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The Río Azul cacao pot: epigraphic observations on the function of a Maya ceramic vessel

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2015

David Stuart
David Stuart*
Affiliation:
Center for Maya Research, PO Box 65760, Washington, DC 20035–5760, USA
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Abstract

Despite decades of extensive study of ancient Maya ceramics, a few basic questions still vex the archaeologist: What were the actual uses of the distinct types of Maya vessels? How can we determine the precise function of some pottery forms? How can we understand the classification the Maya themselves had for their pots? This brief note, using a recently-discovered vessel from Río Azul, Guatemala, as an illustration, will show that such questions can be addressed using combined data from different analytical approaches. Here I also wish to emphasize the notion that some of the most important sources of information on these issues are the hieroglyphic texts painted or carved on numerous Maya ceramics.

Type
Special section: the archaeology of Maya decipherment
Information
Antiquity , Volume 62 , Issue 234 , March 1988 , pp. 153 - 157
Copyright
Copyright © Antiquity Publications Ltd 1988

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References

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