Arlene Colman | Brigham Young University (original) (raw)

Papers by Arlene Colman

This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accept... more This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of BYU ScholarsArchive. For more information, please contact scholarsarchive@byu.edu.

Cambridge Archaeological Journal, 2008

Mesoamerica was the time-place in the New World where the memory arts of writing and calendrical ... more Mesoamerica was the time-place in the New World where the memory arts of writing and calendrical notation achieved their highest forms. Both had long histories going back at least to the first millennium bc and were part of an even longer and wider history of memorials and commemorations dating millennia earlier. In this essay we consider time and memorials as social constructs and forms of practice and provide data for sequential changes in both. As commonly deployed and materialized, history and memorials are about the evolving ‘now’ and future aspirations rather than a fixed past — but they are communicated by re-presenting supposed pasts. In Mesoamerica, the things remembered, the manner of remembering them, and the reasons for doing so evolved with changing social and political institutions and circumstances.

In 1969, Paul Tolstoy commented that archaeological investigation at La Venta had become "a fairl... more In 1969, Paul Tolstoy commented that archaeological investigation at La Venta had become "a fairly long and at times tortuous story of excavation, interpretation, re-interpretation, and depredation at the famous site found by Stirling." This thesis adds to the torture by describing and illustrating the architecture, burials, offerings, and stone sculpture of La Venta Complex A in an effort to reconcile data into an accurate sequence of meaningful cultural events. The details derive from excavation reports, field notes, maps, photographs, and correspondence of the early investigators of the site. This study addressed three myopic perceptions regarding La Venta: (1) the secludedness of Complex A, in particular the Ceremonial Court, from its inception to its termination, (2) the classification and identification of real human burials in Complex A, and (3) the analytical decontextualization of objects, offerings, and monuments from connected ritual activities there. I thank the New World Archaeology Foundation (NWAF) artists, particularly Megan Wakefield and Kisslan Chan, for assistance with the illustrations and Mary Pye for her helpful comments. I am grateful to Dr. Allen Christenson and Dr. Donald Forsyth for being on my thesis committee and for being tolerant of my last minute, up to the deadline presentation and submission. I thank Evie Forsyth in the Anthropology Department and Fred Nelson for making sure I did not lose my way. My appreciation is offered to NWAF: first, for providing me a paid position and interesting work, and second, for supporting my research into the site of La Venta. Grants from the Grace Shallit Memorial Fund, the Brigham Young University Anthropology Department, and NWAF also helped fund much of my research. I thank the National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institute, for allowing me to search their tremendous collections and for providing photocopies and scans of numerous documents, photographs, and maps. I know my requests required considerable time and effort. Also, the Human Studies Film Archives, Smithsonian Institute, allowed me a glimpse into the excavation of La Venta by providing copies of Uncovering Mexico's Forgotten Treasures and Exploring Hidden Mexico. All research paled in the light of my three boys, Xavier, Fawkes, & Kian; but ultimately they made the work worthwhile. Lastly I bow to Quint, without whom I could accomplish little.

Wearing Culture: Dress and Regalia in Early Mesoamerica and Central America, 2014

Archeological Papers of the American Anthropological Association, 2013

Wearing Culture: Dress and Regalia in Early Mesoamerica and Central America, 2014

Our study of offerings and elite burials at the Olmec site of La Venta attempts to distinguish pr... more Our study of offerings and elite burials at the Olmec site of La Venta attempts to distinguish primitive valuables from inalienable goods. According to Annette Weiner, inalienable objects are those that can circulate in exchange systems without changing ownership, or more importantly, can be withheld from exchange altogether.

Offering 4 at La Venta consists of one brownstone and 15 greenstone human figurines arranged in f... more Offering 4 at La Venta consists of one brownstone and 15 greenstone human figurines arranged in front of six jade celts set on end. This unique offering was placed north of the pyramid in the Ceremonial Court of Complex A as part of a ritual activity that dedicated a new building phase in the court around 600 BC. lt was associated with a massive serpentine pavement and a cruciform axe offering. About a century later, Offering 4 was reopened and checked. Offering 4 at La Venta conveys a story in media res. The vertical celts, apparently representing stelae, appear to reference the six stelae, which were positioned on the south base of the pyramid that flanked the stairway. The scene created in Offering 4 commemorated an event performed against the backdrop of the pyramid and the stelae. We explore this inference and possible roles and meanings that these stone stelae once played at La Venta.

