Angelini (1998)
The Potter's Craft: A Study of Formative Maya Ceramic Technology at K'axob, Belize
Abstract
As societies evolve in complexity, one way that material culture can reflect this evolution is through the presence of craft specialization. To test this assumption, ceramics from four sites in northern Belize, Central America (K'axob, Cuello, Colha, and Cerros) are compared. The ceramics date to the Maya Formative (1200 B.C.–A.D. 250), a period which commences in northern Belize with the settlement of small relatively undifferentiated agricultural villages and terminates with an increased population living in cities with attendant monumental art and architecture, social differentiation, and the presence of craft specialists. While the work of craft specialists is apparent in art and architecture by the end of the Formative period, ceramics appear to follow a different trajectory. This study employs petrographic analysis, xeroradiography, and instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) to intensively investigate the ceramic production technology utilized at the small agricultural community of K'axob which is located on the Rio Nuevo in northern Belize between the two larger sites of Nohmul and San Estevan. Site-specific patterns are evaluated in light of a comparative study of ceramic style among the four study sites mentioned above. The findings indicate that technology changed little during this 1000 year period and provides scant evidence for standardized production or changes in efficiency which might be expected if pottery was being produced by craft specialists for use beyond the home. The pottery throughout the Formative period is sophisticated and well-made indicating the presence of local artisans from the time of earliest settlement. Petrographic and INAA studies of pottery and extant clay sources do indicate increased exploitation of local clay resources over time and the continued use of variable techniques of production with some evidence for the increased use of more time efficient approaches. Comparative stylistic analysis, moreover, reveals the development of styles which are site specific. These data suggest that during the Formative period, residents of small villages developed a sense of identity which was linked to place of residence and that these villages apparently functioned relatively self-sufficiently in terms of pottery production.
Number of samples in dataset: 364
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