Ulúa-Style Marble Vase Project: Dissemination of Results

Chronology of Ulúa Marble Vases

Based on archaeological contexts with Ulúa polychromes, Ulúa vase distribution, established exchange networks of artifacts from the Ulúa valley (see Joyce 1985, 1986, 1993a, 1985, 1996; Henderson 1984, 1988, 1992a, 1992b, 1997b; Hirth 1988; Stone 1957, 1972, 1977; Robinson 1978, 1987; Viel 1978), a working chronology of Ulúa-style marble vases can be constructed. Stratigraphic data from the central valley provide the best context for the earliest documented Ulúa marble vase, associated with a Red Class polychrome, ca. 650 A.D. (Joyce, personal communication). Those vases with bird and bat handles (ca. 650-750 A.D.) appear to predate those with feline characteristics (750-850 A.D.) (see Luke 2002 for details). The best evidence for this is the types of vases found in the southern regions. Communication routes were strongest along the southern networks during the early phases of the Late Classic (Joyce 1986). The close stylistic association with Late Classic Lug Head polychromes Paloma and Bombero (see Joyce 1993a; Viel 1978) and marble vases found in the south also argues for an earlier date for marble vases with bird and monkey handles than those with feline handles. Vases with feline characteristics are found to the north in the central Maya Lowlands, again following documented shifts in stylistic changes and communication networks during the end of the Late Classic (see Joyce 1986, 1993b, 1996). The vases from the central Maya Lowlands also provide the latest known contexts, ca. 800-850 A.D.  Other stylistic motifs offer additional dating criteria. For example, scale border types, most commonly found on vases with bird and bat handles, are another reliable stylistic criteria for early vases, while voussure and mat motifs in the borders are usually associated with later styles.

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