Teotihuacan: Origins, Urbanism, and Daily Life (Harvard University)

David M. Carballo, Professor of Anthropology, Archaeology, and Latin American Studies, Boston University, will deliver the 2025 Gordon R. Willey Lecture at Harvard Museums of Science & Culture.

Teotihuacan, one of the largest cities in the world over 1,500 years ago, stands today as a premier archaeological site and a powerful symbol of Mexico’s precolonial heritage. Despite its enduring fame and millions of annual visitors, much remains misunderstood about the Teotihuacanos who built and inhabited this extraordinary city. This lecture delves into the intricate history of Teotihuacan, exploring its rise as a multiethnic metropolis and a center of innovation. David Carballo will examine the city’s immediate antecedents and urbanization, its unique architectural hallmark of apartment-style living, and the dynamic networks of migration and cultural exchange that shaped its identity. By connecting the iconic pyramids to the daily lives of the city’s inhabitants, this talk offers a deeper understanding of one of the ancient world’s most fascinating urban centers.

David Carballo is a specialist in the archaeology of Latin America with a particular focus on central Mexico, but he has also been involved in research projects in Honduras, Belize, the U.S., Peru, and Colombia. Within central Mexico, he has conducted multiyear excavation projects on the Formative period in the state of Tlaxcala and in three areas of the Classic period city of Teotihuacan: the Moon Pyramid, the palatial Plaza of the Columns, and the residential Tlajinga district, the focus of his current research. Topics of study include households, urbanism, religion, governance, political economy, collective action, and working with contemporary communities in understanding ancient ones.