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Chupícuaro is an important prehispanic
archeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology an ...
in what is now
Guanajuato Guanajuato, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Guanajuato, is one of the 32 states that make up the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Guanajuato, 46 municipalities and its cap ...
, Mexico, from the late preclassical or formative period. The culture that takes its name from the site dates to 400 BC to 200 AD, or alternatively 500 BC to 300 AD, although some academics suggest an origin as early as 800 BC. Although often included with the cultures of the Mexican West, Chupícuaro is both close to the
Valley of Mexico The Valley of Mexico (; ), sometimes also called Basin of Mexico, is a highlands plateau in central Mexico. Surrounded by mountains and volcanoes, the Valley of Mexico was a centre for several pre-Columbian civilizations including Teotihuacan, ...
and the northern edge of Meso-America. Information on the eponymous site, composed of several burial grounds, remains fragmentary, since most of it was flooded when the Presa Solis dam was built in the 1940s. An INAH excavation was able to salvage a little before that happened. Other excavations took place beginning in 1998, by the ,
CNRS The French National Centre for Scientific Research (, , CNRS) is the French state research organisation and is the largest fundamental science agency in Europe. In 2016, it employed 31,637 staff, including 11,137 tenured researchers, 13,415 eng ...
and l'INAH, and also contributed to knowledge of Chupicuaro culture. On the northern border of
Mesoamerica Mesoamerica is a historical region and cultural area that begins in the southern part of North America and extends to the Pacific coast of Central America, thus comprising the lands of central and southern Mexico, all of Belize, Guatemala, El S ...
, west of the
Mexican Plateau The Central Mexican Plateau, also known as the Mexican Altiplano (), is a large arid-to-semiarid plateau that occupies much of northern and central Mexico. Averaging above sea level, it extends from the United States border in the north to the T ...
, just seven kilometers from Acámbaro, in
Guanajuato Guanajuato, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Guanajuato, is one of the 32 states that make up the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Guanajuato, 46 municipalities and its cap ...
State, México, it lies in hills near the
Lerma River The Lerma River () is Mexico's second longest river. It is a river in west-central Mexico that begins in Mexican Plateau at an altitude over above sea level, and ends where it empties into Lake Chapala, Mexico's largest lake, near Guadalajara, ...
and its tributary the Coroneo or Tiger River.


Etymology

The name Chupícuaro can be translated as ''blue place''. The name derives from the
Purépecha language Purépecha ( autonym: or ), often called Tarascan (), a term coined by Spanish settlers that can be seen as pejorative, is a language isolate or small language family that is spoken by some 140,000 Purépecha in the highlands of Michoacán, Mex ...
word ''chupicua'', a name for the
Ipomoea ''Ipomoea'' () is the largest genus in the plant family Convolvulaceae, with over 600 species. It is a large and diverse group, with common names including morning glory, Ipomoea aquatica, water convolvulus or water spinach, sweet potato, ...
plant, used for blue dye, and the term ''ro'', place.


History

This prehispanic archaeological site is located on the banks of the Lerma River, between the present-day cities of Acámbaro and Tarandacuao in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico. Little is known about the history of this site. The first explorations took place in 1946 and uncovered pottery objects and tombs. The site is currently below water because of the dam, although the surrounding area is still being explored.
Chichimeca Chichimeca () is the name that the Nahua peoples of Mexico generically applied to nomadic and semi-nomadic peoples who were established in present-day Bajío region of Mexico. Chichimeca carried the same meaning as the Roman term "barbarian" tha ...
nomadic groups (
Guamare The Guamare people were an indigenous people of Mexico, who were established mostly in Guanajuato and at the border of Jalisco. They were part of the Chichimecas, a group of a nomadic hunter-gatherer culture and called themselves Children of the ...
s and
Guachichil The Guachichil, Cuauchichil, or Quauhchichitl are an exonym for an Indigenous people of Mexico. Prior to European contact, they occupied the most extensive territory of all the Indigenous Chichimeca tribes in pre-Columbian central Mexico. The ...
) arrived from the current
San Luis Potosí San Luis Potosí, officially the Free and Sovereign State of San Luis Potosí, is one of the 32 states which compose the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 59 municipalities and is named after its capital city, San Luis Potosí. It ...
state. These groups settled in a large village of huts built over platforms coated with mud and stone. They grew corn, beans and squash on the banks of the Lerma River and its tributaries. Based on the existence of metals and stone molcajetes used to grind corn, they probably planted chili and tomatoes. It is also known they were hunters-fishers-gathers. According to several authors, this settlement developed between 500 BCE and 300 CE. The first inhabitants of this area were hunter-gatherers who lived along the river and eventually developed agricultural knowledge. In 2013 the level of the water behind the dam in Chupicuaro was lowered for a couple of days. Archeologists brought the towers from the old church to the town of in Guanajuato the town founded in 1946 after the townspeople of the original town of Chupicuaro had to move out following the construction of the dam.


Site

From type evidence, its development has been established between 500 BCE and 300 CE, although some scientists suggest an older development, as far back as 800 BCE. Ibarrilla, an unexcavated site in Leon, Guanajuato, is seen as part of the Chupicuaro complex. This archaeological site is potentially one of the most extensive and important of the country according to one author. There are thought to be more than a dozen pyramids built on an oval basement. Only one has been partially explored; various flint stone objects, figurines and pottery were found. The rest of the structures remain to be explored. There are tombs, altars and other scattered remains in an estimated 500 m2 area.


Chupícuaro culture

This culture is important due to its influence in the area. It may have spread to what is now the southern United States, circa 500 BCE. There are theories that the first inhabitants of Guanajuato belonged to this culture. Ceramics of this culture pre-date the classical Mesoamerican period, and include angular figurines with geometric shapes. The Acámbaro museum exhibits pieces from the
Purépecha The Purépecha ( ) are a group of Indigenous people centered in the northwestern region of Michoacán, Mexico, mainly in the area of the cities of Cherán and Pátzcuaro. They are also known by the derogatory term " Tarascan", an exonym, app ...
, Mazahua, and
Otomi The Otomi (; ) are an Indigenous people of Mexico inhabiting the central Mexican Plateau (Altiplano) region. The Otomi are an Indigenous people of the Americas who inhabit a discontinuous territory in central Mexico. They are linguistically rel ...
cultures. Apparently the Chupícuaro culture developed in a vast territory, or it was defined as Chupícuaro style or tradition, in Guanajuato,
Michoacán Michoacán, formally Michoacán de Ocampo, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Michoacán de Ocampo, is one of the 31 states which, together with Mexico City, compose the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The stat ...
,
Guerrero Guerrero, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Guerrero, is one of the 32 states that compose the administrative divisions of Mexico, 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Guerrero, 85 municipalities. The stat ...
, Mexico State, Hidalgo,
Colima Colima, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Colima, is among the 31 states that make up the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It shares its name with its capital and main city, Colima. Colima is a small state of western Mexico on the cen ...
,
Nayarit Nayarit, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Nayarit, is one of the 31 states that, along with Mexico City, comprise the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in Municipalities of Nayarit, 20 municipalit ...
,
Querétaro Querétaro, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Querétaro, is one of the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Querétaro, 18 municipalities. Its capital city is Querétaro Cit ...
and
Zacatecas Zacatecas, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Zacatecas, is one of the Political divisions of Mexico, 31 states of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Zacatecas, 58 municipalities and its capital city is Zacatecas City, Zacatec ...
. It is estimated that Chupícuaro facilitated the northward expansion of Mesoamerican elements (cultural roots of western Mexico and perhaps Northwest, comparable with the
Olmec The Olmecs () or Olmec were an early known major Mesoamerican civilization, flourishing in the modern-day Mexican states of Veracruz and Tabasco from roughly 1200 to 400 Before the Common Era, BCE during Mesoamerica's Mesoamerican chronolog ...
culture throughout Mesoamerica.) Chupícuaro had an important cultural development and expansion of its style in distant areas from the diffusing center and influenced ceramic traditions, which lasted until the end of the classical period, and even into the Postclassical, as seen in Purépecha Michoacán ceramic. At the end of 1985, at the first prehispanic societies meeting in relation to the Chupícuaro culture, it was noted, that Chupícuaro tradition ceramics manufacturing groups, should be considered part of Mesoamerican stratified societies, with a definite political and territorial structure, rather than as isolated village societies, lacking ceremonial centers and architecture. From that first impulse, subsequent social groups presented their own cultural expressions at a regional level in the Mesoamerican context.


