Chapter 11

The Movement of Metal Goods in the Mesoamerican Late Postclassic Period

A Case Study from the Templo Mayor in Tenochtitlán

Niklas Schulze and Blanca E. Maldonado

At the time of the Spanish Conquest, three main centers of metallurgical production coexisted in the New World: the Andean area, the Colombian–Lower Central American region, and Mesoamerica (Cardós de Méndez et al. 1988; Hosler 1994; Schulze 2008a; Torres Montes and Franco Velázquez 1996; West 1994; see figure 11.1). Native American metal craftsmen from these centers rivaled their European counterparts in the sophistication of their technical skills. The ideological and social constructs in which they worked, however, were very different. The Spanish were in the early stages of modern capitalism, and metals, especially gold and silver, were coveted for their economic value. For Native Americans, on the other hand, metals were more than a simple commodity. For some pre-Columbian peoples, gold, for instance, was considered the “feces of the gods” (see, e.g., Sahagún [1590] 1969–1982 [book 11]:233), of economic and aesthetic value to humans (e.g., tribute and ornaments) but, ultimately, deriving its importance from its symbolic value and divine origin. This ideological importance probably influenced not only the perception of metal objects, but also their production (Lleras 2005:14).

Furthermore, in Mesoamerica, precious metals did not have the exceptional value that set them apart from other materials, as was the case in Europe, but rather shared their high status with materials such as jade. Snarskis (2003) sees this as part of a process of substitution that would have eventually led to the decline of the importance of jade as a high-status material that culminated in the dominance of precious metals, following a pattern he described for Costa Rica.

While many aspects of prehispanic metallurgical production are difficult to study directly due to a lack of archaeological evidence, the movement of imported and specially crafted goods is perhaps the most easily detectable aspect of ancient political economies and the constitution of materially based social practices. The present chapter examines the different mechanisms of distribution of metal items in Mesoamerica. Emphasis is placed on the geographical movement of raw materials and products, as well as on the value and significance of metal in the Mesoamerican world. Metal is considered as an indicator of both economic activity and symbolic action. A case study of metal bells deposited as offerings in the Templo Mayor of Tenochtitlán is presented.

New World metallurgy emerged in the Andean region of South America between the Initial period (1800 to 900 BC) and the Early Horizon (900 to 200 BC; Lechtman 1980). In Mesoamerica, some early finds suggest the presence of imported metal items (e.g., Cardós de Méndez et al. 1988). The earliest metal objects that were most likely produced locally are found at archaeological sites located in the west Mexican states of Jalisco, Colima, Nayarit, Michoacán, and Guerrero, with the earliest estimates at AD 600–700 (Hosler 1994). The late date of appearance of metals and the similarity of the techniques employed by the native metalsmiths to those developed in South America have led many scholars to suggest that metal objects and metallurgical techniques were introduced into west Mexico from Peru and Ecuador by traders using watercraft capable of long-distance voyages along the Pacific coast of South and Central America (Edwards 1969; Hosler 1994; Meighan 1969; Mountjoy 1969). Whether this is an accurate assumption, and what role the land route through Central America played, is still a matter of debate.

The territory of modern west Mexico is an area where copper and other metallic minerals are present in relative abundance. A distinctive metallurgical tradition flourished in this region for nearly a millennium before Spanish Contact. Throughout Mesoamerica, a wide range of metal artifacts were fashioned from the Late Classic through the Late Postclassic. During this time, metallurgy became a part of the social fabric of ancient Mesoamerican life (Hosler 1994; Simmons and Shugar 2013). Copper and copper-based artifacts (mainly those made of copper alloyed with tin, arsenic, or lead) are found throughout much of Mesoamerica by the Early Postclassic, having been distributed via a well-developed trade and tribute network.

The value that metal objects held in this part of the Americas was firmly grounded on the particular social realities that shaped ancient Mesoamerica for centuries. One of the ways Mesoamerican rulers, nobles, and other elites displayed their wealth, power, and social status was through a variety of symbolically charged, highly valued materials, including green stones, feathers, Spondylus shell, and metal objects, among others. Rulers and religious specialists had access to and manipulated a range of complex symbols that functioned as material expressions of group ideology (Evans 2008). The production of bells, tweezers, finger rings, and elaborate clothing ornaments (with shimmering metal) was not only an economic act, but it was also political and ideological in nature, often embedded in specific publically significant and value-laden acts or events (Hosler 1994; Lleras 2005). Thus, by their own acts of creation and transformation, smiths and their patrons actively maintained the vital links believed to connect the community and its people with the supernatural energies of the universe (see Helms 1993).

