Political, Sacrificial, and Funerary Ceramics

Ceramics held a key importance in the Mesoamerican rituals, as we have seen by the birth and fertility rituals previously discussed. As the child grows, they are exposed to and participate in multiple rituals that interact and relate to their life cycles. Those very rituals – politically based, sacrifices, death and funerary- also incorporate ceramic usage in their own procedures. Through the use of ceramics, the rituals take on a substantive and tangible quality formed from the human imagination due to their man-made creations and interaction.

Political Rituals
 The political aspect of Mesoamerican life involved many demonstrations of power and wealth in front of potential enemies and allies. The Mayans had a tendency to highlight their authority and prowess politically through ritual gift-giving. When foreign dignitaries arrived to Mayan states and sat with the ruling officials, it was customary to provide exquisitely-made eating and drinking vessels for use during the banquet, and then gift the objects to the visitors. The vessels were created by professional artisans, and were ornately decorated with the Mayan language and mythology, enabling the gifted vessel to serve as tangible evidence of the Mayan skills and advancements. The rolled-out image of such a vessel (image 1) incorporates both the language and artistry of the Mayan civilization, and may even depict the very political ritual discussed.


This vase depicts a red-painted palace court building decorated with images of supernatural beings.The kneeling attendant offering the lord a small dish may be the vase's painter; his head is framed by an artist's signature. Two aristocratic men facing the enthroned lord pay homage to the lord and converse with him. One holds a large cylinder vase, like the one on which the painting appears, that likely contains chocolate to be consumed during the feast.( http://archive.archaeology.org/0303/abstracts/mayavase.html)

 

A depiction of an Aztec sacrifice
(http://www.paranormalknowledge.com/articles/aztec-human-sacrifice-rituals.html)

Sacrifices
The Aztecs –one of the best known Mesoamerican groups for their sacrifices- used ceramics within their ceremonial killings. After sacrificing their offerings –by functionary methods (holding down the body and cutting the heart out)- the priests would take the heart, offer it to the sun, and place it within a ceramic bowl held by the statue of the God. The same thing would occur for blood offerings.









Funerary Rituals
The funerary rituals involved the placement and care of the body and their remains with care and respect. Some funerary rights involved the burial and/or the entombment of the body with various goods that would be of use for the afterlife or represented the amount of wealth and stature that the deceased possessed during their lifetime. Other times, the funerary ritual involved the actual placement of the deceased’s remains within funerary vessels for exaltation or for future spiritual contact between the living and the dead. Vessels were made of either a carved jade stone or was detailed ceramic. Mayan vessels ranged from ceramic jars and bowls, to detailed jade urns with depictions of the deceased.

This picture shows a recently found Oxacan funerary vessel -painted in red, yellow, and black- that depicts the portrait of the deceased held inside. The deceased’s name is ‘Tremor8’ (http://www.hispanicallyspeakingnews.com/latino-daily-news/details/nearly-intact-1200-year-old-funerary-vessel-identified-in-oaxaca-mexico-tem/20848/) &(http://www.archaeology.org/news/407-130103-maya-atzompa-vessel)



Mayan depiction of a ceramic funerary vase.
 (http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/ceremonial-vessels.htm)

The use of ritual ceramics in these few select rituals contributed to the overall effectiveness and power to the minds of the Mesoamericans. By specializing the ceramics through depiction and skill, the ceramics take on a new context from their secular comparisons –if any-, and become the embodiment of what uses they provided. Whether the source of political statements or the container of offerings and the deceased and their spiritual powers, these pieces were highly regarded and held deep value to their respective societies.