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Ancient Mesoamerican Mortars, Plasters, and Stuccos: The Composition and Origin of Sascab

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Edwin R. Littmann
Edwin R. Littmann*
Affiliation:
Westfield, New Jersey
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Extract

The use of sascab as a substitute for sand in the preparation of ancient (and modern) mortars and plasters in Yucatán has been noted by many writers including Landa (Tozzer 1941: 171, 176), Morris, Chariot, and Morris (1931, Vol. 1: 220-4), E. H. Thompson (1887), and Villa R. (1934). R. H. Thompson (1958) details the use of sascab as temper for making pottery. Sascab is described by Villa R. (1934) as a soft limestone conglomerate; it has also been spoken of as an unconsolidated limestone. Sascab is a white to reddish, compacted powder, frequently containing rounded boulders or stones, and found in pockets in the limestone of Yucatán and possibly other areas with a similar geography.

Type
Research Article
Information
American Antiquity , Volume 24 , Issue 2 , October 1958 , pp. 172 - 176
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for American Archaeology 1958

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References

Littmann, E. R. 1957 Ancient Mesoamerican Mortars, Plasters, and Stuccos: Comalcalco, Part I. American Antiquity, Vol. 23, No. 2, pp. 135–40. Salt Lake City.Google Scholar
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