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This research presents for the first time a comprehensive study of charcoal directly related to the multiple burials interred in Tomb 2 of El Caño (Coclé province, Panama). This funerary context, which dates to between AD 880 to AD 1020, contained three different burial levels accompanied by substantial ceramic offerings and rich mortuary assemblages. The challenge of taxonomically identifying charcoal from tropical areas was addressed by combining standard procedures in tandem with chemical analysis (Py-GC-MS) of archaeological charcoal and fresh wood from the reference collection. Nine charcoal types were identified at the genus level: Avicennia spp., Rhizophora spp., Handranthus/Tabebuia, cf. Copaifera spp., Inga spp., Guettarda spp., Roupala spp., Allophylus spp. and cf. Ryania spp. Charcoal of cf. Copaifera spp., Roupala spp., Guettarda spp., and probably Handroanthus/Tabebuia might be related to their use as firewood for producing smoke. The presence of Copaifera and Roupala indicates the selection of odorous woods for burning in the sahumerios. Diverse habitats, such as coastal mangroves, riverine and dry forests, were exploited to obtain wood, highlighting the complex management of wild plant resources developed by the hierarchical societies of the Isthmo-Colombian area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aimed to determine the origin of organic residues from funerary contexts in the El Caño settlement (Gran Coclé area, Panamá, Central America) by means of multiple molecular probing techniques (GC-MS of organic solvent extracts and pyrolysis-GC-MS, THM-GC-MS and FTIR of solid samples). The samples include particles of precious resin figurines, fillings of golden objects, tomb sediments, plant exudates from extant plants (reference collection) and other reference materials (amber). The labdane diterpene fingerprints (eperuic, iso-ozic, copalic and kolavenic acids and derivatives) of the resin figurines, a resinous bead and several other samples, suggest that they were composed primarily of Hymenaea resin. Besides traditional interpretation approaches (visual comparison of chromatograms and relative proportions data), we used a novel OpenChrom® application that resolves complex pyrolysis chromatograms by screening data from archaeological samples for marker products defined on the basis of a reference collection (ChromIdent). ChromIdent confirmed the Hymenaea origin of many samples and also Burseraceae resin was identified in some samples, which is present as a minor ingredient in resin figurines (indicative of mixing practices) and as the dominant resin in tomb sediment that had been in contact with the corpses (indicating balsaming practices). The degree of polymerization of the Hymenaea resin was higher than for extant resin but diagenetic alteration (especially condensation of cyclic moieties) was much smaller than for amber, implying that the manufacturers used resin (or copal), not amber. These results were confirmed by FTIR, which allowed identification of non-fossil Hymenaea resin as the main constituent of one of the resin figurines. Several golden object infillings contained wax derivatives, probably beeswax, accompanied by various types of plant resin, which may well indicate the use of meliponines' cerumen for manufacturing (lost-wax casting). The findings highlight the potential of complementary molecular techniques to resolve questions on materials and manufacturing of archaeological artefacts, and the need for cross-comparison of molecular and ethnographic information in the study of archaeobotanical remains and the processes involved in their management. • El Caño burial treasures characterized on molecular level. • Resin figurines composed of labdanoid diterpenoids typical of Hymenaea resin. • Golden object infillings contain (bees)wax, indicative of lost-wax casting. • Multiple burseraceous and unidentified resins in body adhesives and tomb sediments. • Exemplifies value of applying multiple techniques targeting different fractions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]