Etlatongo—Social Complexity, Interaction, and Village Life in the Mixteca Alta of Oaxaca, Mexico

This case study examines the rise of social complexity and the impact of interregional interaction at the village of Etlatongo, in the Mixteca Alta of Oaxaca. A broad perspective is taken, examining relations with other contemporaneous parts of Mesoamerica, including the Gulf Coast Olmec culture. Methods utilized are examined and critiqued. Innovative approaches to examining interregional interaction are employed, such as neutron activation analysis of fragments of ceramic vessels. Houses and how people lived and died are explored, as is growth of parts of the village through time. The book does not just report what the author did, but why he did it.