Olmec (Other Keyword)

DOCUMENT Citation Only Billie Follensbee. Allison Robbins. Sammie Hernandez. Alexandra Thrower. Nicholas Deckard.

Among the most enigmatic artifacts to emerge from Formative period Gulf Coast deposits are thousands of small, roughly rectangular cubes of iron ore that are perforated in a consistent, t-shaped pattern. Numerous hypotheses have been suggested for the function and meaning of these artifacts, including that they may have served as beads that were strung together as helmet decorations; as objects that were strung together to serve as a sort of armor or mail; as tiny hammers for chipping obsidian;...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Renee Bonzani.

This is an abstract from the "Olmec Manifestations and Ongoing Societal Transformations in the Tuxtlas Uplands: A View from Matacanela" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. This paper describes the carbonized wood remains recovered from fifty-five heavy fractions of flotation from seven units and fifty light fractions of flotation from six units collected during the excavations of the Matacanela Site in Veracruz, Mexico. Environmental comparisons are...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Celso Jaquez.

In 2004 Dr. Karl Taube outlined the ancient Mesoamerican concept of a celestial floral paradise where souls were transported after death. This presentation will focus on what I believe to be the earliest representation of sacred transport of souls to the celestial realm. Serpent representation, often depicted with floral adornments or exhaling flower blossoms, were often depicted as either vehicles for the transport of souls to the afterlife, or as was the case of the cosmological murals at the...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Julio Amador. Ofelia Márquez Huitzil.

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2021: General Sessions" session, at the 86th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. This paper is dedicated to carrying out a detailed study of some of the reliefs that were carved on the slopes of Cerro Chalcatzingo, during the Middle Formative period, as well as to present some critical reflections about the interpretations that have been made by other authors. All descriptions imply interpretation, in consequence, every process of...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Marcie Venter. Sean Carr. Shayna Lindquist.

Several Pre-Classic assemblages in the Mesoamerican Gulf lowlands are characterized by obsidian from the Guadalupe Victoria source. Tools produced are characterized by flake-core reduction strategies. The combined visual characteristics of the source material and technology employed are important chronological indicators. But, general similarities in the appearance of the raw material and factors such as variable thickness create the potential for overlap with other sources, such as Pico de...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Alberto Ortiz Brito. Arlina Morales Guillen. Daira Hernandez Bellido.

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2023: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 88th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. This paper examines the results of the Proyecto Arqueologico Nestepe-Rancho Cobata conducted in the municipality of Santiago Tuxtla, Veracruz. The project explores the role of Olmec sculptures in the development and contestation of social memory in Tres Zapotes and its hinterland, during the Epi-Olmec period. Previous research carried out in the area show...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Tara Smith.

The formative period dwarf imagery in Mesoamerica offers an exemplary opportunity to further our understanding of the Olmec cosmovision and how their ideology spread throughout the region. This study specifically compares the three monumental sandstone dwarfs at La Venta to the portable dwarfs carved in stone and sculpted from clay found elsewhere within the Olmec exchange network. I discuss the origin of Dwarf imagery within the Olmec artistic style through an analysis of stylistic trends and...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Hirokazu Kotegawa.

Uno de los grandes problemas de los monumentos escultóricos olmecas es que, para identificar la cronología y la cultura pertinente, la mayoría de ellos se ha perdido el contexto arqueológico. Por ello, existen algunos monumentos dudosos por su estilo y los de la procedencia desconocida en el corpus total de ellos. El sitio Estero Rabón es conocido como uno de los centros secundarios de San Lorenzo y fue reportado con la presencia de varios monumentos escultóricos olmecas. Sin embargo, casi todos...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Billie Follensbee.

This is an abstract from the "The Precolumbian Dotted-Diamond-Grid Pattern: References and Techniques" session, at the 86th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. As ancient cultures throughout the world developed textiles, knotted and woven fabrics lent themselves to the development of geometric rhombus patterns, first as the diamond-shaped mesh of knotted nets and later as square patterns in twined gauze and plain-weave cloth. Further early experimentation in basketry and...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Virginia Arieta Baizabal.

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2019: General Sessions" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. Antonio Plaza, Veracruz, ubicado en una isla al margen del río Uxpanapa –en medio de las capitales olmecas de San Lorenzo, Veracruz y La Venta, Tabasco- es conocido y señalado como el lugar de origen de uno de los hallazgos más polémicos de la arqueología de la costa del Golfo. Hacemos referencia a la extraordinaria escultura conocida como "El Luchador". No...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Virginia Arieta Baizabal. Judith Zurita Noguera. Stacey Symonds.

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. Los trabajos de Ann Cyphers (1950-2023) sobre los olmecas son uno de los legados de la arqueología olmeca, de Mesoamérica y del mundo. A raíz de su fallecimiento, es necesario un recuento de su producción académica. Esta ponencia analiza la obra de Cyphers respecto a sus principales temas, influencias, aportaciones y retos en más de tres décadas de trabajo...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Virginia Arieta Baizabal. José Ignacio Hernández Juan.

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2021: General Sessions" session, at the 86th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. Antonio Plaza, ubicado al margen del río Uxpanapa, es conocido y señalado como el lugar de origen de uno de los hallazgos más polémicos de la arqueología de la costa del Golfo de México, hacemos referencia a la escultura conocida como El Luchador. A pesar de que esta extraordinaria pieza ha provocado la discusión sobre su autenticidad prehispánica, no se había...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Hirokazu Kotegawa.