Objects made of metal had powerful sacred connotations for Mesoamerican peoples; they were often associated with the creation of human kind, certain deity cults, or distant, exotic realms (Hosler 1994; Schulze 2008a). The Aztecs, for example, considered one of their most powerful deities, Xipe Totec, to be the patron of metalsmiths and other luxury arts and crafts (Barba y Piña Chan 1989:139; see figure 11.2a). Among the Maya, the strong connection of metal with the gleaming rays of the sun, represented by a deity known as K’inich Ajaw or God G (Miller and Taube 1993; figure 11.2b), suggests they believed metal possessed animate characteristics and had divine associations.

The ability to transform minerals into beautifully crafted metal objects—with their unique sounds, lustrous colors, and divine associations—might have been considered an astounding, perhaps even magical, transformation by ancient Mesoamericans. Cast bells of different shapes and sizes are considered to be the most ubiquitous metal artifacts produced in ancient Mesoamerica (Hosler 1994). Due to their unique sonority, tones, and resonance, copper and bronze bells were used extensively by religious practitioners in a variety of ritual performances, often involving dance or battle.

Pohl (2003:176) notes that “the value of wealth acquired from distant lands was amplified through artistic transformation.” The value of bells and other metallic objects was probably augmented by the sometimes great distances involved in their acquisition and the technical challenges required for their production. Mesoamerican elites and religious specialists who possessed such highly valued objects were able to effectively manipulate them as potent material expressions of ideology and social power, through their connection to distant places and spiritual realms (Helms 1993; Hosler 1994; Simmons and Shugar 2013).

The Taskscape of Metal Production

The production of metal objects required the collection or extraction, processing, and transportation of raw materials from their points of origin. In the case of copper alloy lost-wax cast bells, the main materials needed would include metal ore (mainly copper, but also lead, arsenic, and/or tin for alloying), beeswax, refractory clay, and wood for charcoal. Most of these materials are not present in the final product (wax, clay, and charcoal) and tracing their origins would be difficult, even if a metal workshop had been located, which, sadly, is not the case in Mesoamerica. Sourcing the metal is also difficult, since the mines are heterogeneous, not permitting a consistent trace element fingerprint. Furthermore, trace elements are affected by the production process (refining, alloying, recycling etc.) and oxidation (see Budd et al. 1996:168; Henderson 2000:254; Palmer et al. 1998:374; Root 1949b:206).

The provenance of metallic raw materials is therefore still hypothetical. Nevertheless, it is possible to at least (a) acknowledge that the different raw materials used during the production process should be taken into account; and (b) keep in mind that the origins of the material(s) (natural distribution and extraction site) on the one hand, and the origin of the object (workshop) on the other, do not need to be (and normally probably were not) identical. This means that the metal objects are not only the physical evidence of an economic relationship between a producer and a user, but also of a number of economic transactions and technological activities that take place previous to the production of the artifact itself. The distribution of the different points of origin on the map naturally depends on the availability of raw materials. However, the mere existence of a raw material—a copper ore, for example—does not imply that it was actually exploited. While identifying a mine might indicate the extraction of the material, only the location of a smelting site proves the production of metal. The workshop, finally, might tell us about the different metals used (e.g., prills, or drops of spilled alloy), or about the artifacts produced (waste material and molds). In the end it is the artifact and its archaeological context that remain as detailed evidence of where and how the product of this process was used and/or discarded.

In sum, the process described above could be represented spatially as follows:

1. a. areas of natural raw material distribution
2. b. multiple raw material extraction locations (raw materials for the elaboration of the object and the functioning of the process)
3. c. processing and raw material transformation sites (e.g., smelting)
4. d. production sites (workshops)
5. e. artifact find-spots.

The concept of “taskscape” (Ingold 1993:158) is used here as a spatial expression of the operational sequence model (Cresswell 1976:6; Leroi-Gourhan 1964:16) and the life history (Schiffer 1972, 2004:580) of an object. While the operational sequence focuses on the production processes and the material transformation, the life history includes the economic movements and use-life of the artifacts. The configuration of the taskscape depends to a large degree on raw materials distribution, combined with technological knowledge, as well as with the social and economic relations of the actors. Thus, the study of the taskscape will tell us a story of a technological production process and economic relations, the interregional interaction and dynamic cultural processes on which this volume focuses. In Mesoamerica, the main difficulty in the study of metal production is that the available information is based almost exclusively on the above-mentioned points (a) and (e), which, due to the provenancing problems also outlined above, are very difficult to match up. This means that, at least at the moment, our main objects of investigation are the artifacts and the spatiotemporal relations that associate them with their context. This chapter will concentrate on the economic (life) history of an important collection of cast copper bells, which were found as part of the offerings of the Templo Mayor of Tenochtitlán.