Regional cultures

The Acámbaro region had five Prehispanic cultures: *Chupícuaro – Late Preclassical - 800 BCE to 200 CE. *Los Morales - Late Preclassical - 400 BCE to 250 CE. *
Teotihuacán Teotihuacan (; Spanish: ''Teotihuacán'', ; ) is an ancient Mesoamerican city located in a sub-valley of the Valley of Mexico, which is located in the State of Mexico, northeast of modern-day Mexico City. Teotihuacan is known today as ...
- Classical Period - 200 CE to 900 CE. *
Toltec The Toltec culture () was a Pre-Columbian era, pre-Columbian Mesoamerican culture that ruled a state centered in Tula (Mesoamerican site), Tula, Hidalgo (state), Hidalgo, Mexico, during the Epiclassic and the early Post-Classic period of Mesoam ...
– Early Postclassical - 900 CE to 1200 CE. *
Purépecha The Purépecha ( ) are a group of Indigenous people centered in the northwestern region of Michoacán, Mexico, mainly in the area of the cities of Cherán and Pátzcuaro. They are also known by the derogatory term " Tarascan", an exonym, app ...
– Late Postclassical - 1200 CE to 1525 CE. Source: Archaeology Hall, Acámbaro Local Museum, Guanajuato, 2001.


Late Preclassical (Formative) period

The decline of
Olmec The Olmecs () or Olmec were an early known major Mesoamerican civilization, flourishing in the modern-day Mexican states of Veracruz and Tabasco from roughly 1200 to 400 Before the Common Era, BCE during Mesoamerica's Mesoamerican chronolog ...
culture at the beginning of the Late Preclassical period (400 BCE - 150 CE) marked a period of cultural diversification and assimilation of Olmec elements into cultural systems that was the origin of several of the most important
Mesoamerica Mesoamerica is a historical region and cultural area that begins in the southern part of North America and extends to the Pacific coast of Central America, thus comprising the lands of central and southern Mexico, all of Belize, Guatemala, El S ...
n traditions. However,
Cuicuilco Cuicuilco is an important archaeological site located on the southern shore of Lake Texcoco in the southeastern Valley of Mexico, in what is today the borough of Tlalpan in Mexico City. Construction of the Cuicuilco pyramid began a few centuri ...
in the south of the
Valley of Mexico The Valley of Mexico (; ), sometimes also called Basin of Mexico, is a highlands plateau in central Mexico. Surrounded by mountains and volcanoes, the Valley of Mexico was a centre for several pre-Columbian civilizations including Teotihuacan, ...
, and the Chupícuaro, are the most important. The first became the largest city in Mesoamerica and the main ceremonial center of the Valley of Mexico; it maintained relations with Chupícuaro. The decline of Cuicuilco paralleled the emergence of
Teotihuacán Teotihuacan (; Spanish: ''Teotihuacán'', ; ) is an ancient Mesoamerican city located in a sub-valley of the Valley of Mexico, which is located in the State of Mexico, northeast of modern-day Mexico City. Teotihuacan is known today as ...
, and consumed with the eruption of the Xitle volcano circa 150 CE, which led to migration north from the Valley of Mexico. Chupícuaro culture is known for its ceramics, of which remnants have been found in a wide area located in the
Bajío The Bajío (the ''lowland'') is a cultural and geographical region within the Mexican Plateau, central Mexican plateau which roughly spans from northwest of Greater Mexico City, Mexico City to the main silver mines in the northern-central part ...
and the lake basin.


Trade and trade routes

The Acambaro Valley, located near the Lerma river, served as a vital passageway connecting western and central Mexico, as well as the Chupicuaro culture. The
San Juan del Río San Juan del Río is a city (2010 census pop. 241,699) and administration of the surrounding San Juan del Río Municipality (pop. 308,462) in the central Mexican state of Querétaro. The population within the municipality is 268,408 as of 2015 ...
region was also significant as a trade route for the Chupicuaro people, and later during the Teotihuacan era. The region's trade was sustained by a complex network of roads, which followed the ancient pathways first built by the Chupicuaro communities during the Late Preclassic period.


Ceramics

Chupícuaro was a major ceramic center, recognized as one of the best in Mesoamerica for the fine ceramic finishing and decoration, which were developed in multiple shapes and colors, some with geometrical drawings. The motifs were deities, maternity, breastfeeding, people and their ornaments, animals and plants. Ceramics included multiple monochromatic forms and a variety of three-color polychrome (red, beige and black) with pyramidal geometrical drawings or zig-zags. Clay figurines used “” techniques and made hollow figures. Shell, bone and stone were used. From a study of ceramic styles, the clothing used is inferred, they painted their faces and bodies, wore sandals, truss, necklaces, earflaps, and earrings. Women wore elaborate hairstyles. The clay figurines were crafted using ancient techniques, such as
appliqué Appliqué is ornamental needlework in which pieces or patches of fabric in different shapes and patterns are sewn or stuck onto a larger piece to form a picture or pattern. It is commonly used as decoration, especially on garments. The technique ...
, incising, and punctation. Elaborate appliqué was used to create the figurines' distinct features, including their large noses, eyes made with small strips or punctations, and small slit mouths. The figurines were often depicted with minimal clothing, most showing genitals, with female features often being exaggerated. The most variable features of the figurines were their jewelry and headdress arrangements. They were painted with red and white pigments, applied by brushing or sprinkling the pigment onto the figurine's cracks and grooves. These figurines were possibly created to serve as companions to the deceased or effigies of their family members.


