West Mexico seems to be the exciting place for new archaeological research on Postclassic urbanism See my prior post on the French work in Michoacan. And now Chris Fisher's fieldwork at early Tarascan urban, or proto-urban, sites is making the news (LA Times). Read more about his project on his website, the "Legacies of Resilience Foundation."I'm sure that the people of Calixtlahuaca were in touch with Tarascans, but why haven't we found any Tarascan pottery at the site? When we analyze the obsidian, we will probably find that a good part of it comes from sources near Lake Cuitzeo, and it is also very likely that much of our copper-bronze is from Tarascan territory. But the lack of ceramics remains puzzling.
