FROM CODEX TO CALABASH: RECOVERY OF A
 PAINTED ORGANIC ARTIFACT FROM THE
 ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE OF CEREN, EL SALVADOR
 HARRIET F. BEAUBIEN
 ABSTRACT--During the 1989 field season, a
 layered deposit of paint fragments was excavated
 at the site of Cerin, El Salvador, and thought to
 be the remains of a classic Maya period codex.
 Information gained from materials analysis and
 conservation treatment now suggests that it once
 was a painted calabash (or gourd), with the
 strongest evidence provided by the reconstructed
 decorative scheme and impressions of the disin-
 tegrated substrate preserved on the fragments'
 reverses. Supporting archaeological and literary
 evidence for this interpretation is presented, and
 treatment procedures and mount design are dis-
 cussed.
 1. OVERVIEW OF THE SITE
 The archaeological site of Ceren, located
 approximately 25 km northwest of San Sal-
 vador, El Salvador, was once a small village
 located in a fertile valley not far from a
 modest ceremonial center, now called San
 Andres. In ca. A.D. 600, a nearby volcano
 erupted explosively with little warning, en-
 veloping adobe structures, artifacts, plants,
 animals, and probably people in warm moist
 clouds of volcanic ash, and rapidly burying
 an approximately 20 sq km area under 4 to 6
 m of tephra (the material ejected from the
 volcano) (Zier 1983).
 The site, discovered during a Salvadoran
 agricultural project in 1976, has been under-
 goi g systematic excavation since 1989
under the aegis of the University of
 Colorado and is providing an unprecedented
 opportunity to study southern Mesoamerican
 hou eholds from the classic Maya period
 (Sheets t al. 1990). Due to the circumstan-
 ces of its burial, the site can be dated secure-
 ly to A.D. 590 ? 90 on the basis of radiocar-
 bon and archaeomagnetic analysis (Zier
 1983; Wolfinan 1992). Because it was
ca ast ophically abandoned (i.e., valuables
 were not taken by the departing inhabitants
 and the site was not "mined" subsequently
 for useful materials), it offers a relatively
 comprehensive and undisturbed picture of
 daily life. In addition, the depth of the vol-
 canic ash and the rapidity of its deposition
 have tempered the effects of some physical
 agents of deterioration, permitting the
 recovery of information that is ordinarily un-
 detectable in the archaeological record. This
 information includes evidence of the cultiva-
 tion and use of organic materials, such as
 seeds, garden plants, baskets, household fur-
 nishings, and structural elements (de Aguilar
 1991a; Gerstle 1989). Some of these
 materials survive directly or in carbonized
 form. Others, now completely decomposed,
 are documented by molds or impressions
 retained in adjacent materials. The painted
 artifact that is the subject of this article falls
 into this last category.
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 154 HARRIET F. BEAUBIEN
 2. DISCOVERY OF A POSSIBLE
 CODEX
 During the 1989 field season, a layered
 deposit of paint fragments was found in a
 niche located inside an adobe domestic
 building (Structure 2) (McKee 1989) (fig. 1).
 It occupied a rectangular area measuring 18
 x 15 cm and approximately 3 cm deep.
 Found in the niche with the deposit were
 three polychrome ceramic vessels, one with
 food remains, and a partial marine bivalve
 shell. Roof thatch collapsing into the build-
 ing had blocked the niche opening, prevent-
 ing complete inundation of the niche by
 subsequent surges of tephra. The deposit
 was relatively undisturbed, except for a su-
 perficial accumulation of ash, charred thatch,
 and some fallen adobe bits from the niche's
 ceiling. It was, however, extraordinarily
 fragile and in poor condition due to the
 complete deterioration of the organic
 material on which the paint was originally
 applied.
 At the time of their discovery and during
 the early stages of treatment, the paint frag-
 ments were thought to constitute the
 remains of a codex because of the deposit's
 layered structure (visible along the edges)
 and its flattened and rectangular format.
 "Codex" is a term commonly used to
 describe the indigenous Mesoamerican form
 of book. This identification prompted con-
 siderable interest among Mesoamericanists
 for a number of reasons.
