Indigenous Americas
1000 BCE – 1980 CE
Enduring Understandings
 Among the worlds oldest artistic traditions.
 “Ancient America” used to categorize are created
before 1550 CE, includes south of current Mexico
border.
 Content emphasizes unity with natural world,
cardinal directions (N,S,E,W), spirituality, cosmic
geometry, animal-based media.
 Stylistic focus on “essence” of objects rather than
appearance.
Enduring Understandings
continued…
 3 major distinct cultures: Olmec, Maya, Aztec
 Central Andean cultures parallel the “old” world,
Chavin & Inka were representative cultures.
 Andean culture: survival on 3 different
environments (mountain/desert coast/rainforest)
emphasized trade in exotic materials.
 Native American art: mostly ritual objects to wear,
carry, or use.
Chavin de Huantar
Peru, Chavin People
900-200 BCE
Temple, used for
rituals
Religious Capital
Point of pilgrimage
Stone architectural complex
Chavin de Huantar
Lanzon Stela
Granite
“Blade (spear) Stone”
Only high ranking officials
could see this.
Depicts a powerful figure that
is part human body/animal
claws & fangs.
Possibly acted as an oracle
Chavin de Huantar
Nose ornament
Hammered gold alloy
(jewelry)
Golden jewelry, worn
under nose
Worn to make wearer
into a supernatural being
during ceremonies
2 snake heads on either
end
Worn to make wearer
into a supernatural being
during ceremonies
Mesa Verde cliff dwellings
Montezuma County, Colorado
Anasazi 450-1300 CE
3-D structure, building
Housed about 250 people
Sandstone pueblo built
into side of cliff
Top ledges stored
supplies, keeping things
cool & dry.
Farming done on plateau
above, everything was
imported into the
structure.
Use of Torons
(Compare Djenne)
Yaxchilan
Chiapas, Mexico
Maya 725 CE
“Structure 40”
Limestone
City set on a high terrace,
plaza surrounded by
important buildings
Mayan Center
Flourished 300-800 CE
Built by ruler Bird
Jaguar IV, or his son who
dedicated it to him
Carved stone Lintels
made site famous
Yaxchilan
Lintel 25, Structure 23
Carved Limestone
Tells part of a story or ritual
Depiction of rituals performed
by Shield Jaguar II and his wife
Holding bowl w bloodletting
ceremonial items
Building dedicated to Lady Xoc,
bottom right invoking the
Vision serpent to commemorate
her husbands rise to throne
Yaxchilan
Structure 33
Limestone
Temple
Remains of roof
comb w/
perforations
Large central room
w corbel arch
interior
Great Serpent Mound
Adams County, Ohio
Mississippian Art
1070CE
Earthwork/Effigy
mound
Built in effigy shapes,
uncertain of meaning.
Snakes associated
w/crop fertility
Depiction of a serpent
effigy, head facing east,
tail facing west.
Mark time or seasons,
perhaps indicating
when to plant or harvest
Temple Mayor
Tenochtitlan (Aztec)
Mexico City, Mexico
1375-1520 CE
Laid out in grid, seen
as center of the world
2 Temples on top, each
w/separate staircase.
North: God of Rain
(Tlaloc)
South: God of sun &
war
(Huitzilopochtli)
Sun rises between the
2 during spring and
autumn equinoxes
Fires burned on top
Templo Mayor
a) Coyolxauhqui Stone
Volcanic Stone
Carved Monolith
Relief Sculpture
Story telling carved stone
monolith.
(a single stone serving as a
monument)
Content & Context..??
Templo Mayor
b) Calendar Stone
“The Sun Stone”
Basalt Carving
Reflected cyclic nature of
time…Very
representative of sacrifice
Snakes on outer ring
“make time happen”
Prophesizing death by
earthquakes
Tongue in mouth was
anthropomorphic, a flint
knife used to slash open
victims
https://www.khanacademy.org/testprep/ap-art-history/indigenousamericas/v/sun-stone
Templo Mayor
c) Olmec Style Mask
Jadeite
Olmec Culture
1200-400 BCE
Buried in specific offerings,
Looking to honor cultures before
them
Polished, upturned lips, baby face,
almond eyes, cleft in head
Aztecs collected items from all
over, “looking to the past”
Reverence for cultures before the
Aztec
Rulers Feather Headdress
(probably of Moctezuma
II)
1428-1520 CE
Feathers
(quetzal and blue cotinga)
Gold
Part of ritual, part of
performance
Symbolic of eternity
Transforms ruler into
something different
Find content & context
City of Cusco
Peru (Inka) 1440 CE
City, geometric standing
structures
Historical capital of Inkan
Empire
Center of existence and
reflection of Inka power.
