Early Epiclassic Complex

Based on the results of my analysis, I propose a distinction between an Early Epiclassic ceramic complex at Cerro Portezuelo that has a rough temporal correspondence with Sanders' (1986) Oxtoticpac phase at Teotihuacan and a later Coyotlatelco Epiclassic (what Sanders calls the Xometla phase at Teotihuacan). To date, this complex has only been identified from a limited number of excavations. Researchers have debated the validity of the Oxtoticpac subphase and its transitional pottery features (Rattray Reference Rattray, Mastache, Parsons, Santley and Puche1996:213; Sanders Reference Sanders and Sanders1986:367–375). It is likely that there is no single set of Early Epiclassic attributes that can be regionally defined; rather, site-specific traits might identify continuity or discontinuity from Early Classic to Epiclassic pottery complexes due to local variation. The Early Epiclassic at Cerro Portezuelo likely occurred after the collapse of the Teotihuacan state but prior to the widespread use of Coyotlatelco painted pottery at Cerro Portezuelo. Therefore, this pottery complex is particularly important to evaluate social interactions that were characterized by the immediate absence of Teotihuacan.

The following pottery types are derived from initial studies and definitions developed by Frederic Hicks (Reference Hicks2005). In some cases I have further refined and divided his original categories. The types discussed here include Portezuelo Grey, Tezonchichilco Stamped, Zone Incised, and Incised & Punctate (Figure 4).

Figure 4.

Selected examples of Early Epiclassic pottery from Cerro Portezuelo: (a) Coyotlatelco Red-on-cream; (b–c) Heavy Line Incised & Punctate; (d) Portezuelo Grey Ware Stamped; (e and n) Composite Silhouette (Plain); (f) Portezuelo Grey Ware Incised; (g and j) Incised & Punctate Light Line; (h) Zone Incised RN; (i) Tezonchichilco RN Incised; (k–l) handled florero.

Portezuelo Grey is characterized by a fine brownish paste, thin walls, and is typically a composite silhouette vessel form with a basal ridge (Figure 4d–f, n). The Cerro Portezuelo vessels are similar in form and finish to those found in the Oxtoticpac Cave excavations in the Teotihuacan Valley (Sanders Reference Sanders and Sanders1986). These vessels are generally plain with an uneven surface burnish (Figure 4n), but a small portion are decorated by a repeating scallop pattern (Figure 4f) thinly incised on the vessel exterior, stamped-carved designs of scrolls and hatched triangles (Figure 4d), and, in rare instances, a thin red slip or resist design of large fuzzy edged circles (perhaps due to an organic residue resist technique). Portezuelo Grey comprises 59.4% of the Early Epiclassic complex pottery assessed in this study. Personal inspection of Sanders' Oxtoticpac collections in the Teotihuacan Valley indicates that the composite silhouette form there is virtually identical to that of Portezuelo Grey bowls in form, finish, paste, and size (Crider Reference Crider2011).

Zone Incised bowls have exterior incising in a horizontal band just below the rim. Designs are geometric patterns, often with zones of red paint (RN) outlined by incising (Figure 4h). Identical vessels with no paint (Plain) are also common. Bowls are most likely hemispherical in shape, although no clear base parts or whole vessels have been identified in this collection. Additional examples are illustrated in Hodge (Reference Hodge2008:390) and Séjourné (Reference Séjourné1983:Lámina IX). This type represents about 10% of the Early Epiclassic pottery complex considered here.

Tezonchichilco Stamped is light brown in color with a horizontal band of stamping on the exterior wall of the vessel (Figure 4i). The flared rim is often decorated with zone incising of red painted geometric patterns, located just above the zone of stamping. These flat-based vessels have squared hollow tripod supports. The stamped designs include serpent heads, one of the few naturalistic motifs in the Epiclassic decorative canon. Although no whole vessels have been recovered from Cerro Portezuelo, similar vessels are illustrated elsewhere (Hodge Reference Hodge2008:392; Parsons et al. Reference Parsons, Brumfiel, Parsons and Wilson1982:426; Pérez Negrete Reference Pérez Negrete2004:51; Séjourné Reference Séjourné1983:Lámina III, Figure 40).

Incised & Punctate vessels have exterior incised decoration characterized by alternating zones of punctation. Examples have been illustrated elsewhere (Pérez Negrete Reference Pérez Negrete2004:51; Séjourné Reference Séjourné1983:Figure 38). For Cerro Portezuelo, I define two primary variants of this style, the Heavy Line (Figures 4b and 4c) and Light Line (Figures 4g and 4j) versions based upon the depth and quality of the incision. Vessel forms vary and include outcurving bowls with nubbin supports (strongly associated with Light Line), straight walled flat bottom bowls (strongly associated with Heavy Line), and ring-base floreros with handles (Figures 4k and 4l). There is a great amount of stylistic variety in this group, and the type is well represented in the Trench 93 burial caches. Incised & Punctate and Tezonchichiclo vessels have been suggested as temporally “Classic-Epiclassic Transitional” at the nearby site of Cerro de la Estrella (Pérez Negrete Reference Pérez Negrete2004:51).

