Developments in Ceramic Materials Research

Postclassic Maya Ceramic Advances 23
Figure 10. Plot of chromium and cerium base-10 logged concentrations demonstrating the possible
membership of the orange-red clay samples (identified as +) within the non-ash paste Vitzil Orange-
Red ware compositional group. Samples were analyzed by INAA. Ellipses represent 90% confidence
intervals for group membership.
In addition to ceramic paste analyses, understanding the differences in exterior slips and
the various pigments used for the painted decoration of the Postclassic slipped pottery is
important to this study and could only be achieved through chemical analysis. Petrographic
analysis did include an examination of the slips; however, no obvious differences in the kinds
of slips being used for different types of pottery were detectable. Clemencia Cream Paste
ware exterior slips divide into three different chemical compositional groups. One of the
exterior slip groups corresponds to the Clemencia Cream Paste ware volcanic ash tempered
group. The other two slip groups correspond to pottery excavated from Zacpetén and Tipuj
(Cecil and Neff 2006:1487) and the slips excavated from Tipuj are thinner and of a poorer
quality (fireclouding and matte finish) than those excavated from structures at Zacpetén.
Exterior slips of the Vitzil Orange-Red ceramic group form two main groups with some
outlierers (Figure 11). The two slip groups correspond to archaeological sites from the
western lakes region (Ch’ich’ and Ixlú) and those from the eastern lakes region (Red Slip
Group B—Zacpetén and Tipuj). The outliers represent decorated sherds from the eastern
lakes. The slips from the western lakes region are thicker, have a glossy finish, and the sherds
are generally not decorated. These slips correspond to the paste group discussed above from
Ch’ich’ further suggesting that there was a manufacturing zone for Vitzil Orange-Red pottery
at or near the archaeological site of Ch’ich’.
Snail-Inclusion Paste ware exterior slips as a whole (pink, red, and black) do not form
any statistically significant compositional groups; however, the Trapeche “pink” exterior slips
separate into two chemical compositional groups that are statistically significant (Figure 12)
(Cecil and Neff 2006:1487-1488). Group 1 is composed primarily of pink double-slipped
pottery from Zacpetén and Group 2 contains the same kind of slipped pottery primarily from