Distant Sources, Local Contexts: Interpreting Nonlocal Ceramics at Paquimé (Casas Grandes), Chihuahua

Abstract

The role of long-distance exchange in later prehistoric societies in the Greater Southwest of North America is the subject of controversy. This paper suggests that clarification of this issue requires closer study of specific social and historical contexts and better conceptualizations of exchange among kin-based societies. This position is explored by considering the nonlocal ceramics at the site of Paquimé (Casas Grandes). Paquimé has been presented as a crucial link in prehistoric interregional exchange, and nonlocal ceramics have been used to advance this position. However, the reanalyses presented here concerning the sources of the nonlocal ceramics, nonlocal ceramic frequencies, and the distribution of nonlocal ceramics in burials and room clusters find little change in nonlocal ceramic use as Paquimé grew in scale. The implications of this finding and a framework to understand the acquisition of nonlocal goods that does not rely on institutionalized networks are discussed.