Chronological Chart for Central Jalisco

Chronological Chart for Central Jalisco

The following chart is the rough chronology used by those of us working in central Jalisco today, and includes both the older architectural chronology established by Weigand, and the ceramic chronology established by Galvan, and later elaborated upon by Beekman. None of this is set in stone, and everyone should expect this chronology to undergo minor or major changes in the future. The culture-historical interpretations offered are just to orient those unfamiliar with the sequence of the region.

Date Architectural Phases (based on Weigand) Ceramic Phases (based on Galvan, Beekman) Brief Description and Interpretation

A.D. 1800 Colonial Colonial Little archaeological work has addressed this period. The 16th century was marked by the foundation of Guadalajara, and its development as the seat of the Viceroyalty of Nueva Galicia, the Audiencia of Guadalajara, and the Bishopric of Guadalajara. By the end of the century, cattle ranching, wheat farming, and sugar cane cultivation had been established in central Jalisco. Major irrigation works date to this period.

1700

1600

A.D. 1500 Etzatlan Atemajac There are towns with public architecture that correspond well with the independent cacicazgos of the earliest historic records, like Oconahua, with its Tecpan style architecture. But we also see small sites lacking clear internal organization, frequently located on high ground, and more commonly in the northern half of the Tequila valleys and Atemajac valley. These sites include corrales, or structures lacking basal platforms and consisting of standing walls alone. There are rather pointed parallels to sites in the mountains of Nayarit and northern Jalisco. Sites like Oconahua appear to have the same kinds of ceramics, though with the addition of imports and more elaborate types. Poorly understood.

1400

1300

1200 Santa Cruz de Barcenas Huistla Sites like Santa Cruz de Barcenas and El Grillo have public architecture based around a sizable platform with a larger pyramidal mound at one end and two lower mounds on two other sides, like arms extending off of the pyramid. These are evidently more complex versions of the U-shaped structures believed to appear in the previous phase. Ceramics appear to link into what has been called an Aztatlan complex, with complex figural decoration evolved out of the prior El Grillo complex. Very poorly understood.

1100

1000

900 Teuchitlan II El Grillo Major changes take place associated with the Epiclassic, and is one of the few points we all tend to agree on. Whatever remains of the shaft tomb mortuary pattern is replaced by box tombs. The Teuchitlan Tradition architecture is replaced, quickly in some areas, slowly and with hybrids in other areas, by rectangular public architecture such as U-shaped complexes (El Grillo, Santa Cruz de Barcenas, Vacas Muertas), large platforms (Ixtepete), and sunken patios (Santa Maria de las Navajas). Decorated and ordinary ceramics both change, as do vessel forms (molcajetes), decorative designs (xicalcoliuquis, xonecuillis), and methods of decoration (Pseudo-Cloisonne, pigment-filled engraving). All of this distinctive material culture has wide-ranging parallels across north-central, western, and central Mesoamerica. Interpretations vary from seeing this as a purely politico-economic phenomenon, to seeing it as strongly associated with population movements out of the Guanajuato area. The concentration of settlement and architecture in the central parts of the Tequila valleys noted in the earlier phases appears to end.

800

700 Teuchitlan I

600 Late Tabachines This has until recently been thought to be the apparent peak of complexity of the Teuchitlan Tradition. Sites like Guachimonton and Santa Quiteria have been attributed to this phase, there may be raised fields along Laguna de Magdalena and the Cienega La Vega from this period, and settlement is at its most concentrated. Relatively conservative population estimates range around 40,000-50,000 people for the Tequila valleys. But there are numerous indications that the elaborate ceramics from before are simplified in their iconography, while the shaft tombs have declined in size to the point where we are no longer sure where people are buried. Interpretations of the complexity of the Teuchitlan Tradition range from States (Weigand) to Chiefdoms (Mountjoy, Schondube) to multi-strategy regional polities making use of Hegemonic and Territorial forms of control (Beekman).

