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Prehistoric Macaw Breeding in the North American Southwest

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Paul E. Minnis ,
Michael E. Whalen ,
Jane H. Kelley  and
Joe D. Stewart
Paul E. Minnis
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019
Michael E. Whalen
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK 74104
Jane H. Kelley
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2N 1N4
Joe D. Stewart
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Lakehead University, Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada P7B 5E1
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Abstract

The scarlet macaw (Ara macao) was an important prehistoric trade item in northern Mexico and southwestern United States. Paquimé (or Casas Grandes) in northwestern Chihuahua has been assumed to have dominated or even monopolized the macaw trade. This conclusion is a result of the fact that Paquimé is the only site with evidence of substantial macaw-breeding facilities. Two recent archaeological projects in Chihuahua indicate that macaw production was not limited to Casas Grandes. Furthermore, the political relations of production for these ritually and economically important birds differed depending on whether or not the producers were part of the complex polity centered at Casas Grandes.

Resumen

Resumen

En tiempos prehispánicos, guacamayas (Ara macao) fueron de mucha importancia en el ritual y en los sistemas económicos del suroeste de los Estados Unidos y del norte de México. Por muchos años el intercambio de guacamayas se ha considerado como monopolio de la comunidad grande de Paquimé (o Casas Grandes), lo cual se encuentra en el noroeste del estado de Chihuahua, México. Esta conclusión es el resultado de que Paquimé fué el único sitio donde habían sido descubiertas facilidades para procrear guacamayas. Ahora, dos proyectos arqueológicos que recientemente se llevaron a cabo en Chihuahua indican que la producción de guacamayas no se limitó a Paquimé. Además, hay indicaciones de que las circunstancias de la producción de estos pájaros fueron variables entre los pueblos situados adentro de la zona de influencia máxima de Paquimé y los que se encuentran afuera de dicha zona.

Type
Reports
Information
American Antiquity , Volume 58 , Issue 2 , April 1993 , pp. 270 - 276
Copyright
Copyright © Society for American Archaeology 1993

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