 Although representations of codices ap-
 pear throughout the classic Maya period in
 wall and pottery decoration, fewer than 15
 examples have survived from Maya and
 neighboring cultures (Coe 1980). None of
 these has an archaeological provenance; all
 are thought to be later than the 12th century
 and were acquired at early dates by various
 I~
 i?6som
 . .. ... ..
 Fig. 1. Structure 2 niche, looking east, with
paint deposit in situ (lower left corner)
 library collections. Typically they are con-
 structed of a long sheet of felted amate (a fig
 bark) or maguey (agave cactus) fibers, folded
 like an accordion (von Hagen 1977). One
 or both sides are painted with a white sizing
 or ground layer followed by figural and
 glyph decoration using various mineral or
 organic pigments. The elite context of the
 codices is evidenced by their royal
 genealogical and astronomical content (Coe
 1980). Given the scarcity of these objects,
 the rare occurrence of layered paint deposits
 in archaeological contexts has occasioned
 reports of codex remains, although none has
 been successfully recovered or confirmed
 (Kidder et al. 1946; Angulo V. 1970; Agur-
 cia Fasquelle and Fash 1989). If Cer6n's
 paint remains were of a codex, its early date,
 secure provenance, and non-elite context
 would make its recovery extraordinary.
 3. LIFTING AND TRANSPORT
 The archaeologists removed the deposit
 from the niche by sliding a metal sheet along
 the adobe floor (fig. 2). No subsidiary sup-
 port was provided around its fragile edges
 either during the lift or subsequently during
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 FROM CODEX TO CALABASH: RECOVERY OF A PAINTED ORGANIC 155
 ARTIFACT FROM THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE OF CERtN
 storage in a plastic bag. Although the
 deposit maintained a general cohesiveness
 during the lifting process, attributable to ad-
 sorbed moisture from burial, some damage
 resulted from the technique. A partial layer
 of paint fragments remained attached to the
 niche floor in the area once occupied by the
 deposit, and the adjacent floor surface was
 considerably disturbed. Several anomalous
 chunks of adobe with adherent layered paint
 fragments, included with the deposit on the
 metal sheet, probably were dislodged from
 this area. The author was contacted at this
 point to provide assistance with stabilization
 of the deposit and removal of the remnant
 layer. These tasks were undertaken ap-
 proximately one week later.
 The paint layer was removed using a
 block-lifting technique. Allowing a margin
 of at least 2 cm on all sides, a shallow trench
 was cut into the floor so that a metal sheet
 could be slid 3 cm below the floor surface.
 While necessarily damaging the niche floor,
 this method resulted in no disruption of the
 remnant paint layer. The lifted section was
 set into an aluminum foil-lined cardboard
 box, and plaster of Paris was poured around
 the perimeter to prevent any subsequent
 movement of the adobe block. The paint
 fragments were then cleaned with a soft
 paintbrush and, once tested for sensitivity to
 water and organic solvents, retained in posi-
 tion with small strips of tengujo Japanese tis-
 sue and Dow Methocel A15C methyl cel-
 lulose in water.
 Given the rarity of the find and the lack
 of instrumentation and expertise in El Sal-
 vador to carry out a thorough investigation,
 a cooperative agreement for temporary
 transfer to the United States was signed, and
 the two components were packed and hand
 carried to the Smithsonian Institution's Con-
 SV
 Q4Y
 niq
 ;1-1 $w
 c '01
 al
 ..... . . . . . .
 ?IA
 14
 -44
 Fig. 2. Multilayer component, before treatment
 servation Analytical Laboratory (CAL). In
 time, the artifact would be safely mounted
 for return to the Museo Nacional David J.
 Guzmin in San Salvador.
 Protection in transit was provided as fol-
 lows. The "multilayer component" (lifted
 by the archaeologists) was transferred from
 i s plastic bag to a fitted foil-lined cardboard
box. Small pillows of Saran Wrap covered
 cotton wool and Ethafoam blocks were used
 along the sides to pad the deposit in posi-
 tion, and the surface was protected with a
 layer of Pellon overlaid with cotton wool.
