Caching in Context at Cerros, Belize
Debra Walker2013, Cerros Research Online Catalogue (CROC) Newsletter
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Abstract
"This paper synthesizes information on Late Preclassic Cerros pottery vessels from cache contexts. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 2009 Belize Archaeology Symposium while negotiations were underway to transfer the Cerros collections to the Florida Museum of Natural History (FLMNH) at the University of Florida in Gainesville. Prior to that time, most of the materials had been stored in Dallas for more than 20 years and were difficult for researchers to access. Thanks to an agreement between permit holder David Freidel, the FLMNH, represented by Susan Milbrath and Debra Walker, and the Belize Department of Archaeology, represented by Jaime Awe, the transfer was completed at the end of 2009. Since that time Milbrath and Walker secured funding to curate the collection and create an online database of artifact images and other site records, termed the Cerros Research Online Catalogue (CROC). That work is still in progress, although a preliminary web site is active for viewing portions of the collection, www.flmnh.ufl.edu/latinarch/cerros/gallery.htm. Unless otherwise noted, the figures and tables in this report were created by the author from FLMNH and CROC resources. Most of the pottery vessels illustrated have been photographed as a result of the 2009 transfer to the FLMNH. New images as well as details gained from curating artifacts and records improved the report dramatically. About 80 artifacts including pottery vessels from the 1970s project remain in the Belize Vault and are not part of the FLMNH collections. Images of those materials presented here are taken from the CROC photo archive which includes original project slides and photographs that have been digitized since 2009. The quality in these archival images is variable, but they add depth to the work as a whole. Most of these vessels have not been published before. "
