Tlatilco was a large

pre-Columbian In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era, also known as the pre-contact era, or as the pre-Cabraline era specifically in Brazil, spans from the initial peopling of the Americas in the Upper Paleolithic to the onset of European col ...

village in 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, ...

situated near the modern-day town of the same name in the

Mexican Federal District Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

. It was one of the first chiefdom centers to arise in the Valley, flourishing on the western shore of Lake Texcoco during the Middle Pre-Classic period, between the years of 1200 BCE and 200 BCE. It gives its name to the " Tlatilco culture", which also includes the town of Tlapacoya, on the eastern shore of

Lake Chalco Lake Chalco was an endorheic lake formerly located in the Valley of Mexico, and was important for Mesoamerican cultural development in central Mexico. The lake was named after the ancient city of Chalco on its former eastern shore. Lake Chal ...

, as well as the Coapexco site which lies east of the Amecameca municipality within

Mexico State The State of Mexico, officially just Mexico, is one of the administrative divisions of Mexico, 32 federal entities of the United Mexican States. Colloquially known as Edomex (from , the abbreviation of , and ), to distinguish it from the name o ...

. Tlatilco is noted in particular for its high quality pottery pieces, including many human figurines as well as certain pieces featuring Olmec iconography. These Olmec-style artifacts have led to speculation concerning the nature of Olmec influence on other Mesoamerican cultures, and the presence of them is what led famous Mexican artist and ethnographer Miguel Covarrubias to eventually formally excavate the site. The name "Tlatilco" was possibly given by the

Aztecs The Aztecs ( ) were a Mesoamerican civilization that flourished in central Mexico in the post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec people included different ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the ...

before the arrival of the Spanish. It comes from the

Nahuatl language Nahuatl ( ; ), Aztec, or Mexicano is a language or, by some definitions, a group of languages of the Uto-Aztecan language family. Varieties of Nahuatl are spoken by about Nahuas, most of whom live mainly in Central Mexico and have smaller popul ...

, and means "where things are hidden". A fitting name considering all the treasures and history hidden at the site. Tlatilco reached its heyday during the period from 1000 to 700 BCE, during the Olmec

horizon The horizon is the apparent curve that separates the surface of a celestial body from its sky when viewed from the perspective of an observer on or near the surface of the relevant body. This curve divides all viewing directions based on whethe ...

. The following Zacatenco phase (700-400 BCE) saw a cessation of the use of Olmec iconography and forms.

Olmec influence

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 ...

are the earliest known major Mesoamerican civilization, and their art carried an extremely distinct style. When Covarrubias discovered the Olmec-style artifacts being sold at Tlatilco he was unsure as to whether they had been excavated on site, or had been imported from other sites in modern times to be sold there. The desire to answer this question was an important influence on what led him to eventually begin excavations. Initial thoughts were that the artifacts had been brought from the Gulf Coast several hundred miles away, as that area is the Olmec heartland. Excavation however, revealed that Olmec artifacts were in fact present at the site of Tlatilco in

times. The unmistakable Olmec art style was found on a minority of burials at the site, including the iconic Olmec-style baby-face figurines. The Olmec site of San Lorenzo was an Early Formative site that was contemporary with Tlatilco, and the Olmec-style objects found at Tlatilco are in the San Lorenzo-style. Other than these few objects, the rest of the Tlatilco artifacts seem to be in a native ceramic tradition. Miguel Covarrubias believed that the presence of Olmec artifacts at Tlatilco was due to an influx of Olmec aristocrats from the eastern lowlands. This is one possibility, however it is equally likely that there was no movement of people but rather a movement of goods and artifacts, with Tlatilco having received heavy influence from Olmec “missionaries” who would come to spread tradition and ideology. In either case, it is clear there was some sort of contact between the Olmecs and Tlatilco.

