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Tomb Use and Reuse in Oaxaca, Mexico

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 October 2008

William D. Middleton
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, 1180 Observatory Drive, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA
Gary M. Feinman
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, 1180 Observatory Drive, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA
Guillermo Molina Villegas
Affiliation:
Centro Regional de Oaxaca, Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, Pino Suárez 715, Colonia Centro, Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Mexico, C.P. 68000

Abstract

Recently, a major debate has arisen over the interpretation of Monte Albán Tomb 7. This debate hinges, in part, on whether the skeletal assemblage comprised either primary or secondary burials. Previous studies of Mesoamerican mortuary practices generally have recognized only primary and secondary burials in tombs. Findings from a recently excavated tomb in Ejutla, Oaxaca, demonstrate that a third possibility exists: multiple-interment tomb assemblages. These assemblages result from a process we call “ongoing tomb use.” Based on comparisons with the Ejutla interments we propose that the Monte Albán Tomb 7 assemblage may have resulted from ongoing tomb use.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1998

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