UCL Institute of Archaeology Handbook for Course Module Yr 3

ARCL 0054: The Aztecs and the Colonisation of Mexico 2019-20

Prof. Elizabeth Graham

Term 2, Option, 15 credits Prerequisite: ARCL 0053 Archaeology of Mesoamerica

Time: Tuesdays, 9 to 11 Room: 412

Contacts for course co-ordinator: Room 614 , e.graham@ucl.ac.uk 0207 679 7532

Deadlines for coursework for this module: Essay 1 due 3 March 2020 Essay 2 due 21 April 2020

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OFFICE SCHEDULE 2019-20

Mondays sometimes working at home.

Have classes Tues 9-11, Thurs 2-4, Fri 9-11.

Otherwise available unless sign on my door

states otherwise (e.g., meeting in the office,

off on an errand, etc).

Wednesday afternoons are the days for

occasional departmental meetings.

Axolotls always welcome.

CONTENTS

1 Overview, p. 3

2 Aims, Objectives, Coursework submission, p.4

3 Schedule & Syllabus, p. 5

4 Online Resources, p. 12

5 Additional Information, p. 12

6 Essay Questions, p. 14

7 Essay Structure, p. 15

8 Essay Comments Sheet, p.17

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1 Overview for ARCL0054 This course is an introduction to the civilization of the people best known as the Aztecs of central Mexico. We will examine the history and downfall of the Mexica-Culhua, whose capital at Tenochtitlan amazed the Spanish invaders and whose empire covered a large part of Mesoamerica until 1519. We will also consider the many other Nahuatl-speaking ethnic groups settled in and around central Mexico--the Tepanecs, Tlaxcallans, Tlahuica, Acolhua and others) and their role in creating, developing and transmitting the great urban and other cultural traditions that came to characterize the Aztec empire.

Week-by-week summary Week 1, 14 January: Who are the Aztecs? Mesoamerican environments, sources Week 2, 21 January: The Valley of Mexico and the rise of Aztec civilisation Week 3, 28 January: Population, diet, farming systems, landscapes, elite and commoner houses Week 4, 4 February: Crafts and market exchange. Week 5, 11 February: Social roles, social status, daily life Week 6, 17th to 21st February: READING WEEK Week 7, 25 February: Worldviews and practices Week 8, 3 March: War, rules of engagement, ‘human sacrifice’ Week 9, 10 March: City states, imperial strategies, cities, towns, and Tenochtitlan Week 10, 17 March: City states, imperial strategies, cities, towns, Tenochtitlan, cont’d Week 11, 24 March: The conquest Basic text(s) and other resources: Basic readings are drawn from the text, The Aztecs, by Michael E. Smith, 2012 edition but earlier editions, 1996 and 2003 can be used. I have added chapters from Frances F. Berdan’s 2014 edition of Aztec Archaeology and Ethnohistory. Either of these texts can be used.

Five copies (1996, 2003, 2012) of Smith’s book are available in the library for one week or short-term use: INST ARCH DFA 100 SMI, also ISSUE DESK IOA SMI 5.

Berdan’s book is available free, on line through the library catalogue, with one copy available for one week loan.

Check Amazon as there are copies available for sale at a reasonable price.

KEY web resources for this course:

www.famsi.org On-line publications on a range of Mesoamerican topics. www.mesoweb.com Reports by Mesoamerican scholars as well as a range of other resources.

Journals: Latin American Antiquity; Ancient Mesomerica; Antiquity; Cambridge Archaeological Journal; Arqueología Mexicana; Mexicon; Estudios de Cultura Nahuatl.

Method of assessment: (See also Course Outline and Essay Questions) First essay: 2,500 words, 50%, due 3rd March Second essay: 2,500 words, 50%, due 21st April Teaching methods: Illustrated lectures combined with question-and-answer format. Moodle. Workload in terms of breakdown of hours spent on course:

Lectures/discussion = 20 hours Private reading = 80 hours Required essays = 40 hours TOTAL = 140 hours.

Prerequisite: ARCL0053 Mesoamerica

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2 Aims, Objectives and Assessment Aims: I have four aims in teaching this course: 1)To introduce you to Aztec society and culture; 2)To use Aztec studies as an example of the ways in which archaeological and documentary information can be integrated; 3) To introduce the idea that past civilisations can be driven by very modern dynamics and that they should not always be cast in an evolutionary framework; and 3)To examine and assess critically the colonial encounter and its aftermath. Objectives: On successful completion of this course: You will be expected to have added detailed knowledge of the geography and environment of pre-Conquest

Central Mexico to the foundations laid in ARCL2029, Archaeology of Mesoamerica. You will have become aware that documentary and archaeological sources offer different perspectives on

Aztec lives and experiences. You will have knowledge of the economic, political, and social developments that constituted the Aztec

empire. You will have become familiar with the Mesoamerican urban roots of the Aztec experience. You will remain highly critical of claims of ‘human sacrifice’.

Learning outcomes: On successful completion of this course you should: Be aware of how the sources--indigenous texts, artefacts

recovered through archaeology, or a perspective from the study of art--can structure the information we derive from the data.

Be able to assess sources critically. Be able to integrate ideas from a variety of sources. Have acquired advanced research and writing skills. Be assiduous in the practice of source citation.

