Shield Jaguar and Lady

Xoc

Documents the central role

that elite Maya women

played in religious

bloodletting rituals

Mesoamerican

Olmec and Preclassic

West Mexico

Ceremonial ax, Olmec

Votive

offerings, celts, representi

ng human-animal

representations

Teotihuacan

Temple of Quetzalcoatl, Teotihuacan, Mexico

Earliest representations of feathered-serpent god

Classic Maya

Mayan Ball Courts

Games sometimes ended in human sacrifice

Stele D portraying

Ruler 13

Double-headed serpent

bar, symbol of the sky

and of his absolute power

Temple I (Temple of the

Giant Jaguar)

Nine tiers to symbolize the

nine levels of the Underworld

Ball player, from Jaina Island

Shows a range of human types

and activities

Presentation of captives to Lord Chan Muwan, Bonampak,

Mexico

Classic Veracruz

Pyramid of the

Niches

one of many

Mesoamerican

monuments

connected with

astronomy and

the calendar

Postclassic Mexico

Castillo,

Chichen Itza,

Mexico

Temple to Kukulkan

at the top. Casts a

shadow in a shape

of a serpent at

specific times.

Caracol, Chichen Itza

“snail shell”. May have been a temple to Kukulkan with

astronomical purposes.

Colossal atlantids, Tula, Mexico

Warriors armed with darts to reflect military regime of Toltecs

Intermdiate Area

Pendant in the

form of a bat-

faced

man, Tairona

People of the

intermediate Area

were expert

goldsmiths. This

pendant served as

an amulet.

South America

Raimondi Stele, Chavin de Huantar

Shows the ability of the gods to transform

themselves is a core aspect of Andean

religion.

Paracas, Nasca, and

Moche

Embroidered

funerary

mantle, Paracas

Women mantles

were used to wrap

the bodies of the

dead.

Bridge-spouted vessel with

flying figures, Nasca

Nasca won renown for their pottery,

which usually have round bottoms,

double spouts connected by

bridges.

Hummingbird, Nasca

Figures on a gigantic

scale but unsure of its

function.

Ear ornament, Moche

It depicts a Moche

warrior priest and two

retainers. The costume

corresponds to actual

finds.

Tiwanaku and Wari

Gateway of the

Sun, Tiwanaku

Probably led into a

sacred area. It was

once painted, inlaid

with turquoise, and

covered with gold.

Lima Tapestry

(tunic), Wari

Wari textiles are

tapestries with the

motifs women directly

into the fabric.

Eskimo

Burial mask, Ipiutak,

Alaska

This mask consists of 9

parts that can be

combined to produce

several faces, echoing

the tranformation theme

common in ancient

American art.

Woodlands

Pipe, from a mound in

Ohio

Resembles some

Mesoamerican sculptures in

form and costume. Often

buried with men for use in

afterlife.

South West

Serpent

Mound, Mississippian, Ohio

Cliff Palace, Ancestral Puebloan

Sheltered ledge to heat the pueblo

in winter and shade during

summer.

ANCIENT VENTILATION!

Incised forget with

running warrior,

Sumner County

Gift to the dead to ensure

safe passage to afterlife.