Americas Flashcards
myths of origin
representation of spirit world
stele
a stone or wooden slab that was used in ancient times as a monument.
Raimondi Stela
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
Paracas Textile embroidered with mythological figure
Andean textiles show a continuation of style and content from Chavín culture
Well preserved due to dry conditions
Mantle: garment for burial purposes
mantle
garment for burial purposes
contour rivalry
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
composite creatures
creature made with assorted body parts from different animals usually symboloze a divinity
moche
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.
inca
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.
olmec
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. .
cahokia
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
teotihuacan
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
Pyramid of the Sun, Teotihuancan, Mexico
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
Temple of Quetzalcoatl at Teotihuacan (temple of the feathered serpent)
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
maya
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
pyramids
huge stone tombs with four triangle-shaped walls that met in a point on top
hieroglyphs
pictures and other written symbols that stand for ideas, things, or sounds.
astronomy/sky watching
calendars
rituals: human sacrifice
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
bloodletting
ancient mayan practice to drain blood and let it sink back into the earth as tribute to the gods
north american cliff dwellings
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
role of textiles
performance and dance ceremonies
Chavin
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.
Paracas
Paracas people, on the coast of Peru.
Spectacular textiles
South America
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
Machu Picchu, Peru
Pachacuti’s private estate and religious retreat
The condor is depicted throughout
Mortarless stonework
Abandoned c. 1527; excavated 1911
The Nasca
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
Tunic, interlocked tapestry
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.
Mesoamerica
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)
Colossal Olmec Head
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
Maya Lintel 24
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
Maya Lintel 25
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.
Maya Lintel 26
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.
Mayan Ball Game
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.
Bonampak Mural
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
Aztecs
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”
North America
Regions of settlement: arctic areas, coast, deserts, plains, wooded forests
Resources were varied
People spoke many different languages and developed diverse cultural traditions
Ancient Puebloans (Anasazi)
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
Plains Indians
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
Robe with Battle Scene
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
Wo-Haw, Between Two Worlds
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
