Ceramics and Society within the Late Classic Motul de San José Polity: A Multidisciplinary Perspective

Summary

Over the past 15 years, Late Classic ceramics from Motul de San José and surrounding sites in the Central Petén Lakes area have been subjected to a variety of technical analyses. Modal and petrographic analyses of ceramics from sites throughout the Motul area have been used to explore intra-polity patterns of production and exchange for both elite and mundane vessels. At the same time, Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis (INAA) has been conducted on sherds from Motul to define production and exchange patterns for the well-known Ik’ corpus of feasting vessels, and has elucidated elite social networks between centers across the southern Maya lowlands. In this paper, we combine the various lines of technical research and present new INAA data from a constellation of nine sites—from modest farming hamlets to a major trading port—within the Motul polity. Using this extremely robust data set, we re-examine ceramic production and exchange between Motul and its satellite centers. We also consider how the larger Motul polity, through the perspective offered by the various smaller sites, was incorporated into larger, interregional interaction spheres.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 82nd Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC (2017)   •
• Ceramics and Society among the Classic Maya Cities of the Western Petén

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 16394