Colors in the Chupicuaro Ceramic Tradition: A Diachronic Perspective during the Late Formative

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Polychromy, Multimediality, and Visual Complexity in Mesoamerican Art" session, at the 86th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

In Northwestern Mesoamerica, polychromy is a characteristic of Chupicuaro pottery during the Late Formative. It is the case for the hollow figures whose decoration is obtained by overlapping geometric motives painted in white and black on a red background. The figurines were also polychrome, even if the paints realized as a last stage of manufacture, post-firing, are generally poorly preserved. But sometimes pigments are retained in hollow spaces. The distribution of colors on these various artifacts seems to respond to a codification that covers meanings that are difficult, but essential to decipher. They seem to emphasize the sensory organs, part of the skull and ornaments, such as earrings or headgear. The archaeometric analyses also make it possible to identify the raw materials used in the preparation of the pigments that would have a hydrothermal origin. The range of pigments used evolves over time, with the notable introduction of specular red pigment, so appreciated by the inhabitants of Cuicuilco and later of Teotihuacan. This introduction of a painting with an iridescent aspect is significant of the influences both in the field of techniques and in the ideology suffered by Chupicuaro at the end of his cultural trajectory.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 86th Annual Meeting, Online (2021)   •
• Polychromy, Multimediality, and Visual Complexity in Mesoamerican Art

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 32593