ABSTRACT
The impact of Spanish colonialism on Indigenous Mesoamerican societies is reflected in the configuration of cities and towns such as Mexico City-Tenochtitlan and Tlatelolco, while the economic, political, and ideological control systems in New Spain contrast and partially break with the pre-Hispanic traditions, as well. From the perspective of historical archaeology, the material correlates of the processes of change and integration that occurred during the early colonial period (1521–1620) include the use of space, patterns of distribution of consumer goods, and evidence of hybrid cuisine. In urban centers, there were radical socio-ethnic and economic contrasts among the different population components. In some ways, the social position of the dispossessed Indigenous population as a result of the conquest and the domination they suffered under the Spanish conquerors and their descendants is reflected in their differential access to ceramics from Europe and Asia, as well as those made to Hispanic standards in central Mexico. The emergence of decorative, morpho-functional, and technological hybrid styles in the viceroyalty demonstrates the social interaction between the dominated and subjugated, accommodation, persistence, and resilience processes by the latter, as well as the formation of new patterns in the Valley of Mexico. These are most identifiable in the central cities of Tenochtitlan and Tlatelolco.
