Americas

Question 1

myths of origin

Question 2

representation of spirit world

Question 3

stele

Answer 3

a stone or wooden slab that was used in ancient times as a monument.

Question 4

Raimondi Stela

Answer 4

Depicts deity with human/animal attributes
Lines describe more than one object at once (contour rivalry)
Upright: creature holds two staffs; elaborate headdress; looks up
Upside down: figure looks down over crocodile snout; double-faced

Question 5

Paracas Textile embroidered with mythological figure

Answer 5

Andean textiles show a continuation of style and content from Chavín culture
Well preserved due to dry conditions
Mantle: garment for burial purposes

Question 6

mantle

Answer 6

garment for burial purposes

Question 7

contour rivalry

Answer 7

a design in which the lines can be read in more than one way at the same time, depending on the angle from which it is viewed.

in class example is the raimondi stela

Question 8

composite creatures

Answer 8

creature made with assorted body parts from different animals usually symboloze a divinity

Question 9

moche

Answer 9

Northern Peru
about 200 bce -600 ce
known for pottery, textiles, and metalwork

The Moche people developed a sophisticated culture in a harsh environment. They created intricate irrigation systems to support their large population and grow crops like corn, beans, and potatoes.
The Moche are also known for their large religious and ceremonial complexes called huacas. These huacas had pyramid-like structures with multiple levels, access ramps, stairs, connecting plazas, and sometimes sections with slanted roofs.

Question 10

inca

Answer 10

Existed as a culture as early as 800 ce
Established by powerful Inca ruler, Pachacuti
Became the largest empire in pre-Columbian America (controlled more than 3,000 miles on the western coast of South America.

Question 11

olmec

Answer 11

the first major civilization in Mexico. They lived in the tropical lowlands of the Gulf of Mexico, in the present-day states of Veracruz and Tabasco.
The Olmec civilization flourished from around 1200 to 400 B.C.E. .

Question 12

cahokia

Answer 12

the largest city built north of Mexico before Columbus. It was the primary center of the Middle Mississippian culture, which developed advanced societies in the Central and Southeastern United States.

home to the mounds that we watched videos on

an ancient settlement of southern indians, located near present day st. louis, it served as a trading center for 40,000 at its peak

Question 13

teotihuacan

Answer 13

Site located in the Central Highlands of Mexico (near modern-day Mexico City)
Peaked around 500 ce: 600 pyramids and 2,000 apartment compounds
Pyramid and plaza configuration

Question 14

Pyramid of the Sun, Teotihuancan, Mexico

Answer 14

Largest structure on the site: stepped pyramid, 700 ft across on each side; 210 ft tall
Importance of location
Admired by the Aztecs, 800 years after Teotihuacan was abandoned
Became a place of Aztec pilgrimage

Question 15

Temple of Quetzalcoatl at Teotihuacan (temple of the feathered serpent)

Answer 15

Located in an enclosed compound
Sculpted heads symbolize warfare and fertility, or cycles of wet/dry seasons
Gods Quetzalcoatl (feathered serpent) and Tlaloc (goggle-eyed rain god) are depicted

Question 16

maya

Answer 16

Cultural group with city-states throughout Mesoamerica
From about 2000 bce–1500 ce (peak 300–900 ce)
Estimated 7 million Maya living today
Importance of mythology and cosmology and associated rituals

Question 17

pyramids

Answer 17

huge stone tombs with four triangle-shaped walls that met in a point on top

Question 18

hieroglyphs

Answer 18

pictures and other written symbols that stand for ideas, things, or sounds.

Question 19

astronomy/sky watching

Question 20

calendars

Question 21

rituals: human sacrifice

Answer 21

Ritual sacrifice at the top of the pyramid
Notorious Aztec practice of extracting the victim’s still-beating heart
Sacrificial victims were captured in warfare, but could also be members of the Aztec community

Question 22

bloodletting

Answer 22

ancient mayan practice to drain blood and let it sink back into the earth as tribute to the gods

Question 23

north american cliff dwellings

Answer 23

Dwellings formed by using niches or caves in high cliffs, with more or less excavation or with additions in the way of masonry.

Communal dwellings of stone, timber, and adobe brick
Built in the ridges high on cliff faces
Often hundreds of feet above the canyon floor
Took advantage of the sun’s orientation for heat and shade

Question 24

role of textiles

Question 25

performance and dance ceremonies

Question 26

Chavin

Answer 26

Chavín culture is one of the oldest in South America (c. 900 bce). Located in the highlands.
Important pilgrimage center, marked by temples and stone monuments
Art features animals/ the cosmos. Home to a style of art that spread throughout the Andes.

Question 27

Paracas

Answer 27

Paracas people, on the coast of Peru.
Spectacular textiles

Question 28

South America

Answer 28

From about 3000 bce, region around the Andes Mountains (present-day Peru and Bolivia)
Andean cultures: Chavín, Paracas, Nazca, Moche, Tiwanaku, and Inca
In contrast to other parts of the world, Andean peoples developed monumental architecture and textiles long before ceramics and intensive agriculture (two hallmarks of early civilization).
Art reflected the local environment, resources, and beliefs
Used stylized forms

Question 29

Machu Picchu, Peru

Answer 29

Pachacuti’s private estate and religious retreat
The condor is depicted throughout
Mortarless stonework
Abandoned c. 1527; excavated 1911

Question 30

The Nasca

Answer 30

Geoglyphs were created by the Nasca people, whose culture which flourished in Peru sometime between 1-700 C.E.
They inhabited the river valleys of the Rio Grande de Nasca and the Ica Valley in the southern region of Peru, where they were able to farm, despite the desert environment—one of the driest regions in the world

Question 31

Tunic, interlocked tapestry

Answer 31

3.4.6 Tunic, c. 1500. Interlocked tapestry of cotton and wool, 35 ⅞ × 30⅛”. Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collections, Washington, D.C. Andean textiles made by women; weaving was a sacred art with its own god, Spider Woman.

Question 32

Mesoamerica

Answer 32

Area of modern-day Mexico and Central America (Honduras, Belize, Nicaragua)
Cultures include: Olmecs, Teotihuacanos, Maya, Aztecs
Used images as a form of writing (Maya hieroglyphs, Aztec pictographs)

Question 33

Colossal Olmec Head

Answer 33

Made of basalt, hard volcanic stone boulders transported over 30 mi.
Total of 17 of these heads found
Range from 5 to 12 ft (this one is 8 ft tall)
Weigh approximately 6 to 25 tons
Possibly portraits of rulers

Question 34

Maya Lintel 24

Answer 34

showing Shield Jaguar
and Lady Xoc, c. 725 CE.Limestone, 43 × 30 ¾ × 2 ⅜”. British Museum, London, England

Lintel 24: Lady Xoc is pulling a thorny rope through her tongue by torch light. Bloodletting ritual was necessary to win the favor the gods for important events. Event: birth of Bird Jaguar III in 709 CE

Question 35

Maya Lintel 25

Answer 35

Limestone,
47 ⅝ × 33 ¾ × 5 ⅜”.
British Museum,
London, England

Lintel 25: vision serpent arising from bowl of burning, blood-soaked paper. Bloodletting induced hallucinatory state=visions.

Shield Jaguar’s ascension to throne in 681 CE.

Question 36

Maya Lintel 26

Answer 36

Limestone,
72 ½ × 33 ⅞ × 10 ⅝”.
British Museum,
London, England

Lintel 26: Lady Xoc handing her husband a jaguar helmet and shield in preparation for battle.

Question 37

Mayan Ball Game

Answer 37

Scholars debate whether the Maya sacrificed players in their ball game. Some say that the game was a way to show devotion to the gods by sacrificing high-ranking captives or losing players. Others say that the players were not sacrificed.
Some say that ritual sacrifice was only performed after certain games.
For example, in games that took place instead of going to war, neither the winners nor losers were sacrificed.
In other games, high-ranking captives were forced to compete in public.
If the captives lost, they were sacrificed.
The Maya ball game was also used in political affairs as a ritual to honor the conclusion of treaties.
Ball courts have been found near the homes of chiefs in Olmec sites. Many balls have been discovered in burials and as ritual offerings at shrines. This suggests that the balls and other ballgame equipment were a sign of wealth or status.

Question 38

Bonampak Mural

Answer 38

To commemorate the victory of the Lord of Bonampak, Chaan Muan
Gruesome ritual presentation of captives
Maya considered blood on temple steps a sign of triumph and a way to please the gods

Question 39

Aztecs

Answer 39

Aztecs were the largest Mesoamerican culture at the time that Cortes and his compatriots arrived in Mexico.
They were one of a number of invading groups from the north during period of war between 1200-1300. With amazing speed, the Aztec established rule in the area. Fierce in war and cruel in peace.
They began to call themselves Mexica and fulfilled a legendary prophecy that they would build a city where they saw an eagle perched on a cactus with a serpent in its mouth. They built their capital city Tenochtitlan (=Mexico City). The ruins of the city lie directly below Mexico City’s main square, the Zocalo.
Practiced bloodletting and human sacrifice to please the gods and sustain the great cycles of the universe. “Flowery wars”

Question 40

North America

Answer 40

Regions of settlement: arctic areas, coast, deserts, plains, wooded forests
Resources were varied
People spoke many different languages and developed diverse cultural traditions

Question 41

Ancient Puebloans (Anasazi)

Answer 41

People of North America used local materials to build practical structures
Ancient Puebloans moved north c. 1150 from New Mexico to Colorado
Abandoned their later home sometime between 1300 and 1540
Full story is still unknown

Question 42

Plains Indians

Answer 42

Occupied the Great Plains of the present-day US
Nomadic lifestyle (Sioux clan, Lakota and Crow) and permanent villages (Mandan)
Used portable homes called tipis (teepees), made of wooden poles and animal hides

Question 43

Robe with Battle Scene

Answer 43

Depicts a battle between the Mandan and Sioux in 1797
Worn over the shoulders of its wearer, a key player in the battle
Robe served a commemorative purpose
Aided in oral story-telling tradition

Question 44

Wo-Haw, Between Two Worlds

Answer 44

Made while Wo-Haw was imprisoned in Florida, along with 70 others (1875-1878)
Alleged crimes against white settlers
Wo-Haw is caught between two worlds