Búcarofagia: Preliminary Investigations on the Consumption of Tonalá Bruñida Ware

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "Paper / Report Submission (General Sessions)", at the 2025 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

Tonalá Bruñida is an Indigenous Mexican ceramic ware that originated in the late colonial period and is still in production today. This ware is distinguished by its paste, made from a combination of two clays native to the Tonalá region, by a distinct slip which produces a specific scent when in contact with water, and by a meticulous process of burnishing. Tonalá Bruñida was eaten and consumed in high volumes as a luxury commodity among the elite classes of Spain. In fact, it grew to such significance that it was shipped in great quantities whole and in sherds for distribution among the upper classes across Europe, as evidenced by its extensive presence on multiple shipwrecks of the period. This paper presents preliminary results of a project investigating the nutritional and cultural values associated with the geophagia and cultural commodification that inspired the extensive maritime export of an Indigenous ceramic product.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Paper / Report Submission (General Sessions)   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2025

Keywords

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Nicole Haddow