Word counts Given word count Allowable

5,000 4,750-5,250

4,500 4,275-4,725

4,000 3,800-4,200

3,500 3,325-3,675

3,000 2,850-3,150

2,500 2,375-2,625

2,000 1,900-2,100

1,500 1,425-1,575

1,000 950-1,050

Penalties will only be imposed if you exceed the upper figure in the range. There is no penalty for using fewer words than the lower figure in the range: the lower figure is simply for your guidance to indicate the sort of length that is expected. In the 2019-20 session penalties for overlength work will be as follows:

For work that exceeds the specified maximum length by less than 10% the mark will be reduced by five percentage marks, but the penalised mark will not be reduced below the pass mark, assuming the work merited a Pass.

For work that exceeds the specified maximum length by 10% or more the mark will be reduced by ten percentage marks, but the penalised mark will not be reduced below the pass mark, assuming the work merited a Pass.

Aztec Tribute Counts

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Coursework submission procedures

All coursework must normally be submitted both as hard copy and electronically unless instructed otherwise (However, bulky portfolios and lab books are normally submitted as hard copy only.)

You should staple the appropriate colour-coded IoA coversheet (available in the IoA library and outside room 411a) to the front of each piece of work and submit it to the red box at the Reception Desk (or room 411a in the case of Year 1 undergraduate work)

All coursework should be uploaded to Turnitin by midnight on the day of the deadline. This will date-stamp your work. It is essential to upload all parts of your work as this is sometimes the version that will be marked.

Instructions are given below. Please note that the procedure has changed for 2019-20, and work is now submitted to Turnitin via Moodle.

1. Ensure that your essay or other item of coursework has been saved as a Word doc., docx. or PDF document, Please include the module code and your CANDIDATE NUMBER on every page as a header.

2. Go into the Moodle page for the module to which you wish to submit your work. 3. Click on the correct assignment (e.g. Essay 1), 4. Fill in the “Submission title” field with the right

details: It is essential that the first word in the title is your examination candidate number (e.g. YGBR8 Essay 1), Note that this changes each year.

5. Click “Upload”. 6. Click on “Submit”. 7. You should receive a receipt – please save this. 8. If you have problems, please email the IoA

Turnitin Advisers on ioa-turnitin@ucl.ac.uk, explaining the nature of the problem and the exact module and assignment involved. One of the Turnitin Advisers will normally respond within 24 hours, Monday-Friday during term. Please be sure to email the Turnitin Advisers if technical problems prevent you from uploading work in time to meet a submission deadline - even if you do not obtain an immediate response from one of the Advisers they will be able to notify the relevant Module Coordinator that you had attempted to submit the work before the deadline.

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3 Schedule and Syllabus The following is an outline for the course as a whole and identifies required () and ‘other’ () readings relevant to each session. The ‘Other’ readings reflect the lecture topic but are meant primarily to give you a basis for the writing of your essays if you are interested in the particular topic(s) of the lecture. Most information on the Aztecs comes from ethnohistoric (documentary) sources, but where possible I include information derived from archaeology.

_____________________________________________________________________________________ Week 1

Date: 14 January. Topic: Who are the Aztecs? Mesoamerican environments, sources. Readings: No readings, strictly speaking, are required for this lecture, but make sure to read at least the ones

below marked with an '' by Week 2. The Aztecs by Michael E. Smith, Ch 1, ‘The Aztecs of Mesoamerica’ (any edition). Smith defines the term ‘Aztec’, describes ‘Mesoamerica’, provides basic information about the distinctive environment of central Mexico, and discusses the range of sources of information about the Aztecs. Aztec Archaeology and Ethnohistory by Frances Berdan, Ch1, ‘Discovering, uncovering, and interpreting the Aztec world’; and Ch2, Living on the Land, pp. 49-56. Like Smith, Berdan reviews basic information about the Aztecs but goes into a bit more detail, especially concerning the documentary sources in Ch. 1. The pages I’ve assigned in Chapter 2 deal with the landscape. Other:

Smith, M.E. & F. Berdan. 1992. Archaeology & the Aztec Empire. World Archaeology 23(3): 353-367. This is older but is a good, brief overview of how the empire was organised, and the role of archaeology up to that time. We’ll look at it again when we look at economic organisation.

Nichols, Deborah L. and Susan Toby Evans. Aztec Studies. Ancient Mesoamerica 20 (2009): 265-270. This summarises some of the most important streams in Aztec studies. Good to consult for essays.

Evans, Susan Toby. Chapters 17-19 in Ancient Mexico and Central America, London: Thames and Hudson. Either the 2004 or 2008 edition is fine. Another good overview to familiarise yourself with the Aztec empire.

Nichols, D.L. and E. Rodríguez-Alegria. 2016 The Oxford Handbook of the Aztecs. Oxford University Press. An important source to check at the start of your essay research. It is available on line through the UCL library.

Study Questions: Handed out for Wk2. _______________________________________________________________________________________

Week 2 Date: 21 January Topic: The Valley of Mexico, and the rise of Aztec civilisation. Readings:

Required readings listed for Week 1. The Aztecs by Michael E. Smith: Ch 2: The Rise of Aztec Civilization. Aztec Archaeology & Ethnohistory, Berdan: Ch 2, ‘The Aztecs as Mesoamericans’. Other: (if your essay topic engages with Aztec history, these might be helpful) Davies, Nigel. 1973. The Aztecs: A History. Parsons, Jeffrey R., Elizabeth Brumfiel and Mary Hodge. Developmental Implications of Earlier Dates for Early Aztec in the Basin of Mexico. Ancient Mesoamerica 7(2) (1996): 217-230.

