Teotihuacan: Ritual Economy, Exchange, and Urbanization Processes in Classic Period Mesoamerica

Abstract

Social networks and networking are highly dynamic processes within an urban setting. The archaeological site of Teotihuacan in the Basin of Mexico was the greatest urban center in Mesoamerica during the Classic period (C.E. 150–650). The dissemination of a new ideology related to major fertility and militaristic concepts served as an agent of social cohesion within Teotihuacan and throughout its interaction sphere. As a result, the Teotihuacan exchange network expanded onto an unprecedentedly vast area, and the ever‐increasing demand for ritual artifacts associated with this new ideology intensified exchange and the development of a highly complex economy. Specialized workshops produced thousands of artifacts laden with ritual symbolism that traveled all over Mesoamerica. The study of specific classes of artifacts reveals their importance in the local fabric. Ideology and its ritual economy had an impact on the configuration of the architectural landscape of the city itself with a high population density, sacred planning, and ethnic barrios. The Teotihuacan state developed successfully certain strategies that were able to sustain a metropolis of more than 200 thousand inhabitants for half a millennium.