Current Projects include full-coverage archaeological settlement pattern survey, landscape investigation, and geoarchaeological research to explore relationships between climatic fluctuation, landscape change, and the formation of the Prehistoric Purépecha (Tarascan) Empire (A.D. 1350-1520).

The Lake Pátzcuaro Basin is a critical cultural region of México that has seen limited archaeological research. At the time of European contact the region was the core of the Purépecha (Tarascan) Empire with a dense population, centralized settlement system, social stratification, and a highly engineered environment.

The Lake Pátzcuaro Archaeological Project is an innovative program of research focused on:

• Better understanding the development of prehistoric societies in the region.

• Exploring relationships between cultural development and climate change.

• Elucidating the human role in landscape change.

• Providing prehistoric case studies that can aid modern conservation in the region.

Current Projects

Recent Projects

In 2007/2008 Chris Fisher conducted an archaeological survey of the former island of Apúpato identifying over 15 areas of prehispanic occupation, along with hundreds of agricultural terraces and other features.