Study Questions: Review Wk2 questions; distribute Study Questions for Wk3. _______________________________________________________________________________

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Week 3

Date: 28 January Topic: Population, diet, farming systems, landscapes, elite and commoner houses Readings:

Chapter 3 in Smith discusses Aztec farming systems and the rural landscape. Calnek, Armillas and Coe's papers provide fascinating descriptions of Aztec chinampas, the fields constructed out of lake-bottom sediments that are still in use today. Berres' paper deals with climate change and the use of lacustrine resources in Aztec development over time. Whitmore and Turner review cultivation in Mesoamerica before the conquest but include information on chinampas and other means of Aztec cultivation. Biskowski's article on maize preparation discusses changes in social organization of maize preparation on the basis of a study of distribution of manos and metates. Isaac reviews the Aztec cannibalism debate. And finally, Sanders' paper on settlement patterns is foundational for any essay that looks at people on the landscape at the time of the Conquest. The Aztecs, by Michael E. Smith: Ch. 3: ‘People on the Landscape’ Aztec Archaeology & Ethnohistory, Berdan, Ch. 3 on ‘Living on the Land’ from p. 57. Other (to help with any essays related to this week’s topics)

Calnek, Edward E. Settlement Pattern and Chinampa Agriculture at Tenochtitlan. American Antiquity 37(1):104-115. 1972.

Armillas, Pedro. Gardens on Swamps. Science 174(4010) (1971): 653-661.

Coe, Michael D. The Chinampas of Mexico. Scientific American 211(1) (1964): 90-98.

Berres, Thomas E. Climatic Change and Lacustrine Resources at the Period of Initial Aztec Development. Ancient Mesoamerica 11 (2000): 27-38.

Whitmore, Thomas W. and B.L. Turner II. Landscapes of Cultivation in Mesoamerica on the Eve of Conquest--the Americas before and after 1492. Annals of the Association of American Geographers 82(3) 1992: 402-425. Read ‘The Cortés Transect’.

Biskowski, Martin. Maize Preparation and the Aztec Subsistence Economy. Ancient Mesoamerica 11 (2000): 293-306.

Isaac, Barry L. Aztec Cannibalism. Ancient Mesoamerica 16 (2005): 1-10.

Sanders, William T. The Central Mexican Symbiotic Region: A Study in Prehistoric Settlement Patterns. In Prehistoric Settlement Patterns in the New World, 1956, Viking Fund Publications in Anthropology No. 23, ed. by Gordon R. Willey, pp. 115-123.

Study Questions for Wk3 discussed; Study Questions for Wk 4 distributed. _____________________________________________________________________________________

Week 4 Date: 4 February Topic: Crafts, markets and exchange. Readings:

These important chapters deal with Aztec craft production and markets. It’s a lot of reading, but the topic is critical, and it will likely stimulate lots of essays! The Aztecs, Smith, Ch.4: Artisans and their Wares; Ch 5: The Commercial Economy (Merchants, Markets and Money in the 1996 edition.) Aztec Archaeology & Ethnohistory, Ch. 4, ‘Craft Specialization, Commerce, and Trade’. Other : Rethinking the Aztec Economy is recently published (2017) so probably an essential starting point. It is an edited book so the chapters will focus on different topics, but will also be a good lead to sources. As it stands, the library has only one copy. I’ve ordered a copy myself. If you need it and can’t access it, come to me and we will work something out. Brumfiel's 1987 article provides a good overview of craft production in the Aztec state, a subject which Brumfiel has written about extensively. Her 1980 paper in Current Anthropology shows how she derived conclusions from the field data, and you might like reading the CA criticisms here. They will be useful if you pick trade and exchange as an essay topic. Smith's article is an excellent example of how long-distance trade can be assessed via archaeological evidence. Parry's paper focuses on production and exchange of obsidian in Late Aztec city-states. Charlton et al. on Otumba uses

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typological and neutron activation analyses of pottery to examine links between the Otumba city-state and raw material sources as well as evidence of tribute and market distribution channels for finished products both within and outside the city-state. Two of the readings focus specifically on textile production and one on obsidian production and exchange. But always check Ancient Mesoamerica and Latin American Antiquity for recent sources.

Rethinking the Aztec Economy, ed. By Deborah L. Nichols, Frances F. Berdan, and Michael E. Smith. 2017. University of Arizona Press, Tucson.

Brumfiel, Elizabeth. Elite and utilitarian crafts in the Aztec State. In Specialization, Exchange, and Complex Societies, 1987, ed. by E. Brumfiel and T. Earle, pp. 102-118.

Brumfiel, Elizabeth. Specialization, Market Exchange, and the Aztec State: A View from Huexotla. Current Anthropology 21(4) (1980):459-478.

Smith, Michael. Long-Distance Trade under the Aztec Empire. Ancient Mesoamerica 1 (1990): 153-169.

Charlton, Thomas H., Deborah L. Nichols, and Cynthia L. Otis Charlton. Otumba and Its Neighbors: Ex oriente lux. Ancient Mesoamerica 11 (2000): 247-265.

McCafferty, Sharisse D. and Geoffrey G. McCafferty. Textile Production in Postclassic Cholula, Mexico. Ancient Mesoamerica 11 (2000): 39-54.

Nichols, Deborah L., Mary Jane McLaughlin, and Maura Benton. Production Intensification and Regional Specialization: Maguey fibers and textiles in the Aztec city-state of Otumba. Ancient Mesoamerica 11 (2000): 267-291.

Parry, William. Production and Exchange of Obsidian Tools in Late Aztec City-States. Ancient Mesoamerica 12 (2001), 101-111.

Study Questions: Wk 4 discussed; Wk 5 distributed. _____________________________________________________________________________________________

Week 5 Date: 11 February Topic: Social roles, social status, daily life Readings

Smith's Chapter 6, and Berdan’s Chapter 6 both describe Aztec life, social roles and social classes. The Aztecs, Smith, Ch.6: Family and Social Class. Aztec Archaeology & Ethnohistory, Berdan, Ch. 6: Living as an Aztec: Social status and daily life.

Other (For a range of references on social class, elites and commoners, check Berdan’s and Smith’s bibliographies.)

Garraty, Christopher P. Ceramic Indices of Aztec Eliteness. Ancient Mesoamerica 11 (2000): 323-240. Garraty's article explores the concept of Aztec 'elites' and how elites can be monitored using ceramic data.

Study Questions: Wk 5 discussed; Wks 7,8 distributed. ____________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

Week 6 17 to 21 February 2020

R E A D I N G W E E K

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Week 7 (cont’d Week 8)

Date: 25 February Topic: Worldviews and practices.

Guest speaker, Dr. Elizabeth Baquedano (to be confirmed) Readings: This topic will be spread out over two weeks.

The Aztecs, Smith, Ch 9 on Creation, Death, and the Gods and Ch 10 on Temples and Ceremonies; in the earlier editions (1996, 1998) this is Ch 9 on Creation, Sacrifice, and the Gods (which includes information on temples and ceremonies). Aztec Archaeology & Ethnohistory, Berdan, Ch. 7 on ‘Religion, science, and the Arts’.

Other (I am going to try to get the HMAI chapter scanned for you. Make an effort to leaf through the 1983 and 2002 publications shown below, and look at the images.

2015 Elizabeth Baquedano, editor. Tezcatlipoca: Trickster and Supreme Deity. University Press of Colorado

1971, HMAI (Handbook of Middle American Indians), Vol. 10, pp. 395-446, INST ARCH DFA Qto Series HAN

1973, Iconography of Middle American Sculpture, INST ARCH DF 300 BER

1983, Art of Aztec Mexico, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., INST ARCH DFA 300 Qto WAS

2002, Aztecs, ed. by Eduardo Matos Moctezuma and Felipe Solís Olguín. Royal Academy of Arts, London, INST ARCH DFA 300 Qto MAT

2014 David Carrasco, Religions of Mesoamerica. Waveland Press.

2015 Molly H. Bassett. The Fate of Earthly Things: Aztec Gods and God-Bodies. University of Texas Press, Austin.

Introductions to Aztec gods, myths and religion: The suggested readings by Taube and Miller should be consulted if possible because they have information that is easy to find and absorb, and have good illustrations. The Miller and Taube book is a dictionary, so you can look up various terms and names introduced by Smith.

Taube, Karl. Aztec and Maya Myths. 1993 (British Museum) and 1997 (U. Texas Press). INST ARCH DF 200 TAU.

Miller, Mary and Karl Taube. An Illustrated Dictionary of The Gods and Symbols of Ancient Mexico and the Maya. Thames and Hudson, 1993. INST ARCH DF 100 MIL.

Specific papers on religious topics:

Boone, Elizabeth. The 'Coatlicues' at the Templo Mayor. Ancient Mesoamerica 10(2) (1999): 189-206. Boone argues that the colossal statue of the female supernatural is actually a Tzitzimime, one of the celestial demons who devour mankind.

Carballo, David M. Effigy Vessels, Religious Integration, and the Origins of the Central Mexican Pantheon. Ancient Mesoamerica 18 (2007): 53-67. This paper focuses on the origins and evolution of central Mexican deities, particularly the Old God of Fire and the Storm God, both of whom were important in Aztec dedicatory offerings.

Elson, Christina M. and Michael E. Smith. Archaeological Deposits from the Aztec New Fire Ceremony. Ancient Mesoamerica 12 (2001): 157-174. Elson and Smith analyze artefacts from dumps excavated many years ago but not reported on, and show that their context and content identify the dumps as resulting from the New Fire Ceremony. They also explore the Postclassic roots of the ceremony.

Klein, Cecelia F. The Devil and the Skirt: An iconographic inquiry into the pre-Hispanic nature of the tzitzimime. Ancient Mesoamerica 11 (2000): 1-26. Klein focuses on how the original identities and nature of the tzitzimime changed in the decades following the Spanish conquest. Seeing the tzitzimime as the Devil and his demons seems to be a product of the Conquest. Klein explores the tzitzimime as creator deities and the fact that tzimimime powers were embedded in garments--the sacred capes and skirts.

On astronomy:

Aveni, Anthony F. Moctezuma's Sky: Aztec Astronomy and Ritual. In Moctezuma's Mexico: Visions of the Aztec World, 1992, ed. by David Carrasco and Eduardo Matos Moctezuma. INST ARCH DFA 200 Qto CAR

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Aveni, Anthony F. Skywatchers of Ancient Mexico, 1980 and 2001. University of Texas Press, Austin. INST

ARCH DF 200 AVE. On what I’m arguing against:

Watts, J., O. Sheehan, Q.D. Atkinson, J. Bulbulia & R.D. Gray. 2016. Ritual human sacrifice promoted and sustained the evolution of stratified societies.Nature 532 (228-231). https://www.nature.com/articles/nature17159.pdf

______________________________________________________________________________________ Week 8

Date: 3 March Topic: Worldviews and practices, cont’d. Readings: See Week 7, above. Study Questions: Wks 9,10 distributed. ______________________________________________________________________________________