The box was then enclosed in a plastic bag
 to maintain its high humidity. The "single-
 layer component" (lifted by the author) was
 similarly padded on its surface but did not
r quire bagging, as it had been allowed to
 air-dry. Each component was cushioned
 within a wooden carrying box using blocks
 of Ethafoam and rolled bubble wrap. The
 boxes were maintained in their horizontal
 orientation during their transport to CAL.
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 156 HARRIET F. BEAUBIEN
 4. MATERIALS ANALYSIS
 Preliminary analysis was carried out to iden-
 tify the paint fragment materials for guidance
 they might provide in attributing fragments
 to various paint layers and in treatment
 material choices. This analysis also was an
 opportunity to contribute to the inventory of
 pigments found in Mesoamerican contexts,
 the identifications of which often have not
 been confirmed analytically. Each fragment,
 no more than 0.5 mm thick, was composed
 of a white ground layer with one or more
 thinly applied pigmented layers. The results
 of analysis by polarized light microscopy,
 scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with
 energy dispersive x-ray analysis, and x-ray
 diffiaction analysis methods are presented in
 table 1. The fragments did not disaggregate
 in water or organic solvents, suggesting the
 presence of an insoluble binder in both
 ground and pigmented layers. However,
 this finding was not confirmed with either
 Fourier transform infrared
 spectrophotometry or ultraviolet fluores-
 cence microscopy, perhaps because of un-
 detectably low concentration. Preserved in
 the white ground on the reverse of the frag-
 ments were minute impressions, the only
 remaining evidence of the organic material
 that once served as the substrate for the
 paint layers. They were examined using
 SEM, along with comparative materials; the
 results are interpreted in section 6.
 5. TREATMENT
 Th  goals of the treatment were to identify
 the artifact through an investigation of struc-
 ture and decoration and to reconstruct its
 remains as completely as possible. For each
 of the two components, the process featured
 the painstaking reassembly of fragments into
 individual paint layers using methods that
 would allow both sides to be accessible for
 examination whenever possible. Evidence
 for interpretation thus could be gathered
 from the reconstructed design scheme as
 well as from the overall pattern of impres-
 sions on the reverse.
 The process (described more fully below)
 revealed that the artifact consisted of four
 distinct paint layers (fig. 3), all of which
 were present in the component lifted by the
 archaeologists (the "multilayer com-
 ponent"). The uppermost layer (layer 1),
 polychromatic and oriented paint side up,
 was paired with a paint-side-down
 Layer 1
 Layer 2 multi-layer
 Layer 3 .. component
 Layer 4 .
 metal ..
 sheet
 ______ _- ~single-layer
 / / / ! / F/ 71 component adobe floor
 Fig. 3. Diagram of the paint layer structure
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 FROM CODEX TO CALABASH: RECOVERY OF A PAINTED ORGANIC 157
 ARTIFACT FROM THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE OF CEPRN
 TABLE 1
 ANALYSES OF MATERIALS
 Principal constitutents are indicated in boldface, followed by
 identification method and results.
 WHITE PALE GREEN RED YELLOW OTHER
 GROUND
 LAYER 1 Kaolinite Unidentified clay Cinnabar* Yellow ochre + Black: not
 Kaolinite (a) mineral(s) Cinnabar (a) (b) Siliceous material identified (a)
 Si, Al Related to "green earth" Hg, S (c) Goethite (a)
 (K, Ti, Fe, S) Major peaks: 10.5, 7.2, Hematite Halloysite
 (c) 4.5, 3.6 (a) (only at periphery) Yellow ochre (b)
 Si, Al, Mg, Fe (Ca, K, Hematite (a) Si, Al, Fe (Ca, K,
 Ti, S, Cu) (c) Cu) (c)
 LAYER 2 Kaolinite Clay mineral(s)
 Kaolinite (a) Peaks as above (a)
 Inconclusive (d)
 LAYER 3 Kaolinite Clay mineral(s)
 Kaolinite (a) Peaks as above (a)
 Inconclusive (d)
 LAYER 4 Kaolinite Clay mineral(s) Hematite Siliceous material Brown:
 Kaolinite (a) Peaks as above (a) Hematite (a) Halloysite (a) not identified
 I I I I (a)
 *Cinnabar was identified as the primary constituent in purple and salmon-pink as well as red paints.