500

400 Ahualulco Middle Tabachines A very poorly understood period. Defined in some ways as transitional between the earlier El Arenal circles and the later Teuchitlan I complex circles. Although ceramics have been described as equally transitional, a study of the tombs lots from Tabachines indicates that this phase does appear to be distinguishable on its own. The excavations by Lorenzo Lopez and Jorge Ramos in non-tomb contexts at Huitzilapa probably pertain to this period.

300

200 El Arenal Early Tabachines This is the period of the best known and most elaborate shaft tombs, located at sites such as El Arenal and Huitzilapa. Since the shaft tomb complex is scattered across a wide area of western Mexico, it has been referred to as a "culture", although that term has been heavily attacked by most archaeologists working in the area as inadequate to describe such a wide-ranging set of materials. The tombs are generally boot-shaped, or bottle-shaped, with vertical shafts cut anywhere from one to 21 meters below the surface before opening into one or more side chambers in which the dead were interred. Within the tombs are the well known hollow ceramic figures, shell jewelry, obsidian jewelry, ground stone, and other items. The existing database of tombs presents a strong case for the Tequila valleys as the seat of the most heavily ranked societies of the period. In addition, during this period we have the earliest clear examples of the circles of the Teuchitlan Tradition. These appear to be rather evenly distributed across the landscape, as opposed to the spatial centralization of the next two phases. But recent findings by the Huitzilapa project, the TVRAP, and the Guachimonton project all suggest that there may have been much more building activity in this period that we had thought.

100

0 Pre-Tabachines The architecture of the San Felipe phase has been described as consisting of low circular mounds, within which are often found burials. Simple shaft tombs, including a couple clearly akin to the El Openo tombs of Early Formative Michoacan are found in the Tequila valleys somewhere in this long, unclear period, or perhaps before. It is difficult to date materials, since the ceramics remain undescribed in any formal fashion, although individual pieces are rather clearly related to the early Capacha and El Openo materials. This an extremely poorly understood period.