The Early Epiclassic pottery complex, as defined here, finds its strongest similarity with other southern basin pottery, notably at Cerro de la Estrella, Chalco, Xico, and the greater Chalco and Ixtapalapa Regional Survey areas (Crider Reference Crider2011). Stylistically, Cerro Portezuelo is consistent with a southern basin culture zone (García Chávez et al. Reference García Chávez, Cabezas, Saldaña, Segura and Valverde2006). This suggests that a southern basin network of interaction emerged in this area very early in the Epiclassic period.

Distributions within Cerro Portezuelo indicate a strong relationship between Coyotlatelco and Early Epiclassic complex patterns. Trenches containing Epiclassic materials are likely to have both complexes present. Stratigraphic divisions between the Early Epiclassic and Coyotlatelco materials are not discernible due to mixing throughout most excavation trenches. One notable exception is the Trench 93 excavations of the Early Classic platform temple, which uncovered a significant Epiclassic intrusion of a cemetery containing primary and secondary burials of approximately 14 or 15 individual caches. These deposits contain whole vessels of Portezuelo Grey, Incised & Punctate, and handled floreros, typical of the Early Epiclassic pottery complex with limited associations with later Coyotlatelco pottery. Also present in these caches are matte sahumadores with black and red paint. Burial 93-10 includes a Red-on-Cream hemispherical bowl provisionally classified as a proto-Coyotlatelco style (Figure 4a). Its decoration is unusually crude in design for typical Coyotlatelco Epiclassic pottery; the thin white slip covers a wide band below the exterior rim and is overlaid by a pair of undulating parallel lines. Only one Coyotlatelco Painted whole vessel (Figure 5c) occurs in the Trench 93 caches, and it is found overturned on a cremation above and separate from the burial containing floreros and Incised & Punctate vessels. Again, this red painted ring base bowl is characteristic of Coyotlatelco, but it is a simply decorated vessel. This cremation cache could be intrusive into this earlier cemetery.

Figure 5.

Selected examples of Epiclassic Coyotlatelco pottery from Cerro Portezuelo: (a) Coyotlatelco Red-on-Cream, exterior decoration, and (b–c) Coyotlatelco Red-on-Natural ring-base bowl.

These trends suggest two possibilities: (1) Early Epiclassic and Coyotlatelco decorated ceramics are temporally sequential, suggesting continuity in occupation throughout the Epiclassic, or (2) Early Epiclassic and Coyotlatelco decorated ceramics are temporally coeval, supported by the general co-occurrence of types within excavation units, which represents a more generalized Epiclassic occupation.

Coyotlatelco Epiclassic Complex

The term Coyotlatelco is somewhat problematic, as it is used variably to describe (1) a particular cultural complex predominant in the Basin of Mexico (Crider et al. Reference Crider, Nichols, Neff and Glascock2007; García Chávez Reference García Chávez2004; Rattray Reference Rattray1966, Reference Rattray, Mastache, Parsons, Santley and Puche1996), Tula (Cobean Reference Cobean1990; Cobean and Mastache Reference Cobean, Mastache and Healan1989), and the Valley of Toluca (Sugiura Reference Sugiura1990, Reference Sugiura and Manzanilla2005) during the Epiclassic period that includes a distinct set of relatively consistent architectural, lithic, and ceramic assemblages; (2) a particular archaeological phase in the Teotihuacan Valley; and, (3) a variety of specific decorated pottery type (or set of types)—Coyotlatelco Red-on-Buff, Coyotlatelco Red-on-Cream, and Coyotlatelco Red-on-Natural. Only the Coyotlatelco painted pottery is considered here. It includes hemispherical bowls with a ring base, solid tripod supports, or no supports (Figure 5). There are also a smaller number of slightly restricted incurving rim bowls, or straight wall cups. Decorative motifs include repeated geometric design elements contained in a horizontal band below the rim on either the interior or exterior of the rim, depending on vessel form. Well over 1,100 sherds of Coyotlatelco occur in the Cerro Portezuelo collections. Attribute level analyses indicate that both Red-on-Natural and Red-on-Cream variants occur in significant quantities. Cream slip variants tend to be decorated on the exterior of the vessel with an incurved vessel rim.

As discussed earlier, a cursory look across all of the trenches indicates that most excavation trenches contain both Early Epiclassic and Coyotlatelco decorated ceramics. Excavation of trenches generally was conducted in 30 cm levels, and there appears to be significant mixing of cultural complexes.