This is an abstract from the "Sculpture of the Ancient Mexican Gulf Coast, Part 1" session, at the 86th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. Las esculturas olmecas muestran un alto desarrollo estético desde su aparición. Sin embargo, estas esculturas no fueron sólo obras del arte sino también tenían una gran importancia socio-económica en la sociedad olmeca. Por ello, se piensa que estas esculturas monumentales fueron distribuidas por las elites olmecas. El sitio...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Virginia Arieta Baizabal.

El objetivo de la ponencia es presentar los resultados preliminares del programa de mapeo intensivo en Antonio Plaza, Veracruz –un posible sitio olmeca ubicado en la cuenca alta del río Uxpanapa en la costa del Golfo de México-. Dicha etapa de análisis revela información proveniente de la superficie terrestre y es portadora de numerosas ventajas para el futuro planteamiento de un programa de reconocimiento de superficie. El estudio empleó el análisis de la información a través de Sistemas de...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Victoria Newhall. Amber VanDerwarker. Christopher Pool.

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2023: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 88th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. Tres Zapotes is an important site in the broader discussion of Olmec cultural continuity and Formative period political economy with an archaeological record that spans the two millennia between 1000 BC and AD 1000. It is a key site for understanding the emergence of Classic period civilization from ancient Olmec roots in Mexico’s southern Gulf Coast...

DOCUMENT Citation Only William Rust.

In the past, abundant ceremonial evidence found at La Venta and other Gulf Coast Olmec sites has spawned widely ranging views on the emergence of complex society in Mesoamerica. Evidence of dense local riverine settlement was gained from my survey at La Venta and surrounding sites in 1986-7, revealing household sites both on La Venta and surrounding villages on abandoned river courses. The chronological sequence has been guided by over 50 radiocarbon dates recovered from a series of domestic...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Kevin Wann. Lacy Risner. Marcie Venter.

This is an abstract from the "Olmec Manifestations and Ongoing Societal Transformations in the Tuxtlas Uplands: A View from Matacanela" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. This study compares Middle Formative through Early Classic period ceramic attributes, including temper size, type, and abundance, from stratified deposits at Matacanela Site in Veracruz, Mexico to other contemporaneous sites located in the Tuxtla Mountains and riverine bottomlands in...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Marcie Venter. Lourdes Budar Jimenez. Philip Arnold.

This is an abstract from the "Los Rituales del Juego de Pelota en la Costa del Golfo / Ballgame Rituals in the Gulf Lowlands" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. In this presentation, we consider the accumulated evidence for ballgame ritual participation throughout the Classic period center, Matacanela, located in the south-central Tuxtla Mountains. We also account for related symbols from settlements in the immediate outskirts and incorporate them...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Katie McElfresh Buford. Billie Follensbee.

This is an abstract from the "Sculpture of the Ancient Mexican Gulf Coast, Part 1" session, at the 86th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. Among the most diagnostic sculptures made by the Gulf Coast Olmec is the tabletop altar/throne. This sculpture is best known for its most common features: a wide, heavy cornice; a generally rectangular structure; and often, a niche in the front. Given the tabletop form, scholars originally interpreted these sculptures as altars, but...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Jeanne Gillespie. Cherra Wyllie.

This is an abstract from the "Gender in Archaeology over the Last 30+ Years" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. Since the landmark 1986 “Blood of Kings,” kingship has been a central theme in the archaeology, iconography, and epigraphy of the ancient Americas. Despite recent discoveries, the topic of women rulers remains ancillary to the larger view of male-dominated social and political power. During the past 30 years, roles of women have been...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Billie Follensbee.

This is an abstract from the "Cordage, Yarn, and Associated Paraphernalia" session, at the 88th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. Many Formative period Mesoamerican greenstone artifacts are readily identifiable as ornaments, as they have clear counterparts in both form and function in later cultures. Other such artifacts, however, have proven puzzling to scholars, who initially categorized them as “miscellaneous objects,” “objects of unknown use,” or “implements for...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Jillian Mollenhauer.

In the early 20th century, the discovery of the Olmec colossal heads associated with San Lorenzo, La Venta, and Tres Zapotes led to the early designation of these three sites as the triadic centers of Olmec civilization, implying a level of cultural uniformity. Subsequent archaeological investigation has shown that the three centers, each with a distinct but overlapping chronology, share few commonalities in layout, artifact assemblage, or sculpture style. Indeed, the heads themselves...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Billie Follensbee.

The murals within the Pinturas structure at the site of San Bartolo, Guatemala have provided invaluable information for understanding the Late Formative period Maya, as well as for understanding their emulation, adoption, and adaptation of Epi-Olmec culture, religion, and iconography. As noted by a number of scholars, the figures depicted in the murals have the distinctive, graceful, and relatively naturalistic body forms of early Maya images, but the facial types, clothing, and adornments...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Jeffrey Blomster.

The Early Formative period exhibits dramatic transformations in imagery and identity throughout Mesoamerica. Focusing on a time period before techniques for mold made and mass produced objects had been achieved, this paper explores replications that involved copies, iterations, and emulations of designs and imagery. At select sites in Mesoamerica, objects have been documented with Olmec-style imagery, some of which have been linked to the Gulf Coast Olmec society; in most cases, the Olmec...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Billie Follensbee.

Recent research has re-identified certain enigmatic Gulf Coast Olmec greenstone artifacts as elite versions of textile-making tools. These artifacts, which include Middle Formative picks, figural celts, clamshell and plaque pendants, and objects designated as "spoons," were likely used by elites as both functional objects and high-status adornment, as illustrated in the contemporary sculpture. Most examples of these artifacts are found in caches and graves of distant and/or later civilizations,...