Metate

Sometimes museums can amaze visitors with something they’ve never seen before and sometimes you wonder why something as common as a metate would be displayed in a museum. While it is the rare, never before seen objects that immediately draw your attention, it is the common, everyday artifacts that really shape our lives and our culture. Metates, like the one from the Virgil and Thelma Linam Collection, shown here, have been around since at least the Aztec society and are still being used today. Similar to a mortar and pestle, a metate is used to grind corn, grain, and spices. A smaller stone, called a mano, is rubbed back and forth over the metate to produce a grinding affect. According to the Tonto National Monument website, one problem with stone grinding is that little pieces of stone can end up in the food acting as an abrasive. “Many prehistoric skulls show evidence of teeth being worn down to the gumline.” (http://www.nps.gov/archive/tont/archeology/metate.htm)

Three main styles of metates exist. A traditional Aztec metate had a slanted slab and three short legs as a base. The Mayan version, like the one from the Linam Collection, sits flat on the ground. Finally, the Costa Rican style has three legs like the Aztec style but is much taller. The indentation in the metates comes from use, that is, the grinding motion will eventually create a bowl-like shape in the metate. In Costa Rica, ceremonial metates have been found in burials, and it has been suggested that they could also have been used as a throne (http://www.precolumbianstone.com/costarica.htm). Shape and form vary on region and time period for the ceremonial metates. Many times, a ceremonial metate would be more highly decorated and include iconography of animals. The most common animals portrayed on metates were crocodiles, alligators, birds, jaguars, and monkeys.

The more common, utilitarian metates, like the one in the Linam Collection are plain and unadorned. Metates, no matter what shape or size have set apart Mexican cooking, which in turn helped to define cultures (http://www.gourmetslueth.com). Because of this, metates have earned a place in museums. Mrs. Webber recognized the significance of this item and collected a number of them in her museum, one of which is on display in the South Gallery of the Western Heritage Museum Complex and Lea County Cowboy Hall of Fame. For a closer look at the artifact come by the Museum and while you’re here, check out many of the other items that have shaped the region that we call home.