Dr. Michael Spence, Professor Emeritus

 

Dr. Michael Spence

Current Research Interests
 

 Since I am active in two areas (Ontario and Mexico) and in two subfields of anthropology (archaeology and physical anthropology), my ongoing research projects are rather diverse. I shall briefly outline each below:

  • Hopewell Silver: I have recently completed and have in press work involving the identification of native silver sources used on Middle Woodland Hopewell and Hopewell-related sites and the implications of that sourcing for our understanding of Middle Woodland trade and social networks.
  • Praying Mantis. This small Iroquoian village (ca. 1000 AD) in the Byron area of London was completely excavated by the London Museum of Archaeology. Working with a number of my students, I excavated the two burials that were found. The resulting data will be combined with data from three other similar sites that I have analyzed to reconstruct the social structure and burial practices of these early farming residents of Ontario. I have prepared a detailed technical report on the Praying Mantis burials, to satisfy government and professional requirements. I will now write a general, publicly oriented version of that report, leaving out the technical jargon, tables of measurements, etc. Both reports, technical and general, will be given to Oneida nation, which will assume responsibility for the reburial of the bones.
  • Tlailotlacan Teotihuacan (0-750 AD), with a population of over 100,000 people, was the largest city of its time in the New World. Like any major city, it attracted immigrants from a wide area. About 1000 Zapotecs came to Teotihuacan about 200 AD from the Valley of Oaxaca, some 400 kms. to the southeast. They settled in an enclave (Tlailotlacan) at the edge of the city, and somehow managed to maintain a distinct ethnic identity over five centuries of residence there. I have completed two seasons of excavation in the enclave, with the objective of discovering how, and why, they remained so persistently Zapotec despite the overwhelming presence of Teotihuacan. The results are presently being analyzed. The work has been funded by two SSHRC research grants and one SSHRC Internal grant.
  • Isotopic Analysis of Teotihuacan Skeletons. Christine White, Fred Longstaffe (Geology) and I have a three year SSHRC grant, with Christine as PI, to determine the areas of origin of immigrants to Teotihuacan through an analysis of the isotopic composition of their bones. Samples from several areas of the ancient city, including two believed to have been inhabited by people from Veracruz and Oaxaca, are now being processed. We will also be able to make some conclusions about the diet of the people.
  • Quetzalcoatl Sacrifices. At about 200 AD, when the Temple of Quetzalcoatl was built in Teotihuacan, more than 200 individuals were sacrificed in a single massive event. This year I joined a team of Mexican physical anthropologists in a thorough analysis (funded by NSF) of the 160 skeletons recovered to date. Using a wide array of evidence (nuclear and mitochondrial DNA, bone isotopes, epigenetic traits, etc.), we expect to shed some light on the statuses, health, nutrition, places of origin, and social relationships of the victims. Christine White's SSHRC project is also using material from this series of skeletons, and the findings of both projects will be integrated.
  • Obsidian Industry. Obsidian, a fine-grained volcanic stone, was used in the production of a wide variety of items in Teotihuacan (projectile points, knives, scrapers, drills, figurines, etc.). For several years I have been analyzing this industry: the quarrying of the raw material, its distribution to the craft specialists, the role of the Teotihuacan state in the industry, and the identity of the consumers (some of whom lived over 1000 kms from the city).

Select Publications:

 

1990 Cultural Complexes of the Early and Middle Woodland Periods. In C.Ellis and N. Ferris (eds.), The Archaeology of Southern Ontario to A.D. 1650, pp.125-169. Occasional Publications of the London Chapter, Ontario Archaeology Society, No. 5 (with R. Pihl and C. Murphy).

1991 Watering the Fields of Teotihuacan: Early Irrigation at the Ancient City. Ancient Mesoamerica 2:119-129 (with D. Nichols and M. Borland).

1992 Tlailotlacan: A Zapotec Enclave in Teotihuacan. In: Art, Ideology,and the City of Teotihuacan, J. Berlo, ed., pp. 59-88. Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Washington, D.C.

