November 2015 Ancient Andean Lectures, Conferences and Exhibits
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Mike R
Oct 29, 2015, 12:10:26 AM10/29/15
to Andean and Amazonian Archaeology Discussion Group
November 4, 6:15 PM
The Department of the History of Art, Johns Hopkins University
Distinguished Lecture in Art of the Ancient Americas
"Building for the Beyond: Architectural Models from the Ancient Americas"
Joanne Pillsbury
Andrall E. Pearson Curator in the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Pre-Columbian architectural models—small-scale architectural effigies made in ceramic, stone, wood, gold and silver—have been a subject of fascination for scholars since the beginning of the nineteenth century. A large and diverse corpus, models have been found from Mexico to the Andean region of South America, from the first millennium B.C. to the time of the arrival of Europeans in the early sixteenth century and beyond. The structures range from highly abstracted, minimalist representations of temples and houses, to elaborate architectural complexes populated with figures—conveying a rich sense of ancient ritual and daily life. Not architectural models in the traditional sense of aids for the design process, Pre-Columbian architectural effigies seem to have been more about embodiments of ideas for ritual purposes. Most were presumably placed in burials, where they may have served as symbolic representations of ritual architecture, ensured specific conditions in an afterlife, or served as dwellings for divine beings. Intimately bound up with ideas of time and place, these small structures leave us with indelible images of lost worlds of the ancient Americas.
Joanne Pillsbury is former Associate Director of the Getty Research Institute and Director of Pre-Columbian Studies at Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Harvard University. Earlier in her career, she was Assistant Dean of the Center for Advanced Study in the Visual Arts, National Gallery of Art. She has held teaching positions at Johns Hopkins University and the University of East Anglia. At the University of Maryland, she was the Dumbarton Oaks Professor of Pre-Columbian Studies.
Mason Auditorium
Johns Hopkins Homewood Campus
Baltmore, Maryland
(NO URL YET)
The Department of the History of Art, Johns Hopkins University
Distinguished Lecture in Art of the Ancient Americas
"Building for the Beyond: Architectural Models from the Ancient Americas"
Joanne Pillsbury
Andrall E. Pearson Curator in the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Pre-Columbian architectural models—small-scale architectural effigies made in ceramic, stone, wood, gold and silver—have been a subject of fascination for scholars since the beginning of the nineteenth century. A large and diverse corpus, models have been found from Mexico to the Andean region of South America, from the first millennium B.C. to the time of the arrival of Europeans in the early sixteenth century and beyond. The structures range from highly abstracted, minimalist representations of temples and houses, to elaborate architectural complexes populated with figures—conveying a rich sense of ancient ritual and daily life. Not architectural models in the traditional sense of aids for the design process, Pre-Columbian architectural effigies seem to have been more about embodiments of ideas for ritual purposes. Most were presumably placed in burials, where they may have served as symbolic representations of ritual architecture, ensured specific conditions in an afterlife, or served as dwellings for divine beings. Intimately bound up with ideas of time and place, these small structures leave us with indelible images of lost worlds of the ancient Americas.
Joanne Pillsbury is former Associate Director of the Getty Research Institute and Director of Pre-Columbian Studies at Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Harvard University. Earlier in her career, she was Assistant Dean of the Center for Advanced Study in the Visual Arts, National Gallery of Art. She has held teaching positions at Johns Hopkins University and the University of East Anglia. At the University of Maryland, she was the Dumbarton Oaks Professor of Pre-Columbian Studies.
Mason Auditorium
Johns Hopkins Homewood Campus
Baltmore, Maryland
(NO URL YET)
November 5, 4:00 PM
"Peruvian Archaeology at the Beginning of the Twenty-First Century”
Henry Tantalean, Tinker Visiting Professor, Stanford University
Room 101 (Archaeological Research Facility)
Archaeological Research Facility
College Building 2251
University of California at Berkeley
http://events.berkeley.edu/index.php/calendar/sn/arf.html?event_ID=93879&date=2015-11-05&filter=Secondary
November 5, 7:00 PM
"Inca Haute Cuisine: Dining Splendidly in 15th-Century Peru"
What did it mean to dine splendidly in the late pre-Columbian Andes? What distinguished an elite repast from an ordinary one? What does the archaeological record tell us about cooking, cuisine, and power relations during the time of the Inca? Join Dr. Tamara L. Bray, Professor of Anthropology at Wayne State University, to look at the different foodstuffs, methods of preparation, and forms of consumption found within the Inca Empire, and the important role of food and feasting in the negotiation of power and state politics during the late pre-Columbian era.
