title: Ritual drinks in the pre-Hispanic US Southwest and Mexican Northwest.
abstract: Chemical analyses of organic residues in fragments of pottery from 18 sites in the US Southwest and Mexican Northwest reveal combinations of methylxanthines (caffeine, theobromine, and theophylline) indicative of stimulant drinks, probably concocted using either cacao or holly leaves and twigs. The results cover a time period from around A.D. 750-1400, and a spatial distribution from southern Colorado to northern Chihuahua. As with populations located throughout much of North and South America, groups in the US Southwest and Mexican Northwest likely consumed stimulant drinks in communal, ritual gatherings. The results have implications for economic and social relations among North American populations.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anthropology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131; pcrown@unm.edu.
authors.forename: Patricia L
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Crown
authors.affiliation: Keck Center for Instrumental and Biochemical Comparative Archaeology, Millsaps College, Jackson, MS 39210;
authors.forename: Jiyan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gu
authors.affiliation: Hershey Technical Center, Hershey, PA 17033;
authors.forename: W Jeffrey
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Hurst
authors.affiliation: Keck Center for Instrumental and Biochemical Comparative Archaeology, Millsaps College, Jackson, MS 39210;
authors.forename: Timothy J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Ward
authors.affiliation: Keck Center for Instrumental and Biochemical Comparative Archaeology, Millsaps College, Jackson, MS 39210;
authors.forename: Ardith D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Bravenec
authors.affiliation: Keck Center for Instrumental and Biochemical Comparative Archaeology, Millsaps College, Jackson, MS 39210;
authors.forename: Syed
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ali
authors.affiliation: Keck Center for Instrumental and Biochemical Comparative Archaeology, Millsaps College, Jackson, MS 39210;
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kebert
authors.affiliation: Keck Center for Instrumental and Biochemical Comparative Archaeology, Millsaps College, Jackson, MS 39210;
authors.forename: Marlaina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Berch
authors.affiliation: Keck Center for Instrumental and Biochemical Comparative Archaeology, Millsaps College, Jackson, MS 39210;
authors.forename: Erin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Redman
authors.affiliation: Arizona State Museum, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721;
authors.forename: Patrick D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Lyons
authors.affiliation: Crow Canyon Archaeological Center, Cortez, CO 81321;
authors.forename: Jamie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Merewether
authors.affiliation: Maxwell Museum of Anthropology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131;
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Phillips
authors.affiliation: Aztec Ruins National Monument, Aztec, NM 87410;
authors.forename: Lori S
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: Reed
authors.affiliation: Cultural Resource Management Program, Gila River Indian Community, Sacaton, AZ 85147.
authors.forename: Kyle
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Woodson
mesh_terms: D001106:Archaeology; D001628:Beverages / Q000032:analysis* / Q000266:history*; D002099:Cacao; D002110:Caffeine; D002562:Ceremonial Behavior; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D003466:Cultural Characteristics / Q000266:history*; D005502:Food; D005843:Geography; D049690:History, Ancient; D006801:Humans; D030017:Ilex; D008800:Mexico; D015206:Southwestern United States; D053719:Tandem Mass Spectrometry
chemical_list: D002110:Caffeine
keywords: US Southwest/Mexican Northwest; archaeology; cacao; holly; ritual drinks