The Ceramic Sequence of Piedras Negras, Guatemala: Type and Varieties

     
(Click on images to enlarge.)

Introduction

Between March of 2001 and August of 2002, the ceramics excavated from the Classic Maya site Piedras Negras between 1997 and 2000 were subject of an intensive study conducted by the author and assisted by Lic. Mary Jane Acuña and Griselda Pérez of the Universidad de San Carlos in Guatemala City, Guatemala. ²   The primary goal of the analyses was to develop a revised Type:Variety classification of the Piedras Negras ceramics. Our objective was to produce a sequence that was as representative of the site-wide assemblage as possible, that took advantage of the excellent provenience data developed in the course of the 1997–2000 excavations, that reflected our improved understanding of the site’s and region’s historical trajectory as well as the developmental trajectory of ceramics elsewhere in the Maya Lowlands. With regard to the developmental sequence of ceramics elsewhere in the Maya area, Bishop and Rand’s research on the fine paste ceramics of the Pasión/Chixoy, and Jonuta regions were key, as was the comparative data shared with our project by ceramicists working with collections from other sites, most notably La Joyanca (Melanié Forne), Cancuén (Cassandra Bill), and El Mirador (Don Forsythe). The opportunity to see these collections and to work closely with these ceramicists, as well as our own observations of the ceramic type collections housed at the Ceramoteca and Museo Nacional in Guatemala City insured that our comparative understanding of the Piedras Negras ceramics was as broad and as accurate as possible.

The following report is broken into several sections. The first several sections describe the ceramic research at Piedras Negras, including the work of previous analysts, and the research begun in 2001.  This is followed by a description of the Piedras Negras ceramic sample as well as a description of the methods used in deriving the ceramic sequence. This narrative concludes with a phase-by-phase description of the Piedras Negras ceramic sequence.

The goal of this narrative is to provide an introduction to the more substantial portion of this report – a full listing of the ceramic types and varieties that comprise the Piedras Negras ceramic sequence. The listings are arranged chronologically, and present the types and varieties arranged by group and ware. Digital photographs are included of almost all Late Classic decorated types. Together, the list of types and the digital photographs provide a substantial reference to the ceramics of Piedras Negras, and the first published archive of the ceramics.

Endnote

2. The excavations at Piedras Negras were directed by Dr. Stephen Houston, then a professor at Brigham Young University, and Héctor Escobedo, of the Universidad del Valle de Guatemala. The author wishes to thank both for the invitation to work at Piedras Negras, it was a rare opportunity.

Table of Contents  |  Next Page