Weeks 9 and 10 Date: 10 March and 17 March Topic: City-states, imperial strategies, cities, towns, and Tenochtitlan. Readings:

Smith's Ch 7 deals with the Aztec empire, city states, and tribute; Ch 8 focuses in on cities and urban planning. This is a complex topic which will take two weeks to cover. The readings below are also meant to help you if you pick an essay related to Aztec integration or any topic on the functioning of the empire and/or its enemies. The Aztecs, Smith, Ch 7: City-State and Empire; Ch 8: Cities and Urban Planning. Aztec Archaeology & Ethnohistory, Berdan, Ch 5: City-states and imperial rule. Smith, Michael E. The Role of Social Stratification in the Aztec Empire: A View from the Provinces. American Anthropologist 88 (1986): 70-91. This was the paper that set me on the road to my critique of 'human sacrifice'.

Other

Smith, M.E. & F. Berdan. 1992. Archaeology & the Aztec Empire. World Archaeology 23(3): 353-367.

Hicks, Frederick. 1992. Subject States and Tribute Provinces. Ancient Mesoamerica 3: 1-10. Describes the politico-economic integration of the empire in which imperial tribute went from commoners directly to Tenochtitlan, whereas 'normal' tribute was channelled through subject rulers and their economic support systems. Complements Smith and Berdan 1992.

Fargher, Lane F., Richard E. Blanton, and Verenice Y. Heredia Espinoza. Egalitarian Ideology and Political Power in Prehispanic Central Mexico: The Case of Tlaxcallan. Latin American Antiquity 21(3) (2010): 227-251. Tlaxcallan (Tlaxcala) was never conquered by the Aztecs. This paper discusses the Tlaxcallan government, which rejected the traditional Nahua political structure in which kingship was vested in nobility and instead ruled through a council whose members could be recruited from the ranks of commoners. [cont'd on next page]

Aztec Archaeology & Ethnohistory, 2014, Berdan, Ch 8 is a mixed bag but there is discussion of Aztec integration, and this is worth looking at if you do an essay on the empire and its organisation.

Nielsen, Hjørdis. 1996. The 2:2:1 Tribute Distribution in the Triple Alliance: Analyzing the Tetzcocan manuscripts. Ancient Mesoamerica 7(2) (1996):207-214. This is a little heavy-going but is an example of how historical sources related to the major city of Tetzcoco (Texcoco) can shed light on how tribute was distributed in and around Tenochtitlan.

Evans, Susan Toby. Aztec-Period Political Organization in the Teotihuacan Valley: Otumba as a city-state. Ancient Mesoamerica 12 (2001): 89-100. Otumba is in the Teotihuacan Valley and became part of the domain of the Acolhua in the 1430s. This paper uses the examples of Otumba and other city-states in the valley to examine how a political system based on the integration of city-states functioned.

Garraty, Christopher P. Aztec Teotihuacan: Political Processes at a Postclassic and Early Colonial City-state in the Basin of Mexico. Latin American Antiquity 17(4) (2006): 363-387. Explores the history of Teotihuacan during the time it was a city-state in the Aztec and Early Colonial periods, A.D. 1200-1650.

First Essay Due !!

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Silverstein, Jay. Aztec Imperialism at Oxtuma, Guerrero: Aztec-Chontal relations during the Late Postclassic

and Early Colonial Periods. Ancient Mesoamerica 12 (2001): 31-48. This paper discusses Aztec and Chontal sites that formed the defensive line of the imperial frontier facing the Tarascans, who the Aztecs never managed to conquer.

Skoglund, Thanet, Barbara L. Stark, Hector Neff, and Michael D. Glascock. Compositional and Stylistic Analysis of Aztec-Era Ceramics: Provincial Strategies at the Edge of Empire, South-Central Veracruz, Mexico. Latin American Antiquity 17(4) (2006): 541-559. Compositional and stylistic ceramic data and historic accounts are used to examine relationships between two provincial locations and the Aztec heartland.

Umberger, Emily. The Metaphorical Underpinnings of Aztec History: The Case of the 1473 Civil War. Ancient Mesoamerica 18 (2007): 11-29. In 1473 there was a major war between the two polities that formed the capital of the Aztec empire: Tenochtitlan and Tlatelolco. Umberger discusses the war and the fact that she thinks it was staged to follow the story of the battle between the god Huitzilopochtli and his sister Coyolxauhqui at the Serpent Mountain (Coatepetl). _______________________________________________________________________________

Week 11 Date: 24 March Topic: The conquest by Spain. Readings:

Smith’s chapter is a brief account of the Conquest; Berdan’s discussion in the last part of Ch. 8 connects the time of the Conquest to its aftermath and to the present day. Clendinnen's paper is among the most compelling reading of the entire course. If you choose an essay on the Conquest, this paper is a requirement. Her article makes a powerful case for how the clash of cultures influenced the outcome of the Spanish invasion. McCaa's paper is optional but is very useful if you do an essay on the Conquest. He deals with the phenomenon of the introduction of European diseases. Whitmore's paper assesses the various proposals concerning the effects of diseases on indigenous populations. There are more recent studies, but his is seminal. The Aztecs, Smith, Ch. 12: Final Glory, Conquest, and Legacy. (In the 1996 edition, this is Ch. 11: Final Glory and Destruction). Aztec Archaeology & Ethnohistory, Berdan, Ch. 8, pp. 277-293. Clendinnen, Inga. "Fierce and Unnatural Cruelty": Cortés and the Conquest of Mexico. Representations 33: 65-100. Winter 1991.

