Erythroxylum coca: Microscopical identification in powdered and carbonizedarchaeological material

Carbonized material adhering to the cavity wall was obtained from a wooden Peruvian illa (animal figure), held in the archaeological collections of th e Museo de La Plata. This sample was analysed with a light microscope, petr ographic microscope and scanning electron microscope and identified as Eryt hroxylum coca (presumably var. coca). This finding appears to verify the hy pothesis, generated by ethnohistorical and ethnoarchaeological records, tha t illas were used to burn coca leaves during ceremonies in Andean region.