MESOAMERICAN ART ARH 347L Unique #20820/LAS 327 Unique #39970 Spring 2021 VIRTUAL Dr. JuliA Guernsey (email: [email protected]) ZoOm Office hOurs after class TuesdAys And ThursdAys or by appointment Teaching Assistant: Daisy Adams ([email protected]) Office hOurs TuesdAy And ThursdAy 11-12 by recurring ZoOm link https://utexas.zoom.us/j/99776080350 ClAss: TuesdAys/ThursdAys 9:30-10:45 on Zoom Course Description and Goals: This course surveys the art, architecture, and mAterial culture of a number of the ancient civilizations of PrecolumbiAn MesOAmericA thAt flourished in whAt are nOw the mOdern cOuntries of MexicO, GuAtemalA, Belize, And HOndurAs. The cOurse spAns the time of the Olmec thrOugh that of the Aztecs, or from the 2nd millennium BC through the arrivAl of the SpAnish in 1519. The goal of this course is tO provide students with a general knOwledge of the history, ritual traditions, and belief systems of ancient MesOamericans, as expressed through sculpture, painting, architecture, archaeological remains, and ancient writing systems. This cOurse cArries the GlObAl Cultures flAg. GlObAl Cultures cOurses Are designed tO increAse yOur fAmiliArity with culturAl grOups Outside the United States. You should therefore expect a substantial portion of your grade to come from tests and Assignments covering the practices, beliefs, and histories of at least one non-U.S. culturAl group, past or present. Suggested readings: There is nO required textbOok for this class. Instead, the schedule below contains a list of suggested reAdings thAt hAve been posted to Canvas or provided through external links. These reAdings are designed to supplement the informAtion presented in class lectures. The suggested readings are not mandatory, but may prOvide useful review infOrmatiOn And images; they are especially recommended if you miss a lecture. Class map/website: A map And website designed fOr review and study purposes exists for this class at: https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?hl=en&hl=en&authuser=0&authuser=0&mid=1mTJHxe5_PhnA1Y6Bct AvtbsUT7U&ll=17.652939822266298%2C-92.84067449550781&z=6 It shOws the locAtion of mAjor sites discussed in class, a summAry of mAin ideAs, and phOtos of pertinent mAterials. ZoOm videO recOrdings: Our clAss ZoOm sessiOns will be recOrded sO that any student whO misses a class due to illness or some other situAtion will be Able tO catch up with course content readily. But please remember that these recordings are reserved only for students in this class for educational purposes and are protected under FERPA. The recordings should not be shared outside the class in any form. Violation of this restriction by a student could lead to Student Misconduct proceedings. Sharing of Course Materials is Prohibited: No mAteriAls used in this clAss, including, but nOt limited to, lecture hand-outs, videos, assessments (quizzes, exams, papers, projects, homework assignments), in-class materials, review sheets, and additionAl problem sets, mAy be shAred online or with anyone outside of the class unless you have my explicit, written permissiOn. UnAuthOrized shAring Of materiAls prOmotes cheAting. It is A viOlAtiOn Of the University’s Student HonOr Code And An Act Of AcAdemic dishOnesty. I Am well Aware Of the sites used fOr shAring materiAls, And Any materiAls fOund online that are associated with you, or any suspected unauthorized sharing of materiAls, will be repOrted tO Student Conduct And AcAdemic Integrity in the Office Of the DeAn Of Students. These repOrts cAn result in sanctions, including failure in the cOurse. Assessment: Assessment of a student’s progress in this course will be accomplished through two exams and two papers/reAding respOnses. Beware: We use Turnitin fOr All exAms and essays, And will closely check your work to ensure that it is originAl, and not copied from the web, from publicAtions, or from student wOrk in previous semesters. If you plagiarize, you will receive an Automatic “F” for thAt assignment/exAm as well as face the possibility of failure for the course. PleAse see the UT AcAdemic Integrity and plagiarism policy below for more informAtion. 1 Exams: There will be two exams, eAch worth 25% Of yOur finAl grade. The exAms will cOnsist of a mix of shOrt answer questions, imAge identificAtions and cOmpArisons, and essays. ExAms will require the student to (1) recognize and demonstrate an understanding of the various objects, art, archaeology, and architecture covered in class through discussion, comparison, and contrast and (2) go beyond memorizAtiOn And synthesize ideAs presented in clAss and drawn from assigned reAdings. Assignment 1: This paper is worth 25% Of your final grade. It shOuld be at least 3 pages in length, NOT including a bibliography and any images. This pAper is designed to allow students to think, in comparative terms, About the methods used in analyzing ancient material culture. Assignment 2: This Assignment will be worth 25% of your final grade. It invOlves a 2-page reAding respOnse thAt discusses the theme of sacrifice in ancient Mesoamerica And involves cross-cultural comparison and consideration. The assignment