In the shape of puma, royal
animal
The “head” is a fortress, the
“heart” is a central square
City of Cusco
a) Qorikancha (Inka Main Temple)
Santo Domingo (Spanish colonial convent)
Sandstone
“Golden House”
Shrine of the Inka dedicated to
workship the sun
Exemplified walls which tapered
upward, Inkan Trapezoidal
architecture
Qorikancha was one of many Inka
shrines turned into a Christian holy
space. The monastery and church of
Santo Domingo were built around and
on top of the original shrine,
incorporating the old structure into the
new one
Cusco City
b) Walls at Saqsa Wayman
(Sacsayhuaman)
Sandstone
Described as a
fortress
Placed outside
complex of city, at
the head of the
puma.
Stones are massive,
weighing up to 70
tons, taken from
quarry 2 miles
away.
Maize Cobs
Inka
1440-1533 CE
Sheet metal/repousse
Gold & silver alloys
Repousse:
Metalwork hammered into relief from
the reverse side.
Naturalistic Form
Celebrated Maize in sculptural form
Principal food source in Andes
Possibly may have been part of a garden
in which full sized sculptures of maize
and other items were placed alongside
plants, ensuring a successful harvest.
City of Machu Picchu
Central Highlands, Peru
Inka 1450-1540 CE
Granite
Architectural Complex
Royal Estate for the
first Inka Emporer
place where the Inka
emperor and his family
could host feasts,
perform religious
ceremonies, and
administer the affairs
of empire, while also
establishing a claim to
land that would be
owned by his lineage
after his death
City of Machu Picchu
a) Observatory
“Temple of the Sun”
Calculate June
Solstice & important
constellations
Finely cut masonry,
that supports a
building w/o use of
concrete
a building that
embodied
cosmological thought
City of Machu Picchu
b) Intihuatana Stone
“hitching post of the sun”
Carved boulder in ritual area
Name refers to the idea that it
was used to track the passage
of the sun throughout the year,
part of the reckoning of time
used to determine when
religious events would take
place and similar to
the Observatory.
All-T’oqupu Tunic
1450-1540 CE
Camelid fiber & cotton (alpaca)
Color, Pattern, Rhythm,
Shape.
Slit in center for head, sides
sewn for arms, to be worn
T’oqapu are the square
geometric motifs that make up
the entirety of this tunic. These
designs were only allowed to be
worn by those of high rank in
Inka society
T’oquapu are symbolic of
indiviuals, places, or events.
Bandolier Bag
Lenape tribe c. 1850
Beadwork on leather
Pattern, color, shape, texture, form
Store ammunition cartridges for
soldiers
Glass beads, acquired from European
traders
Mostly worn by men, created by
women.
Contrasting colors represent the
Celestial/Sky and Underworld
realms. The designs on the sash may
also be read in relation to the
cosmos…branch into the four
cardinal directions and the division
of the (earthly) realm into four
quadrants.
Transformation Mask
Kwakwaka’wakw
Northeast coast of Canada 19thc CE
pronounced
Kwak-wak-ah-wak
Worn over head as a part of a
complete body costume.
Ritual performance
Wearer will usually turn back to
audience to conceal the opening
action and heighten mystery
Mask is opened, revealing another
face inside.
Painted elk hide
Attributed to Cotsiogo (Cadzi Cody)
Eastern Shoshone
Wind river Reservation,
Wyoming
1890-1900 CE
Hide Painting
natural pigments like red
ochre and chalk, and
eventually paints and dyes
obtained through trade
Find Content & Context
Black on Black
ceramic vessel
Maria Martinez & Julian
Martinez
Tewa, Puebloan New Mexico
20th c CE
Blackware Ceramic
Contrasts shiny/matte black
finishes
Maria made the pots
Julian painted them
Revival of mythic figures and
designs.
Exceptional symmetry, walls are
even thickness, surfaces are
perfect.