Characterization of prehispanic cosmetics found in a burial of the ancient city of Teotihuacan (Mexico)

The present paper reports the chemical data obtained on samples of pigmenting materials contained in 31 miniature vessels found in a burial found in Teopancazco, a multiethnic neighborhood center located in the southeastern sector of the archaeological site of Teotihuacan (Central Mexico) and the analytical protocol established for the complete characterization of these archaeological materials. For this purpose a multi-technique approach based on the combination of several non destructive and micro-destructive instrumental techniques, namely, light microscopy (LM), scanning electron microscopy-X-ray micro-analysis (SEMe EDX), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), voltammetry of micropart…