1992 The Winona Rockshelter Burial. Ontario Archaeology 53:27-44(with W. Fox).

1994 Mortuary Practices and Skeletal Analyses at Teotihuacan. University of Utah Press, Provo (with M. Sempkowski).

1994 Mortuary Programmes of the Early Ontario Iroquoians. Ontario Archaeology 58:6-20.

1995 The Woodland traditions in southern Ontario. Journal of American Archaeology 9:83-138.

1996 Commodity or gift: Teotihuacan obsidian in the Maya region. Latin American Antiquity 7:21-39.

1996 Nonmetric Trait Distribution and the Expression of Familial Relationships in a Nineteenth Century Cemetery. Northeast Anthropology 52:53-67.

1996 "Twice bitten, once shy": Multi-disciplinary Study of a Homicide Case. Canadian Society of Forensic Science Journal 29:127-136 (with M. Shkrum and C. White).

1996 The Isotopic Composition and Diagenesis of Human Bone from Teotihuacan and Oaxaca, Mexico. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 126:1-14 (with H. Stuart-Williams, H. Schwarcz and C. White).

1996 A Comparative analysis of ethnic enclaves. IN: A. Mastache, J. Parsons, R. Santley and M. C. Serra Puche (eds.), Archeología Mesoamericana: Homenaje a William T. Sanders, vol.1:333-353. Instituto de Antropología e Historia, Mexico.

1997 Raw Material Variation and the Organization of Small Point Archaic Lithic Technologies in Southwestern Ontario. IN: P. Woodley and P. Ramsden (eds.), Preceramic Southern Ontario. Occasional Papers in Northeastern Archaeology 9:119-140 (with C. J. Ellis).

1998 La cronología de radiocarbono de Tlailotlacan. IN: R. Brambila and R. Cabrera (eds.), Los ritmos de cambio en Teotihuacán: reflexiones y discusiones de su cronología, pp.283-297. Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, Mexico.

1998 Congenital Deformity in a Late Woodland Burial from Southwestern Ontario. Northeast Anthropology 55:31-46.

1998 Oxygen Isotopes and the Identification of Geographical Origins: the Valley of Oaxaca versus the Valley of Mexico. Journal of Archaeological Science 25:643-655 (with C. White,H. Stuart-Williams and H. Schwarcz).

1999 Mortuary Practices and Social Adaptation in the Tlailotlacan Enclave. IN: L. Manzanilla and C. Serrano (eds.), Prácticas Funerarias en la Ciudad de los Dioses: Los Enterramientos Humanos de la Antigua Teotihuacan, pp.173-201. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico (with L. Gamboa).

1999 Comments: the Social Foundations of Archaeological Taxonomy. IN: R. Williamson and C. Watts (eds.), Taming the Taxonomy: Toward a New Understanding of Great Lakes Archaeology, pp.275-281. Eastendbooks, Toronto.

1999 An Anthropological Investigation of a Rural Homicide Scene. IN: S. Fairgrieve (ed.), Forensic Osteological Analysis: A Book of Case Studies, pp.173-182. Charles C. Thomas, Springfield.

1999 Craniocervical injuries in judicial hangings: an anthropologic analysis of six cases. The American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology 20:309-322 (with M. Shkrum, A. Ariss and J. Regan).

2000 The Gift of a Skull. IN: J. Hassan (ed.), Trespassers and Captives, pp.11-17. London Regional Art and Historical Museums, London.

2000 Testing the nature of Teotihuacan imperialism at Kaminaljuyu using phosphate oxygen-isotope ratios. Journal of Anthropological Research 56:535-558 (with C. D. White, F.J. Longstaffe and K. R. Law)

2002 Geographic Identities of the Sacrificial Victims from the Feathered Serpent Pyramid, Teoitihuacan: Implications for the Nature of State Power. Latin American Antiquity 13(2):217-236. (with C. White, F. Longstaffe, H. Stuart-Williams and K. Law)