This is an open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 License. It is free to read, download and share on the BAR Digital platform. Archaeological investigations at the prehispanic Ejutla site in Oaxaca, Mexico, have had a foundational role in reframing our perspectives on Mesoamerican economies, specifically craft specialization. This volume reports on the excavations of a residential complex located at the southern limits of the Valley of Oaxaca system, where evidence was recovered for multiple craft activities associated with a single non-elite domestic unit. The residential occupants crafted a variety of ornaments from marine shell, mostly sourced to the Pacific Coast, but few were consumed by the householders themselves. In addition, the Ejutla craftworkers produced a range of ceramic utilitarian vessels, including domestic wares and figurines, as well as small lapidary objects. Many of the craft goods produced were destined for exchange, circulating in both local and longer-distance networks. The findings have laid a basis for new theorizing on prehispanic economic production and the revision of prior notions that presumed principally local economies, in which specialized production for exchange was centered in nondomestic workshops.

AUTHOR

Gary M. Feinman is the MacArthur Curator of Anthropology at the Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL. He has codirected long-term archaeological field programs in Oaxaca (Mexico) and Shandong (China). 

Linda M. Nicholas is Adjunct Curator of Anthropology at the Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL. She has codirected long-term archaeological field programs in Oaxaca (Mexico) and Shandong (China).

REVIEW

‘This is a significant work, not only as a site report but also as a source of theory-building. (It) will stand as a model for all future studies of household-scale craft economies world-wide.’ Professor Richard E. Blanton, Purdue University

‘What makes this text original and different from any others that deal with craftsmanship in prehispanic Oaxaca is the fact that they break the old paradigm that placed the productive resources at the center of the states or other political institutions, to give room to understand that not every activity was a state-controlled task.’ Dr Nelly M. Robles Garcia, INAH, Mexico

‘Ejutla is particularly well situated to help archaeologists respond to questions about Prehispanic economies and exchange networks. In terms of contributions to scholarship on ancient market systems, craft production and specialization, and households, and urbanism, this book is a welcome contribution. It provides much data regarding household economies and multi-crafting in Oaxaca, which can be useful in cross-cultural comparisons by other scholars.’ Dr Alex Elvis Badillo, Indiana State University