 (a) X-ray diffraction of powdered sample, using a Gandolfi camera with a Philips PW 1720 XRD unit
 (b) Polarized light microscopy of sample dispersed in Aroclor 5442, examined with a Leitz microscope
 (c) Scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive x-ray analysis of carbon-coated sample ounted in
 cross-section, using a JEOL JXA-840A Electron Probe Microanalyzer and Trac r Northern
 SEM/EDX in backscatter mode
 (d) Fourier transform infrared spectrophotometry, using a Mattson Cygnus 100 FTIR with a
 Spectratech IR-plan microscope
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 158 HARRIET F. BEAUBIEN
 monochromatic green layer (layer 2). Their
 contiguous white grounds suggested that the
 two paint layers had originally been applied
 to the upper and lower sides, respectively, of
 a single organic substrate. These uppermost
 layers were cluttered with charred roof
 debris and disrupted by small intrusive adobe
 chunks from the roof of the niche. Beneath
 this fragmentary pair of layers and separated
 by a thin homogeneous deposit of fine vol-
 canic ash was a second set: a paint-side-up
 monochromatic green layer (layer 3) and, on
 the bottom, a paint-side-down poly-
 chromatic layer (layer 4). This pair likely
 represented the two painted sides of a
 second organic substrate. The "single layer"
 adhering to the adobe floor (the component
 lifted by the author) proved to be part of the
 bottommost layer 4, cleaved by the action of
 the metal sheet at the time of excavation.
 The single-layer component was treated
 first because the fragments constituted only
 one layer and their configuration was rela-
 tively intact. Although oriented paint side
 down, they presented the most straightfor-
 ward opportunity to recover an expanse of
 design. The backing strips applied on site
 were reinforced with additional Japanese tis-
 sue, secured to the irregular surface with
 methyl cellulose adhesive. It was overlaid
 with a layer of Saran Wrap, and a conform-
 ing support was cast in plaster of Paris. The
 block-lifted segment was then inverted, the
 plaster collar removed, and the adobe floor
 carefully excavated away. As fragments
 were revealed, their surfaces were cleaned,
 and they were consolidated thoroughly to
 the backing tissue with 5-10% w/v Acryloid
 B-72 (Rohm & Haas) in acetone.
 The multilayer component was then ex-
 cavated with careful documentation after it
 was determined that imaging techniques
 were unlikely to provide usable information.
 Fragments were removed one by one using
 a dampened paint brush, delicately cleaned
 using deionized water or acetone, and edg -
 joined to reconstruct the individual layers.
 Jumbled fragments were collected in discrete
 groups for pos ible reintegration with the
 help of the documentation. Methyl cel-
 lulose was used whenever possible as the
 initial adhesive for edge-joining fragments.
 It provided a sufficiently strong temporary
 bond. At the same time, because fragments
 were manipulated frequently during this
 phase of treatment, it offered advantageous
 working properties, being both readily re-
 versible and nonadhesive to glass or plastic
 work surfaces. The dilute Acryloid B-72
 solution was found to function less flexibly
 and, for the purpose of initial reconstruction,
 to produce too effective an adhesive bond;
 in particular, joins were difficult to reverse
 without damaging the fragments. For final
 presentation, the layers were each secured in
 paint-side-up orientation to a tissue backing.
 Japanese tissue was used as the initial layer
 because of its exceptional ability to conform
 closely to fragment irregularities when ad-
 hered first with methyl cellulose. The frag-
 ments were then consolidated thoroughly to
 the backing tissue using Acryloid B-72 for
 strength and to reduce the risk of
 biodeterioration problems. Finally, leftover
 fragments whose original positions could not
 be ascertained were stored by location in
 polycarbonate boxes, available as untreated
 samples for future analysis if needed.