Other Epiclassic Pottery

There is additional Epiclassic period pottery that is not yet determined to be specific to either the Early Epiclassic or Coyotlatelco Epiclassic pottery complexes, including Xolhuango Plain, which occurs in various forms like sahumador censers, jars, ladles, and amphoras; Thin and Thick Matte Appliqué tri-prong censers; and other stamped and painted types not previously discussed. There is evidence that sahumador censers begin at least by the Early Epiclassic period due to their presence in the Trench 93 burials associated with Early Epiclassic complex whole vessels, but this vessel form persists throughout the Epiclassic period. There may be temporal distinctions between early and later comal, olla, and censer forms, but these are not yet firmly ascribed to either the early or latter Epiclassic subphase at Cerro Portezuelo (compare against Bennyhoff Reference Bennyhoff1967; Cobean Reference Cobean1990; Gamboa Cabezas Reference Gamboa Cabezas1998; Hicks Reference Hicks2005; Manzanilla and López Reference Manzanilla and López1998; Nicolás Careta Reference Nicolás Careta2003; Rattray Reference Rattray1966; Sanders Reference Sanders and Sanders1986; Tozzer Reference Tozzer1921).

Early Postclassic Mazapan Complex

The term Mazapan is used variably to describe: (1) a cultural complex predominant in the Basin of Mexico immediately following the Coyotlatelco complex (Linné 1934; López Pérez Reference López Pérez2003; Vaillant Reference Vaillant1932, Reference Vaillant1938), which includes consistent use of a specific pottery complex particularly common in the eastern Basin of Mexico; (2) an archaeological phase at Teotihuacan around a.d. 850–1000/1050 (Cowgill Reference Cowgill1996:327, Reference Cowgill, Adams and MacLeod2000:295–296, Reference Cowgill and Linné2003:xvi; Manzanilla et al. Reference Manzanilla, López and Freter1996); and, (3) a red painted decorated pottery called “Mazapan,” which can include various red-on-natural types (for example, Mazapan Wavy Line, Sloppy/Toltec, and Wideband) found throughout the basin (Branstetter-Hardesty Reference Branstetter-Hardesty1978; Elson and Mowbray Reference Elson and Mowbray2005; Hicks Reference Hicks2005; Linné 1934; Parsons Reference Parsons1971; Sanders Reference Sanders and Sanders1986).

Comparison of Cerro Portezuelo's Early Postclassic Mazapan ceramic complex shows a great stylistic similarity with northern basin areas, especially Teotihuacan (Crider et al. Reference Crider, Nichols, Neff and Glascock2007; Elson and Mowbray Reference Elson and Mowbray2005; Linné 1934; López Pérez Reference López Pérez2003; López Pérez and Nicolás Careta Reference López Pérez, Nicolás Careta and Manzanilla2005; Nicolás Careta Reference Nicolás Careta2003; Sanders Reference Sanders and Sanders1986), Zumpango (Parsons Reference Parsons2008), and Tula (Acosta Reference Acosta1945, Reference Acosta1956–1957; Bey Reference Bey1986, Reference Bey, Pool and Bey2007; Cobean Reference Cobean1978, Reference Cobean1990; Mastache et al. Reference Mastache, Cobean and Healan2002). The Mazapan pottery complex ceramics, specifically Wavy Line, Sloppy Red-on-Natural, and Joroba cream slip vessels are all present at Teotihuacan, Tula, and Cerro Portezuelo, although proportions may differ from region to region depending upon the type (Crider Reference Crider2011). This group corresponds with the Mazapan archaeological phase defined at Teotihuacan (Sanders Reference Sanders and Sanders1986) and the Terminal Corral and/or Early Tollan phases at Tula (Bey and Ringle Reference Bey, Ringle, Kowalski and Kristan-Graham2007; Cobean Reference Cobean1978, Reference Cobean1990). Temporally, this complex occurs after the Coyotlatelco Epiclassic and prior to the Early Postclassic Tollan.

Joroba Cream slip bowls (Cobean Reference Cobean1978, Reference Cobean1990), also called Toltec Orange-on-White (Hicks Reference Hicks2005), are typically flat bottom cajete bowls (straight out-flared wall), often with nubbin supports. Vessels are decorated with a base coat of cream slip with red painted wide line geometric designs (Figure 6e). Joroba Cream slip vessels are popular at Cerro Portezuelo and also occur in burial and cremation contexts in Complex D excavations. The most common decorative motifs include four or five parallel lines in a panel set extending either vertically from the rim or horizontally in short bands repeated in multiple zones on the vessel interior, large “S” scrolls either singly in the interior base or in multiples on the interior side walls, and/or other scroll variants. The most significant technological characteristic of the Cerro Portezuelo Joroba vessels, as compared to those of Tula, is the nature of the base cream slip. Cerro Portezuelo vessels are inconsistent in the quality, texture, and color of the cream slip. In many occurrences, the slip is sparse and at times so thin as to be barely visible. These inconsistencies suggest small scale production, perhaps at the household level, that did not maintain standard levels of slip production (Crider Reference Crider2010). Joroba Cream slipped vessels occur as only 2% of the overall Early Postclassic collection, but 12% within the Mazapan pottery (Table 1).

