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Thursday, October 28, 2010

Photo: Mysteries of "Sacrificial" Maya Blue Pigment Solved?


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A pottery bowl found at the bottom of a Mexico sinkhole recently revealed surprising insights into the Maya culture's use of a hardy blue pigment famed for its ability to resist aging, chemicals, and corrosion.

Scientists say the colorant, known as Maya blue, likely played a central religious and sacrificial role in ceremonies honoring the rain god Chaak.

Photograph by John Weinstein; courtesy of the Field Museum