Riqueza, prestigio y ofrenda divina : los usos del cacao en el mundo nahua

Through an exhaustive documental revision of primary and secondary sources it was possible to attain the main purpo-se of this article: to reconstruct the attitudes that the Nahuatl speaking peoples had towards cacao before the arrival of the Spaniards. By using this methodology it was possible to con-clude that cacao occupied a central place in the social, reli-gious and economic dynamics of a part of the pre-Columbian world. The facts gathered from these sources may help the Mexican tourism industry in two ways. First, providing a solid base for the development of a rich culture of gastronomic-historic tourism in places such as Chiapas and Tabasco, and, in second place, highlighting the importance that this ingre-dient, now so ubiquitous in international culinary traditions, has for the ancestral culture of Mexico. In this sense, with the help of the abundant tourist attractions that Mexico already offers, cacao may become living history.

Introducción -- La riqueza del soconusco -- Poder y prestigio -- La sangre que alimenta -- La alegría del corazón -- Conclusiones: al rescate del cacao