The Construction of Complex A at La Venta, Tabasco, Mexico:

This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accept... more This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of BYU ScholarsArchive. For more information, please contact scholarsarchive@byu.edu.

Cambridge Archaeological Journal, 2008

Mesoamerica was the time-place in the New World where the memory arts of writing and calendrical ... more Mesoamerica was the time-place in the New World where the memory arts of writing and calendrical notation achieved their highest forms. Both had long histories going back at least to the first millennium bc and were part of an even longer and wider history of memorials and commemorations dating millennia earlier. In this essay we consider time and memorials as social constructs and forms of practice and provide data for sequential changes in both. As commonly deployed and materialized, history and memorials are about the evolving ‘now’ and future aspirations rather than a fixed past — but they are communicated by re-presenting supposed pasts. In Mesoamerica, the things remembered, the manner of remembering them, and the reasons for doing so evolved with changing social and political institutions and circumstances.

In 1969, Paul Tolstoy commented that archaeological investigation at La Venta had become "a fairl... more In 1969, Paul Tolstoy commented that archaeological investigation at La Venta had become "a fairly long and at times tortuous story of excavation, interpretation, re-interpretation, and depredation at the famous site found by Stirling." This thesis adds to the torture by describing and illustrating the architecture, burials, offerings, and stone sculpture of La Venta Complex A in an effort to reconcile data into an accurate sequence of meaningful cultural events. The details derive from excavation reports, field notes, maps, photographs, and correspondence of the early investigators of the site. This study addressed three myopic perceptions regarding La Venta: (1) the secludedness of Complex A, in particular the Ceremonial Court, from its inception to its termination, (2) the classification and identification of real human burials in Complex A, and (3) the analytical decontextualization of objects, offerings, and monuments from connected ritual activities there. I thank the New World Archaeology Foundation (NWAF) artists, particularly Megan Wakefield and Kisslan Chan, for assistance with the illustrations and Mary Pye for her helpful comments. I am grateful to Dr. Allen Christenson and Dr. Donald Forsyth for being on my thesis committee and for being tolerant of my last minute, up to the deadline presentation and submission. I thank Evie Forsyth in the Anthropology Department and Fred Nelson for making sure I did not lose my way. My appreciation is offered to NWAF: first, for providing me a paid position and interesting work, and second, for supporting my research into the site of La Venta. Grants from the Grace Shallit Memorial Fund, the Brigham Young University Anthropology Department, and NWAF also helped fund much of my research. I thank the National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institute, for allowing me to search their tremendous collections and for providing photocopies and scans of numerous documents, photographs, and maps. I know my requests required considerable time and effort. Also, the Human Studies Film Archives, Smithsonian Institute, allowed me a glimpse into the excavation of La Venta by providing copies of Uncovering Mexico's Forgotten Treasures and Exploring Hidden Mexico. All research paled in the light of my three boys, Xavier, Fawkes, & Kian; but ultimately they made the work worthwhile. Lastly I bow to Quint, without whom I could accomplish little.

Wearing Culture: Dress and Regalia in Early Mesoamerica and Central America, 2014

Archeological Papers of the American Anthropological Association, 2013

Wearing Culture: Dress and Regalia in Early Mesoamerica and Central America, 2014

Our study of offerings and elite burials at the Olmec site of La Venta attempts to distinguish pr... more Our study of offerings and elite burials at the Olmec site of La Venta attempts to distinguish primitive valuables from inalienable goods. According to Annette Weiner, inalienable objects are those that can circulate in exchange systems without changing ownership, or more importantly, can be withheld from exchange altogether.

Offering 4 at La Venta consists of one brownstone and 15 greenstone human figurines arranged in f... more Offering 4 at La Venta consists of one brownstone and 15 greenstone human figurines arranged in front of six jade celts set on end. This unique offering was placed north of the pyramid in the Ceremonial Court of Complex A as part of a ritual activity that dedicated a new building phase in the court around 600 BC. lt was associated with a massive serpentine pavement and a cruciform axe offering. About a century later, Offering 4 was reopened and checked. Offering 4 at La Venta conveys a story in media res. The vertical celts, apparently representing stelae, appear to reference the six stelae, which were positioned on the south base of the pyramid that flanked the stairway. The scene created in Offering 4 commemorated an event performed against the backdrop of the pyramid and the stelae. We explore this inference and possible roles and meanings that these stone stelae once played at La Venta.

The Construction of Complex A at La Venta, Tabasco, Mexico: