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Science 13 December 1974:
Vol. 186. no. 4168, pp. 981 - 987
DOI: 10.1126/science.186.4168.981
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Articles

Residential Patterns at Monte Alban, Oaxaca, Mexico

Marcus C. Winter 1

1 Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia, H. Colegio Militar 219, Colonia Reforma, Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Mexico

Monte Alban was founded in period I (about 500 B.C.) probably by households from previously existing villages in the Valley of Oaxaca. There is some evidence for status variation in period I households, but more information is needed to determine its role in the early development of the city. During the millennium or more of urban growth at Monte Alban a change occurred in the organization of household space from an open outward-directed focus to a closed inward-directed one. This was accompanied by a formalization of household and interhousehold space and by a standardization in household sizes and burial treatment reflecting emergence of a social class hierarchy. These changes indicate development from a flexible to a highly structured society, which may be a general trend in urbanization.


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Built space and bad subjects: Domination and resistance at Monte Alban, Oaxaca, Mexico.
S. R. Hutson (2002)
Journal of Social Archaeology 2, 53-80
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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)