Baking Pot Codex Restoration Project, Belize

Conservation of Artifact R at SCMRE

The treatment strategies utilized for the Cerén artifacts formed the basis for the conservation materials selection and the steps proposed in the condition report and conservation workplan [Beaubien and Chemello 2003].

In selecting conservation materials and methods to achieve these goals, the issues of long term stability and reversibility were weighed carefully, particularly if the materials were to be introduced into or be in direct contact with original parts. Materials also needed to work effectively in environments that might not be well controlled for humidity, temperature, light, earthquake protection, or pests. Inherent features of the artifact materials, such as highly fragmentary state and possible water sensitivity of the paint flakes, also had to be considered as they would affect the choice of conservation materials and techniques.

Conservation actions were carried out by Beaubien at SCMRE, beginning first with Artifact R/Portion B (November 2003 to February 2004) [Beaubien 2004]. The block was excavated in its inverted orientation. A 5cm-thick layer of sub-floor matrix soil was removed, containing white bits of calcium carbonate and bits of charcoal; no paint flakes were encountered. It terminated quite cleanly at a layer of white compact crumbly material (the underside of the floor), interrupted only by 1cm-thick plant root angling across the entire block. This had pushed the floor out of plane and probably contributed to the block’s disruption during lifting.

Deposit on the floor

Little deposit material was present on one half, corresponding to an area where ceramic vessels had rested on the floor. Excavation focused on the other half, where the deposit was approximately 3-4cm deep. As the whitish floor material was removed, paint fragments were exposed in several areas (Figure 14, below). At this point, a grid was defined in order to be able to document their location. Eight grid squares, in two rows of four, were created, with the root lying along the top border of grids 5 through 8.

Click on image to enlarge.

As excavation of the deposit progressed and paint flakes were encountered, they were cleaned in situ in order to define their extent, orientation or other features that might define a paint layer. No continuous layers were found. Instead, paint flakes occurred either in discrete clusters or were randomly scattered. These were treated as possible to retain their association and to remove them as an entity using a variety of reversible lifting techniques. The excavated painted remains are described below, grouped according to ground color using terminology defined by Chemello in her technical study (see Section IV). Distribution by grid location, original stratigraphic position, and possible relationships are discussed for each.

• Polychrome painting on cream ground
  The paint flakes on cream ground had color patterns of bright green, salmon red and pink, yellow and white; the use of black lines was not found. The ground appears to be primarily of the smooth variety, although further examination may yield examples of the rough variety as well. Fragments of this type were found primarily in B-5, 6 and 7.  The two most intact patches of paint were found lying on top of the floor and are possibly related to the same object (Figure 15). However, their orientations differed (paint-side-up and -down, respectively); their relationship is currently unclear.

• Polychrome painting on white ground
  Most of the fragments excavated from the block were of this type, with green the prevalent color, and design elements in olive green, salmon red, brick red and white, with black lines. Fragments of this type were found in all grid locations from B-1 through B-8, with the greatest concentration in the four-corner area of B-1, 2, 5 and 6, and in B-7.  The most intact patches of paint were found oriented paint-sides-down, possibly connecting (Figure 16). Lying between them and the floor were crumbly shell fragments and some deposit soil.

• Monochrome painting on white ground with red flecks
  Flakes with red-flecked white ground were only painted with faded green. This fragment type was concentrated in B-7 and 8, intermixed with soil chunks that indicate significant disturbance in these areas. As an example, the most intact patch of paint was found in a vertical orientation (Figure 17, shown below, and Figure 18).

Click on image to enlarge.

• Monochrome painting on brown ground (with or without red intermediate layer)
  Only bright green paint was used with the brown ground types. The flakes were found only in grid B-5, and particularly near the edge of the block (Figure 19 and Figure 20, shown below). The most intact patches occurred in paint-side-up orientation, with some deposit soil occurring between the fragments and the floor surface.

Click on image to enlarge.

Other than the paint flakes, there were two notable components of the deposit, both of which may shed light on now-degraded substrate materials. One was a thin layer of dark pink and white fibrous crumbly fragments, which may be the degraded remains of shell. These occur extensively in grid B-6, extending into B-5, and just into B-1, 2 and 7.  It is possible that at least one of the paint layers (possibly associated with the brown ground) decorated this type of material. The other component is a dark brown compact material, noted as a 2.5mm thick layer lying just above the floor in cross-section on the sides of Portions A and B during preliminary stabilization in Belize. It was also found lying on the floor in contact with the underside of paint cluster B-5.4, and may represent the remains of that paint layer’s organic substrate.

Portion A has not yet been excavated. While it is possible that its deposit may contain better preserved constituents, their general character is not expected to differ significantly from that of the constituents found in Portion B.  However, additional paint layer expanses would be expected to provide more insight into the decorative scheme of the artifact(s).

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