Depictions of sacred plants in Maya pottery investigated

Hot on the heels of the belated identification of the “penis pepper” depicted on Moche pottery comes more news of ethnobotanical detective work involving plant iconography. Natural historian and archaeologist Charles Zidar of the Missouri Botanical Garden and botanist Wayne Elisens of the University of Oklahoma looked at 2,500 images from southern lowland Maya (Belize, Guatemala and Mexico) ceramics dated to the Classical Period (AD 250 to 900). They focused on depictions of Bombacoideae, “which are easily identified morphologically and have culinary, medicinal, ceremonial, economic, and cosmological significance to the Maya.” Of the ten species present in the area, four or five were found represented on the ceramics.

“I was surprised that a variety of plants from this family were depicted,” says Zidar.

Among them is Ceiba pentandra:

Considered the “first tree”, or “world tree”, the ceiba was thought to stand at the centre of the Earth. Modern indigenous people still often leave the tree alone out of respect when harvesting forest wood.

The thorny trunks of the ceiba tree are represented by ceramic pots used as burial urns or incense holders, which are designed in a strikingly similar fashion.

Investigation of the plant images is continuing, and is being extended to animals. Here’s Zinder again:

By determining what plants were of importance to the ancient Maya, it is my hope that identified plants can be further studied for pharmaceutical, culinary, economic and ceremonial uses. More should be done to conserve large tracts of forest in order to properly study theses plants for their value to mankind.

LATER: By the way, there are some depictions of plants in Mayan art which have yet to be identified.

Melaku Worede on the Seed Treaty

“Ex-situ gene banks have an important role to play. But we’ve been trying to save seed in gene banks for the last half century, with more failures than successes. To ensure a sustained supply of useful germplasm and a more dynamic system of keeping diversity alive, we must support farmers in maintaining seed in their field. If we lose this living diversity Africa and the world will not be able to adjust to climate change,” Worede said.

Nibbles: Coca to cacao, BXV, Chinese gardening, Forest conservation, Amazon, Soil bacteria, Prairie, Genetics, Wildcats, Milk product

Drugs on the tube

I’ve been alerted to the existence of a new television series from the BBC of definite agrobiodiversity interest, called “Grow your own drugs.” It is presented by James Wong, a young ethnobotanist who trained at Kew and now lectures at Kent University. There’s a book that goes with the series. James “passionately believes that safe, natural remedies can be made from the everyday plants you find in hedgerows, the back garden or local garden centres.”

”Nowadays we think of plants as pretty objects, as soft furnishings in an outdoor room,” he says. “But just two generations ago they were your hardware store and chemist all rolled into one.” In Malaysia, where Wong grew up, everyone treated themselves with natural remedies. Food, too, was used as medicine – not only herbs, but ginger, chilli and garlic to ward off the symptoms of a cold. “My grandmother had a tiny patch of garden,” says Wong, “which to anyone else would just look like a bunch of flowers, but she could make soup, or a face pack, or something to treat insect bites, in a matter of minutes. It was magical – real Harry Potter stuff.”

Sounds intriguing. Has anyone seen it? Drop us a line. And thanks to Tom for the tip.

LATER: Of course, traditional medicine is going mainstream in some places.