Palaces and Power in the Americas: From Peru to the Northwest Coast

Chapter 8: When Is a House a Palace? Elite Residences in the Valley of Oaxaca

chapter 8 When Is a House a Palace? elite residences in the valley of oaxaca Sarah B. Barber and Arthur A. Joyce Introduction In this chapter we use elite residential architecture in the Valley of Oaxaca to trace shifting conceptualizations of social and political power through time. We frame our discussion by making a heuristic distinction between elite residences and palaces. Although this latter term is often used simply to describe an elite residence, we envision palaces here as multipurpose structures that combine both domestic and public functions. Unlike a residence, a palace provides a physical location for the ‘‘pomp and circumstance’’ surrounding an important individual or individuals (as opposed to deities, deceased persons, or institutions), and may also include civic spaces such as council rooms, storage facilities, and ritual areas (Flannery 1998; Soles 1991; Webster 1998). By implication, the explicit fusion of public and private roles in a palace ties individuals or kin groups to a set of social and governmental activities in a more comprehensive way than does a private residence located in physical proximity to public buildings. Power and social roles are materialized differently in each case, implying different conceptions of power. To track changes in the notion of power in the Valley of Oaxaca, we describe elite residences from the Early Formative (1800–850 B.C.) to the Postclassic (A.D. 800–1521) periods (Table 8.1). We argue that through time a growing number of elites in the Valley of Oaxaca began to build palaces that provided a physical location for the celebration of individual and familial power. We see in these changes a growing expression of power as individualized, exclusive , and materially explicit. In this chapter, we take a diachronic approach, providing a résumé of the currently available data on pre-Columbian elite residences from the Valley of Oaxaca. A variety of research (Flannery, ed. 1976; Whalen 1981; Winter 1974) has provided an excellent source of information on Formative-period elite and non-elite domiciles. There are also a few well-documented Terminal Classic and Postclassic residences (Bernal and Gamio 1974; Lind 2001; Lind and Urcid 1983; Winter et al. 1997). We have attempted to collate what 212 sarah b. barber and arthur a. joyce table 8.1. Valley of Oaxaca Regional Chronology Time Period Regional Phase Dates Late Postclassic Monte Albán V A.D.  –  Early Postclassic Liobaa A.D. –  Late Classic Monte Albán IIIb–IV A.D. – Early Classic Monte Albán IIIa A.D. – Terminal Formative Monte Albán II  B.C.–A.D.  Late Formative Monte Albán Ic – B.C. Monte Albán Ia – B.C. Middle Formative Rosario – B.C. Guadalupe –  B.C. Early Formative San José – B.C. Tierras Largas  – B.C. Espiridión –  B.C. Archaic NA – B.C. data are available for all these periods in order to trace changes in the spatial organization, architectural elaboration, and locale of elite residences. We have focused on these aspects of elite residences because this information is available for all time periods. Indeed, despite a lack of detail in much of the published data, we argue that the available evidence demonstrates a clear shift in the way elite residences were shaped and tied into their surroundings . By providing an increased connection between public and private space, elite residences in the Valley of Oaxaca developed from high-status houses into palaces. The Social Construction of Residential Architecture We follow a variety of other social scientists in looking at architecture to describe and explain social phenomena (Bachelard 1969; Foucault 1995; Rapoport 1969, 1982). Domestic architecture, in particular, has enjoyed extensive study and is well theorized (Blanton 1994; Kent 1990; Santley and Hirth 1993; Wilk and Ashmore 1988; Wilson 1988). Elite residences, like all built forms, are culturally negotiated and socially meaningful entities that serve to communicate ideas to residents and outside viewers (Blanton 1994; Rapoport 1969, 1982). In Mesoamerica, for instance, the presence of elite residences at early sites has provided researchers with a means of demonstrating the existence of status distinctions (Cliff 1988; Flannery, ed. 1976; Flannery and Marcus, eds. 1983).Variation in the size, elaboration, and labor requirements of elite residences has led other archaeologists to distinguish social classes based on architectural data (Abrams 1994; Flannery 1983a; Willey and Leventhal 1979; Winter 1974). Inscriptions and architectural sculpture on when is a house a palace? 213 residences at sites like Copán, Honduras...