Analysis of microbotanical remains from dental calculus: a new approach for ancient diet studies.

Summary

Paleodiet analysis from individuals found inside the Great Temple ritual deposits have been succesfully conducted by analyzing carbon and nitrogen isotopes, with the aim of distinguishing between marine and terrestrial diets.

Recently, we incorporated microbotanical analysis of dental calculus to these studies in order to search for plants remains, with the goal of having a broad picture of ancient diet and paramasticatory use of the oral cavity.

For this purpose we selected individuals with severe dental calculus (plaque). Inside these residues we can find microbotanical remains, such as grains starch, pollen, phytoliths and fibers.

In this paper we will present preliminary results on the analysis of five individuals found inside Offering 20, all of them presenting severe dental calculus, when comparing to other skeletons discovered inside other ritual deposits.

At this point we have identified the presence of Agave sp. fibers and cells, proving that this plant was consumed not only as an alcoholic beverage during certain ceremonies, but also the maguey's heart or pine, was utilized as part of the diet.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 82nd Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC (2017)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 17633