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A View from the South: Prehistoric Exchange in Lower Central America1

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A View from the South: Prehistoric Exchange in Lower Central America1 A View from the South: Prehistoric Exchange in Lower Central America1 John W. Hoopes2 I. Introduction Lower Central America comprises the geographic region situated between the southeastern periphery of the Maya area in Honduras and El Salvador and the region of Darien in eastern Panama (Fig. 1). It forms a natural bridge between Mesoamerica and the Andes, each of which saw the emergence of complex, state-level societies before the arrival of the Spaniards (cf. Santley and Pool, this volume; McAnany, this volume). However, in spite of the fact that lower Central America was home to some of the earliest sedentary villages in the Americas, its indigenous societies never attained levels of sociopolitical integration enjoyed by their neighbors to the north and south. The region was instead characterized by an enormous number and variety of societies representing a number of different levels of sociopolitical complexity at any given time in prehistory. Prehistoric exchange systems were equally complex, forming networks of interaction between diverse groups within the region as well as contacts with societies to the north and south. This chapter examines evidence for trade and exchange systems in lower Central America with reference to both internal networks and contacts with cultures of Mesoamerica. Given the latter emphasis, and in the interest of a continuity in themes, one very important region -- Panama -- will not be discussed in detail. This is not for lack of information or the region's important contributions to our study of lower Central American trade in general, but simply be- cause the principal external foci of prehistoric Panamanian trade systems was oriented more to the south, towards Colombia, than to the north and Mesoamerica.1* The identification of trade and exchange systems in prehistoric lower Central America is still very difficult. The prehistory of many regions, especially the vast tropical lowlands of eastern Honduras and Nicaragua, remains almost completely unknown. Many others are well understood for only a portion of the cultural sequence. The discussion which follows may there- fore reflect more accurately the nature and intensity of archaeological research than the most important economic networks of indigenous societies. However, as the bibliography reflects, the 1980s have seen a veritable "boom" in contributions of our knowledge of this region. Advanced techniques of materials sourcing, such as neutron activation, have been applied to both ceramic and jade artifacts from Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. Sourcing of other materials, such as gold, copper, shell, and even human bone cannot be too far off, and the 1990s will un- doubtedly see major advances in our understanding of trade throughout the Americas. 1 Published as: Hoopes, John W. (1992) A View from the South: Prehistoric Exchange in Lower Central America. In Prehistoric Exchange Systems in North America, Jonathon Ericson and Timothy G. Baugh, eds. Plenum Press, New York, pp. 247-282. 2 Dept. of Anthropology, University of Kansas, 1415 Jayhawk Blvd., Lawrence, KS 66045. Email: [email protected]. 1 II. The Early Formative Period (4000-1000 BC) Lower Central America has some of the earliest village societies in the New World (Hoopes 1987). The transition from mobile, preceramic societies to settled village agriculturalists probably occurs as early as 3500 BC in Panama (Cooke 1984). Sedentary societies are found in Costa Rica by 2000 BC, and were probably established in Pacific Nicaragua and the Cop n valley in Honduras by at least 1500 BC (Fash 1985), if not earlier. Similarities in Early Formative ceramics, especially unusual iridescent-painted pottery in Guatemala and stirrup-spouted vessels from Central Mexico, have been suggested as evidence for contact between coastal Ecuador and Pacific Mesoamerica (Coe 1960, Grove 1982). There are many general similarities between Early Formative ceramics from lower Central America and Mesoamerica, but there is little evidence for actual exchanges of pottery vessels. A possible exception is at the Cuyamel Caves in northern Honduras (Healy 1974, 1984). Here, a number of unusual vessels showed similarities to Early Formative pottery from Mexico and two had carved Olmec-style motifs. Given the distance of the Cuyamel Caves from the prin- cipal areas of "Olmec" activity, it seems likely that at least the latter vessels were traded south rather than manufactured locally. However, the nature of the Early Formative occupation in Honduras, let alone the region in which the caves are situated, is so poorly known that it is impossible to say whether or not these vessels fit into a local tradition. The only other evidence of possible interregional exchange at this time comes from the site of Yarumela in the Comayagua Valley, where Joesink-Mandeville (1987:203) reports the presence of "numerous foreign wares" in Yarumela I contexts. However, it should be noted