Maya Ceramic Copador Bowl

A row of glyph-like shapes marches around the rim, more ornament than message.

This Copador bowl is Maya, from Honduras, and dates to between 300 and 900 CE. It is painted pottery. Copador ware, associated with the Copán region, is known for its red and orange painting and for bands of pseudo-glyphs, signs that resemble Maya writing but are generally read as decorative. The rounded bowl has a red rim and a cream band painted with bold red and black symbols and dotted columns. The interior is pale and speckled with brown spots, and traces of further painting appear below the band. It is 3 inches high and 6.5 in diameter.

It looks literate, and that was enough.