McCaa,Robert. Spanish and Nahuatl Views on Smallpox and Demographic Catastrophe in Mexico. Journal of Interdisciplinary History 23(3):397-431. Winter 1995.

Whitmore, Thomas M. A Simulation of 16th-century Population Collapse in the Basin of Mexico. Annals of the Association of American Geographers 81(3) (1991): 464-487.

Díaz del Castillo, Bernal. 1963. The Conquest of New Spain. Penguin. Originally written in the 1560s. There are unabridged Spanish and English versions as well.

Cortés, Hernando. 1928. Five Letters of Cortés to the Emperor (J. Bayard Morris, trans.) W.W. Norton, NY. Originally written in 15-19 to 1526. Also Hernan Cortes, Letters from Mexico translated and edited by Anthony Pagden. 2001. Yale University Press. [There may also be an online version.]

Graham, E., S. Simmons and C. White. 2013. The Spanish Conquest and the Maya collapse: How ‘religious’ is change? World Archaeology 45(1): 1-25.

Second Essay Due !!

21st April (Tuesday)

______________________________________________________________

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4 Online Resources The handbook and module information will be uploaded onto Moodle. The journal articles can be accessed on-line through the UCL library services. Whatever I have copyright permission for, I will upload, but most edited books are not available online. See the Overview for other online sources of articles and papers. _______________________________________________________________________________________________

5 Additional Information Communication between student and course co-ordinator: The main channels of communication are the Moodle site, where I post in the News Forum, and my own e-mail address e.graham@ucl.ac.ukl. During the first lectures I will pass around a sheet on which you should provide the e-mail address where you can be contacted. When you e-mail me, PUT THE COURSE NUMBER OR NAME IN THE SUBJECT LINE and I will know to give it priority. If you have a non-UCL address, it would be best for you to arrange for e-mail to be forwarded from your UCL address, because staff and students will expect to be able to reach you through your UCL e-mail, available on the UCL website. Please also make sure that Judy has an up-to-date telephone number for you in case you need to be contacted. The Course Moodle website I will post lectures, the Course Handbook, and course handouts on Moodle. If you would like to consult or print the handbook, review lectures (after they have been delivered in class), or a get a handout you don’t have, please go to Moodle. If I am slow to add material feel free to remind me by e-mail. Please ensure you are signed up to the module on Moodle. For help with Moodle, please contact Charlotte Frearson (c.frearson@ucl.ac.uk) Libraries and other resources: The libraries with resources most used in this course are the Institute of Archaeology library, the DM Watson Science library and Anthropology Library (UCL) and the Anthropology library at the Centre for Anthropology (British Museum). During the research for your essays you may have to consult the Main library, but in most cases all the resources are found in the three libraries mentioned. The British Library is nearby and is also an excellent resource. Other than library resources, artifacts relevant to Mesoamerican civilizations can be found on display in the British Museum in the Mexican Gallery. Criteria for assessment: The criteria for assessment used in this course are those agreed by the Board of Examiners in Archaeology, and are included in the Undergraduate Handbook (available on the Institute web-site). In brief, the grades used are A, B, C, D, E and F, with finer distinctions indicated by a plus (+) or a minus (-). All coursework is marked by two internal examiners, and can be re-assessed by the Visiting Examiner. Therefore, the mark given by the initial examiner (prior to return) is a provisional assessment for guidance only, and may be modified after consultation with the second internal examiner, or by the Visiting Examiner. Plagiarism policy Work submitted All work submitted as part of the requirements for any examination at UCL, which includes all assessed work such as essays, must be expressed in the student’s own words and incorporate the student’s own ideas and judgements. All students have received a copy of the College’s rules on plagiarism; the Institute’s guidelines are included in the Undergraduate Handbook. Examiners for this course will scrutinise all work for evidence of plagiarism or collusion between students. To avoid charges of collusion, students should always ensure that their work is their own, and not lend their essays or essay drafts to other students because they are likely to be penalised if the second student copies the work and submits it as their own. What is plagiarism? Plagiarism is defined as the presentation of another person’s thoughts or words as though they are one’s own—that is, without citing where you got the information. Cite where the information came from, no problem. Plagiarism constitutes an examination offence under the University Regulations and students found to have committed plagiarism may be excluded from all further examinations of the University and/or College. Plagiarism can take more than one form:

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1) If information is copied verbatim from the published or unpublished works of other persons, it must be identified as such by placing the copied information in inverted commas/quotation marks and the source of the information must be referenced appropriately and accurately. Where copied information is neither quoted nor referenced, the information is considered to have been plagiarised.

2) If information is paraphrased by the student from the published or unpublished works of other persons, the

source of the information must be provided. That is, the information source must be referenced appropriately and accurately. Where paraphrased information is not referenced, the information is considered to have been plagiarised.

