Jeff Brzezinski | University of Colorado, Boulder (original) (raw)
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In this paper, we examine a Terminal bundled offering from the site of Cerro de la Virgen, locate... more In this paper, we examine a Terminal bundled offering from the site of Cerro de la Virgen, located on the Pacific coast of Oaxaca, Mexico. The offering was emplaced below a prominent public building in the site's ceremonial centre and contained five stone objects, including a rain deity mask, a fragment of a second mask, a figurine of a deceased ancestor and two miniature table altars, as well as nine small ceramic vessels. Considered together as a 'sacred bundle', the stone objects collectively reference agricultural fertility, rulership and ancestor veneration, which we interpret to be a metaphorical invocation of a fundamental tenet of prehispanic Mesoamerican religious belief-the sacred covenant. The offering also played an active part in founding the community of Cerro de la Virgen, connecting its residents with the divine, the ancestors and the outside world and constituting differences in status among its members.
This study investigates worldview and ideology during the late Terminal Formative period (A.D. 10... more This study investigates worldview and ideology during the late Terminal Formative period (A.D. 100 -250) in the lower Río Verde Valley of Oaxaca, Mexico, through an analysis of iconography found on grayware ceramic serving vessels. The sample includes 457 vessels and sherds from 17 lower Verde sites obtained through excavations and surface collections between 1988 and 2009. Drawing upon theories of semiotics and style, this thesis identifies a suite of icons suggesting that ceramics were a medium for expressing regionally shared beliefs. Chatino potters carved common Formative period Mesoamerican themes into the walls of graywares, such as depictions of maize and climatic phenomena, which may have been part of a religious worldview rooted in the belief that humans and non-human deities shared a reciprocal relationship. People at Río Viejo, including elites, may have attempted to exploit this relationship, thought of as a -sacred covenant‖ or agreement between humans and deities, to create a more centralized political entity during the late Terminal Formative Chacahua phase. By using iconographic graywares in socially and politically significant ritual activities such as feasting and caching events, elites imbued graywares with a powerful essence that would have facilitated the spread of the coded messages they carried. Based on statistical analyses of the diversity of iconographic assemblages from various sites, I argue that the assemblage of icons at Río Viejo, a late Terminal Formative political center in the lower Verde, indicates ideas likely originated at or flowed through this site. iv For Steve v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The completion of this thesis would not have been possible without the support of several institutions and wise, caring individuals. First, I would like to thank my tremendous committee members, all of whom provided meaningful constructive criticism and endless encouragement throughout the writing process. Stacy Barber-my advisor and committee chair-has had the greatest impact on my development as an archaeologist, writer, and scholar. She was the first to compel me to -see the light‖ and embrace the exciting world of Oaxacan archaeology, and I cannot thank her enough for doing so. Her tireless guidance has made me a better archaeologist in the field and molded my perspective as a scholar, and, above all, I deeply value her friendship. Arlen Chase was often the voice of reason in my ear as I developed my ideas, bringing this work back down to Earth when my own lofty expectations threatened to carry it away. His unrivaled knowledge of Mesoamerican archaeology, as well as his expertise as a ceramicist, has made this thesis infinitely better. Last, but certainly not least, John Walker provided valuable advice from a perspective rooted outside the geographic confines of Mesoamerica. His helpful assistance
In this paper, we examine a Terminal bundled offering from the site of Cerro de la Virgen, locate... more In this paper, we examine a Terminal bundled offering from the site of Cerro de la Virgen, located on the Pacific coast of Oaxaca, Mexico. The offering was emplaced below a prominent public building in the site's ceremonial centre and contained five stone objects, including a rain deity mask, a fragment of a second mask, a figurine of a deceased ancestor and two miniature table altars, as well as nine small ceramic vessels. Considered together as a 'sacred bundle', the stone objects collectively reference agricultural fertility, rulership and ancestor veneration, which we interpret to be a metaphorical invocation of a fundamental tenet of prehispanic Mesoamerican religious belief-the sacred covenant. The offering also played an active part in founding the community of Cerro de la Virgen, connecting its residents with the divine, the ancestors and the outside world and constituting differences in status among its members.
This study investigates worldview and ideology during the late Terminal Formative period (A.D. 10... more This study investigates worldview and ideology during the late Terminal Formative period (A.D. 100 -250) in the lower Río Verde Valley of Oaxaca, Mexico, through an analysis of iconography found on grayware ceramic serving vessels. The sample includes 457 vessels and sherds from 17 lower Verde sites obtained through excavations and surface collections between 1988 and 2009. Drawing upon theories of semiotics and style, this thesis identifies a suite of icons suggesting that ceramics were a medium for expressing regionally shared beliefs. Chatino potters carved common Formative period Mesoamerican themes into the walls of graywares, such as depictions of maize and climatic phenomena, which may have been part of a religious worldview rooted in the belief that humans and non-human deities shared a reciprocal relationship. People at Río Viejo, including elites, may have attempted to exploit this relationship, thought of as a -sacred covenant‖ or agreement between humans and deities, to create a more centralized political entity during the late Terminal Formative Chacahua phase. By using iconographic graywares in socially and politically significant ritual activities such as feasting and caching events, elites imbued graywares with a powerful essence that would have facilitated the spread of the coded messages they carried. Based on statistical analyses of the diversity of iconographic assemblages from various sites, I argue that the assemblage of icons at Río Viejo, a late Terminal Formative political center in the lower Verde, indicates ideas likely originated at or flowed through this site. iv For Steve v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The completion of this thesis would not have been possible without the support of several institutions and wise, caring individuals. First, I would like to thank my tremendous committee members, all of whom provided meaningful constructive criticism and endless encouragement throughout the writing process. Stacy Barber-my advisor and committee chair-has had the greatest impact on my development as an archaeologist, writer, and scholar. She was the first to compel me to -see the light‖ and embrace the exciting world of Oaxacan archaeology, and I cannot thank her enough for doing so. Her tireless guidance has made me a better archaeologist in the field and molded my perspective as a scholar, and, above all, I deeply value her friendship. Arlen Chase was often the voice of reason in my ear as I developed my ideas, bringing this work back down to Earth when my own lofty expectations threatened to carry it away. His unrivaled knowledge of Mesoamerican archaeology, as well as his expertise as a ceramicist, has made this thesis infinitely better. Last, but certainly not least, John Walker provided valuable advice from a perspective rooted outside the geographic confines of Mesoamerica. His helpful assistance