The Archaeology of Catholicism in Indo-Hispano New Mexico

Catholicism has been an organizing principle of the history of the American Southwest for over four centuries, but archaeological study of Catholic sites and material culture remains underdeveloped. This article lays the groundwork for an expanded archaeology of Catholicism in New Mexico by (1) synthesizing existing scholarship, (2) defining six major periods in the historical development of local Catholic traditions, and (3) outlining the theoretical and ethical stakes of such research. Special emphasis is placed on the relationship between Catholicism and imperialism, as well as the syncretic emergence of distinctively Indo-Hispano forms of Catholic expression.