A Case Study: Cast Copper Bells in the Offerings of the Templo Mayor of Tenochtitlán

Throughout the Postclassic period in Mesoamerica, copper and copper alloy bells were highly valued objects (Smith 2003a; figure 11.3). They were frequently found in funerary contexts as jewelry placed around the neck, wrists, or ankles of the dead. According to the Florentine Codex and other sources written in the decades after the conquest, as well as in Mexica sculptures (e.g., the Coyolxauhqui monolith), bells appear represented attached to the garments of elites and deities. They were also found as part of ritual offerings throughout Mesoamerica.

The Templo Mayor was the main temple of the Aztecs, located in the capital of Tenochtitlán. The different building phases of the temple pyramid contained offerings of different materials that were deposited on various occasions (e.g., López Luján 1994). The study presented here focuses on the copper and alloy bells found before 2003—a total of 3,389 bells from 48 offerings—that were analyzed in the framework of an archaeometallurgical investigation (Schulze 2008a). The majority of these artifacts are globular or pear-shaped and measure between 1 and 4 cm in height (figure 11.4). They were made of nearly pure copper (Cu) as well as of copper alloyed with tin (Sn), arsenic (As), and/or lead (Pb).

While many Mesoamerican bells do not come from controlled excavations, the Templo Mayor collection allows studying the contexts of the bells, and even shows a clear relative and absolute chronology. The investigation revealed information about—among other subjects—the production process of the bells, their symbolism, and the economic implications of supplying the temple with the necessary copper items (Schulze 2008a, 2008b, 2010a, 2010b, 2013; Schulze and Ruvalcaba 2008).

The following description attempts to retrace the path of copper bells through the economic system of the Late Postclassic Aztec empire, from the raw material sources to the offerings of the Templo Mayor. The economic movement of the materials and objects on the map are structured by the operational sequences of copper bell production, as well as by their use-life. However, rather than a detailed step-by-step description of this process, we seek to delimitate noticeably large blank areas on the taskscape map of bell production and use. We will start by looking at the available information on bells and metal trade, mainly from archaeology and documentary sources.

As already mentioned, cast bells have been largely described as luxury objects or ritual paraphernalia. From this perspective, bells would fall in the category of key commodities, defined by Smith (2003a:118) as those whose production and exchange were particularly important for the functioning of the Postclassic Mesoamerican system. The value of such goods is based on a number of attributes:

• Raw materials restricted to certain major environmental zones
• Raw materials limited to a small number of locations
• Complex technology required
• Lengthy and/or complex production process
• Requirement of highly skilled craftsmanship
• High value in relation to weight

To differing degrees, all of these attributes apply to bells and qualify them as objects of considerable economic value, a status shared with other metal items also regarded as luxury goods. In the case of copper bells, however, their classification as pure luxury goods is problematic due to the wide range of contexts in which they occur (e.g., Bray 1977:370). An example of elite and commoner access to exotic goods is the presence of bronze objects, amongst other kinds of materials, in almost all residential middens at Cuexcomate, Morelos, during Late Postclassic-A (Smith 2003b:249–250). This nonexclusive distribution of elite goods was interpreted as an indication of the development of a higher degree of commercialization, with marketplace economy and little control of production and distribution of prestige goods by elites (Hirth 1998; see also Berdan et al. 2003:102; Smith 2003a:123; Smith and Berdan 2003:7). This allows a connection of the bells with both ritual and elite contexts, as well as with those of domestic type and common access. The range of spheres in which bells appear, indicates different meanings and uses, and suggests their circulation through different economic channels.

Smith and Berdan (2003:3) regard Mesoamerica as a single economic and cultural area, defined by trade and a variety of other types of social interactions. Discussing the Aztec case, however, Michael Ohnersorgen (2006:29) emphasizes the diversity in the administration of the different provinces of the empire, influenced not only by the character of the provinces under control themselves, but also by imperial objectives. Both particular relationships with the provinces and imperial objectives had a direct impact on the economic channels through which various goods may have been mobilized in Mesoamerica. These channels can be categorized into five groups (see, e.g., Chang 1975:214; Dalton 1975:104–109; Olmedo y González 1986:83–91; Schulze 1997:37, 2008a:403–404), all of which may have contributed to a greater or lesser degree to supplying the Templo Mayor offerings with copper alloy bells:

• Spoils of war
• Tribute (both recurring or sporadic events)
• Gifts
• Trade (local, regional, or long distance)
• Direct extraction

Spoils of War

The following quote from fray Diego Durán shows clearly that war booty was brought back from the conquered provinces and offered in the temple:

Llegados los mexicanos a la ciudad de México fueron de toda la ciudad muy bien recibidos, con muchos regocijos y fiestas de los sacerdotes, que salieron con sus braseros en las manos o incensarios, e incensándoles y diciéndoles muchas palabras de loor y cantares de alabanza los festejaron y llevaron al templo, donde ofrecieron grandes ofrendas de los despojos y de las cosas que de la guerra traían . . .

