Regional and Regional-scale Compositional Variability in Pottery from South-central Veracruz, Mexico

B. L. Stark, R. J. Speakman, and M. D. Glascock (2007). Latin American Antiquity 18(1): 59–84.

Abstract

Pottery from Classic period (A.D. 300-900) contexts in the western lower Papaloapan basin was subjected to chemical compositional analysis using instrumental neutron activation. The pottery sample represents three groups, coarse utility jars, common slipped serving bowls, and fine paste, higher-value serving bowls. At an intra-regional scale, four localities in the western basin were sampled, but not all proved to be compositionally distinct. A mangrove zone pottery group contrasts compositionally with groups from farmlands to the west. At a larger interregional scale, pottery from neighboring geomorphological areas as well as distant alluvial systems up and down the Gulf lowlands yielded chemically distinct groups. Considerable trade is suggested at the intraregional scale, but little is evident at the interregional scale. The interregional analysis is the first integrated overview of Gulf lowland ceramic chemical compositions.

Number of samples in dataset: 522

The database file is in Excel format (148K in .zip file). Please fill in the following information to receive the files for this publication.