Definition: The city of Teotihuacan was built in the highlands of central Mexico about 150 BC and became one of the largest cities in the world of the time. At its height, the city covered an area of approximately 20 square kilometers and was home to 125,000 people including immigrants from all over what is now Mexico.
Of the many archaeologists associated with Mexico City, an important scholar is Rene Millon, whose fabulous project produced a detailed map of he city and its precincts. Others include Manuel Gamio, George Cowgill, Emily McClung de Tapia, Evelyn C. Rattray, and Rebecca Storey; regional surveys were conducted by the University of Michigan in the 1970s by a team led by William Sanders.
Select Sources
For more detailed info, see Teotihuacan: City of the Gods
Cowgill, George L. 1975 On causes and consequences of ancient and modern population changes. American Anthropologist 77(3):505-525.
Millon, Rene 1967 Teotihuacan. Scientific American 216:85-95.
Paulinyi, Zoltán 2006 The "Great Goddess" of Teotihuacan: Fiction or Reality? Ancient Mesoamerica 17:1-15.
Spence, Michael W., Christine D. White, Fred J. Longstaffe, and Kimberley R. Law 2004 Victims of the Victims: Human trophies worn by sacrificed soldiers from the Feathered Serpent Pyramid, Teotihuacan. Ancient Mesoamerica 15:1-15.
White, Christine D., et al. 2002 Geographic identities of the sacrificial victims from the Feathered Serpent Pyramid, Teotihuacan: Implications for the nature of state power. Latin American Antiquity 13(2):217-236.
This glossary entry is part of the Dictionary of Archaeology. Any mistakes are the responsibility of Kris Hirst.