In archaeological writing--as opposed, say, to creative writing in English--we do a great deal of borrowing and paraphrasing of ideas and information from scholarly sources. Therefore it is especially critical for us to recognize our sources by accurate and full referencing. 3) ‘Self-plagiarism’ is a term sometimes used to apply to the extensive use of the same material in more than one piece of assessed coursework. It is not illegal (whereas plagiarism technically is illegal) but not doing an original work for a class is considered bad practice, and unacceptable at university. 4) Plagiarism is also committed when a student copies the work of another student and submits it as his/her own. _______________________________________________________________________________________________

APPENDIX A: POLICIES AND PROCEDURES 2019-20 (PLEASE READ CAREFULLY) This appendix provides a short précis of policies and procedures relating to modules. It is not a substitute for the full documentation, with which all students should become familiar. For full information on Institute policies and procedures, see the IoA Student Administration section of Moodle: https://moodle.ucl.ac.uk/module/view For UCL policies and procedures, see the Academic Regulations and the UCL Academic Manual: http://www.ucl.ac.uk/srs/academic-regulations ; http://www.ucl.ac.uk/academic-manual/ GENERAL MATTERS ATTENDANCE: A register will be taken at each class. If you are unable to attend a class, please notify the lecturer by email. Students are normally required to attend at least 70% of classes. DYSLEXIA: If you have dyslexia or any other disability, please discuss with your lecturers whether there is any way in which they can help you. Students with dyslexia should indicate it on each coursework cover sheet. COURSEWORK General policies and procedures concerning modules and coursework, including submission procedures, assessment criteria, and general resources, are available on the IoA Student Administration section of Moodle: https://moodle.ucl.ac.uk/ It is essential that you read and comply with these. Note that some of the policies and procedures will be different depending on your status (e.g. undergraduate, postgraduate taught, affiliate, graduate diploma, intercollegiate, interdepartmental). If in doubt, please consult your module co-ordinator. GRANTING OF EXTENSIONS: Note that there are strict UCL-wide regulations with regard to the granting of extensions for coursework. Note that Module Coordinators are not permitted to grant extensions. All requests for extensions must be submitted on a the appropriate UCL form, together with supporting documentation, via Judy Medrington’s office and will then be referred on for consideration. Please be aware that the grounds that are acceptable are limited. Those with long-term difficulties should contact UCL Student Support and Wellbeing to make special arrangements. Please see the IoA Student Administration section of Moodle https://moodle.ucl.ac.uk/ for further information. Additional information is given here http://www.ucl.ac.uk/srs/academic-manual/c4/extenuating-circumstances/ _______________________________________________________________________________________________

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6 Essay Questions The following essay questions are based on the chapters assigned in the first part of the course. Concerning sources, any edition of Michael Smith’s The Aztecs can be used. The second and third additions, however, describe more archaeological sites than the 1996 edition, and you may wish to consult the later editions if you answer questions that deal with issues related to settlement. Suggested readings are supplied by Smith in the Notes provided for each chapter; these begin on p. 303 in the first edition and on p. 294 in the second edition and p. 305 in the third edition. Berdan’s text is a relatively recent publication and is a comprehensive source for most Aztec topics. The weekly recommended (Other) readings are also designed to supply information and sources for your essays. Or, ask me. Other essay questions are possible; see me if you have an idea of what you would like to write about.

FIRST ESSAY

Essay 2 Describe agricultural intensification, food production, and responses to food surplus and/or shortages in

Aztec society between 1200 and 1500.

Essay 3 What factors led to the changes in demography and settlement that took place in Late Aztec times

(A.D. 1200 to 1500)?

Essay 4 What key strategies did the Mexica use in their rise to power, up to the time (but not after) the Triple

Alliance was formed? How does this compare to what is known about the formation of empires in general?

Essay 5 How were subsistence and nutritional needs met by the Aztec diet? Why have the Aztecs been

accused by some of cannibalism? Give some attention to the concept of ‘cannibalism’ more broadly and the history of its use with respect to the ‘other’.

Essay 6 Discuss the role of craft specialisation in the late Aztec state. How important is craft specialisation in the

formation of empires?

Essay 7 How did the Aztec economy serve to integrate the empire? How does the Aztec economy compare to a modern market economy?

Essay 1 Discuss the cultural practices which the Aztecs inherited or appropriated from earlier cultures and peoples in Mesoamerica. What implications does this have for our understanding of empires more

broadly?

Essay 8 Compare the Aztec pochteca and their activities to the activities of the British East India Company.

What are the similarities and differences?

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SECOND ESSAY

The following essay questions are based (mostly) on the subjects introduced in the second half of the course. With regard to Smith, the first or second edition can be consulted, although the second & third editions expand the discussion of religion and give increased attention to the role of archaeology in Aztec studies. Consult Smith’s chapter notes for suggested readings. Berdan’s text, as above, is a comprehensive source. As with the first essay, the weekly recommended readings are designed to supply information and sources for the Second Essay questions. Essay 6

7 Essay Structure for ARCL0054 Format: Essays must be word-processed. I like printing on one side of the paper but two saves paper! PLEASE NUMBER PAGES. Adequate margins should be left for written comments by the examiner. Students are encouraged to use FIGURES, photos, pictures, diagrams and/or tables were appropriate. These should be clearly referred to at the appropriate point in the text, and their sources clearly acknowledged. Essays should be about 2,500 words in length. Students should adhere to word limits on essays; such limits are intended to help ensure equality of workloads between courses as well as to encourage the useful transferable skills of clearly structured argumentation and

Essay 8 Has archaeologically derived information complemented or conflicted with what is known from

documentary sources? What does this tell you about the roles of text and archaeology in learning about the past?

Essay 9 Compare Aztec art – or an aspect of Aztec art – to the art of another civilisation with which you are

familiar. Does art have a role in empire?

Essay 12 How did the Aztec empire achieve political integration? Is this like or unlike western empires with which

you are familiar? What is ‘empire’?

Essay 13 What were the conditions – other than those traditionally claimed** by historians such as William

Prescott or HughThomas—and in fact claimed even by many modern historians – that led the ‘small band of Spaniards’ to succeed in bringing down the Aztec empire?