Figure 6.

Selected examples of Mazapan Early Postclassic pottery from Cerro Portezuelo: (a) Wavy Line Burnished Variant, (b–c) Wavy Line Matte Variant, (d) Sloppy RN, (e) Joroba Cream Slip.

Wavy Line Red-on-Natural (RN) is usually a large open bowl painted on the interior with a multi-prong brush that created patterned lines (Figure 6a–c). Rarely, Wavy Line RN can occur as an incurving bowl with exterior painted decoration. Hicks (Reference Hicks2005) defined two variants of the Wavy Line type: Matte (Figures 6b and 6c) and Burnished (Figure 6a). There are notable technological differences between these two variants in surface treatment and application of decorative motif. The Wavy Line RN Matte variety has a nonglossy surface with a distinctive multi-prong brush used to paint on the designs. The motif and layout are varied and include crossed panels, waves, repeating scallops, and numerous others. The Wavy Line RN Burnished variety has a glossy and streaky burnish surface treatment more similar to Coyotlatelco surface quality than to the Matte variant. In addition, the single motif of horizontal parallel wavy lines is painted by a single brush with wider line width than the Matte variety. Mazapan Wavy Line decorated pottery was once postulated to have its origin in the Basin of Mexico (Cobean Reference Cobean1978, Reference Cobean1990) due to its limited occurrence outside the basin. However, Wavy Line RN is far more common in Tula than once believed (Bey Reference Bey1986) and may have antecedents northwest of that area (Braniff Reference Braniff Cornejo1999), although the duration of its use may have varied in different parts of central Mexico (Parsons et al. Reference Parsons, Brumfiel and Hodge1996).

Sloppy Red-on-Natural (RN), also called Toltec RN, are large open bowls similar in form to Wavy Line RN but decorated with sloppily executed painted spiral motifs with a high burnish that causes streaks in the paint (Figure 6d). Sloppy RN vessels do not occur in any of the Complex D burials but are present in the general excavation fill. The Sloppy RN type is rare at Cerro Portezuelo, especially when compared to the Teotihuacan Valley (Elson and Mowbray Reference Elson and Mowbray2005; Nicolás Careta Reference Nicolás Careta2003; Sanders Reference Sanders and Sanders1986).

X-stick Trailed (Hicks Reference Hicks2005) is an unpainted flat bottom, brown paste bowl with pattern polish design in the interior base that is similar to a Wavy Line motif. Very few of these vessels are recorded for Cerro Portezuelo, and the type is not reported in the general literature as an abundant type in other areas of the basin. It is believed to co-occur with Wavy Line vessels due to the similarity of motif and paste characteristics (Hicks Reference Hicks2005).

Early Postclassic Tollan Complex

A shift in ceramic complexes occurs toward the latter part of the Early Postclassic period, called either Atlatongo Phase at Teotihuacan (Sanders Reference Sanders and Sanders1986) or Tollan Phase at Tula (Cobean Reference Cobean1978, Reference Cobean1990; Mastache et al. Reference Mastache, Cobean and Healan2002). The Tollan pottery complex includes a number of diagnostic types.

Macana Red-on-Natural (RN) (Cobean Reference Cobean1978, Reference Cobean1990) is alternatively described as Tula RN (Hicks Reference Hicks2005) or Wideband RN (Sanders Reference Sanders and Sanders1986). Macana is distinctive in form as a tripod molcajete (Figures 7a–c). There is also an unpainted version of this vessel type called Manuelito Brown (Cobean Reference Cobean1978, Reference Cobean1990). This tripod form always has large hollow supports occurring in a range of bulbous shapes that usually taper to a point. Especially popular at Cerro Portezuelo is a molded raptor bird head support. The surface is painted red and polished on those areas that are painted. The interior base has a matte finish and often has shallow incised diamond cross-hatching (Figure 7a) or punctates and provides a gentle grater surface. Macana RN in all its varieties is the most prominent decorative type in the Early Postclassic at Cerro Portezuelo, representing almost 52.6% of the Tollan Early Postclassic decorated ceramics. Macana RN is here considered part of the later Tollan pottery complex, but it may have origins in the earlier Mazapan complex. Further attribute analysis may support a stylistic separation of an earlier and later variant (Hicks Reference Hicks2005).

Figure 7.

Selected examples of Early Postclassic pottery from Cerro Portezuelo: (a–c) Macana RN molcajete, (d) close-up of Blanco Levantado brush pattern, (e) Jara Pulido, (f1) Cream Slip of local production, interior of vessel, (f2) Cream Slip of local production, exterior of vessel.

