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Resistance against an Expansionist State: The Case of Jalieza in Early Classic (AD 200-500) Oaxaca

Joseph Wardle, PhD candidate in Anthropology at the University of Michigan
Friday, September 27, 2024
12:00-1:00 PM
2327 School of Education Map
Joseph “Weston” Wardle is a PhD candidate at the University of Michigan. Since 2023, he has directed the Cerro Danilín Archaeological Project at Jalieza in Oaxaca, Mexico. The project aims to understand how the Zapotec state centered at Monte Albán fragmented, and the role that conflict and resistance played in the process.

Sometime during the Early Classic (AD 200-500) in the Valley of Oaxaca, a community was founded on the hilltop of Jalieza, in its westernmost section called Cerro Danilín. It has long been assumed that Monte Albán was at the peak of its power at this time, but archaeological fieldwork in recent decades suggests that fragmentation may have begun in outlying provinces, and in the valley, close to Monte Albán. Because of its sudden founding and relatively rapid growth, I propose that Jalieza was a refuge for people resisting Monte Albán inside the valley. Resistance was a major force during the rise of the expansionist state and likely never went away. I will present the preliminary results of two field seasons of excavations at Jalieza and a study of fortification in the Valley of Oaxaca, both of which suggest that conflict and resistance were present inside the valley during the Early Classic.
Building: School of Education
Event Type: Lecture / Discussion
Tags: Anthropology, Archaeology
Source: Happening @ Michigan from Museum of Anthropological Archaeology, Department of Anthropology, Interdepartmental Program in Ancient Mediterranean Art and Archaeology, Research Museums Center, Archaeology at Michigan