Excavations and findings

The Tlatilco site was used in modern times as a source of clay for brick-making. By the 1930s, many of the ancient artifacts thereby uncovered made their way into the hands of collectors, including Miguel Covarrubias, artist and ethnographer. Covarrubias led the first controlled excavation in 1942, in collaboration with the Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia. By 1949, over 200 burials were identified at Tlatilco, leading to its categorization as a

necropolis A necropolis (: necropolises, necropoles, necropoleis, necropoli) is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name stems from the Ancient Greek ''nekropolis'' (). The term usually implies a separate burial site at a distan ...

. Two major archaeological excavations followed, with over 500 burials eventually identified, many with intact grave offerings. The last field season also undertook a systematic survey of non-burial structures, leading to the realization that these hundreds of burials were apparently located under ancient houses—although no traces of them remain - as well as among the various trash pits, and that Tlatilco was not a necropolis, but rather a major chiefdom center. Many burials, primarily of high status individuals, show evidence of dental mutilation and

artificial cranial deformation Artificial cranial deformation or modification, head flattening, or head binding is a form of body alteration in which the skull of a human being is deformed intentionally. It is done by distorting the normal growth of a child's skull by apply ...

, most probably through the use of

cradleboard Cradleboards (, , , , , Kazakh: ''бесік'', Kyrgyz: ''бешік'') are traditional protective baby-carriers used by many indigenous cultures in North America, throughout northern Scandinavia among the Sámi, and in the traditionally noma ...

s. Additionally, lavish offerings such as pottery and figurines were found with many of the skeletons. The presence of these items is further evidence that these buried individuals were of high status, as objects such as figurines were very rarely found as burial furniture in Formative-period Mexico. The Tlatilcans' agriculture was focused on maize, but also included beans,

amaranth ''Amaranthus'' is a cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan group of more than 50 species which make up the genus of annual plant, annual or short-lived perennial plants collectively known as amaranths. Some names include "prostrate pigweed" an ...

, and squash, and chili peppers. These plants were supplemented with various fowl, including migratory birds, wild rabbits and other smaller mammals, and deer and antelope.

Excavation difficulties

Tlatilco was originally discovered accidentally in the 1930s by brick-workers who were digging in the area, not archeologists. The brick-workers were attracted to the site due to the fact that the clayish soil in the area proved to be a good source in the brick-making process. In 1936 Miguel Covarrubias discovered

-style objects for sale at the site, and a market for these antiquities developed rapidly thanks not only to Covarrubias’s interest, but also the interest of notable Mexican painter

Diego Rivera Diego Rivera (; December 8, 1886 – November 24, 1957) was a Mexican painter. His large frescoes helped establish the Mexican muralism, mural movement in Mexican art, Mexican and international art. Between 1922 and 1953, Rivera painted mural ...

. The interest from these two men caused prices to skyrocket which caused many non-Tlatilco objects to be sold under the label of Tlatilco which further complicates our understanding of the variability of ceramics from the site. Additionally, the brick-makers quickly came to the realization that selling antiquities was more profitable than making bricks, and it would be another six years before Covarrubias and his collaborators would actually start excavations. Due to these factors and others, only a very small portion of Tlatilco was ever cleared under scientific conditions. It has been speculated that hundreds, or even up to a thousand, burials have been destroyed by brick-workers. During the ongoing excavations, the brick-work was not halted and instead continued on in other areas of Tlatilco. It is believed that the exploitation and art dealing carried on throughout the 1960s. Many of the objects purchased at Tlatilco by dealers and collectors between the 1930s and 1960s eventually made it into both private and public museum collections, in the United States especially. In current times, the site of Tlatilco can be characterized by its transformation into a large industrial zone. Situated within the sprawling urban landscape of modern

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

, Tlatilco is now topped by factories, warehouses, and dense low-income urbanism. The combination of all of these things has made the site very difficult for archeologists to parse through, and at this point it is very unlikely that there will ever be further excavations.

