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Metate
photograph of mano and metate

Metates are still being used today to grind corn and other grains into meal or flour. A smaller stone, called a mano, is held in the hand and rubbed back and forth to do the grinding. Salado women probably spent hours each day preparing food for their families.

One problem with stone-ground food is that it has little pieces of rock in it, which act as an abrasive. Many prehistoric skulls show evidence of teeth being worn down to the gumline.

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                        Updated May 8, 2005