(When the Mexicans arrived in the city of Mexico [after defeating Tepeaca] they were very well received by all the city, with much rejoicing and festivities of the priests, who came out with braziers or incense burners in their hands, and lighting them and offering many words and songs of praise they celebrated them and took them into the temple, where they made great offerings of the booty and the things that they brought from war . . .). (Durán 1984:2:153, translation ours)

The type and quantity of offered objects depended to a large degree on the region that was conquered. However, the importance these events had remains unclear, and it would be difficult to identify spoils of war in the archaeological record.

Nevertheless, the expansion of the Aztec empire and the conquest of the provinces of Anahuac had an impact on the supply of the empire with exotic goods beyond those that were brought back from battle. Fray Bernardino de Sahagún ([1590] 1989:582) points out that the conquests during the rulership of tlatoani Ahuítzotl directly affected the supply of exotic products and craft production. The conquests would enlarge the tribute system, open new markets for trade, and give access to more raw materials through direct extraction. The expansion toward the Pacific, for example, opened access to regions rich in minerals. This might have promoted a change in the alloys used in bell production (Schulze 2008a). Bray (1989:255) notes that Ahuítzotl was also the tlatoani under whom the state control over trade and exchange increased.

Tribute

Copper and copper alloys in the form of hatchets (Torres and Franco 1996:97)—apparently also used as ingots—as well as of cast bells, often appear as both regular and sporadic tribute in different documentary sources. The province of Tepecoacuilco (Matrícula de Tributos, lámina 17; Codex Mendoza, folio 39r; see Galvany 1991), for example, delivered 100 copper hatchets to Tenochtitlan every eighty days. Quiauhteopan (Matrícula de Tributos, lámina 20; Codex Mendoza, folio 42r; see Galvany 1991) paid a tribute of eighty copper hatchets and forty copper bells. Both provinces are located north of the modern state of Guerrero (figure 11.5). Although the schedule of the tribute from Quiauhteopan is not mentioned in the Matrícula de Tributos, the Codex Mendoza states that such delivery was made every six months.

There are cases that indicate that there was not always a good correlation between the local raw materials and production and the levied tribute (e.g., Barlow 1992:154, 176; Berdan 1975:168, 1977:93–94), a fact that can be explained by the priorities of the empire (Berdan et al. 1996:129). The most common or ephemeral materials (clay and charcoal in the former case and beeswax in the latter) used in the process of bell making are difficult to trace to a definite origin and/or have low archaeological visibility. Charcoal, for instance, is used in the furnaces for metallurgical processes, but does not necessarily appear associated with the final objects. Clay and wax are directly involved in the shaping of the bells, but are normally eliminated from the final product. The wax, for example, is usually burnt in the course of the process. There is, however, information concerning the tribute payments of beeswax and copal resin (both used in the making of wax molds for bell casting) from prehispanic and colonial times (Anderson y Dibble 1950–1982:11:93–94; Sahagún [1590] 1989:189; Codex Mendoza, folio 36r y 37r; Matrícula de Tributos lámina 16 y 17; PNE 1905–1906:1:163, 255). Two provinces mentioned in this context are Tlachco and Tepecoacuilco (Berdan and Anawalt 1992:76–82), located in northern Guerrero. Junius Bird (1979) highlights the importance of wax in the lost-wax casting process, and suggests that the use of this technique was directly linked to the presence of the stingless Meliponidae bees. This opinion is shared by other investigators (Northover 1989:218; see also Patiño 1992:127).

Gifts

Gift giving was closely related to tribute. It was reciprocal and less formally organized but, as the quote by fray Diego Durán shows, clearly not optional:

. . . pues jamás, cuando van a saludar o a visitar a alguna persona saben llevar las manos vacías y el llevarlas vacías tienen por afrenta, así los que saludan, como los saludados

(. . . for when [the Indians] go to welcome someone or to visit a person it is not their custom to go empty-handed because this would be considered offensive, and this is customary with the hosts as well as with the guests). (Durán 1984:2:526, translation ours)

As with the spoils of war, it is difficult to estimate the volume of goods that were moved by gift giving. But, as Berdan et al. (2003:106) point out, this practice allowed for the movement of luxury goods throughout Mesoamerica without markets or traders. Furthermore, it is important to note the impact of gift giving on the production of luxury goods. Berdan et al. (2003:106) propose a patron relationship of the ruler or member of the elite with the artisans in order to ensure a constant raw material supply.