 Because of their disturbed condition,
 layers 1 and 2 could be reconstructed only in
 small islands. By contrast, the mono-
 chromatic layer 3 proved to be the most
 uninterrupted paint layer of the deposit and
 was of greatest interest for the extensive
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 FROM CODEX TO CALABASH: RECOVERY OF A PAINTED ORGANIC 159
 ARTIFACT FROM THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE OF CERtN
 impressions of the disintegrated substrate
 preserved on its reverse. The fragments
 were first lifted one by one onto a sheet of
 silicone-release Mylar and edge-joined
 where possible with methyl cellulose ad-
 hesive. The reconstructed layer (still paint
 side up) was then faced using Japanese tissue
 and methyl cellulose. With the sandwiched
 layer inverted, the Mylar could be peeled off
 easily, thus exposing the impression side for
 examination and documentation. The paint
 layer was eventually returned to its paint-
 side-up orientation for display by applying a
 tissue backing with methyl cellulose ad-
 hesive, inverting the sandwiched layer once
 again, and removing the facing tissue with a
 water-dampened brush. The fragments
 were then thoroughly consolidated to the
 tissue backing with Acryloid B-72.
 Since all other paint layers had been
 removed, the paint-side-down fragments
 comprising the bottom-most polychromatic
 layer (layer 4) were lifted in a single opera-
 tion rather than one by one. This procedure
 permitted the noticeable concave curvature
 at the periphery of the layer to be main-
 tained. The fragments were first backed
 with Japanese tissue and methyl cellulose ad-
 hesive. With a Saran Wrap separating layer,
 a conforming support was cast in plaster, the
 block inverted, and the metal sheet
 removed. Thatch and ash that had collected
 at the periphery were cleared from the
 fragments' paint surfaces, and these were
 consolidated to the tissue backing with
 Acryloid B-72. These fragments and those
 comprising the single-layer component were
 subsequently reunited on a single Japanese-
 tissue backing.
 ] pale green ]~ red
 .... yellow
 brown
 .. -......  cm
 .....- ........
 . ... ...-
 Fig. 4. Reconstruction drawing of decorative
 scheme, layer 4
 6. INTERPRETATION OF THE
 ARTIFACT REMAINS
 Unlike any known codex, the overall ap-
 plication of color and radiating design
 scheme of layer 4 suggest instead a rounded
 container with a decorated exterior, painted
 monochromatically on the interior (layer 3)
 (fig. 4). A comparable decorative approach
 can be found in contemporaneous Copador-
 style ceramics, which mimic the radiating
 segments of gourds or melons in their design
 (Beaudry 1989; SARCAR). The concave
 curvature around the edge of layer 4 likely
 reflects the original form of the artifact
 rather than distortion from the lifting
 process, ash and debris having lodged
 a ound the base prior to its collapse.
 The impressions on the reverse of layer 3
 offer the most persuasive argument for a
 gourd as the now-disintegrated organic sub-
 strate (fig. 5). They record an interlocking
 fibrous mesh with a coarse texture and
 radiating ribs, characteristic of a gourd's in-
 terior morphology (Heiser 1979; Florian et
 al. 1990), also seen on the reverses of layer 2
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 160 HARRIET F. BEAUBIEN
 Witi
 ........
 lotA
 Fig. 5. Reverse side of layer 3, showing impres-
 sions
 fragments. The flat reverses of layers 1 and
 4 fragments would correspond to the
 smooth exterior of the gourd's fruit shell.
 Silicone rubber molds taken from modem
 gourd specimens compared favorably with
 the paint fragment impressions, examined
 using SEM. While the latter were not suffi-
 cient to permit a definitive classification
 (Heiser 1992), the artifact's organic substrate
 was most probably a calabash, or tree gourd
 (Crescentia cujete or alata, known locally as
 morro or jicara), whose seeds have been ten-
 tatively identified among those stored at
 Cer6n (de Aguilar 1991b).
 Convincing comparisons can be made
 with several other artifacts excavated during
 the 1990 field season in a structure identified
 as a kitchen (Structure 11) (Mobley-Tanaka
 1990). Because of the relative openness of
 the building, these items were accessible to
 and engulfed by the first fine surge of
 tephra, which preserved the paint layers in
 their original configuration. In a lifting
 method devised by the archaeologists, the
 interior ash was removed, and the concavity
 was filled with dental plaster to provide sup-
 port for the fragile paint layer that articu-
 lated the outside surface. While the plaster
 filling made subsequent identification of the
 substrate impossible, the hemispherical form
 of the containers was preserved. Despite
 their differences in preservation, these ar-
 tifacts were otherwise comparable to the
 niche artifact in paint application technique,
 decorative schemes, and pigments employed.
