Heat, Steam, and Health: The Archaeology of the Mesoamerican Pib Naah (Sweat Baths)

This collection contains the abstracts of the papers presented in the session entitled "Heat, Steam, and Health: The Archaeology of the Mesoamerican Pib Naah (Sweat Baths)" at the 88th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Sweat baths have a deep history in Mesoamerica. While also used by males, they have a pan-Mesoamerican association with women and women’s health issues, including childbirth, general fertility, and gynecological illnesses. Ancient images and recent excavations demonstrate the links between goddesses, fertility-linked reptiles, and sweat baths. In the last decade a number of sweat baths have been excavated providing new information on the form sweat baths of the precontact period took and the types of offerings associated with them. In addition, in some areas of Mesoamerica each household had a sweat bath, while in others sweat baths appear to be a structure shared communally. This session includes papers on ancient and modern sweat baths.