Trade

A number of authors (see, e.g., Berdan et al. 2003:104; Schulze 1997:230; Spence 1981:184) have argued that imperial tribute alone was not enough to satisfy the demands of the nobles, even if many of the objects and materials required for their manufacture appeared on lists of delivered goods. Tribute, though certainly a very important mechanism for the movement of goods throughout Mesoamerica, appears to be overestimated due to bias of the ethnohistorical sources, which in many cases, are a reflection of the interests of Aztec and Spanish elites in urban centers. It is likely that less centralized, local tribute systems, as well as trade in its various forms, played a more important role than the sources may suggest (Berdan et al. 2003:104; Schulze 1997; Spence 1981:184).

In favor of this idea is the fact that metal goods (including bells) were also moved through the pochteca—long-distance merchants supported by the state—as described in the following excerpt from a farewell discourse given by one of the long-distance traders during a feast before travel:

. . . antes que dexe este barrio y este pueblo, porque ya tengo compradas las cosas con que tengo de rescatar por los pueblos por donde fuere. Tengo compradas muchas navajas de piedra, y muchos cascabeles, y muchas agujas, y grana, y piedra lumbre

(. . . before I leave this neighborhood and this town, because I have already bought the things that I have to bring to the villages where I shall go. I have bought many knives of stone, and many bells and many needles, and cochineal, and flint stone). (Sahagún [1590] 1989:546, translation ours)

Sahagún ([1590] 1989:550–551) describes the items that merchants carried long-distance to places such as Xicalanco, which include gold products for rulers and copper bells for the common people (figure 11.6). Berdan (1988:639; see also Berdan et al. 2003:102), however, has pointed out that trade conducted by the pochteca was only one aspect of the Mesoamerican economy, and traders acting at the intra-imperial, regional, or local level were probably responsible for the movement of a large volume of goods. Such goods would still travel long distances, passing from merchant to merchant (“down-the-line trade,” Berdan et al. 2003:103).

Sahagún ([1590] 1989:609) also mentions several places were gold and copper were sold, suggesting that metallurgists themselves brought their products to sell in the market:

El que vende cuentas de oro, plata o cobre, o trata en cadenas o collares de oro, y en sartales de las muñecas de las manos, el que es deste oficio suele ser platero.

(The one who sells gold, silver or copper, or trades gold chains or necklaces, and strings for the hand-wrists, is usually a silversmith by trade). (Sahagún [1590] 1989:609, translation ours)

El que trata en agujas fúndelas y las limpia, acicalándolas muy bien. Hace también cascabeles y aguixillos, punzones, clavos, hachas y destrales, azuelas y escoplos.

(The one who trades needles casts them and cleanses them, brushing them well. [He] makes also bells, awls, nails, axes, hatchets, copper adzes, and chisels). (Sahagún [1590] 1989:622, translation ours)

Bernal Díaz del Castillo ([1576] 1979:1:188) describes the sale of metal artifacts on the Tlatelolco market: “y vendían [en el mercado de Tlatelolco] hachas de latón y cobre y estaño” (and they sold [on the Tlatelolco market] hatchets made of brass and copper and tin; translation ours). Cortés ([1524] 1989:71) makes similar remarks.

Hirth and Pillsbury (2013:4) highlight the importance of the marketplace: “In the marketplace, economic motives blended with social interactions, and all economic institutions—from the household to the palace—converged.” No mention is made in ethnohistoric sources of any restrictions or different marketplaces that would result in the separation of the sales of high-status materials from those of the commoners. For that reason, Berdan et al. (2003:101) call Tlatelolco a “multipurpose” market. This makes it feasible that the only restriction that regulated the sales of elite materials and objects was their price.

Direct Extraction

Langenscheidt (1985:56) indicates that apart from obsidian, no direct exploitation of mines by the Mexica is known. He stresses that they procured minerals and metals through trade and tribute. This argument is reinforced by a point made by fray Diego Durán, who describes how Motecuhzoma I sent his messengers to Guazacualco “para pedir a los señores le hiciesen la merced de enviarles algún polvo de oro” (to ask the lords to do him the favor of sending some gold dust) (Durán 1984:2:225, translation ours). This “request” was obviously backed by the tacit threat of repression through the Mexica army. Nevertheless, the control of the mines stayed with the local population. Berdan (2003:94–95) highlights the lack of direct control of extraction by larger polities in Mesoamerica: “An interesting aspect of the Postclassic Mesoamerican economy is the apparent lack of direct political control of certain key resource-extraction zones. This is the case with mines in western Mexico (Hosler 2003), obsidian throughout Mesoamerica (Braswell 2003), and high quality salt in northern Yucatán (Kepecs 2003). While local polities may have exercised some control over production arrangements, larger polities do not seem to have made major efforts to gain control over these resource areas.”

