The document provides information about Indigenous American art and architecture from several different cultures, including: - The Chavin de Huantar site in Peru, home to an ancient mother culture known for its relief sculptures including the Lanzon Stela depicting a supernatural being. - Mesa Verde cliff dwellings built by the Ancestral Puebloans into cliff faces in Colorado between 450-1300 CE for residential and storage purposes. - Structures at the Maya site of Yaxchilan in Mexico featuring limestone lintels and monuments depicting rulers and rituals like bloodletting. - The effigy mound known as Great Serpent Mound in Ohio, over 1,300 feet in

1. Indigenous Americans
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2. Chavin de Huantar. Northern highlands. Peru. Chavin. 900-
200 B.C.E. Stone (architectural complex)
-Chavin de Huantar is an archaeological and cultural site in the
-Andean highlands that are in Peru
-this was the birthplace of an ancient mother culture
-the cultural expression found here did not originate in that place
-the visual legacy of Chavin would persist long after the site’s decline-
-motifs and stylistic elements traveling to the southern highlands and
-the coast
-the temple built there became an important pilgrimage site
-sits between the eastern and western ranges of the Andes
-bear two of the few mountain passes that allow passage between
-the desert coast to the west of the Huachuca and Monsa Rivers
-a natural phenomenon of two joining into one that can
be seen as a spiritual powerful phenomenon
-drew in many worshippers to its temple
Image Source: Media

3. Chavin de Huantar. Northern highlands, peru. Chavin. 900-
200 B.C.E. Stone; granite (Relief Sculpture)
-spreading the artistic style of Chavin throughout the highland and
coastal Peru
-transporting ceramics, textiles, and other portable objects back to their
homes
-temple complex is comprised of two building phases
-the U-shaped Old Temple built in 900 BCE and the New Temple built in
500 BCE
-expanded the Old Temple and added a rectangular sunken court
-majority of the structures used roughly-shaped stones in many sizes to
-make the walls and floors
-finer, smoother stone was carved using carved elements
-interior of the temple was riddled with a multitude of tunnels called
galleries
-galleries existed in darkness
-no windows in them
-many smaller tunnels that allow air to pass
Image Source: Media

4. Chavin de Huantar. Northern highlands, Peru. Chavin. 900-200
B.C.E. Stone (Lanzon Stela)
-examining the acoustics of how it could have projected sound from inside the
-temple to pilgrims in the plazas outside
-the whole building spoke with the voice of its god
-the god for whom the temple was built for was represented in the Lanzon
-a notched wedge-shaped stone that is over 15 feet tall
-it is carved with the image of a supernatural being
-located deep in the Old Temple
-Lanzon means great spear
-the stone’s shape is like a great spear
-the shape indicated the deity’s power was ensuring successful planting and harvest
-depicts a standing figure with large round eyes looking upward
-mouth is large with bared teeth and fangs
-figure's left hand rests pointing down
-the right hand is raised upward
-encompassing the heavens and the earth
b-oth hands have long talon-like fingernails
Image Source: Callisto

5. Chavin de Huantar. Northern highlands, Peru. Chavin. 900-
200 B.C.E. Hammered gold alloy (jewelry)
-carved channel runs from the top of the Lanzon to the figure’s forehead
-receives liquid offering poured from one of the intersecting galleries
-the Lanzon deity is characterized by its mixture of human and animal
features
-representation favors a complex and visually confusing style
-fangs and talons most likely indicate associations with the jaguar and
caiman
-apex predators from the jungle lowlands that are seen elsewhere
in Chavin art and Andean iconography
-eyebrows and hair of the figure have been rendered as snakes
both bodily features and animals
-serpent motif
-swirling forms beneath them to evoke the sculpture's eye shape
-worn by an elite person to show wealth, power, and allegiance to
Chavin religion
Image Source: Amazon AWS

