This article presents the first direct archaeological evidence of nixtamalization, a chemical process that improves the nutritional value of maize, among the ancient Maya people of Guatemala. Analysis of microbotanical remains recovered from two chultunes, pits cut into bedrock, in a Late and Terminal Classic period residential group at the site of San Bartolo, Petén, Guatemala, provides the first archaeological recovery of maize starch spherulites, a unique byproduct of nixtamalization, and thus the earliest direct evidence of nixtamalization in the archaeological record. The presence of helminth eggs within the same contexts indicates that, at some point in their use life, the pits were used as latrines and as middens for the disposal of domestic refuse, likely including nejayote, wastewater from nixtamalization. These findings shed light on the daily lives of ancient Maya commoners and inform discussions of subsistence and waste management in Maya cities.

本文介绍了在危地马拉的古代玛雅人中第一个关于 nixtamalization 的直接考古证据，这是一种提高玉米营养价值的化学过程。在危地马拉佩滕圣巴托洛遗址的一个晚期和末期经典时期住宅群中，从两个 chultunes（切入基岩的坑）中回收的微生物遗骸的分析提供了玉米淀粉球晶的首次考古恢复，玉米淀粉球晶是 nixtamalization 的独特副产品，因此，考古记录中最早的nixtamalization的直接证据。在相同环境中存在蠕虫卵表明，在其使用寿命的某个阶段，这些坑被用作厕所和垃圾场，用于处理生活垃圾，可能包括 nejayote，来自 nixtamalization 的废水。