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The Analysis and Distribution of Volcanic Ash-Tempered Pottery in the Lowland Maya Area

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Michael P. Simmons  and
Gerald F. Brem
Michael P. Simmons
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, California State College, San Bernadino, CA 92407
Gerald F. Brem
Affiliation:
Department of Earth Science, California State University, Fullerton, CA 93734
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Abstract

Petrographic analysis of potsherds from Dzibilchaltun and other Maya sites conclusively establishes the presence of volcanic ash temper in ceramics from northern Yucatan. The distribution of ash-tempered ceramics in time and space suggests import of ash in bulk from sources in highland Guatemala or El Salvador in exchange for salt. The homogeneous nature of the ash in northwestern Yucatan supports the idea that certain trading organizations enjoyed exclusive access to that region, while competing for markets in other lowland areas.

Type
Reports
Information
American Antiquity , Volume 44 , Issue 1 , January 1979 , pp. 79 - 91
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for American Archaeology 1979

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