6. Mesa Verde cliff dwellings. Montezuma Country. Colorado.
Anasazi. 450-1300 C.E. Sandstone.
-built into the side of a cliff
-the ancestral Puebloan peoples
-used to be called the Anasazi
-built more than 600 structures into the cliff faces of the Four Corners region
-mostly residential areas
-some for storage and some for ritual
-Mesa Verde
-the flat topped mountains common in the southwestern United States
-accessed these dwellings with retractable ladders
-made of stone, mortar, and plaster structures
-traces of the people who made the buildings
-handprints or fingerprints in the mortar and plaster walls
-Ancestral Puebloans occupied the Mesa Verde region from 450 CE to 1300 CE
-the inhabited region encompassed a far larger geographic area than is defined now by the national park
-includes other residential sites like Hovenweep National Monument and Yellow Jacket Pueblo
-only about 125 people lived in Cliff Palace
-the largest of the Mesa Verde sites
-among the best preserved buildings from this time
-the largest has about 150 rooms and more than 20 circular rooms
-well protected from the elements due to its location
-originally ranged from one to four stories
Image Source: The Denver Channel

7. Yaxchilan. Chiapas, Mexico. Maya. 725 C.E. Limestone
(architectural complex structure 40)
-arious Maya site materialize out of the dense jungle
-located in Chiapas, Mexico between the Maya cities of Copan and Palenque
-over 100 structures and monuments
-famous for its high-quality relief carvings
-Yaxchilan’s ruling dynasty rose in the 4th century CE
-its heyday followed several hundred years later during the Classic period
-Lord Shield Jaguar II ruled for 60 years in 681
-commissioned some sculptural works at the site
-included carved lintels
-these are the beams at the top of a doorway
-stairs faced with hieroglyphic writing
-stele with upright wood or stone slab monuments
-some famous lintels on Structure 23
-a yotoot
-palace building
-shows Shield Jaguar's II’s wife, Lady K’abal Xook
-entering into Structure 23 you pass underneath the limestone lintels when entering the
doorway
-the lintels are situated in a liminal space between exterior and interior
-there was a hiatus in building for about 150 years
-the ruler wanted to promote his lineage and power through his principal wife
Image Source: Deitchman

8. Yaxchilan. Chiapas, Mexico. Maya. 725 C.E.Limestone (Lintel
25, Structure 23)
-she had more prestige than his other wives
-advertised Shield Jaguar II’s power
-highlights the important role of royal women in the Maya culture
-Lintel 45 is another relief sculpture on Structure 44 shows Shield Jaguar II with war captives to
-commemorate his victory in battles against city-states that were rivals
-the three lintels on structure 23
-lintels 24, 25, and 26
-depict different ritual moments in the life of Lady Zook
-show narrative
-Lintel 24 shows Lady Xook pulling a thorned cord through her tongue so she can bleed onto paper
-that fills a basket in front of her
-bloodletting
-her husband Shield Jaguar II holds a lit torch above her
-Lintel 25 and 26
-focus on the bloodletting ritual
-bloodletting was common ritual among elites
-a ruler or other elites let blood in honor and feed the gods, at the dedication ceremony of a
building, when children were born, or other occasions
Image Source: Visionary Art Exhibition

9. Yaxchilan. Chiapas, Mexico. Maya. 725 C.E. Limestone
(Structure 33)
-rulers needed to shed blood in order to maintain order in the cosmos
-ruler believed to be a descendant of the gods
-bloodletting was critical importance in maintaining their power and order in the community
-act related to rebirth and rejuvenation
-the loss of blood and burning of incense produced hallucinations
-deaired certain ritual context to access other realms
-contour and incised lines of the lintels possess a calligraphic quality
-drawn or painted rather than carved look
-structure 33 rests on the side of the main plaza
-focal point of the area
-building is narrow
-only one deep vault
-not intended to hold many people
-three entryways on the exterior
-stucco ornamentation
-elaborate roof-comb
-masonry wall that rises upwards above a building to give the impression that it is taller
-incorporates a decorative frieze, niches, and sculptural elements
sculpted human being in the central niche
Image Source: Media