A suite of Cream Slip types continues from the earlier Joroba tradition. Most cream slipped vessels at Cerro Portezuelo are similar to each other in form and occur in various sizes, often with tripod nubbin supports. Cream slipped bowls at Cerro Portezuelo contain mainly sherds with a pure cream pigment slip like that of Proa Cream Slip of Tula. Proa is a solid cream base slip with a red painted rim band (Cobean Reference Cobean1978, Reference Cobean1990), without the painted spirals and scrolls of Joroba. In the Cerro Portezuelo analysis, the local variant of Proa has a more fugitive nature to the thin cream slip (Figure 7f), which is different in quality from the highly polished thick white slip used at Tula. The Cerro Portezuelo cream slip pottery can at times take on a pinkish tint due to the higher concentration of iron in the slip as compared to Tula Proa Cream Slip (Crider Reference Crider2010). Because Joroba type vessels could easily be misclassified as Proa Cream Slip if painted design were absent on an individual sherd, it is possible that Proa Cream Slip numbers are somewhat elevated in this accounting. Future analysis may indicate other distinguishing attributes between the two cream slip types. Nevertheless, this type has a high occurrence in the collection, at 39.1% of the Tollan Early Postclassic decorated pottery (Table 1).

Both Macana RN and cream slip types are also present at Teotihuacan to the north, Tlalpizahuac (Tovalin Ahumada 1998) to the south, and inspection of the Chalco Survey materials shows that both types are represented throughout the Chalco Survey area—even in small amounts in the Yautepec Survey area of Morelos (Smith Reference Smith2006; Smith and Montiel Reference Smith and Montiel2001).

Jara Pulido (Cobean Reference Cobean1978, Reference Cobean1990) is a cream slipped bowl that has been painted with an orange overslip and red rim (Figure 7e). This surface is then polished to make the colors more vibrant. The orange paint brush marks are often still visible despite the subsequent surface treatment. This accounts for the provisional name of “Orange Brushed” often applied to the type (Hicks Reference Hicks2005). A related type, Ira Stamped, is similar to Jara Pulido but with a raised molded design on the exterior of the vessel. Jara Pulido is a very popular and prominent pottery type (along with Ira Stamped) at Tula in the Late Tollan phase (Mastache et al. Reference Mastache, Cobean and Healan2002:224–225). A surprising result of the ceramic analysis shows that Cerro Portezuelo was using very small amounts of Jara Pulido cream slip vessels, 1.2% of the Tollan Early Postclassic decorated pottery (Table 1). The limited occurrence of this cream slip variant at Cerro Portezuelo suggests that the type never reached the level of popularity in the basin that it did in Tula.

Other types appearing in the Tollan pottery complex, but in less frequency at Cerro Portezuelo, include Blanco Levantado amphoras, on which a cream slip is applied and then removed with a multi-prong brush or comb, creating a hatched or lattice design (Figure 7d), and Orange Slipped (also called Sillón in the Tula sequence) and various red slipped vessels, likely related to Tula's Rebato type. Additionally, there are a number of foreign imports or imitations of foreign wares, specifically Plumbate and Imitation Huastec Orange. These represent only a small proportion of the Early Postclassic assemblage, and these foreign goods may have been acquired via Tula's long-distance trade networks. The placement of these types in the Tollan versus the Mazapan pottery complex is tentative and may occur earlier at the site.

The Early Postclassic Aztec I Chalco-Cholula Complex

This complex is defined for the Basin of Mexico by the presence of Aztec I Black-on-Orange (B/O) and/or early variants of the Chalco-Cholula Polychromes used in the Early Postclassic period (Figure 8). Aztec I B/O is predominant in the southern basin (Minc et al. Reference Minc, Hodge, Blackman, Hodge and Smith1994; O'Neill Reference O'Neill1962) and at Xaltocan (Brumfiel Reference Brumfiel2005b; Hodge and Neff Reference Hodge, Neff and Brumfiel2005), and in trace amounts in other parts of the basin. There are three distinct stylistic variants—Chalco, Mixquic, and Culhuacan (Hodge Reference Hodge2008; Hodge and Minc Reference Hodge and Minc1991; Minc et al. Reference Minc, Hodge, Blackman, Hodge and Smith1994)—and a strong pattern of locally focused exchange systems in the Early Postclassic period (Minc et al. Reference Minc, Hodge, Blackman, Hodge and Smith1994). This ceramic type has some affiliations with pottery from Cholula (McCafferty Reference McCafferty2001:57; Noguera Reference Noguera1954:282). The materials most likely corresponding with the Early Aztec Chalco-Cholula pottery complex comprise only 3% of the Early Postclassic assemblage at Cerro Portezuelo. These include Chalco varieties of Aztec I Black-on-Orange and stepped vessel supports related to Mixquic varieties of Aztec I (Figure 8). No Chalco-Cholula Polychromes for the Early Postclassic period have been identified, although the somewhat related Black-Red-Yellow may be considered here. Further definition of nondecorated and utilitarian vessel forms for this complex (as differentiated from those of the Tollan complex) is needed to better identify the presence of the southern basin domestic traditions at Cerro Portezuelo.

