Classic Veracruz Culture

The Classic Veracruz culture, also known as the Gulf Coast Classic culture, was a cultural area located in the north and central regions of the present-day Mexican state of Veracruz. This culture flourished from approximately 100 to 1000 CE, during the Classic era. Its major center was El Tajin, with other significant settlements including Higueras, Zapotal, Cerro de las Mesas, Nopiloa, and Remojadas, the latter two being important ceramics centers. The culture extended along the Gulf Coast, from the Pánuco River in the north to the Papaloapan River in the south. While sometimes associated with the Totonacs, who inhabited the territory during the Spanish Conquest, there is little evidence they originated the Classic era culture, with the Huastecs also being a candidate for ethnolinguistic identity.