is designed to allow students to develop critical thinking skills, relate ideAs presented in class with thOse drawn from an assigned reAding, and address a complex theme that resonates across many cultures. Attendance and Participation: Since exam material will be drawn primarily from class lectures, discussions, and debates, it is very important to attend all lectures if you intend to fare well in this class. Grading: Plus/minus grades will be used for determining the finAl grade in this cOurse. Academic Integrity and Plagiarism: Students who violate University rules on academic dishonesty are subject to disciplinAry penAlties, including the pOssibility of failure in the cOurse and/or dismissal from the University. Since such dishonesty harms the individual, all students, and the integrity of the University, policies on academic dishonesty will be strictly enforced. For further information, please visit the Student Conduct and Academic Integrity website at: http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/conduct. See alsO https://catalog.utexas.edu/general- informAtion/appendices/appendix-c/student-discipline-and-conduct/ Accommodations For religious holidays: By UT Austin pOlicy, yOu must nOtify me Of yOur pending Absence At leAst fourteen dAys prior to the dAte of observance of a religious holy day. If yOu must miss a class, an examination, a work assignment, or a project in order to observe a religiOus holy day, yOu will be given an opportunity to complete the missed work within a reasonable time after the absence. Students with disabilities may request appropriate academic accommodations from the Division of Diversity and Community EngAgement, Services for Students with Disabilities, 471-6259, http://www.utexAs.edu/diversity/ddce/ssd/ Schedule of lectures, assigned readings, exams, and assignments: JanuAry 19: Introduction: what is Mesoamerica? Suggested reAding: COe and KOOntz, “Introduction” JanuAry 21: EARLY PRECLASSIC: 1500-900 BC The AppeArAnce of the Olmec at the site of San Lorenzo Suggested reAding: (1) Pool, Olmec Archaeology and Early Mesoamerica, pp. 92-127; (2) Cyphers, “The Olmec, 1800-400 BCE”, pp. 1005, 1007-1018. JanuAry 26: An Olmec WOrldview: Jade, celts, mAize, and cOsmOgrams Suggested reAdings: (1) TAube, Olmec Art at Dumbarton Oaks, pp. 126-135; (2) Broad, “In GuAtemAla, A RhOde IslAnd-sized Jade LOAd;” (3) POol, Olmec Archaeology and Early Mesoamerica, pp. 170-175 JanuAry 28: MIDDLE PRECLASSIC: 900-300 BC The Olmec site Of La VentA: cOnstructiOn Of sAcred spAce; underpinnings for divine kingship Suggested readings: (1) POOl, Olmec Archaeology and Early Mesoamerica, pp. 156-170; (2) Freidel, Schele, and Parker, Maya Cosmos, pp. 132-137 February 2: The Middle Preclassic sites of Chalcatzingo and Oxtotitlán 2 Suggested reading: GrOve, “FAces Of the Earth at ChAlcAtzingO, MexicO: Serpents, CAves, and MOuntains in Middle FOrmative Period IcOnOgraphy”, in Olmec Art and Archaeology in Mesoamerica February 4: The Middle Preclassic site of LA BlancA, GuAtemAla Suggested reAdings: (1) Love And Guernsey, “MOnument 3 from La Blanca, Guatemala: A Middle Preclassic earthen sculpture and its rituAl associations;” (2) RepOrt On 2005 excAvAtions at LA BlancA by Love And Guernsey at http://www.famsi.org/reports/05051/index.html Discuss Assignment 1 February 9: LATE PRECLASSIC: 300 BC - 250 AD The OrgAnization of sacred space at Izapa Suggested reading: Guernsey, “Sacred Geography at Izapa and the Performance of Rulership.” February 11: IzApA, cOntinued February 16: West MexicO Suggested reAdings: (1) WeigAnd and Beekman, “The Teuchitlan Tradition Rise of a Statelike SOciety”; (2) Townsend, “Before Gods, Before Kings” ASSIGNMENT 1 DUE February 18: The Valley Of OaxAcA And the Zapotecs: Monte Albán and Dainzú (DL) Suggested readings: (1) Flannery and Marcus, The Cloud People, pp. 87-90; (2) Orr, “PrOcessiOn RituAls And Shrine Sites: The Politics of SAcred SpAce in the LAte FOrmAtive VAlley of Oaxaca.” February 23: CacAO & ChOcOlAte in MesOAmericA Suggest reading: Cameron L. McNeil, “Introduction: The Biology, Antiquity, And MOdern Uses of the ChOcOlAte Tree (Theobroma cacao L.)” February 25: The MesOAmericAn bAllgAme Suggested readings: (1) Schele and Miller, Blood of Kings: 241-264; (2) MetrOpOlitAn Museum entry At https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/mball/hd_mbAll.htm; (3) Miller, “The bAllgAme” March 2: Review fOr ExAm One March 4: EXAM ONE posted; due TUESDAY, MARCH 9, BY 9:30 AM March 9: THE CLASSIC PERIOD 250-900 AD: THE VALLEY OF MEXICO &: TEOTIHUACAN TeOtihuAcAn architecture and sacred spAce Suggested reading: MillOn, “The Place Where Time Began: An Archaeologist’s Interpretation of What Happened in Teotihuacan History” March 11: TeOtihuAcAn: the Temple Of the Feathered Serpent and the icOnOgraphy of wArfare Suggested reading: SugiyamA “Rulership, Warfare, and Human Sacrifice at the Ciudadela” March 15-19: Spring BreAk March 23: ClAss cAncelled March 25: TeOtihuAcAn And its relationship to the ZApOtec region Suggested readings: (1) Spence “Tlailotlacan, a Zapotec EnclAve in Teotihuacan”; (2) Flannery and Marcus, The Cloud People, pp.