Figure 8.

Selected examples of Early Postclassic Aztec I and Chalco-Cholula pottery from Cerro Portezuelo: (a) Polychrome, (b–d) Aztec I Black-on-Orange, Chalco Variant, (e–g) Aztec I, Mixquic Variant stepped supports, (h) turkey head support.

Epiclassic

From among the various types including some not discussed above, 274 Epiclassic specimens were selected for INAA (summary results are provided in Table 2). Specimens were selected to represent the common types and forms present at the site, including decorated serving vessels and other utilitarian forms. The resulting analysis indicates that the majority occurs in the Chalco compositional group, indicating a southeastern basin source area that likely includes Cerro Portezuelo local production.

Table 2.

Epiclassic ceramics by INAA composition group; counts and percentages within type

The Early Epiclassic types (Portezuelo Grey, Tezonchichilco, Zone Incised, Incised & Punctate) are all well represented in the Chalco source group. Production of these types is largely confined to the southeastern basin and perhaps was mostly local. A small amount of Tezonchichilco and Zone Incised specimens are included in the SB-3 source group, which is highest in transition metals and may represent an extreme “southerly” group (Neff Reference Neff2009:3). Thus, Cerro Portezuelo's interactions might have extended further south than Chalco, into the Amecameca region. Interestingly, these same two types do not have any western basin source assignments, which, although the sample size is small, suggests that Tezonchichilco and Zone Incised production may be a specialty of the southeastern basin. Testing of Ixtapalapa peninsula samples are needed to explore this hypothesis.

Portezuelo Grey and Incised & Punctate both have specimens assigned to the western Basin Tenochtitlan compositional group. The spatial extent of the Tenochtitlan compositional group here is generally representative of Azcapotzalco, Tenayuca, and Tenochtitlan. Because Tenochtitlan and Azcapotzalco sites do not have concentrations of these pottery types (compare against García Chávez Reference García Chávez1991, 2004), I propose that the likely area of production for these wares is located around the center of Cerro de la Estrella, located on the western edge of the Ixtapalapa peninsula. If this hypothesis is correct, it suggests some interaction between these important Epiclassic centers in the southern basin.

Incised & Punctate is the only Early Epiclassic type occurring in the Teotihuacan Valley compositional group. Two specimens are small jar or florero body sherds that are very similar in paste and surface decoration. The other two specimens are different in color and decorative quality. This result is surprising given that Incised & Punctate is not known to be a common type in the Teotihuacan area. These results indicate multiple production zones of Incised & Punctate pottery in the eastern and western portions of the basin as evidenced by considerable variation in vessel form, surface treatments, and decoration. The limited percentage of the type at Cerro Portezuelo and elsewhere, combined with the widely varying range of forms and decorative qualities, suggests that the type may be limited to occasional production, perhaps for special use in gifting or burial ceremonies.

Coyotlatelco is the most sampled of the Epiclassic period specimens. Of the 70 Coyotlatelco painted specimens (Table 2), the highest proportion is assigned to the southeastern Chalco source group (63%), with smaller amounts assigned to Tenochtitlan (10%) and Teotihuacan Valley (9%) compositional groups. Samples ranged in vessel form (incurving and hemispherical bowls, cups) and placement of decoration (interior, exterior, cream slip).

Five Tenochtitlan assigned specimens are exterior decorated bowls with a distinct horizontal design panel located just below the red rim band (specimens AZC 446, AZC 454, AZC 455, AZC 457, AZC 458). The panel forms a repeating scallop motif (Figure 5a); however, the scallops are formed by the empty space between the red paint. Several of these specimens also have a white underslip to the red painted design. Below the scallop panel are typical Coyotlatelco motifs, such as repeating “S” scrolls, horizontal banding, and other geometric designs. Only two other Coyotlatelco specimens sampled for INAA (AZC 456 and AZC 459, both classified in the Chalco compositional group) have a similar design feature. These two are notably different in the size and shape of the peak and do not have the white underslip of the Tenochtitlan group specimens. Five of the six vessels confidently placed in the Tenochtitlan compositional group have this design characteristic while only two of the remaining 70 Coyotlatelco specimens repeat this design. This may be a stylistic marker of western basin exterior decorated Coyotlatelco bowls that is copied or emulated only occasionally in Cerro Portezuelo. Coyotlatelco pottery is very common in the Azcapotzalco and Tenayuca area (García Chávez Reference García Chávez1991; Rattray Reference Rattray1966; Tozzer Reference Tozzer1921), and it may be a production area contributing to the Tenochtitlan compositional group for this part of the Epiclassic complex (see also Ma Reference Ma2003).

