Shell with Hematite

Small to medium sized Glycymeris shell with traces of red hematite covering its interior surface. The pigment is especially visible on a number of naturally occurring features inside the shell. The shell has a few small chips in the exterior surface of both lateral margins, but is otherwise unmodified; there are no traces of pigment on the back of the shell. This specimen was recovered from the platform mound at the site of Pueblo Grande. Pueblo Grande was a large village located at the headgates of a major canal system. Occupied as early as AD 500, the site reached its greatest extent during the Classic Period. Museum Accession: 1992.19