The Archaeology of the Mind Chapter 11 The Archaeology of the Mind

Outline What’s a Symbol? The Peace Pipe as Ritual Weapon Exploring Ancient Chavín Cosmology Blueprints for an Archaeology of the Mind Upper Paleolithic Cave Art

Cognitive Archaeology The study of aspects of ancient culture that are the product of the human mind: The perception, description, and classification of the universe. The nature of the supernatural. Principles, philosophies, and values by which human societies are governed. The ways the world, the supernatural, or human values are conveyed in art.

What’s a Symbol? People live in a culturally constructed world influenced by symbolic meanings. The ability to use symbols goes to the essence of what it means to be human. A symbol is an object or act that by cultural convention stands for something else with which it has no necessary connection. Anthropologists may interpret symbols by looking at various ways a symbol is used and its context.

What’s a Symbol? Symbols are difficult to study archaeologically …how can one know the meaning of a particular symbol? The physical symbols survives, but its meaning does not.

The Peace Pipe as Ritual Weapon In the 1970s Robert Hall used the calumet to demonstrate how a cognitive approach could broaden the horizons of archaeological investigations. Archaeologists refer to this common set of symbols found over a wide area as the Hopewell Interaction Sphere. Hopewell people shared a common religion. Religions belies are manifested in everyday life as ritual Some of the highly standardized Hopewell artifacts are perhaps indicative of rituals.

Hopewell Interaction Sphere A common set of symbols found in the midwestern United States between 2200 and 1600 BP. Hopewell “culture” included many different peoples speaking different languages and living various ways, from the lower Mississippi to Minnesota, and from Nebraska to Virginia.

Exploring Ancient Chavín Cosmology Archaeologists consider Chavín to be Peru’s first highland civilization. Chavín left a lasting legacy in Andean cosmology through its iconography. Animals depicted in the iconology include monkeys, jaguar, crested eagles, caiman, mainly those found in Amazons. Where did Chavín cosmology come from?

The Role of Cosmology in Andean Civilization Chavín iconography was a widespread religion subdivided into a localized branches. The spread of Chavín elements across the central Andes occurred in turbulent times after the collapse of many early coastal political systems Chavín was a large-scale hierarchical religion, transcending political and ethnic boundaries.

Upper Paleolithic Cave Art Earliest evidence of artistic expression appears in the last 100,000 yeas and becomes widespread around 40,000 years. The Upper Paleolithic (40,000–10,000 BP) in Europe is distinguished by the appearance of a complex technology of stone, bone, and antler as well as wall art, portable art objects, and decorated tools. Cave paintings are commonly found in France and Spain, many dating to the Magdalenian phase (18- 12,000BP)

Upper Paleolithic Cave Art: Content Human beings rarely appear and when they do, they are poorly executed in comparison with animal figures. Images often overlap, no one has identified a “story” or landscape. Paintings are found in very obscure places, indicating the artists intention to limit access to them.

Map of Lascaux

A Panel of Art from a Rockshelter at La María

Related Videos Lascaux, The Prehistory of Art- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0LnTtS7-70 Walking Tour- Hopewell Interaction Sphere- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJ1g77A9XBU Global Treasures- Chavin de Huantar- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJ1g77A9XBU

Quick Quiz

1. Cognitive Archaeology includes the study of: Principles, philosophies, and values by which human societies are governed. The ways the world, the supernatural, or human values are conveyed in art. Why cultures developed horticulture. A, B and C. A and B only.

Answer: E Cognitive Archaeology includes the study of principles, philosophies and values by which human societies are governed and the ways the world, the supernatural, or human values are conveyed in art.

2. The Hopewell Interaction Sphere included many different peoples that spoke a single language and shared a common religious belief. True False

Answer: B The Hopewell Interaction Sphere included many different peoples speaking different languages who shared a unifying set of symbols that may indicate common religious beliefs.

3. A _______ explanation demonstrates how the universe developed and describes what principles keep it together.

Answer: cosmological A cosmological explanation demonstrates how the universe developed and describes what principles keep it together.

4. According to the paradigm known as structuralism, humans understand reality according to the structures in their communities. True False

Answer: B According to the paradigm known as structuralism, humans understand reality as paired oppositions.

5. A ritual in which an individual seeks visions through starvation, dehydration, and exposure is called a ____ ______.

Answer: vision quest A ritual in which an individual seeks visions through starvation, dehydration, and exposure is called a vision quest.