An Unexplored Realm in the Heartland of the Southern Gulf ... - Famsi

iconographic detail, and appear to have been rendered according to the artistic canons
developed by artisans at the La Venta ceremonial center (González-Lauck 2001:800).
The stylistic and iconographic similarities are seen in the portrayal of clothing,
headdresses, body positions, and adornments (Clark and Pye 2000:228).
Sculptural examples of this temporally limited and shared art-style are found at
Chalcatzingo, Morelos (Grove 1984-68); Amuco, Guerrero (Grove and Paradis 1971);
along the Soconusco Coast at Pijijiapan, Tzutzuculi, and Abaj Takalik; at the sites of
Xoc, in central Chiapas; Loltún, in northern Yucatan; and the most distant image was
found at Chalchuapa, El Salvador (see: Clark and Pye 2000:226-230; Sharer 1978)
(Figure 2.3). Paintings found in Juxtlahuaca and Oxtotitlan, Guerrero may be an
extension of these carvings (Grove 1970).
These sculptural examples appear to be evidence of exchange and interaction between the
people of La Venta and those in distant dispersed locations, and may be indicative of
some level of Gulf Coast influence within the territory (Grove 2001:557). The
appearance of the stylistically and thematically similar monumental carved stone images
may have been a public symbol of participation in the Mesoamerican exchange and
acquisition system. Taube (2000, 2004) and Reilly (1991, 1995, 2005) consider various,
primary iconographic elements in each of these sculptures as being related to maize.
By the Middle Formative period (c. 900 to 400 BC), corresponding isotopic and
botanical evidence indicates that maize was a lesser part of the human diet along the Gulf
Coast lowlands (Pohl et al. 1996; Pope et al. 2001). In the nearby Tuxtla Mountains,
maize is not seen as a major portion of the diet until the Terminal Formative period (c.
100 BC to AD 200) (VanDerwarker 2006:190). With the wealth of alternative
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