Four of the Teotihuacan Valley-assigned specimens are typical of form and motif common to Teotihuacan (Crider Reference Crider2002). Included is a hemispherical bowl with ring base, two additional interior painted rim sherds, and one exterior decorated bowl rim. The motif on each is simplistic with alternating horizontal bands of straight parallel lines and wavy lines or “S” scrolls. The remaining two specimens (one interior and one exterior decorated) are consistent in form and finish with Teotihuacan Coyotlatelco but appear to have somewhat more complex designs. The remaining Coyotlatelco specimens are unassigned at this time.

Previous INAA of Epiclassic pottery from Chalco, the Teotihuacan Valley, and Cerro Portezuelo found that most were locally produced with limited exchange between production zones in the basin (Nichols et al. Reference Nichols, Brumfiel, Neff, Hodge, Charlton and Glascock2002; Crider et al. Reference Crider, Nichols, Neff and Glascock2007; Hodge Reference Hodge2008). For this project we have been able to do INAA on a much larger sample of Epiclassic ceramics than in previous studies. As we suspected, of the 274 Epiclassic specimens in this study, at least 73% were grouped with the southeast basin/Chalco group. The larger sample revealed minor imports from the Texcoco, Teotihuacan, Tenochtitlan/western basin, and the extreme southern area. As it had in the Early Classic, Cerro Portezuelo continued to obtain imports of pottery from the western basin and Teotihuacan Valley, but the percentages declined significantly in the Epiclassic period. The proportion of pottery from the local production zone at Cerro Portezuelo was higher in the Epiclassic than in the Early Classic or at any time in the Postclassic period. At this time, Cerro Portezuelo's most intense economic and political interactions were with the southeast Basin, possibly representing a city-state confederation. Perhaps hostilities between competing city-states curtailed more intensive exchange of pottery among central Mexican Epiclassic polities.

Early Postclassic

INAA was done on 264 specimens of Early Postclassic ceramics from among the various types (summary results presented in Table 3). Specimens were selected to represent common pottery types and forms from the site. The majority occur in the Chalco compositional group, indicating a southeastern basin source area and likely including Cerro Portezuelo local production. Further discussion is focused upon the decorated pottery types discussed above.

Table 3.

Early Postclassic ceramic types by composition group

The Early Postclassic Mazapan complex types (Mazapan Wavy Line, Joroba Cream, Sloppy RN, and X-stick Trailed) are all well represented in the Chalco source group. Perhaps the most striking pattern is within the Mazapan Wavy Line type. The two variants, Matte and Burnished, have differing compositional groups, indicating specialized production areas of the type. The Wavy Line Matte has 85% of specimens assigned to the northeast basin, mainly to the Teotihuacan Valley. None of the Matte variant is assigned to the southeastern basin compositional groups. Conversely, the Wavy Line Burnished variant is predominantly assigned to the Chalco compositional group (77% of the type variant). The Matte variety represents the largest import to Cerro Portezuelo in the Early Postclassic period. Considering that the Matte variety makes up 36% of the total Mazapan Wavy Line type at Cerro Portezuelo, this indicates significant access to Teotihuacan-produced pottery. As discussed above, the Mazapan Wavy Line Burnished variant differs from its Matte counterpart in several important ways. Based upon the compositional data, the Burnished variant is likely locally produced or produced nearby. The burnished finish that smears the red painted design is similar in quality and finish to Coyotlatelco pottery and may indicate continuity in Epiclassic technique by local potters. The Mazapan Wavy Line Burnished motif is not implemented with the multi-prong paint brush that is standard for the Matte variant designs. The design motifs are typically horizontal parallel wavy lines, possibly an emulation of the Wavy Line Matte aesthetic.

Joroba Cream is the second most common type for the Early Postclassic Mazapan pottery complex. Only four of the 29 specimens are not from the Chalco compositional group. One of each is from the southern groups of SB-3, SB-4. One is assigned to the western basin. This indicates that Cerro Portezuelo may be predominantly supplied by local or nearby sources within the southeastern basin for Joroba Cream pottery.

Sloppy RN and X-stick Trailed, the least common of the decorated pottery for the Mazapan complex at Cerro Portezuelo, both have multiple source assignments. These are largely affiliated with eastern basin compositional groups. The variety of compositional groups for these types is unexpected given the low amounts found in the Cerro Portezuelo collections.

