A PHYTOLITH AND STARCH RECORD OF FOOD AND GRIT IN MAYAN HUMAN TOOTH TARTAR

Author(s): Linda Scott Cummings; Ann Magennis

Year: 1997

Summary

Diet often is reconstructed based on indirect evidence. Tooth tartar traps food particles, preserving a record of food consumed. Dental calculus removed from primary and secondary burials at Kichpanha was examined to identify imbedded phytoliths, starch granules, and debris as indicators of diet. The purpose of this study is to determine whether phytoliths and starch granules are preserved and recoverable from human dental calculus, to establish appropriate methods for this recovery and to identify specific plants consumed. Kichpanha is a lowland Mayan site in north central Belize. This small, peripheral site was occupied from the Preclassic to the Early Postclassic (900 BC - 900 AD).

Cite this Record

A PHYTOLITH AND STARCH RECORD OF FOOD AND GRIT IN MAYAN HUMAN TOOTH TARTAR. Linda Scott Cummings, Ann Magennis. In The State-of-the-Art of Phytoliths in Soils and Plants. Madrid: Monografias del Centro de Ciencias Medioambientales. 1997 ( tDAR id: 380544) ; doi:10.6067/XCV8V987PC

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

Keywords

Culture
Maya

Material
Dental calculus • Human Remains

Site Name
Kichpanha

Investigation Types
Data Recovery / Excavation

General
95-093 • Phytolith Analysis • Starch Analysis

Geographic Keywords
Belize (Country) • South America (Continent)

Spatial Coverage

min long: -89.231; min lat: 15.882 ; max long: -88.044; max lat: 18.5 ;

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): PaleoResearch Institute

Record Identifiers

PRI Technical Contract(s): 95-093

File Information

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95-93.pdf 834.76kb Dec 27, 2012 11:23:11 AM Public