Psychotropic or ritual use of Acacia flowers prior to abandonment of a prehistoric Mimbres-Mogollon archeological site

Abstract

One hundred twenty-eight samples of pollen were collected from 11 rooms at the NAN Ranch Ruin, a Mimbres-Mogollon archeological site in south-central New Mexico occupied from 750 to 1130 A.D. Of these 128 pollen samples, a large percentage of Acacia pollen grains was recovered only from soil sample 12. This sample was taken from soil located within a broken bowl recovered in Room 60. Room 60 is considered to be one of the last rooms occupied at this site after the continuous habitation by people for nearly 400 years. It is likely that a collection of Acacia flowers left in a bowl could account for the unusually large percentage of Acacia pollen and the unusually large pollen concentration level recovered from sample 12 (within the bowl) in Room 60. This study presents evidence for the possible ritual or psychotropic use of Acacia flowers. Laboratory Processing for this research completed at the Palynology Laboratory, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX. Sources of support: This research was funded in part by a Texas A&M University College of Liberal Arts Dissertation Award, a Texas A&M University Academic Excellence Award, a Texas A&M University Association of Former Students Mini-grant, and an award from the Texas A&M University Graduate Student Research Grant Award Program.