Ancestors (Other Keyword)

DOCUMENT Citation Only M Thompson.

This paper addresses the social memories and identities of the spirits of the dead in the Prehispanic American Southeast and Southwest to consider their involvement in socio-political affairs. I argue that archaeology can begin to identify different kinds of spirits in the mortuary record, and that these spirits play different, unique roles in respective communities. I describe an effort to recognize ancestors, ancestral spirits, and/or collective groups of the dead in a Mississippian period...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Elisa Mencos.

This paper is about the iconographic analysis of the stucco decoration that is part of the exterior facade of the Joint Trees, which shares certain characteristics with the structure of the site called El Diablo at El Zotz, Guatemala Petén, which is dated to the Early Classic. Likewise Structure 10L-26, whose different layers constitute constructive states within buildings housing royal tombs, shared with El Conjunto Los Árboles iconography and preservation technique by prehispanic Maya. To...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Asia Alsgaard.

During the 2014 field season at Xultun, Peten, Guatemala, two sets of human offerings and a tomb were identified in the center of "Los Arboles" (XUL12F19); however, the relationship between the different sets of remains and the structure remains unclear. While the Maya are known for placing offerings around tombs and in entryways as closing ceremonies, human offerings are a less-common subset. To date, their role in Maya society is not entirely understood although their presence has been claimed...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Whitney Lytle.

The concept of transformation is expressed by innumerable cultures and has been explored by archaeologists across the globe. The ritual act is often represented in Maya iconography as rulers and religious practitioners exhibiting their power through the ability to change into their animal uays. However, like individuals, spaces can undergo a process of ritual transformation. This paper examines the subject of transformation and how it is demonstrated through imagery and space within a Classic...