Presidio and Pueblo: Material Evidence of Women in the Pimeria Alta, 1750-1800

Abstract

Identifying subordinate groups in the archaeological record in colonial situations has gained currency as historical archaeologists have sought to describe and investigate how the perspectives of and roles played by the colonized and the colonizers contribute to processes of culture change in colonial society. Neither the culture of the colonizing group nor the culture(s) of the peoples colonized can really be characterized as a single unit, because a culture represents the reflexive interaction of different groups within the culture. Archaeological interpretation at colonial sites should recognize and incorporate the perspectives of these groups. The model developed in this dissertation uses a processual-plus perspective (Hegmon 2003) to ask questions about gender in a systematic fashion. The author constructs a model for the identification of women at historical sites using ethnographic information and colonial documents and paintings. Archaeological collections from the pueblo of Tubac and Presidio Santa Cruz de Terrenate are then used to evaluate the model. The archaeological site of Presidio Santa Cruz de Terrenate (AZ EE:4:11[ASM]) on the Río San Pedro represents a Spanish military installation on the eastern border of the Spanish Pimería Alta. Little documentation has been found that describes the residents or society at the presidio. Charles Di Peso excavated at the site in the 1950s (Di Peso 1953), and a crew from the University of Arizona conducted a surface survey and collection of artifacts in 1993. The colonial pueblo of Tubac was established in 1752 under the protection of Presidio San Ignacio de Tubac. The author had access to Spanish colonial documents that described the society at Tubac. The South Barrio of Tubac (AZ DD:8:33[ASM]) is a site that represents a much disturbed area of colonial-period structures. It was surveyed and excavated by a graduate student at the University of Arizona. Because of problems in the contextual information from both sites and the poor condition of the artifacts, the information proved to be inadequate for evaluating the model. At sites with better contexts and excavation strategies, this model should allow investigation of the material correlates of female activities.