10. Great Serpent Mound. Adams County, southern Ohio.
Mississippian (Eastern Woodlands). c. 1070 C.E.
Earthwork/effigy mound.
-in rural, southwestern Ohio
-largest serpent effigy in the world
-Numerous mounds made by ancient Native American cultures
-they lived in the fertile valleys of the Mississippi, Ohio, Illinois, and
-Missouri Rivers
-about 1,300 feet in length
-ranges from one to three feet high
-architectural and sculptural
-erected by settled peoples who cultivated maize, beans, and squash
-maintained stratified society with an organized labor force
-the people left no records
-slightly crescent-shaped
-orientated such that the head is at the east and the tail at the west
Image Source: Ohio Wins
-ven winding coils in between
-shape of the head invites the most speculation
-oval shape as an enlarge eye
-hollow eggs or even a frog about to be swallowed
-by the wide, open jaws
-lower jaw could be appendages
-small arms
-the creature could be a lizard instead of a
snake
-zoomorphic form
-head of serpent aligns with the summer
solstice sunset
-tail points to the winter solstice sunrise
mark time or seasons
-indicating when to plant or harvest
curves in the body of the snake are parallel
lunar phase
-alternatively align the two solstices and two
equinoxes

11. Templo Mayor (Main Temple). Tenochtitlan (modern Mexico
City, Mexico). Mexica (Aztec). 1375-1520 C.E. Stone (temple)
-finely carved stone monolith that displayed a dismembered and decapitated
woman
-the Mexica (aztec) goddess Coyolxauhqui
-sister of the Mexica’s patron god
-discovery of the Templo Mayor
-main Mexica temple located in the sacred precinct of the former Mexica
capital
-Tenochtitlan
-established in 1325 on an island in the middle of Lake Texcoco
-the city’s foundation the original structure of the Templo Mayor was built
-new construction was the result of environmental problems
such as flooding
-sacred precinct at the heart of the city
-positioned at the center of the Mexica capital and the entire empire
-divided into four main quadrants
-it is in the center
Image Source: Media

12. Templo Mayor (Main Temple). Tenochititlan (modern Mexico
City, Mexico). Mexica (Aztec). 1375-1520 C.E. volcanic stone
(The Coyolxauhqui Stone)
-design reflects the Mexica cosmos
-composed of four parts structured around the nava; of hte universe
called the axis mundi
-90 feet tall
-covered in stucco
-two grand staircases accessed twin templed
-dedicated deities Tlaloc Huitzilopochti
-Tlaloc was the deity of water and rain
-agricultural fertility
-Huitzilopochti was the patron deity of the Mexica
-associated with warfare, fire, and the sun
-relates to an important myth
-the birth of the Mexica patron deity Huitzilopochti
-ritual of banner raising celebrated Huitzilopochti’s triumph over the brothers
-people offered gifts to the deity's, danced, and ate tamales
Image Source: Class Connection

13. Templo Mayor (Main Temple). Tenochtitlan (modern Mexico
City, Mexico). Mexica (Aztec). 1375-1520 C.E. basalt(Calendar
Stone)
-Huitzilopochti’s mother became pregnant one day from a piece of down
that entered her skirt
-her daughter became angry when she heard her mother was pregnant
-together with her 400 brothers they attacked their mother
-she emerged fully clothed and armed and defended his mother on the
mountain
-threw her body off the mountain and it broke apart
-portrays the moment in the myth after Huitzilopochti vanquished
-Coyolxauhqui and threw her body down the mountain
-placing the sculpture at the base of Huitzilopochti’s temple
-transformed the temple into Coatepec
-ritual performances that occurred at the Templo Mayor supported idea
-that the temple symbolically represented Coatepec
-during the ritual, war captives were painted blue were killed on the
sacrificial stone
Image Source: Class Connection

14. Templo Mayor (Main Temple). Tenochtitlan (modern Mexico
City, Mexico). Mexica (Aztec). 1375-1520 C.E.; jadeite (Olmec-
style mask).
-bodies were rolled down the staircase to fall and reenact the myth
-the decorations and rituals was a powerful reminder to submit to Mexica authority
-connoted the power of the Mexica empire and their patron deity
-at the top of the center of the Tlaloc temple is a sculpture of a male figure on his back
-he is painted blue and red
-the figure holds a vessel on his abdomen
-receive offerings
-called a chacmool
-older than Mexica itself
-associated with the rain god Tlalocsome
-the Aztecs had a calendar stone
-they were able to interpret the days of the year
-used different techniques relating to like and the patterns of the sun and moon
-offerings related to water, like coral, shells, crocodile skeletons, and vessels depicting Tlaloc
-deposits could relate to warfare and sacrifice
-contain objects from faraway places
-Olmec mask made of jadeite
Image Source: Media