 Based upon their association with either
 food preparation areas or ceramic serving
 vessels, they are all likely to have been food
 serving containers, although no residues
 were detected in any of the objects.
 It is quite possible that unidentified
 deposits of paint reported in excavations of
 other Maya sites once decorated organic
 substrates such as calabashes. One artifact
 from the ceremonial site of Tikil,
 Guatemala, lifted in 1965 using plaster of
Paris and on display in the site museum, may
 well be an example (Greene 1992). Even
 more direct evidence comes from the Sacred
 Cen te at the site of Chich6n Itzi, in the
 Yucatan Peninsula, an important Maya ritual
 center (Coggins and Shane 1984; Ediger
 1983). Archaeological dredgings in 1904
 and more systematic underwater explora-
 tions in 1967 of this natural limestone
 sinkhole yielded fragments of ornately
 painted gourds. Edward Herbert Thompson
 described the findings of the earlier effort as
 including "gourds coated with the same
 whitish enamel used on terracotta vessels
 and painted or hieroglyphed. The gourds
 were undoubtedly used not only for con-
 tainers for liquids but for other things such
 as corn and beans, as they are used by the
 modern Mayas" (quoted in Wilson 1947, 4).
 Further evidence of the use of calabashes
 in the daily life of the Maya is detailed in an
 account written in 1566 by the Spanish pre-
 late Diego de Landa. In Relacidn de las Cosas
 de Yucatdn, he writes in the section on food
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 FROM CODEX TO CALABASH: RECOVERY OF A PAINTED ORGANIC 161
 ARTIFACT FROM THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE OF CERtN
 and drink of a type of "vessel or gourd
 formed by the rind of a firuit that grows on a
 tree, whereby God has provided them with
 vessels"(de Landa 1937, 34). In the section
 on plants, flowers, and trees, he describes a
 tree "with a fr-uit like round gourds, out of
 which the Indians make their vessels; they
 are very handsome, and they paint them
 elaborately and beautifully" (de Landa 1937,
 103). Calabashes are used widely in Central
 America today as household containers and
 as tourist items, painted ornately as their
 ancient counterparts once were (de Aguilar
 1991b).
 7. MOUNTING FOR TRANSPORT,
 DISPLAY, AND STORAGE
 Considerations for mounting the fragmen-
 tary remains of Cerin's painted calabash in-
 cluded the need to provide ample physical
 protection with a simple yet flexible design
 utilizing stable and reversible materials.
 These factors were of particular importance
 given staff limitations and lack of environ-
 mental controls in El Salvador's museums.
 Rather than presenting the remains in an
 interpretive reassembly of the object, the
 mount was designed more neutrally to
 reproduce the as-found, collapsed state of
 the obj ct, as some questions still remained
 about its exact dimensions, curvature, and
 the full reconstruction of the upper two
 layers (fig. 6). An assumption was made
 that the viewer would want to see the
 painted side of the layers, even if they were
 originally oriented paint side down (such as
 l yer 4). Information gleaned from the
 treatment could be presented using
 photographs, diagrams, and painted fac-
 similes, which would provide a more
 coherent interpretation than could the
 remains themselves.
 The mount consists of a series of equal-
 sized Plexiglas acrylic sheets, each of which
 supports an individual paint layer. The paint
 layers were prepared by reinforcing the
 Japanese tissue backings with additional
 layers of Pellon 6800 polyester web, adhered
 with Acryloid B-72 (20% w/v in acetone).
 The backing was then trimmed to a uniform
 Layer 1 N
 II I .-- Layer2 // J ) i iI II
 13 Layer 4 _
 d mirror [b] ?" acrylic rod
 S[c] %"OD/?"ID acrylic tube
 [d] %" acrylic sheet
 Fig. 6. Diagram of the mounting scheme, shown with a possible reconstruction of the painted artifact
 (not drawn to scale)
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 162 HARRIET F. BEAUBIEN
 oval shape to suggest the original limits of
 the artifact and was selectively toned with
 Maimeri colors to integrate the fragments.