One possible exception mentioned by Berdan et al. (2003:106) is the control the Tarascan empire had over copper mines in west Mexico.

Areas of Natural Raw Material Distribution

The problem of identifying the origin of the raw material of an object might sometimes relate in great part to the material itself. While in north and middle America, certain materials may originate from very few or even a single possible source (e.g., jade, turquoise, amber; see Harbottle and Weigand 1992:96; Velázquez Castro and Melgar Tísoc 2014:297–298; Vivanco Bonilla 1992), others are nearly ubiquitous (e.g., clay, wood, or certain types of stone). Distinguishing between different possible points of extraction of the raw material also depends on the possibility of analytically linking the object material to the mine, bank, quarry or point of extraction. This is possible with materials such as obsidian (Cobean et al. 1991), where the different extraction points have unique trace element “fingerprints.” Other materials, for example, metals, do not offer this possibility (see, e.g., Palmer et al. 1998:374).

While it is important to highlight that the lost wax casting process involves multiple raw materials, the only visible ones in the finished product are the metals. Dorothy Hosler (1994) stresses the importance of the West Mexican Metalworking Zone as perhaps not the sole but the most important source of metals for prehispanic metallurgy. This would reduce the area of possible extraction of metals for the copper bells and would make it necessary to investigate the relationship between the Aztec and the Tarascan empires and their possible competition for the resource.

Metallogenetic studies, however, indicate that mineral wealth is more widely distributed in Mexico than that. The accumulated production of copper, lead, and tin for the years 1942, 1953, and 1954 indicates that west Mexico is an important, but by no means the only metal producer (see table 11.1).

Important differences between prehispanic and modern possibilities in terms of mining technology and transport, as well as different needs, have to be taken into account when considering this information. Nevertheless, the table shows that copper and lead ores are widely distributed in the Mexican territory. Whether these resources were exploited in prehispanic times is a different question. The challenge archaeometallurgical investigations face is that the indications of clearly prehispanic mineral mining and metal production sites (smelting) in Mesoamerica are scarce (see, e.g., Aguilar 1946:64–66; Grinberg 1996; Hendrichs 1940; Hosler 1998, 2004; Hosler and Macfarlane 1996; Langenscheidt 1970, 1985, 1997; León-Portilla 1978, 1980; Patterson 1971), and no metalworking workshops have yet been identified in Mesoamerica.

No equivalents to large mining sites such as Buriticá, Colombia (Bray 1978:25; Plazas and Falchetti 1978:12), for example, have been found in Mexico. This may be due to low archaeological visibility of the production processes, or to a possible misidentification of existing archaeological vestiges (e.g., mold fragments, crucibles, slag, furnaces, etc.). Another explanation would be the absence of great mining and production centers, with production taking place at small sites with rather ephemeral installations, many of which probably were obliterated by later extraction activities (Schulze 2008a:440).

Table 11.1. Mexican copper, lead, and tin production from the years 1942, 1953, and 1954.

All states provide at least one of the three metals. States that are not represented in the table do not produce any of these three metals (data from González Reyna 1956).

The Templo Mayor Offering

This brief review of economic movements of metal and metal offerings, with special emphasis on copper bells, has shown the complexity and diversity of the Late Postclassic economic organization. The tribute system, as well as different combinations of trade and market exchange moved goods toward the center of the Aztec empire and supplied the Templo Mayor with the materials needed. Ethnohistorical sources indicate that the priests in some cases had the responsibility to obtain bells for the attire of sacrificial victims that represented Xiuhtecutli:

El Sacerdote de Tecanman. El Sacerdote de Tecanman tenía a su cargo la madera de pino que se convertirá en teas. Y era también su oficio reunir la pintura roja, la negra, y las sandalias de hule, el chalequillo y las campanillas que necesitaba el que representaba a Xiuhtecutli, el dios viejo, cuando moría.