15. Silver and gold maize cobs. Inka. C. 1400-1533 C.E. Sheet
metal/repousee, gold and silver alloys.
-garden with miniature llamas, corn, flowers, and
-people made of gold and silver
-existed in the courtyard in one of the most
-important Inka temple
-the Qorikancha
-gold-silver alloy corn cob sculpture
-mimics the appearance of a ripe ear of corn
-breaking through its husk, still on the stalk
-ready to be harvested
-sculptural representation of maize
-individual kernels of corn protrude from the cob
-that is nestled in jagged metallic leaves
-Inka metalsmiths combined silver and copper to
-mimic the internal and external components of
-actual corn
-hollow and delicate
-life-sized
Image Source: Perseus
-naturalistic forms in small-scale metal objects
-European invaders soon desired the gold and silver
-earliest Spanish chronicles record the placement of a
-garden composed of gold and silver objects
-offering and ritual spaces in Qorikancha
-after the defeat of the Inka leadership in the 1630s,
-Spanish royal agents set up colonies across the continent
-looted Inka objects in large quantities and sent them back
to Spain
-significant offering within the area
-part of a compact version of the cosmos controlled by the
Inka state
-repeated the vast range of ecosystems encompassed by
the empire
-vertical archipelago system

16. Ruler’s feather headdress (probably of Motechzoma II).
Mexica (Aztec). 1428-1520 C.E. Feathers (quetzal and cotinga)
and gold.
-feathered headedness
-sent to Spain by hernan cortes
-cortes conquered the Aztec people
-sends them back to Charles the fifth
-stunning quetzal tail feathers
-only come from the male
-bird only has two or three tail feathers
-birds found in central america
-tribute items sent back to the capital
-lots of conquered cities
-takes luxury goods from the conquered
cities
-Tenochtitlan was the capital
-feathers part of an entire costume
Image Source: Media
-paper ornamentals and cotton tassels and ear
spoons for -costumes
-static item
-the feathers would shimmer in the light and move
in the wind
-the ruler would be transformed
-the person’s identity becomes less important
-pure gold ornaments
-turquoise blue
-they were the feather workers who made it
-shift in subject matter
-instead of headdresses, began to show Christian
iconography
-water glyphs
-Aztec symbols

17. City of Cusco, including Qorikancha (main temple/church and
convent Santo Domingo) . Central highlands, Peru. Inka.
C.1440 C.E. Sandstone.
-elevation of 11,200 feet
-the capital of Tawantinsuyu
-land of the four quarter
-axis mundi- the center of existence
-reflection of the Inka power
-divided into two sections
-hanan was the upper or high
-hurin was the lower
-paralleled the social organization of the Inka society into upper and lower moieties social
-division
-divided into quarters that reflected the four divisions of the empire
-people from those sections inhabited their respective quarters of the city
-city was a map in miniature of the entire Inka empire
-way for the Inka rulers to ecplicity display their power to shape and order that empire
-deliberately laid out so it was shaped like a puma, symbol of Inka might
-the masonry of Cusco displays an understanding of stones as being like people
-many different ones may fit together if they are properly organized
Image Source: Media

18. City of Cusco, including Qorikancha (Curved Inka wall of
Qorikancha and church and convent of Santo Domingo).
Central highlands, Peru. Inka. c.1440 C.E. Sandstone.
-each individual stone was pecked with tools and fitted to the one next to it
-result that blocks will have a varied number of sides
-famous twelve-sided stone in the walls of Hatun Rumiyoq Street
-some sides were made to curve outward slightly
-others slightly concave so the stones slotted together
-allowing small amount of movement
-ability to move a little was important
-area that is seismically active allowed protecting the walls from
earthquakes
-secular and religious activity
-Inka rulers and their novels resided in Cusco
-local leaders from all sections of the empire lived in Cusco
-compelled to do as a means of controlling their home populations
-girls and young women drawn from across the empire to the capital to
-serve as cloistered acllas
-chosen women
Image Source: Virtual Tourist