 Pellon tabs were attached to the reverse of
 the backing with Acryloid B-72; these tabs
 were fed through slots cut in the Plexiglas
 sheet and glued to the underside. Layers 3
 and 4 after backing weighed only 7.2 and
 18.7 g respectively. They are expected to
 remain stable in environmentally uncon-
 trolled circumstances due to the inertness of
 the paint fragment materials themselves and
 their thorough consolidation and backing in
 the final stages with stable synthetic
 materials.
 For display, the sheets can be stacked with
 the decorated layer (layer 4) in its inverted,
 as-found orientation (fig. 7); a mirror
 mounted below allows the layer to be
 viewed. Varied spacing and arrangement of
 sheets may be accommodated by altering the
 length of acrylic rods and tubes, which act as
 spacers as well as supports for the individual
 layers; alternatively, the sheets may be disas-
 sembled and displayed side by side. To min-
 imize handling and provide maximum
 protection in storage and during transport,
 each paint layer is held securely in a sturdy
 Fome-Cor mat with a deep well. These
 mats stack into a clamshell box made of
 acid-free cardboard along with a box con-
 taining the display mount components.
 8. CONCLUSIONS
 With deceptive archaeological deposits such
 as these, careful lifting techniques are neces-
 sary to preserve the evidence properly, as
 are considerable conservation efforts in order
 to confirm an identification. The treatment
 of this painted calabash demonstrates the
 amount of information that is retrievable
 from poorly preserved evidence and suggests
 7-.?
 ~~
 5P 1~ ?I i
 ~Dn
 is~ w
 t
 " :~~B~; ~--I I
 j
 :: !~?~X;S:
 ";'--
 Pl~t~g~8 ~g~ -?? I
 --??i:'*'"?~;~tl
 Fig. 7. Mount with layers 3 and 4 displayed in
 their as-found configuration (layer 4 is visible in
 the mirror from this perspective)
 some techniques that can be used effectively.
 In Mesoamerican studies, it is hoped that
 this work will sound a cautionary note
 regarding artifact interpretation. In doing
 so, however, it also provides a step toward
 elucidating what we can assume is a much
 broader inventory of painted organic
 materials, not limited to highly specialized
 codices, which only a few sites such as
 Cer6n give us the opportunity to recover.
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
 This treatment reflects the input of
 specialists in many disciplines. I would espe-
 cially like to acknowledge my co-workers at
 the Conservation Analytical Laboratory,
 with many thanks to Mark Fenn for his as-
 sistance with the mount. The collaboration
 of con ervation and archaeology that this
 work initiated has been well fostered by
 Payson D. Sheets and the Cer6n Project
 team members. None of this work would
 have been possible without the support of
 CONCULTURA in El Salvador's Ministry
 of Education and the staff of the Museo
 Nacional David J. Guzmin, who have been
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 FROM CODEX TO CALABASH: RECOVERY OF A PAINTED ORGANIC 163
 ARTIFACT FROM THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE OF CERPN
 exceedingly disappointed that the object was
 not a codex but who nonetheless graciously
 welcomed the return of the painted calabash
 on June 10, 1992.
 REFERENCES
 All treatment documentation is on file at the
 Conservation Analytical Laboratory under CAL#
 5168; duplicates are kept by Payson D. Sheets at
 the Department of Anthropology, University of
 Colorado and by CONCULTURA in the Minis-
 try of Education, El Salvador.
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 HARRIET F. (RAE) BEAUBIEN has been an
 objects conservator at the Smithsonian
 Institution's Conservation Analytical Laboratory
 since 1988. She holds a B.A. in art from Beloit
 College, an M.A. in art history from the Univer-
 sity of Chicago, and is a graduate of the New
 York University Institute of Fine Arts' conserva-
 tion training program. Since 1980 she has
 worked on a variety of archaeological projects,
 primarily as an on-site conservator. Address:
 Conservation Analytical Laboratory, Museum
 Support Center, Smithsonian Institution,
 Washington D.C. 20560-0001.
 This paper was presented at the 20th annual
 meeting of the American Institute for Conserva-
 tion, Buffalo, N.Y., June 1992, in the general
 session. Received for review August 1, 1992.
 Revised copy received December 14, 1992. Ac-
 cepted for publication March 11, 1993.
 JAIC 32(1993):153-64
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All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms