Chilli Pepper Residue Discovered in 2000-Year-Old Pottery in Mexico, Used to Make Spicy Beverage

People in Mexico were using chilli peppers to spice their drinks as far back as 400 BC. A latest analysis of ancient pottery shows that the spice was quite popular in older times.

Terry Powis at Kennesaw State University discovered capsicum residue identified in the pottery samples that were unearthed from a Southern Mexico site. Some of the ancient vessels used in the study were nearly 2,000 years old, dating from 400 BC to 300 AD, according to a press release.

There are several types of capsicum and its long culinary existence is not surprising.  Capsicum species are referred to as chilli peppers and its use in culinary is well known in the history of Spain. But capsicum residues are hardly found in archaeological sites in Central America, South America and Mesoamerica. Scientists, therefore, struggle to know how the Mayan and Mixed-Zoquean groups used chilli peppers.

To solve this mystery, researchers conducted chemical extractions on the 2000 year old pottery vessels that date back to 400 BC-300 AD. The samples were unearthed from the archaeological sites of Southern Mexico. During the chemical extraction the researchers identified residue of capsicum in several varieties of jars and vessels.

This evidence indicates that those cultures used chilli peppers for several culinary purposes. The presence of capsicum residue in a sprouted jar indicated that they were used to make spicy beverage or dining condiments.

"The significance of our study is that it is the first of its kind to detect ancient chili pepper residues from early Mixe-Zoquean pottery in Mexico. While our findings of Capsicum species in these Preclassic pots provides the earliest evidence of chili consumption in well-dated Mesoamerican archaeological contexts, we believe our scientific study opens the door for further collaborative research into how the pepper may have been used either from a culinary, pharmaceutical, or ritual perspective during the last few centuries before the time of Christ."

The study was published in the journal PLOS ONE.