PREFACE 



Since 1944, the Institute of Social Anthropol- 

 ogy, of the Smithsonian Institution, has been en- 

 gaged in a program of active collaboration with 

 the Escuela Nacional de Antropologia e Historia, 

 which is a branch of Mexico's Instituto Nacional 

 de Antropologia e Historia. The scientific aims of 

 this cooperative project are twofold : to train stu- 

 dents of the Escuela, both in the classroom and 

 in the field; and to add to our knowledge of the 

 native and rural populations of Mexico. 



As a result of joint endeavors in the field, three 

 papers have appeared in the present series: 

 Foster's monograph on the Tarascan-mestizo town 

 of Tzintzuntzan, West's Tarascan geography, and 

 Brand's study of Quiroga. Newman's Nahuatl 

 and Otomi linguistic investigations still are mostly 

 unpublished. 



With the exception of the latter, all joint field 

 work prior to 1947 was confined to the Tarascan 

 area of Michoacan. In recent years, other indi- 

 viduals and institutions have concentrated on the 

 Tarascan zone, with the result that knowledge of 

 this area is comparatively full, at least in con- 

 trast to other parts of Mexico. Under the cir- 

 cumstances, it seemed both expedient and humane 

 to relieve the long-suffering Tarascans from the 

 pressure of a protracted open season; and, in 

 1947, with the concurrence of the Escuela, it was 

 decided to shift the scene of field activities from 

 highland Michoacan to the Gulf coast of Mexico, 

 in the vicinity of Papantla, in the State of 

 Veracruz. 



This area had much to commend it. In the 

 first place, it was the seat of the lowland Totonac, 

 an important ethnic group whose culture was lit- 

 tle known, except from mention in the early 

 sources and from a scattering of more recent re- 

 ports, chiefly by chance travelers. 1 In the sec- 

 ond place, until a few years before, Papantla had 

 been relatively inaccessible by modern routes of 

 travel, and this comparative isolation might have 



1 There are two modern reports on the Totonac, neither based 

 on field work: Melgarejo (1943), and Krickeberg. The latter 

 study is confined largely to an inspection of archeological and 

 historical material. 



893477—52 2 



made possible cultural survivals. In the third 

 place, a new paved highway now connected 

 Papantla with Mexico City, thus eliminating 

 major problems of transport. 



In January of 1947, a preliminary trip was 

 made to Papantla, to decide upon specific head- 

 quarters. After considerable local inquiry and 

 a brief inspection of several outlying Totonac 

 communities, it was decided that the little set- 

 tlement of Taj in was most promising. It was 

 sufficiently far from Papantla — 1.5 hours by 

 horse or by foot, over a pretty poor trail — to be 

 immune from noticeable urban taint; yet it was 

 sufficiently close to permit easy communication. 

 Its size — greatly underestimated both by inform- 

 ants and by the 1940 Federal census — seemed to 

 promise the possibility of first-hand contact with 

 most of the population. 



But the deciding factor was that Tajin was the 

 seat of the famous archeological site of that name. 

 There, for many years, the Instituto Nacional de 

 Antropologia had maintained a Totonac care- 

 taker and, from time to time, had undertaken ex- 

 cavations of major proportions. Accordingly, we 

 assumed that the local population would not be 

 unduly alarmed by a group of students which ar- 

 rived under the aegis of the Instituto; and the 

 caretaker, long accustomed to note-taking and to 

 queries, might be able to explain our activities in 

 innocuous terms to his neighbors. Moreover, with 

 great amiability, the archeologist in charge of the 

 zone, Ing. Jose Garcia Payon, indicated his will- 

 ingness to have the caretaker released to us, to 

 serve as informant and local sponsor. With equal 

 amiability, Arq. Ignacio Marquina, director of 

 the Instituto, made the official arrangements neces- 

 sary for this temporary transfer. 



Early in February of 1947, we moved to Tajin, 

 where we remained 4 months ; and in 1948, we re- 

 turned, again to remain from February through 

 May. Unfortunately, our visits have been con- 

 fined principally to the spring season — the most 

 practical months, owing to the school calendar and 

 to the excessive humidity which hampers foot 

 travel during much of the year in the Papantla 



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