(The priest of Tecanman saw to the pine wood to be used as torches, and his duties also were to gather together the red and black paint, and also the rubber sandals, the sleeveless shirt, the bells that were needed for [the impersonator of] Xiuhtecutli, the old god, when he died). (León-Portilla 1992:93; Códice Matritense del Real Palacio [1560–1565] 1906; translation ours)

In his description of the celebrations of etzalcualiztli, the sixth month of the Aztec calendar, Sahagún ([1590] 1989:128–129) mentions that the priests bought some of the supplies needed on the market. The chronicler Torquemada also refers to priests obtaining supplies needed for the funeral of Tezozomoc on the market:

y que en confirmación de esto [la muerte de Tezozomoc] habían visto algunos mayordomos suyos que estaban en el dicho mercado, comprando cosas, que ellos gastaban y habían menester en semejantes entierros

(and in confirmation of this [the death of Tezozomoc] they had seen some of his stewards who were in the market, buying things that they used and required in such burials). (Torquemada 1975:167, translation ours)

However, tribute also played an important role in supplying the temple, as Durán’s description of the special tributes paid at the inauguration of a new building phase of the Templo Mayor under tlatoani Motecuhzoma I shows:

Viendo el rey Motecuhzoma la prisa con que su templo se hacía, mandó a todos los señores de la tierra que, para que su dios fuese más honrado y reverenciado, que se recogiesen por todas las ciudades mucho número de piedras preciosas, de piedras de hijada verdes—que ellos llaman chalchihuites-, y viriles, y piedras de sangre, esmeraldas, rubíes y cornerinas. En fin, de todo género de piedras ricas y preciadas joyas, y muchas riquezas y que a cada braza que el edificio creciese, fuesen echadas, entre la mezcla, de aquellas piedras preciosas y ricas joyas. Y así, echando por cabezas aquel tributo, cada ciudad acudía con sus joyas y piedras a echar su lecho de ellas.

(Motecuhzoma, seeing how fast his temple was being constructed, ordered all the nobles of the land, in order for his gods to be more honored and revered, to gather in all the cities a great number of precious stones, green jades, the ones they call chalchihuites-, and beryls, blood stones, emeralds, rubies and cornelians. In short [to gather] every kind of rich stone and precious jewel and treasure, to throw those precious stones and rich jewels into the fill at each new stage of the building’s growth. And so, giving tribute, each city came with the jewels and precious stones to cast into the layer, each in its turn). (Durán 1984:2:228, translation ours)

The preparation of Ahuítzotl’s coronation (AD 1486) was another occasion when tribute was demanded. However, this tribute was not offered directly, but it was passed on to the artisans, for them to produce the needed objects of stone, metal, feathers, clay, and other materials. All of those involved in the process were threatened to be exiled and deprived of their posts, if something did not go according to plan:

Y así, convidados todos los grandes y avisados de que hubiese cuenta con la provisión, especialmente daban este aviso a los prepósitos, mayordomos, factores y tesoreros que había en todas las ciudades, amenazándoles que si en alguna cosa hiciesen falta, que serían privados de sus oficios, desterrados de la tierra, ellos y sus deudos y parientes. Juntamente a los lapidarios que se diesen prisa a labrar las piedras preciosas que para la fiesta eran necesarias; a los plateros para los joyas [sic], a los oficiales de componer pluma, para los plumajes galanos y para los bailes; a los olleros para la loza necesaria; a los oficiales de hacer humazos, a los componedores de rosas, a todos apercibían y amenazaban, si en algo ellos faltasen, de les castigar y desterrar de la ciudad a ellos y a su generación, y que de todo hubiese gran abundancia. Andaban sobre ellos muchos mandoncillos, que no los dejaban descansar ni parar, tan solícitos y diligentes, que parecía irles la vida en ello, y causábalo el gran temor que tenían a sus señores y reverencia.

(And so, all the great ones [were] invited and warned that they should bring the provision, they especially gave this warning to the superiors, butlers, stewards, and treasurers from all the cities, threatening them that if anything should go lacking, they would be deprived of their trades, banished from the earth, they and their families and relatives. In the same way the lapidary should hurry the carving of the precious stones that were required for the party; the metalworkers for the jewelry, the feather workers, for the gala ensembles and dances; the potters for the necessary crockery; the smoke-makers, the flower arrangers, all of them were warned and threatened that if they missed anything, they and their generation would be punished and banished from the city, and that everything had to be in great abundance. Many demanding taskmasters who would not let them rest or stop were over them, so solicitous and diligent, as if their lives depended on it, and this was because of the great fear and reverence they had for their masters). (Durán 19842:323, translation ours)

During the inauguration of another new building phase of the Templo Mayor, once again during the times of Ahuítzotl, the special tribute was redistributed to the artisans for them to make whatever was needed for the celebration:

Todo lo cual fue entregado al tesorero real o mayordomo mayor, para que él lo repartiese, conforme a la orden que le estaba dada; especialmente, proveyese de todo lo que los sacerdotes pidiesen para el culto de los dioses y solemnidad presente. Y segundo, a los oficiales de plateros y lapidarios y a los componedores de plumas, que se les diese todo lo necesario para las joyas, plumajes, coronas y cosas preciosas que a los reyes y grandes señores se habían de dar y presentar, para que con ello no solamente mostrasen la grandeza y suntuosidad de México, pero también para que solemnizasen la gran fiesta de la renovación y fin del templo.

