Spouted Vessels and Cacao Use among the Preclassic Maya

Abstract

JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org. This content downloaded from 185.44.79.127 on Wed, 11 Jun 2014 11:23:35 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Spouted vessels are diagnostic forms of Middle Preclassic (1000-400 B.C.) and Late Preclassic (400 B.C.-A.D. 250) Maya ceramic assemblages.Mayanists have traditionally called these vessels "chocolate pots," but until recently there has been little direct evidence to support this interpretation. In fact, few studies have focused on the role these specializedforms played in the daily social and ritual activities of the ancient Maya. This paper provides a contextual and functional analysis of Preclassic spouted vessels found across the Maya lowlands and highlands. Additionally, the results of chemical analyses on residues collected from spouted vessels found in Middle and Late Preclassic burials at Colha, Belize are provided. Preliminary data reveal that some of the vessels from Colha contained substantial amounts of theobromine, a distinct markerfor cacao or chocolate. The significance of the discovery of chocolate in Maya spouted vessels is discussed as well as its implications for the rest of Mesoamerica. Las vasijas con vertedera son una forma diagnostica de la cera'mica maya del Precla'sico Medio (1000-400 a. C.) y del PreclasicoTardio (400 a. C.-250 d. C.). Tradicionalmente los arqueologos han denominado a estas vasijas "jarras de chocolate ", pero hasta ahora no se contaba con evidencias directas para apoyar esta interpretacion. De hecho, pocos estudios se han enfocado en el papel que estas formas especializadas tuvieron en actividades sociales y rituales cotidianas entre los mayas. Esta investigacion of rece una analisis contextual y funcional de piezas completas con vertedera del Preclasico en diferentes sitios del altiplano y de las tierras bajas mayas. Adema's, se incluyen los resultados de los ana'lisis quimicos de residuos de vasijas de esta clase encontradas en entierros del Preclasico en Colha, Belice. Para esta ultima coleccion, los resultados preliminares indican que algunas p iezas con ten ian can tidades conside rables de teob romina, un ma rcado r ca racte ristico del cacao o chocolate. En este articu lo se discute la relevancia de la identificacion positiva de chocolate en las vasijas con vertedera mayas asicomo sus implicaciones para Mesoame'rica. Form and StyleCompared to the occurrence of other vessel forms (e.g., plates, dishes, vases) in Preclassic Maya ceramic assemblages, spouted vessels are a rare but diagnostic form of the period. In appearance, spouted vessels have both a central orifice and an open-ended, tubular spout that is placed in a fashion that is very similar to those on a kettle or teapot. Jars and bowls are often the shapes...

Chemical and archaeological evidence for the earliest cacao beverages

“…2), confirms the earliest previous evidence of cacao use in the Middle Formative period (7,8). A radiocarbon sample from the same excavation context has an intercept at 380 calibrated years (cal) B.C.…”

“…Chemical analysis of residues extracted from pottery vessels from the lower Ulúa Valley in northern Honduras demonstrates that cacao beverages were consumed there at least as early as 1100 B.C., some 500 years earlier than previously documented (7,8). The chemical evidence does not distinguish between a beverage made from the cacao seeds and chicha made from the pulp, but we argue, on the basis of changes in serving vessels, that the distinctive Mesoamerican chocolate drink was a byproduct of earlier fermented drinks.…”

“…Cultivation, domestication, and chocolate processing were Mesoamerican innovations, and fermented cacao chichas were also produced there. Cacao use in Mesoamerica can be tracked back into precolumbian times through depictions, texts, and residues of actual beverages (2,(5)(6)(7)(8).…”

“…Theobromine, a chemical component limited in Central America to Theobroma spp, has been identified elsewhere in visible residues preserved inside intact pottery vessels of the Classic (mid-1st millennium A.D.) and Middle Formative periods (mid-1st millennium B.C.) (5)(6)(7)(8).…”

Cacao use and the San Lorenzo Olmec

“…Currently, there is no evidence to suggest that early inhabitants of this South American region prepared chocolate in the strict sense. In addition, archaeological identification of cacao plant remains (5-10), decipherment of hieroglyphic markings on ancient ceramics (11)(12)(13), and pottery residue analysis (8,12,(14)(15)(16)(17)(18)(19)(20) have contributed to the growing corpus of knowledge regarding the pre-Hispanic history of cacao.…”