(Figure 11 - Fragments of Possible "Cocoa" Service #46527)

A fragmented object comprised of mixed metals was recovered from the site referred to as the "cannon site" by the m/v Discoveries (See figure 11). The find consisted of four pieces of silver and two that are possibly lead and is most likely a castor. Because of the context of the object and artistic traces on the fragments it is probable that it is related to a group of items that have been recovered from the same general area in 1994 and 1997.

Consisting of over 30 individual pieces, the objects recovered in 1994 and 1997 have been reconstructed to form a tray with one intact silver vessel. (See figure 12) Originally a large square tray, it features four "feet" that have a fanciful face as a decorative motif.

Figure 12 - 1994 & 1997 potentially related artifacts

A second vessel or castor which the State of Florida received in 1994 as part of its yearly donation, had vestiges of gilding and the same fanciful face on the handle as on the feet of the tray. There was a hallmark on this indicating it had been produced in Mexico. Unfortunately no maker’s mark appears. The 1994 vessel/castor, in the possession of the Mel Fisher Center, also bears the hallmark of Mexico and is surmounted by the letter "C" within a circle (possibly denoting Cocoa). (See figure 13) The handles on this object are finished in serpent’s heads. The current theory is that this may be a tray for the serving of "Cocoa".

Figure 13 - Silver Vessel Illustration 1994, possibly related artifact.

The context relationship of these objects along with the decorative motifs present on the artifacts found in 2000 serve to link these objects with a great deal of assurance. The inner diameter of the lead castor is 6.5 cm and the weight is 34.2 grams. The outer diameter of the larger silver piece is 9.0 cm and it weighs 36.9 grams. The small fragment with the design is 4.2 grams. The fourth piece wraps around the rest of the object and weighs 114.1 grams. The function of the lead insert into the piece is as yet unknown – further research needs to be done.

Unique items recovered during the 2000 season include two fragments of a wooden razor sheath #46522 salvaged by the m/v Virgalona from the Cabin Wreck site. Although in poor condition it is worthy of mention here. The two fragments bear traces of cupreous corrosion at the end where the iron razor would have been hafted. On one fragment the cupreous corrosion was removed and faint traces were visible of the decorative design impressed into the wood. (See Figure 14) The current example bears close resemblance to the same type of artifact recovered from the wreck of the Nuestra Senora de Atocha, 1622. (See Figure 15) The 1622 example was constructed of ebony and quite decorative, having all the copper components in place. The type of wood (ebony) and its depositional environment served to save this object in a much better state of preservation than that of its 1715 counterpart. However, the similarities of the two objects attest to the persistence of these tools through time in the material culture recovered from Spanish Colonial Shipwrecks.

Figure 14 - photo of artifact 46522

Figure 15 - Atocha Razor Sheath

Mano and Metate

The motor vessel Bookmaker recovered a portion of a metate, artifact #47143, from the Rio Mar site during the 2000 salvage season. This piece has one leg and is the end of the stone that would face the person doing the grinding. It is quite large, weighing 20 pounds and measuring 12 inches across the widest part. (See figure 16) The missing section would likely have had two more legs, both shorter than the existing leg. It is also possible that it had no other legs but that the low end was simply the trough lying on the ground. This would give the metate a downward slope, away from the grinder, allowing the finished grain to run onto a mat or into a container. Even metate’s that were completely flat would be worked with one end propped up so the grain would run off. We could expect that our metate would have had an approximate overall length of 3 feet with a weight of 80 to 100 pounds. It is not known if this metate was aboriginal to Florida or if it was shipped aboard a Spanish vessel in New Spain.

Figure 16 - Photo of artifact #47143

A stone mano, artifact # 46768, was recovered from the Cabin Wreck site by the m/v Virgalona during the 2000 season. It measures 13 cm. In length and weighs 520 grams. (See figure 17)

Figure 17 - photo of artifact #46768

The Mano and Metate are the original food processors. Simple, having only one moving part, and, in many cases, portable. The metate is a stone grinding trough, usually rectangular but sometimes oval, square, or irregularly shaped. Different utensils can be used with it to grind such as a stone cylinder called a mano.

When the Spanish arrived in "Cibola," their name for the cities of the Zuni, they reported that the Zuni had their grinding rooms separate from their cooking rooms. They said that a grinding room would have three metates in clay. One woman would crack the corn, another would grind it, and the third would grind it into a fine meal. (See figure 18)

Figure 18 - woman working with three metates

If a community was unable to find good hard stones, then their meal would turn out rather gritty. (Metate-New Mexican Historical Cookbook. wysiwyg://35 http:/gosouthwest.about.com.) At Cuello, a Mayan ceremonial center uncovered in northern Belize and dating to 2400 B. C., several skeletons were found showing severe tooth wear suggesting a diet that included abrasive substances. The two possible causes are identified; as corn kernels soaked with powdered limestone to soften them, and sandstone particles from manos and metates. (National Geographic, Vol. 162, No. 1, pg., 139 July 1982) This unslaked lime was the principle source of calcium in the Mexican diet, and was a common ingredient in tortilla’s, the round, thin flat bread made from unleavened cornmeal. (Tortillabritannica.com.)

The metate was also used to grind sun-dried cocoa beans into a paste to make the beverage called "xocoatl," by the Aztec’s - "Chocolate" is what we call it today. (Cocoa-Britannica.com.wysiwyg://82/http://www.britannica.com).

Although many metates are rectangular with a flat grinding face, others are commonly seen having a concave surface. Metates can be a simple flat stone, small enough to rest against a standing person’s knee, (See figure 19) or so large two people are needed to move them. Some have four short legs chiseled integrally, others have three, but many have none. (America’s Fascinating Indian Heritage. Editor, James A. Maxwell., Pleasantville, N. Y., Reader’s Digest Association, 1978, pg. 24, 27, 63, 65, 210, 257) (See figure 20)

Figure 19 - Example Of Metate

Figure 20 - metates in use

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