Precious metals were not native to the Huasteca region of the central Gulf of Mexico, so these were commonly imported from Oaxaca and Tlaxcala. Copper and gold were extracted in southern and central Mexico and exchanged for local Huasteca products like parrot feathers, cacao beans, shell wares, and chapopote tar sealant. Imported precious metals were applied to jewelry, as gold beads in the necklace at right, for example. The gold disk on the left is from the northern Huasteca, between Tamaulipas and Veracruz.
Regional Museum of the Huasteca, Xalapa Museum of Anthropology
These Huasteca rings were made from copper. Three simple rings appear in the bottom row, and five of the upper rings feature an extension shaped like a crescent. Given the importance of the crescent moon in Huaxtec nose jewelry, the lunar symbol on these rings is no surprise. Imported metals were often integrated with local wares, as for example shell and coral, to make them more "Huaxtec."
Xalapa Museum of Anthropology
Actually, this large copper bell was not discovered in a Maya region, but rather at Tajín, south of the Huasteca. However, its manufacture and style strongly suggest a Huaxtec Maya origin. This is a marvelous piece, not only for its size but also for the remarkable working of a human face upon its front. Colonial manuscripts show that warriors wore such bells in rows hanging from the waist, perhaps to make some intimidating noise upon confronting enemies.
Xalapa Museum of Anthropology
Copper bells are often found not individually but in large bunches, and their pendant holes suggest that these bells were strung together to form large necklaces. At least, that was how rulers were occasionally buried, as evident from the impressive Tierra Alta burial from Tamaulipas. This ensemble of bells also comes from the northern Huasteca. In north Veracruz the modern Teenek phrase for "bell" is son sool.
Regional Museum of the Huasteca
Oaxaca was an important source of gold export for not only the Huaxtec Maya of north Mesoamerica but also for the principal Maya region to the southeast, but gold imports from Central America also deserve consideration. The Itzá Maya gave burial and ritual offerings to nearby springwater wells called cenotes, formed from erosion of the porous sedimentary terrain. Among the material tributes was an impressive quantity of small gold artifacts, such as those shown here. At left are examples of thin gold sheets, including two minute faces. Small gold bells appear at right.
National Museum of Anthropology and History
Outlines of a delicate image show on this disk, also from the Chich'én cenote offerings. This is one of at least two small golden plates excavated there, but both are fragmentary. The Central American origin for these gold pieces is evident in their decoration, very similar to the Veraguas-Gran Chiriquí style found in Panama.
National Museum of Anthropology and History