253-276. pp. 249-273. CRC Press,Boca Raton,Florida. 1984 Reconsideringthe BehavioralBasis for Style: A Case Strathern,Andrew Studyamong the KalahariSan. Journalof Anthropological 1971 TheRope of Moka.Cambridge University Press, Cam- Archaeology3: 19s234. bridge. Willey, Gordon,T. PatrickCulbert, and RichardAdams Strong,William D., Alfred Kidder,and A. Drexel Paul,Jr. 1967 Maya Lowland Ceramics: A Report from the 1965 1938 PreliminaryReportonthe Smithsonian Institution-Har- Guatemala City Conference. American Antiquity vardUniversityArchaeologicalExpeditiontoNorthwestern 32:289-315. Honduras, 1936, SmithsonianMiscellaneous Collections, Wonderley,Anthony Volume 97, No. 1. SmithsonianInstitution, Washington, 1981 LatePostclassic Occupations atNaco, Honduras.Latin D.C. AmericanStudies Program, Dissertation Series 86, Cornell Sweeney,Jeanne University,Ithaca, New York. 1983 Estudiopreliminarde distribuci6n de los artefactosliti- cos en el valle de Copan.In Introduccio'na la arqueologia de Copa'n,Honduras, edited by ClaudeBaudez, pp. 613-625. SubmittedFebruary 14, 2001; acceptedMay 19, 2001; revised SECTUR,Tegucigalpa. January7, 2002.