Ritual drinks in the pre-Hispanic US Southwest and Mexican Northwest.

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Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2015 Sep 15;112(37):11436-42. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1511799112. Epub 2015 Sep 8.

Crown PL¹, Gu J², Hurst WJ³, Ward TJ², Bravenec AD², Ali S², Kebert L², Berch M², Redman E², Lyons PD⁴, Merewether J⁵, Phillips DA⁶, Reed LS⁷, Woodson K⁸.

Author information

• ¹Department of Anthropology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131; pcrown@unm.edu.
• ²Keck Center for Instrumental and Biochemical Comparative Archaeology, Millsaps College, Jackson, MS 39210;
• ³Hershey Technical Center, Hershey, PA 17033;
• ⁴Arizona State Museum, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721;
• ⁵Crow Canyon Archaeological Center, Cortez, CO 81321;
• ⁶Maxwell Museum of Anthropology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131;
• ⁷Aztec Ruins National Monument, Aztec, NM 87410;
• ⁸Cultural Resource Management Program, Gila River Indian Community, Sacaton, AZ 85147.

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.

KEYWORDS:

US Southwest/Mexican Northwest; archaeology; cacao; holly; ritual drinks