Tlatilco figurines

Tlatilco

ceramic A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant, and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcela ...

figurines come in many different shapes and sizes, and they depict a wide variety of individuals, giving us a very useful insight to the lives of the people that inhabited this place so many years ago. On top of normal depictions of humans, Tlatilco figurines frequently stand out for their depictions of deformities or other anomalies. Artifacts include: * Hollow female figurine with traces of red, yellow, and white paint * Frequent depictions of females with exaggerated hips and breasts along with small waists * Figurines occasionally attired in what is assumed to be grass skirts * Male figurines dressed in breechclout- loincloths * Female figurines affectionately carrying children or dogs * Dancers, some with rattles around their legs * Players of the ritual

Mesoamerican ballgame The Mesoamerican ballgame (, , ) was a sport with ritual associations played since at least 1650 BC by the pre-Columbian people of Ancient Mesoamerica. The sport had different versions in different places during the millennia, and a modernized ...

wearing the hand and knee protection that was required for the sport * Couples depicted on couches * Many Two-headed figurines * Depictions of hunchbacks * A figurine with three eyes, two noses, and two mouths all on the same head * Scary and sometimes masked individuals who may have been

shaman Shamanism is a spiritual practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with the spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritual energies into ...

* Many clay masks, including a few duality masks which are split vertically into two distinct faces. *

Pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a ''potter'' is al ...

such as bottles, bowls and dishes. As well as

ceramic art Ceramic art is art made from ceramic materials, including clay. It may take varied forms, including artistic pottery, including tableware, tiles, figurines and other sculpture. As one of the plastic arts, ceramic art is a visual art. While ...

that included representations of armadillos, wild turkeys, bears, frogs, rabbits, fish, ducks, and turtles. The noticeably high number of two-headed figures has led some researchers to wonder whether Tlatilco was perhaps a cluster site for conjoined twins. Additionally, the frequent emphasis of females with swelling breasts and thighs in combination with a narrow waist has led some researchers to speculate as to the existence of an ancient

cult Cults are social groups which have unusual, and often extreme, religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals. Extreme devotion to a particular person, object, or goal is another characteristic often ascribed to cults. The term ...

dedicated to fertility as part of local tradition.Miller (2019), p. 48. A lot of other very interesting things can be gleaned from these artifacts. The dancer figurines indicate a likelihood of ceremonies that involve dancing, and the ones with rattles around their legs show the importance of certain regalia in these ceremonies. The women depicted holding dogs show that the people of Tlatilco had domesticated pets or at least knowledge of the existence of them. Lastly, the ballgame player figurines indicate that the staple ritual sport across much 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 ...

was also important to the inhabitants of Tlatilco.

Notes

References

*Adams, Richard E W (1991) ''Prehistoric Mesoamerica'', University of Oklahoma Press, Norman, Oklahoma. *Bendersky, Gordon (2000); "Tlatilco, Diprosopus, and Emergence of Medical Illustrations" in ''Perspectives in Biology & Medicine''; Summer 2000, v43 #4, p477. *Blanton, Richard E.; Kowalewski, Stephen A.; Feinman, Gary M.;Finsten, Laura M. (1993) ''Ancient Mesoamerica: A Comparison of Change in Three Regions'', Cambridge University Press, . * *Diehl, Richard A. (2004) ''The Olmecs: America's First Civilization'', Thames & Hudson, London. *Kennedy, G. E. (2001
"The 3,000-year history of conjoined twins", ''Western Journal of Medicine'', September 2001, 175(3): 176-177.
* * (1996) "The Basin of Mexico: a Multimillennial Development Toward Cultural Complexity", in ''Olmec Art of Ancient Mexico'', eds. E. P. Benson and B. de la Fuente, Washington D.C., , pp. 83–93. *

External links

*
Information about Tlatilco
{{Authority control Mesoamerican sites Tlatilco culture Valley of Mexico Populated places established in the 2nd millennium BC