Conexiones globales y locales en entierros coloniales en Nejapa, Oaxaca

Abstract

In Majaltepec, an Early Colonial town in the mountains of the Nejapa region, at least eight individuals were buried below the floor of an elite adobe house, some with offerings of glass and jet beads, a metal knife, and a ceramic spindle whorl. The individuals were interred in multiple phases and they ranged in age from infancy to 15–21 years of age at death. The 448 beads and bead fragments were made using various techniques, including gold plating, and were likely produced in Spain, France, and Venice. They were probably brought to the Nejapa region by Dominican clergymen tasked with proselytizing and extracting tribute from local indigenous peoples throughout Mexico. A majority of the beads were found as part of a piece (or pieces) of jewelry with a copper clasp; a few of the beads are still strung by cot-ton thread. While tied into inter-continental networks of exchange, the residents of Nejapa adapted foreign goods to local indigenous systems in and outside of mortuary practices. This study offers a glimpse of the dynamic global and local connections maintained by even re-mote residents in the rapidly changing setting of the Early Colonial period.