Precolumbian use of chili peppers in the Valley of Oaxaca, Mexico
- *Archaeobiology Program, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, P.O. Box 37012, Washington, DC 20013-7012; and
- ‡Museum of Anthropology,1109 Geddes Avenue, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1079
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Communicated by Joyce Marcus, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, May 29, 2007 (received for review April 1, 2007)
Abstract
Excavations at Guilá Naquitz and Silvia's Cave, two dry rockshelters near Mitla, Oaxaca, Mexico, yielded the remains of 122 chili peppers dating to the period A.D. 600–1521. The chilies can be assigned to at least 10 cultivars, all belonging to the species Capsicum annuum or Capsicum frutescens. The specimens are well enough preserved to permit an evaluation of the criteria used to separate wild and domestic chilies and to distinguish among cultivated races. In addition, they provide the opportunity to assess the reliability of starch grains for documenting the presence of chilies in archaeological sites where no macrobotanical remains are preserved.
Footnotes
- †To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: perryli{at}si.edu
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Author contributions: L.P. performed research; L.P. and K.V.F. analyzed data; and L.P. and K.V.F. wrote the paper.
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The authors declare no conflict of interest.
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This article contains supporting information online at www.pnas.org/cgi/content/full/0704936104/DC1.
- © 2007 by The National Academy of Sciences of the USA
