Pre-hispanic pottery from the Zoque area of Tabasco, Mexico: Provenance implications

Abstract

In this contribution, outcomes of recent studies on pre-Hispanic ceramics from Zoque Area (mountainous region of Tabasco State, Southeastern Mexico) are presented. The collection included 136 sherds, mainly recovered from ritual offerings contexts, in 13 diverse archaeological spots (three settlements, nine caves, and a rock shelter). Morpho-functional analysis of this collection allowed identifying the ceramic typology, according available bibliography. In parallel, pottery Type-Variety identification made to set a relative chronology for the Zoque cultural area, ranging from Early-Late Preclassic (1200 BCE-250 CE), until Early-Late Postclassic Period (1100–1500 CE), although not in continuous occupation. INAA and multivariate statistics analysis were applied to the ceramic pastes. According to this study, samples were grouped in distinct chemical-composition clusters, for each Period, which allows recognizing some features: A) many analyzed items were locally manufactured; B) Zoque Preclassic ceramic pastes are different from Olmec pottery and from Oaxaca Highlands; C) some Zoque pottery has similar chemical composition to pastes from San Lorenzo, San Isidro and Pomoca, since Preclassic times until later Periods; D) several Late-Terminal Classic and Early-Late Postclassic Zoque pastes are chemically similar to Maya ceramics. These results indicate that the Zoque, additionally to produce their own pottery, were involved in the shifting ceramics exchange networks of Southeastern Mexico, over time.