Prologue

Hello Anthropology Enthusiasts! This blog is for the University of Virginia's class, “Ancient Maya, Aztec, Mixtec, and Zapotec: Peoples of Mesoamerica”, headed by Professor Abigail Holeman and Katie Shakour. We, Autumn and Larise, are to select a significant component of Ancient Mesoamerican archeology and present biweekly blogs for the Spring Semester of ‘13 regarding the topic of choice. As you can tell by the title, “Ceramics in Mesoamerica: The Ritual Usage of an Ancient Art”, this blog will take a look at the ceramic remains of past Mesoamerican cultures. We aim to identify and expound upon the potential cultural and/or ritual significance they once served from enlightening readings and articles, from how certain ceramics were made to the way in which they were used in rituals.

Examples of ceramics specifically for ritual uses (Evans 121).

Evans, S. T. Ancient Mexico & Central America. London, England: Thames & Hudson Ltd, 2004. Print.

 

 

Ceramics were common tools used in daily life for early Mesoamericans. These ceramics, created in various shapes, sizes, and colors, were utilized for a multitude of things, with certain styles and shapes serving less-secular purposes. They came into use in the Initial and Early Formative period and were slowly incorporated into rituals (Evans 106). Rituals such as fertility or death ceremonies involved various types of ceramics that were incorporated due to their significant shapes, colors, which would have greatly differed from the normal daily-use ceramics. From bowls used to catch ritual blood-lettings to plates and vases used to offer goods to the gods, ceramics played an integral role in many Mesoamericans’ ritual realms. We hope to discover just how these significant ceramics served the Mesoamerican lifestyle of the past, and how the ceramics’ production and function came to serve the cultures’ ritual needs.

 

An example of Conejo Orange-on-White pottery from Etlatongo, with clay that originates from the Olmec site of San Lorenzo, Veracruz.

Rose, Mark. ‘Olmec People, Olmec Art’. Archaeological Institute of America. Mar. 28, 2005. Web. Jan. 31, 2013. http://archive.archaeology.org/online/features/olmec/index.html