Rediscovering Lost Narratives: The Hidden Cache of a High-Status Indigenous Family at Mission La Purísima Concepción and its Significance in California History

Previous archaeological investigations at Mission La Purísima Concepción unearthed a concentration of glass and ceramic vessels under a floor within a room in adobe barracks where Chumash families resided. Early interpretations suggested a person of European ancestry lived there; however, we argue they were Indigenous to California. We propose that the individuals who lived in the room had achieved a different axis of social distinction, holding prominent positions within the mission’s social hierarchy. Drawing on ethnohistoric accounts, the occupants were either the family of a Native alcalde (governor) or another influential couple who figured prominently in mission records listed as a padrino (godfather), madrina (godmother), testigo (witness), intérprete (interpreter), or enfermero (nurse). Moreover, we demonstrate that the glass and ceramic vessels represent a unique caching event during the Mexican period when Native officials lacked the means to reform the missions or have a stake in their survival. These data are crucial to understanding the enormous diversity that formed the fabric of Indigenous communities in California missions and Indigenous autonomy over successive waves of colonialism. Such re-examination of museum collections is essential in a field with a growing curation crisis.