Moving beyond iconography: Neutron activation analysis of ceramics from Marcaya, Peru, an early Nasca domestic site

Fineware polychrome ceramics of the Nasca culture (A.C. 1--750), renowned for their elaborate iconography and artistic and technical quality, have only recently been examined for the social and economic contexts of their production. We present the results from a pilot study of instrumental neutron activation of a sample of excavated ceramics from the Early Nasca domestic site of Marcaya, Peru. The study indicates variability in the chemical composition of plainware ceramics, while painted vessels and panpipes from the site form a single compositional group. These results are evaluated in light of existing models of Nasca pottery production and exchange. Since excavations did not reveal evidence for pottery production at Marcaya, we suggest that the results of the compositional analysis indicate that the fineware ceramics at Marcaya were produced elsewhere. This pilot study demonstrates that compositional analyses of Nasca ceramics can make a significant contribution to the study of Nasca pottery production, and it provides a valuable comparative dataset for future analyses.