**The defeat of an inferior fighting force by superior European troops, technology, and strategies.

Essay 14 What role was played by cotton textile production in the growth of the Aztec empire? How does this

compare with the role of cotton textiles in the growth of the British empire?

Essay 10 Did the Aztecs make any original contributions to the construction of their worldview (as described, for example, by Berdan and Smith), or did they inherit views and beliefs from earlier groups? What do the

processes of inventing and/or borrowing ideas tell us about empire formation?

Essay 11 In what ways did Christian worldviews influence the Spaniards’ and other Europeans’ interpretations of

Aztec gods? How can we account for this bias in archaeology?

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succinct writing. If you have trouble printing, let me know. If you use colour pictures and can’t print them, you can e-mail the essay to me, but warn me first.

Use double-line spacing please. Or at least 1 ½.

Number all pages. Number all pages. Number all pages.

Use no smaller than 12-point font.

Do not justify the right margin.

Hand in your essay with the IoA cover sheet, but nothing else. No plastic sheets or other covers. Just use a staple or paper clip or fold in the upper left corner.

In-text citations: Scholarly publications in archaeology generally use in-text citations and not footnotes. This means that any information taken from books or sources other than your own research must be followed by the reference in brackets/parentheses. The in-text referencing normally includes the author’s name, the year of publication, and the pages from which the information is derived. Footnotes: Footnotes can be used for information that you feel is important but does not integrate well with the text, but in general, try to incorporate the information into the text and avoid footnotes. The idea is that if it is not important enough for the main body of the text, it is not important enough for a footnote. However, the historians out there will be used to using footnotes for information; if you feel they are necessary, use them, but only for information and not for source citations. References cited: In addition to providing source citations in the text (e.g., Graham 2011, p. 103) in those places in which you either use quotations, or paraphrase information from sources, you are required in archaeological research and writing to list all the sources you have used for information at the end of your essay. This is not a Bibliography. It is normally entitled: References Cited or merely References or sometimes Works Cited. Bibliographies, strictly speaking, can include works you have read but from which you have not drawn specific information for your essay. In the case of the essays, no citation should appear in the text that is not also listed in the References Cited section, and no work should appear in the References Cited section that is not also referred to in the text. There are no exceptions to this rule. Web sources: Web sources can be used, but they should either be peer-reviewed sites or originate from a university or research organization (e.g., www.famsi.org or www.mesoweb.com ). The web sites of individuals should not be used. Where web sites supply information, use your own judgment about how the sites should be referred to in the in-text citation. If they are authored, use the author’s name; sometimes you need to search to find the author’s name as it is not always in the heading. If the information is from the web site of an organization, such as National Geographic, you can put the organisation’s name plus the page name in the text in brackets/parentheses following the information you used. For example: (NGS Tenochtitlan) and then list NGS Tenochtitlan alphabetically in the References as you would an author and provide the url. Or pick a name that reflects the web site topic (e.g., Templo Mayor), and then list this name alphabetically in your References at the end and provide the url. I suggest not putting the url in the text (in the in-text citation) or in a figure caption.

Blank Essay Comments Sheet follows:

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Third-Year Course Candidate No. of Student: Assessment No:

Course No. ARCL 0054

MARKER'S COMMENTS DOES THE ESSAY ANSWER THE QUESTION Excellent Satisfactory Poor Demonstrate understanding of the issues/research problem; build to a relevant conclusion

Depth of approach

Clarity of approach

STRUCTURE OF THE ARGUMENT Excellent Satisfactory Poor Relevance, analysis, logic and coherence.

Organization overall

Organizational details

SOURCES? Excellent Satisfactory Poor Use of an appropriate range of relevant sources; discrimination of relative value of different sources;

Originality in selection of sources; reading beyond the reading list.

Range

Types

In-text citations References cited

USE OF EVIDENCE Excellent Satisfactory Poor Selection of evidence bearing on the question; judgment in weighing and assessing different lines of evidence; selection of appropriate case studies, examples, method(s); building a sustained argument.

Presentation

Integration

Use of tables, charts,

illustrations

WRITING QUALITY (Communication and reader comprehension) Excellent Satisfactory Poor Spelling, grammar, punctuation, paragraphing and general fluency; use of appropriate vocabulary

Proof reading

Grammar, punctuation, style

USE OF TABLES, CHARTS, ILLUSTRATIONS (See USE OF EVIDENCE, above)

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ORIGINALITY AND INDEPENDENT THINKING Excellent Satisfactory Poor Critical reflection; ability to criticise assumptions of other writers; ability to recognize and state own assumptions; independent thinking in evaluation of evidence/interpretation; insight; originality in the

application of knowledge; awareness of unresolved issues in the discipline.

Independent thinking

Critical thinking

INTEGRATION OF THEORY, METHODS AND DATA Ability to relate argument to core concepts in general archaeological method and theory or to core concepts

and broad ideas in your discipline; justification of this approach.

The best features:

Suggestions for improvement:

First examiner's signature:

Date:

First examiner’s mark based on content:

Penalty (if any, & reason):

Provisional Overall Mark:

Second Examiner’s

Mark:

Agreed Internal

Mark:

Final Mark:

Stone disk depicting Coyolxauhqui's dismembered body. Ouch. D=3.5m

Part of buried offering, base of stair to Huitzilopochtili's shrine, Templo Mayor.

Drawing by Emily Umberger

Relating to broader concepts

Rationale