December 13, 2008 Jennifer A. Loughmiller Newman: "Maize as Food, Maize
as Drink at the Site of Calakmul"
Jennifer A.
Loughmiller Newman is a PhD candidate at the University at Albany. Her
dissertation will focus on chemical and microfossil identification of
residues extracted from special deposit ceramics at the Maya site of
Calakmul. This analysis will apply highly sensitive chemical
procedures, in addition to new techniques in microfossil
identification, to residues found in the ceramics recovered in burials
such as that of Yuknoom the Great and Yuknoom Yichak Kak, among others.
Jennifer has recently published in the Spring 2008 Ancient Mesoamerica,
and has a chapter coming out in Archaeology of Intoxication, edited by
Sean Rafferty.
Maize has a played an extraordinary role in the lives of the Maya, and
Ms. Newman has begun to document its use in ritual vessels at the site
of Calakmul. In 2007, Ms. Newman extracted residue samples from
22 ceramics recovered from elite burials and dedicatory caches
excavated at Calakmul, in order to discover their contents. As plants
grow, they extract minerals from the soil, which can be stored in the
cell walls, and later identified in microfossils left behind. Each
plant type leaves characteristic microfossils of different appearance
and chemical composition. Centuries later, mineralized
remains are still present in minute amounts in vessels which had
contained these vegetal products. Even after washing, minute remains
can be found in the small cracks and grooves of the hand built, low
fired ceramics; phytoliths can often be found encased in cooked food
char. Jennifer was able to able carefully extract this residue from the
Calakmul vessels. Using both chemical analysis and microscopic
examination she was then able to detect, and even microscopically
observe, silica phytoliths in a shape characteristic of maize in some
of the vessels. Many of the other traditional Mesoamerican foods and
drinks, which would typically be found in ceremonial containers have
been extracted and analyzed recently, as well. Cacao, squash and any
other seed bearing plant leave phytoliths of distinctly different
composition and appearance, and agave remains contain calcium based
crystalline phytoliths. Jennifer indicated that she has 23 very small
samples in analysis, with 10 more in preparation, and she will continue
with further liquid analysis, including lipid extraction.
Ms.
Newman then compared modern maize with its ancestor grain, teosinte,
which she hypothesized was used originally to create a nutrient rich
drink which was fermented into beer for preservation. Modern maize has
the largest growing range of any domesticated grain, and is extremely
drought resistant, explaining its dominant place in the nutrient base
of the Americas. She concluded her talk with a description of the tombs
in which the ceramics studied were found, which were rich in maize
imagery as well as the discovered maize residue. The group enjoyed a
discussion of her findings, and all wish Jennifer well in her future
research!
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