The Early Postclassic Tollan pottery complex maintains a strong proportion of specimens assigned to the Chalco compositional group across four prominent types (Macana RN, Proa or Cream Slip, Red Slip, and Jara Pulido). However, a significant increase in assignments to western and northwestern basin compositional groups occurs in this complex. The highest occurrence is in the Proa Cream Slip and the Jara Pulido types. The Cream Slip vessels are a very common type at Cerro Portezuelo, about 17% of the Early Postclassic Tollan decorated wares. The significantly high amount of western and northwestern basin proportions is artificially inflated due to sample selection. In an effort to sample vessels representing different thickness and quality of slip finish, I selected those vessels with thin and poorly finished slips and those of thick and highly burnished slips (representing a higher quality surface finish). The higher quality, thick-slipped Cream Slip is not common at Cerro Portezuelo. Those vessels typically more poorly finished and with thinner slips are assigned to the Chalco compositional group, and those of finer finish are of the western and northwestern basin groups. Those non-Chalco Cream Slip specimens are more similar in form and finish to vessels in the Tula region than to the southeastern basin products. At the time of this analysis, a Tula compositional source group had not been well defined, and it is possible that these are Tula-produced vessels. In a sample of ceramics from sites in the eastern and northern Basin selected by Raúl García Chávez, Macana Red-on-Brown and Polished Orange jars, types diagnostic of the Tollan phase when Tula was at its height, were placed in a Tollan group. García Chávez (Reference García Chávez2004:364) suggested that they were made in the Tula area: “En este caso implicaría un fuerte control de la producción de esta mercancia.” In a separate study I support the proposition that the western and northwestern Basin groups are in part representative of a formal Tula compositional group (Crider Reference Crider2011). The high proportion of non-Chalco assignment for Jara Pulido is significant due to the low overall amounts of the type at Cerro Portezuelo.

Macana RN assigned to Chalco is 59% of the type sample, and specimens include a range of design motifs, support shapes, and negative resist combinations. The surface finish tends to be highly burnished and glossy over the red painted areas of the designs. Another 6% are assigned to the SB-3 group, which tends to be less finely finished and has a full red panel on the interior wall of the vessels. Only five specimens are assigned to other basin compositional groups, but these represent eastern, northern, and western basin sources. Both western basin-assigned specimens are negative resist variants of the type. The eastern basin-assigned specimens (Teotihuacan and Texcoco) are typical of the “Wideband” design motif common to the northeastern basin.

Blanco Levantado poses a challenge for compositional assignment. Of the 13 specimens, 69% are unassigned. Only three probably fit into the Teotihuacan compositional group. There are no assignments to the Chalco group. The type, typically of amphora form, is a common product in the region around Tula and perhaps used in the storage and serving of water or pulque (Bey Reference Bey, Pool and Bey2007). The compositional data suggest that Blanco Levantado was not locally produced. The contents of the jars may have been the primary objective of the importation of the vessels, although the unique decorative traditional of the type may have been significant as well. The distinctive crossed-lattice motif of the design and the collared rim is easily recognized from a slight distance and could signify special status goods.

These stylistic and compositional results indicate that there were multiple production zones in the basin for Early Postclassic pottery. Almost half (49%) of the overall Early Postclassic pottery sampled for compositional analysis is assigned to the Chalco (and probable Chalco) compositional group. It is possible that many of these vessels were produced nearby, since ethnographic studies indicate that distribution zones tend to move no more than 8–12 km from the location of production (Minc Reference Minc2006). The styles and pottery types are strongly affiliated to northern basin and Tula pottery complexes. Cerro Portezuelo imported decorated vessels from the Teotihuacan Valley in the earlier Mazapan phase, including Mazapan Wavy Line Matte, Sloppy RN, X-stick Trailed, and Blanco Levantado pottery. Sanders (Reference Sanders and Sanders1986:525) proposed that the entire Teotihuacan Valley was part of a small state centered at Teotihuacan that Tula incorporated into its sphere. Perhaps this accounts for the early appeal of Teotihuacan goods. By the later part of the Early Postclassic, there is an increase in access to north and northwestern basin pottery, an area strongly connected to the city of Tula. There is a corresponding decline in access and importation of Tenochtitlan-Tenayuca area products. This continuing decline that began in the Epiclassic period may indicate political and economic independence from Azcapotzalco by the Early Postclassic period.

Aztec I

INAA was done on 17 specimens of Aztec I style pottery (summary results presented in Table 4). The Aztec I Black-on-Orange specimens are Chalco style. There are three stepped-shaped hollow vessel supports that are associated with the Mixquic Aztec I pottery complex that is associated most commonly with the island of Xico (Minc et al. Reference Minc, Hodge, Blackman, Hodge and Smith1994). These specimens occur across three different compositional groups and are the only sample outside the Chalco compositional group. Hicks (Reference Hicks2005) identified a polychrome that he provisionally named Red &Yellow-on-White. I have tentatively placed these polychrome vessels in the Aztec I/Chalco-Cholula complex due to the use of cream base slip and fine line design work. The majority occurs in the Chalco compositional group (59%), indicating a southeastern basin source area and likely from the area around the shores of Lake Chalco. Only a limited amount of this pottery complex is identified at Cerro Portezuelo. The Early Postclassic period marks a break in the strong affiliation of the site to the cultural complexes of the southern Basin of Mexico.

Table 4.

Early Postclassic Aztec by composition group