New techniques for analysis of figures are under development. Some puparia retain organic material, which radiocarbon (carbon-14) analysis can date directly. Scientists can use scanning electron microscopes to determine what a container held from the deposits on the inside, and where a figure was buried from soil remaining on the outside. Neutron activation can help determine the source of clay used to make a figure, while thermoluminescence can provide an age estimate directly from the figure itself. Pollen analysis can show what plants were blooming when a tomb was open, and therefore the season it was used. In the future, these techniques will allow scientists to find out more about the context of West Mexican tomb figures.

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