Shedding Light on the Nightshades (Solanaceae) Used by the Ancient Maya: a Review of Existing Data, and New Archeobotanical (Macro- and Microbotanical) Evidence from Archeological Sites in Guatemala

Cagnato, Clarissa

doi:10.1007/s12231-018-9412-8

Cited by 12 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…The analysis of starch grains is connected with investigations into plant use and plant processing in the past and also the composition of the herbaceous component of the human diet (Barton, White, 1993;Hall et al, 1989;Fullager et al, 1998;Henry et al, 2014;Corteletti et al, 2015;Tromp, Dudgeon, 2015;Shillito et al, 2018;López, 2018;Primavera et al, 2018). This technique is also suitable for research into the use and function of artefacts and for deciding issues of plant domestication and vegetation history (Loy et al, 1992;Hardy et al, 2009;Denham et al, 2003;Fuller et al, 2014;López, 2018, Cagnato, 2018Albert et al, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microscopic Analysis of Starch Grains and its Applications in the Archaeology of the Stone Age

Kovárník¹,

Beneš²

2018

IANSA

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microscopic Analysis of Starch Grains and its Applications in the Archaeology of the Stone Age

Kovárník¹,

Beneš²

2018

IANSA

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“…No single method of recovery would have detected all the plants identified at Puerto Escondido, in contrast with the rich results derived from the suite of methods combined in our analysis. Recovering macrobotanical remains through flotation, phytoliths, and starches from artifact residues and distinctive chemical signatures from artifact matrices allows for the construction of a botanical inventory that exceeds any documented or hypothesized in the archaeological literature from Central America, though sites in the nearby Maya area have revealed rich botanical assemblages using both macrobotanical and microbotanical data (Cagnato 2018; Cagnato and Ponce 2017; Dedrick 2013; Devio 2016; Dussol et al 2017; Farahani et al 2017a, 2017b; Lentz 2001; Lentz and Hockaday 2009; Lentz et al 2012, 2015; Morgan 2010; Santini 2016; Thompson et al 2015).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ethnoecology in Pre-Hispanic Central America: Foodways and Human-Plant Interfaces

et al. 2019

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In recent years, researchers in pre-Hispanic Central America have used new approaches that greatly amplify and enhance evidence of plants and their uses. This paper presents a case study from Puerto Escondido, located in the lower Ulúa River valley of Caribbean coastal Honduras. We demonstrate the effectiveness of using multiple methods in concert to interpret ethnobotanical practice in the past. By examining chipped-stone tools, ceramics, sediments from artifact contexts, and macrobotanical remains, we advance complementary inquiries. Here, we address botanical practices “in the home,” such as foodways, medicinal practices, fiber crafting, and ritual activities, and those “close to home,” such as agricultural and horticultural practices, forest management, and other engagements with local and distant ecologies. This presents an opportunity to begin to develop an understanding of ethnoecology at Puerto Escondido, here defined as the dynamic relationship between affordances provided in a botanical landscape and the impacts of human activities on that botanical landscape.

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“…Our hypotheses regarding the presence of these species in our archaeological samples vary. Even though terms for “tobacco” have been deciphered in Maya hieroglyphic writing and cigar smoking is occasionally represented in Maya art 39 , preserved plant remains are very scarce. Dedrick 40 identified a single Nicotiana seed at the site of K’axob, Belize.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Metabolomics-based analysis of miniature flask contents identifies tobacco mixture use among the ancient Maya

Zimmermann

Brownstein

Dïaz

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

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A particular type of miniature ceramic vessel locally known as “veneneras” is occasionally found during archaeological excavations in the Maya Area. To date, only one study of a collection of such containers successfully identified organic residues through coupled chromatography–mass spectrometry methods. That study identified traces of nicotine likely associated with tobacco. Here we present a more complete picture by analyzing a suite of possible complementary ingredients in tobacco mixtures across a collection of 14 miniature vessels. The collection includes four different vessel forms and allows for the comparison of specimens which had previously formed part of museum exhibitions with recently excavated, untreated containers. Archaeological samples were compared with fresh as well as cured reference materials from two different species of tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum and N. rustica). In addition, we sampled six more plants which are linked to mind-altering practices through Mesoamerican ethnohistoric or ethnographic records. Analyses were conducted using UPLC-MS metabolomics-based analytical techniques, which significantly expand the possible detection of chemical compounds compared to previous biomarker-focused studies. Results include the detection of more than 9000 residual chemical features. We trace, for the first time, the presence of Mexican marigold (Tagetes lucida) in presumptive polydrug mixtures.

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Shedding Light on the Nightshades (Solanaceae) Used by the Ancient Maya: a Review of Existing Data, and New Archeobotanical (Macro- and Microbotanical) Evidence from Archeological Sites in Guatemala

Cited by 12 publications

References 34 publications

Microscopic Analysis of Starch Grains and its Applications in the Archaeology of the Stone Age

Microscopic Analysis of Starch Grains and its Applications in the Archaeology of the Stone Age

Ethnoecology in Pre-Hispanic Central America: Foodways and Human-Plant Interfaces

Metabolomics-based analysis of miniature flask contents identifies tobacco mixture use among the ancient Maya

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