"Monumental Architecture and the Origins of Mesoamerican Society: Investigating an Olmec Ritual Landscape in Veracruz, Mexico" lecture byJessica MacLellan

Event Description:

The Suchilapan Archaeological Project investigates the relationship between the development of monumental architecture for public rituals and the transition to a sedentary lifestyle based on maize agriculture during the Preclassic (Formative) period in Mesoamerica (c. 2000 BC - AD 300). Thanks to lidar (airborne laser mapping) technology, several calendrically oriented, earthen complexes were recently recognized along the Coatzacoalcos River in southern Veracruz, Mexico, upstream of San Lorenzo, the first Olmec “capital.” Through excavation, radiocarbon dating, and ceramic analysis, the Suchilapan Project is building a chronology of these early ceremonial centers. We also seek to understand diet, through paleobotanical evidence, and estimate levels of residential mobility throughout the sites’ occupations. Were the builders of this ritual landscape moving seasonally and relying on wild resources, investing in permanent houses and farming, or using another combination of strategies? How did they interact with San Lorenzo and with the builders of similar monuments to the east, in the Maya area? By asking these questions, the Suchilapan Project contributes to our understanding of the origins of Mesoamerica as a cultural area.