A Caracol Identity

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The people of Late Period Caracol shared a common idenity that was distinct from that found at other Maya sites. One of the ways that this identity was expressed was through residential use of special ceramic cache vessels. Two kinds of residential caches are found. The first kind consists of various sized ceramic containers that were modeled in shape of human, god, and bird heads. These were sometimes accompanied by eccentrically-shaped obsidians. The second kind of cache consists of small undecorated ceramic dishes that were placed lip-to-lip or one on top of another. These sometimes contained the remains of human fingers. Caracol’s identity was also expressed in the extensive use of tombs at the site, in the prevalent use of seashell for ornamentation, in the relatively common practice of putting jadeite or hematite inlays in human teeth, and in the widespread distribution of incense burners during the later part of the Classic Period.

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