Maya blue

Maya blue Maya blue () is a unique bright turquoise or azure blue pigment manufactured by cultures of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, such as the Mayas and Aztecs, during a period extending from approximately the 8th century to around 1860 CE. It is found in ...
is a blue/indigo pigment resulting from an addition reaction between indigo and clay, which was widely used in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica. The pigment's origins were first identified in
Calakmul Calakmul (; also Kalakmul and other less frequent variants) is a Maya civilization, Maya archaeological site in the Mexican state of Campeche, deep in the jungles of the greater Petén Basin region. It is from the Guatemalan border. Calakmul w ...
, a pre-Columbian city in Mexico, dating the use of the pigment back to around 150 CE in the Late Pre-Classic Period. However, a 2019 study by Vazquez De Agregados-Pascual et al. discovered the use of Maya-blue pigment to be at least 250 BCE through the analysis of funerary artifacts found in a 2001 excavation at La Tronera, located on the east side of the Acambaro Valley in West Mexico. The study identified the use of the blue pigment on pottery found at the site, as well as the use of the red pigment
cinnabar Cinnabar (; ), or cinnabarite (), also known as ''mercurblende'' is the bright scarlet to brick-red form of Mercury sulfide, mercury(II) sulfide (HgS). It is the most common source ore for refining mercury (element), elemental mercury and is t ...
, in a funerary context. The presence of these pigments was identified through the use of LC_MS/MS-TOF-MS and
Raman spectroscopy Raman spectroscopy () (named after physicist C. V. Raman) is a Spectroscopy, spectroscopic technique typically used to determine vibrational modes of molecules, although rotational and other low-frequency modes of systems may also be observed. Ra ...
. This analysis of the pigments used in the funerary artifacts places the origin of Maya-blue in an older temporality and in a non-Mayan Pre-Hispanic culture, showing that the people of the Chupicuaro culture had already mastered the technology and the know-how needed to manufacture this blue pigment by the end of the Middle Pre-Classic Period.


Burials

Chupícuaro inhabitants practiced a cult of the dead characterized by tombs where they placed trophy skulls,
obsidian Obsidian ( ) is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed when lava extrusive rock, extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimal crystal growth. It is an igneous rock. Produced from felsic lava, obsidian is rich in the lighter element ...
arrowheads,
metate A metate (or mealing stone) is a type or variety of quern, a ground stone tool used for processing grain and seeds. In traditional Mesoamerican cultures, metates are typically used by women who would grind nixtamalized maize and other organi ...
s, figurines, earflaps, shell ornaments, necklaces and beads, bone artifacts and musical instruments. These were all found during excavations around 1950. The many burials and offerings provide knowledge of the way of life of the ancient Chupícuaro inhabitants. They were farmers who lived in huts built from perishable materials forming a good extended rural village, built low platforms with clay floors, sometimes grouped together, over which their houses were built. They harvested corn, beans and pumpkin.PIÑA CHAN, 1967: 263


References


Bibliography

*Ofrendas Funerarias de Chupícuaro Guanajuato. Dolores Flores. INAH. 1992. (Spanish) *Estudios Arqueológicos en el Río de la Laja, Guanajuato. Beatriz Braniff de Torres. INAH. 1975. (Spanish) *Síntesis de la Historia Pre-tolteca de Meso América. Wigberto Jiménez Moreno. CIAM. 1959. (Spanish) *Una visión del México Prehispánico. . UNAM. 1967. (Spanish) *La arqueología en Guanajuato. Crespo, Ana María. INAH. 1988. (Spanish)


External links


Acámbaro Municipality, Official Web Page (Spanish)



Unknown Mexico Magazine, Acámbaro
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chupicuaro (Archaeological Site) Mesoamerican sites Former populated places in Mexico Archaeological sites in Guanajuato Mesoamerican cultures Formative period in the Americas