19. City of Cusco, including Qorikancha (Walls at Saqsa Waman
(Sacsayhuaman). Central highlands, Peru. Inka. c. 1440 C.E.
Sandstone.
-women wove fine cloth for gods and nobles
-they made corn beer for religious rituals, to serve gods in shrines, and to be
-given to Inka favorites in marriage
-young men brought to be educated and raised in the culture
-the golden house is the sacred shrine of Inka
-dedicated to the worship of the sun
-the sun was called Inti
-they held the sun’s worship above all others
-Qorikancha was the center point of the empire
-from it radiated imaginary lines called cheques
-these lines connected it to shrines throughout the Cusco valley
-all the doorways, windows, and walls niches were distinctive Inka trapezoid
shape
-doorways double-jammed to signify the importance of building
-shaped into even courses of rectangular-looking blocks
-polished to a smooth finish
-walls were covered in sheets of gold to signify the shrine’s dedication to Inti
Image Source: Media

20. City of Machu Picchu. Central highlands, Peru, Inka. c. 1450-
1540 C.E. Granite.
-described as mysterious
-built as a royal estate for the first Inka emperor
-Pachacuti Inka Yupanqui
-the middle of the 15th century
-on a mountain saddle overlooking the Urubamba River in modern day Peru
-three days’ walk from the Inka capital of Cusco
-3,000 feet lower in elevation
-pleasant climate
-where the Inka emperor and his family could host feasts, perform religious
-ceremonies, and administer the affairs of empire
-establishig a claim to land that would be owned by his lineage after his death
-site was chosen and situated for its relationship to the Andean landscape
-includes sight lines to other mountain peaks
-called apus
-the Inkan labor taxation system was on place
-they taxed their people in order to obtain different goods
-they obtained money and gold from taxes in order to fund the building of cities
Image Source: National Geographic

21. City of Machu Picchu. Central highlands, Peru. Inka. c. 1450-
1540 C.E. Granite (Observatory)
-ancestral deities throughout the Ande
-houses for elites, retainers, and maintenance staff
-religious shrines, fountains, and terraces were there
-carved rock outcrops
-carefully fitting individual stones against each other
-terraces were common of highland agriculture long before the Inka
-increased arable land surface and reduced erosions by creating walled steps
-down the sides of steep mountains
-each step was planted with crops
-water management was crucial
-system of stone channels draining water from rainfall and fro a spring near the
site
-some of the water was channelled to the stone fountains
-sixteen in total
-descending in elevation through the site
Image Source: Valerie Park's Art History

22. City of Machu Picchu. Central highlands, Peru. Inka. c. 1450-
1540 C.E. Granite (Intihuatana Stone)
-fountain constructed with walls
-ritual bath for emperor
-walls were built of stones that had been individually shaped to fit closely with
-one another
-pecking at the stones with tools
-gradually shaping them so they uniquely nested to the rock next to it
-emperor and his retinue would only reside at Machu Picchu for part of the year
-most people who lived there permanently were the yanaconas who are
-retainers and the mitimaes who were the colonists obligated to move to their
location
-the observatory is called the temple of the sun
-has two main parts of an upper curved stone enclosure with windows and
niches placed in ti
-a cave beneath this strict with masonry additions that hold more niches
-the intihuatana is the hitching post of the sun
-it is a carved boulder that is located in the ritual area of the site to the west of
the main plaza
Image Source: Sacred Sites

23. All-T’oqapu tunic. Inka. 1450-1540 C.E. Camelid fiber and
cotton.
-the Inka were masters of statecraft
-they forged an empire which extended from modern Quito,
-Ecador to Santingo Chile
-exchange of high-status goods
-textiles and their creation were very important
-finely-made textiles from the best materials were objects of
-high status among nearly all Andean culture
-weaving in Andean cultures was done on backstrap looms
-the looms were made from a series of sturdy sticks that
-supported the warp or skeletal threads of the textile
-a backstrap loom is tied to a post or tree at one end
-the other end is attached to a strap that passes around the
-back of the weaver
-the person can learn and adjust the tension on the warp
-threads as he or she passes the weft threads back and forth
Image Source: Perseus
-the pattern is created
-the two main fibers spun into the threads of
-the tunic came from cotton and camelids
-cotton plants grew well on the Andean coast
-in a variety of natural colors
-collecting, spinning, and dyeing the fibers for
-a textile took a lot of work and people
-textiles were produced by groups
-the finest cloth was made by women who
were collected from across the country
-the decorations are square geometric motifs
-that make up the entire tunic
-designs were to be worn by a high rank in the
Inka society