that these wares are not well defined, nor their "foreign" sources identified. III. The Middle Formative Period (1000-500 BC) The Middle Formative period is characterized by the florescence of "Olmec" culture at many sites in Mesoamerica. Although the identity and nature of the Olmec themselves remains a major source of controversy, evidence for their contacts with lower Central America have been a source of great speculation. At one time, it was suggested that Costa Rica was the source of a precious blue-green jade favored by the Olmec, and that trade routes stretched southward along the Pacific Coast from centers in Veracruz and Guerrero. In fact, Coe (1968) once suggested the possibility of an Olmec pochteca, organized for the procurement of this and other exotic materials from southern sources. However, despite repeated hints at their existence (cf. Snarskis 1984b:36) and a number of searches (Lange and Bishop 1982-83), no jade sources have been identified anywhere in Costa Rica. Furthermore, laboratory analysis has indicated that the percentage of objects from Costa Rica which are actually made of jadeite is very low (Lange and Bishop 1982-83:224). Costa Rican artifacts identified as "jade" have been found to be quartz or other material, while a number of "blue-green jade" beads of presumed Olmec origin have been identified as a variety of chalcedony (Hammond et al. 1977). Mistaken assumptions that many Middle Formative "jades" are jadeite, rather than some other mineral, contribute to the difficulty of identifying trade routes at this time. While many Olmec-style objects reported as having come from Costa Rica have appeared in private collections, only one has been recovered from a controlled context. This is a jadeite clamshell, decorated with a low-relief carving of a hand holding a small jaguar/insect creature, from the site of Tib s (Snarskis 1979). The clamshell form is very similar to objects from Middle Formative contexts at La Venta (Drucker 1952). However, it also has parallels in objects from an Early Classic cache at Cerro de las Mesas (Drucker 1955) and a recently discovered cache at 2 Chacsinkin in the Yucatan which may be as recent as the Late Preclassic2* (Andrews 1986, 1987). The piece was found in a tomb with Costa Rican artifacts dating to AD 100-400, and although interpreted as an heirloom, its Middle Formative (and "Olmec") status is far from certain. Snarskis (1984a, 1984b) has argued that the jade celt tradition arrived in eastern Costa Rica along with maize agriculture as part of a techno-ideological complex introduced by the Olmec. However, archaeologists who have studied Costa Rican "Olmec" pieces in collections conclude that these are extremely few in number. A Costa Rican "provenience" often enhances the market value of an Olmec piece, and some authors are skeptical that many arrived in Costa Rica in prehistoric times (Pohorilenko 1981, Lange 1984, 1986). Furthermore, Olmec jades are even more rare in other parts of lower Central America (which are even closer to Olmec territory) than in Costa Rica. Earlier arguments were supported by the fact that, until recently, there was relatively little evidence for Costa Rican settlements dating earlier than about 500 BC. However, new data (Hoopes 1987, Sheets et al. n.d.) make it clear that settled communities were present in Costa Rica between 2000 and 500 BC. The existence of these populations makes contact with Middle Formative Mesoamericans more likely. Interregional interaction would not have been hindered by an absence of contemporaneous populations. However, significant dif- ferences in levels of sociopolitical development -- especially during the Middle Formative period -- may have hindered significant economic interaction. The types of artifacts which appear in Costa Rica include Olmec "spoons" and shells similar to those from a cache at Chacsinkin in the Yucatan Peninsula (Andrews 1986, 1987). Their presence in Costa Rica suggests that similar processes of ritual exchange or transport and deposition may have been contemporaneous in the Yucatan and in Costa Rica. However, although similar objects have been reported, no Chac- sinkin-type cache has been documented in Costa Rica. Resolution of the problem of Olmec jades in Costa Rica can only be adequately addressed when the objects in question are discovered in undisturbed contexts. While Baudez and Becquelin (1973) noted some Olmec traits in early ceramics at the site of Los Naranjos, Honduras, the only other region in which an actual Olmec trading presence has been suggested is western El Salvador. Here, Sharer (1978) has interpreted relief carvings and ceramic styles as evidence that the site of Chalchuapa was a settlement of Olmec traders in the Middle Formative, established for the purpose of supplying Mexican Olmec centers with locally- produced commodities or facilitating trade with lower Central America. He suggests: ... Olmec contacts are the result of the establishment of a station or settlement at or near Chalchuapa to control the supply of local materials in demand in the Olmec homeland, perhaps cacao, hematite, and obsidian (from Ixtepeque).
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