100

200

300 San Felipe

400

500

600

700

800

900

1000

1100

1200

1300

1400

B.C. 1500

return

Date	Architectural Phases (based on Weigand)	Ceramic Phases (based on Galvan, Beekman)	Brief Description and Interpretation
A.D. 1800	Colonial	Colonial	Little archaeological work has addressed this period. The 16th century was marked by the foundation of Guadalajara, and its development as the seat of the Viceroyalty of Nueva Galicia, the Audiencia of Guadalajara, and the Bishopric of Guadalajara. By the end of the century, cattle ranching, wheat farming, and sugar cane cultivation had been established in central Jalisco. Major irrigation works date to this period.
1700
1600
A.D. 1500	Etzatlan	Atemajac	There are towns with public architecture that correspond well with the independent cacicazgos of the earliest historic records, like Oconahua, with its Tecpan style architecture. But we also see small sites lacking clear internal organization, frequently located on high ground, and more commonly in the northern half of the Tequila valleys and Atemajac valley. These sites include corrales, or structures lacking basal platforms and consisting of standing walls alone. There are rather pointed parallels to sites in the mountains of Nayarit and northern Jalisco. Sites like Oconahua appear to have the same kinds of ceramics, though with the addition of imports and more elaborate types. Poorly understood.
1400
1300
1200	Santa Cruz de Barcenas	Huistla	Sites like Santa Cruz de Barcenas and El Grillo have public architecture based around a sizable platform with a larger pyramidal mound at one end and two lower mounds on two other sides, like arms extending off of the pyramid. These are evidently more complex versions of the U-shaped structures believed to appear in the previous phase. Ceramics appear to link into what has been called an Aztatlan complex, with complex figural decoration evolved out of the prior El Grillo complex. Very poorly understood.
1100
1000
900	Teuchitlan II	El Grillo	Major changes take place associated with the Epiclassic, and is one of the few points we all tend to agree on. Whatever remains of the shaft tomb mortuary pattern is replaced by box tombs. The Teuchitlan Tradition architecture is replaced, quickly in some areas, slowly and with hybrids in other areas, by rectangular public architecture such as U-shaped complexes (El Grillo, Santa Cruz de Barcenas, Vacas Muertas), large platforms (Ixtepete), and sunken patios (Santa Maria de las Navajas). Decorated and ordinary ceramics both change, as do vessel forms (molcajetes), decorative designs (xicalcoliuquis, xonecuillis), and methods of decoration (Pseudo-Cloisonne, pigment-filled engraving). All of this distinctive material culture has wide-ranging parallels across north-central, western, and central Mesoamerica. Interpretations vary from seeing this as a purely politico-economic phenomenon, to seeing it as strongly associated with population movements out of the Guanajuato area. The concentration of settlement and architecture in the central parts of the Tequila valleys noted in the earlier phases appears to end.
800
700	Teuchitlan I
600	Late Tabachines	This has until recently been thought to be the apparent peak of complexity of the Teuchitlan Tradition. Sites like Guachimonton and Santa Quiteria have been attributed to this phase, there may be raised fields along Laguna de Magdalena and the Cienega La Vega from this period, and settlement is at its most concentrated. Relatively conservative population estimates range around 40,000-50,000 people for the Tequila valleys. But there are numerous indications that the elaborate ceramics from before are simplified in their iconography, while the shaft tombs have declined in size to the point where we are no longer sure where people are buried. Interpretations of the complexity of the Teuchitlan Tradition range from States (Weigand) to Chiefdoms (Mountjoy, Schondube) to multi-strategy regional polities making use of Hegemonic and Territorial forms of control (Beekman).
500
400	Ahualulco	Middle Tabachines	A very poorly understood period. Defined in some ways as transitional between the earlier El Arenal circles and the later Teuchitlan I complex circles. Although ceramics have been described as equally transitional, a study of the tombs lots from Tabachines indicates that this phase does appear to be distinguishable on its own. The excavations by Lorenzo Lopez and Jorge Ramos in non-tomb contexts at Huitzilapa probably pertain to this period.
300
200	El Arenal	Early Tabachines	This is the period of the best known and most elaborate shaft tombs, located at sites such as El Arenal and Huitzilapa. Since the shaft tomb complex is scattered across a wide area of western Mexico, it has been referred to as a "culture", although that term has been heavily attacked by most archaeologists working in the area as inadequate to describe such a wide-ranging set of materials. The tombs are generally boot-shaped, or bottle-shaped, with vertical shafts cut anywhere from one to 21 meters below the surface before opening into one or more side chambers in which the dead were interred. Within the tombs are the well known hollow ceramic figures, shell jewelry, obsidian jewelry, ground stone, and other items. The existing database of tombs presents a strong case for the Tequila valleys as the seat of the most heavily ranked societies of the period. In addition, during this period we have the earliest clear examples of the circles of the Teuchitlan Tradition. These appear to be rather evenly distributed across the landscape, as opposed to the spatial centralization of the next two phases. But recent findings by the Huitzilapa project, the TVRAP, and the Guachimonton project all suggest that there may have been much more building activity in this period that we had thought.
100
0	Pre-Tabachines	The architecture of the San Felipe phase has been described as consisting of low circular mounds, within which are often found burials. Simple shaft tombs, including a couple clearly akin to the El Openo tombs of Early Formative Michoacan are found in the Tequila valleys somewhere in this long, unclear period, or perhaps before. It is difficult to date materials, since the ceramics remain undescribed in any formal fashion, although individual pieces are rather clearly related to the early Capacha and El Openo materials. This an extremely poorly understood period.
100
200
300	San Felipe
400
500
600
700
800
900
1000
1100
1200
1300
1400
B.C. 1500

Comments to Chris Beekman