(All of which was delivered to the royal treasurer or chief steward, for him to allocate it, according to the order that was given; especially, to provide all that the priests required for the worship of the gods and the present solemnity. And secondly, to the silversmiths and lapidary and feather workers, to whom was given everything for the jewels, feathers, crowns, and precious things that kings and great lords had to give and present, so that they could not only show the grandeur and magnificence of Mexico, but also give solemnity to the great feast of renewal, and the termination of the temple). (Durán 1984:2:341, translation ours)

This information highlights the existence of at least four different modalities of supplying the Templo Mayor with offerings:

1. a. Spoils of war that are directly offered upon return from the battlefield (see above; Durán 1984:2:153).
2. b. Priests obtaining the offerings on the market.
3. c. Tributes being offered directly.
4. d. Tribute being redistributed and reworked by local artisans before being offered.

While options (a) and (c) would result in rather heterogeneous offerings (objects from different regions and different workshops), options (b) and especially (d) would ensure more homogeneous collections of objects, since it is less likely that a large number of different workshops were involved in their production.

It is this latter organization that might have been responsible for the rather surprising homogeneity of the Templo Mayor bell collection (forms as well as elemental compositions), which even augments in the latest building phases, starting with the reign of Ahuítzotl. This homogeneity contrasts with other Mesoamerican collections of bells that display considerably more variability (Schulze 2008a, 2013, Schulze and Ruvalcaba in press).

Similar observations have been made by Velázquez Castro and Melgar Tísoc (2014), who also detected a remarkable homogeneity and a particular production style for lapidary work and mollusk shell objects in the Templo Mayor offerings, starting in this case with the reign of Axayacatl (AD 1469–1481). The explanation here is also the movement of raw materials from long distances with a local production established in Tenochtitlán, which led to the development of the “Tenochca imperial style.”

Concluding Remarks

As J. C. Arnold (1988:101) has stated, “the exchange of raw materials and finished products in a society is an activity that is inextricably bound up with economic, social and political life. The nature of the movement of goods can only be understood if it is seen in relation to the complex and changing framework of society.” Taking the production process and the economic movements of metal objects, particularly copper alloy bells, as an example, we have tried to show some of the mechanisms of interregional interaction and dynamic cultural processes in Mesoamerica. Metal production implies the use of different raw materials, which have to be collected or extracted in different locations and transported to the production site(s). Hirth and Pillsbury (2013:11) refer to this type of manufacture, with different tasks carried out by different actors, as a “segmented operation.”

The above means that the metal and/or metal artifact, in different stages and moments of production and use, has passed through many hands and was transported large distances before it comes to form part of the archaeological context. In sum, it can be stated that the raw materials and artifacts connected different regions of Mesoamerica in one complex economic operation. The lacunae in the archaeological record and the complex nature of the principal material used (metal) make it difficult to reach specific conclusions concerning the spatial distribution of the locations of extraction and production.

The example we chose to present, the copper (alloy) bells found in the offerings of the Templo Mayor of Tenochtitlán, is special for several reasons: the power of the Mexica ruler, backed by the threat of retribution delivered by the army, created a very particular economic situation that allowed for materials and artifacts to “flow” toward the center, Tenochtitlán, through a number of different economic channels—mainly tribute, gifts, trade, and spoils of war. Furthermore, at the Templo Mayor, functioning as the stage for constant ritual activities, the Mexicas gathered the largest-known collection of copper alloy bells in Mesoamerica (more than 3,000 objects). This means that a constant supply of materials and artifacts had to be maintained.

The ethnohistoric sources mention a variety of economic channels, but especially one mechanism would have allowed for close control of production deadlines and quality. The materials were delivered from the provinces and handed to the artisans by the officials for production of the necessary objects. The concentration of the production close to the temple allowed for very tight control and explains the use of alloys not common in the rest of Mesoamerica and the great morphological and compositional homogeneity of the copper bells of the Templo Mayor. However, it cannot be stressed enough that the economic situation of the Templo Mayor was very particular.

Hirth and Pillsbury (2013:7) point out that the institutional economy, though better documented, is not to be taken as the model for the entire economic system. At other sites (e.g., Tamtoc; see Schulze and Ruvalcaba in press) and in Mesoamerica in general, a relative heterogeneity of the bells can be observed (see figure 11.3). This means that the production and supply processes were not as closely controlled outside the Templo Mayor. It means, furthermore, that an as-yet-unknown number of different workshops in different locations produced bells with sometimes important morphological and compositional differences. In order to understand this complex and diverse taskscape it will be necessary in the future to locate and study extraction and production sites of metal objects in Mesoamerica.

References