Horchow Auditorium
Dallas Museum of Art
Dallas, Texas
https://www.dma.org/programs/event/inca-haute-cuisine-dining-splendidly-15th-century-peru
"Peruvian Archaeology at the Beginning of the Twenty-First Century”
Henry Tantalean, Tinker Visiting Professor, Stanford University
Room 101 (Archaeological Research Facility)
Archaeological Research Facility
College Building 2251
University of California at Berkeley
http://events.berkeley.edu/index.php/calendar/sn/arf.html?event_ID=93879&date=2015-11-05&filter=Secondary
November 5, 7:00 PM
"Inca Haute Cuisine: Dining Splendidly in 15th-Century Peru"
What did it mean to dine splendidly in the late pre-Columbian Andes? What distinguished an elite repast from an ordinary one? What does the archaeological record tell us about cooking, cuisine, and power relations during the time of the Inca? Join Dr. Tamara L. Bray, Professor of Anthropology at Wayne State University, to look at the different foodstuffs, methods of preparation, and forms of consumption found within the Inca Empire, and the important role of food and feasting in the negotiation of power and state politics during the late pre-Columbian era.
Horchow Auditorium
Dallas Museum of Art
Dallas, Texas
https://www.dma.org/programs/event/inca-haute-cuisine-dining-splendidly-15th-century-peru
November 6, 4:00-5:00 PM
Met Museum Public Lecture: Luis Jaime Castillo Butters
Please join renowned archaeologist Luis Jaime Castillo Butters, Professor of Archaeology, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, for a lecture, “Modeling the World: Precolumbian Architectural Models as Metaphors of Place, Landscape, and Belonging,” to be held on Friday, November 6, from 4:00–5:00 p.m., in the Bonnie J. Sacerdote Lecture Hall, Uris Center for Education, The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Presented in conjunction with the exhibition Design for Eternity: Architectural Models from the Ancient Americas (opening on October 26th), Dr. Castillo explores the function, context, and symbolic meanings behind architectural effigies, particularly those excavated in recent years.
Metropolitan Museum of Art
1000 Fifth Avenue (at 82nd Street)
New York
http://pcsny.org/?tribe_events=met-museum-public-lecture-luis-jaime-castillo-butters
Met Museum Public Lecture: Luis Jaime Castillo Butters
Please join renowned archaeologist Luis Jaime Castillo Butters, Professor of Archaeology, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, for a lecture, “Modeling the World: Precolumbian Architectural Models as Metaphors of Place, Landscape, and Belonging,” to be held on Friday, November 6, from 4:00–5:00 p.m., in the Bonnie J. Sacerdote Lecture Hall, Uris Center for Education, The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Presented in conjunction with the exhibition Design for Eternity: Architectural Models from the Ancient Americas (opening on October 26th), Dr. Castillo explores the function, context, and symbolic meanings behind architectural effigies, particularly those excavated in recent years.
Metropolitan Museum of Art
1000 Fifth Avenue (at 82nd Street)
New York
http://pcsny.org/?tribe_events=met-museum-public-lecture-luis-jaime-castillo-butters
November 14, 10:30 AM
Co-presented by LACMA and the UCLA Cotsen Institute of Archaeology.
Los Angeles County Museum of Art Symposium
Coinciding with two exhibitions of ancient Colombian-art-currently on view in Los Angeles, LACMA's~Art~of the Ancient~Americas Department, in association with the Fowler Museum at UCLA, invites you to a morning of public presentations on the rich history and development of Colombian~art~and archaeology.
We are pleased to announce that three distinguished scholars will share their knowledge of the extraordinary ancient history, culture, and artifacts from this region, about which so much remains unknown.
LACMA, Brown Auditorium
"Ancient Colombian History and Cultures in Relation to Wider Northwest South-America"
Colin McEwan, Director of Pre-Columbian Studies at Dumbarton Oaks Research Library & Collections, contextualizes ancient Colombian history and cultures in relation to wider northwest South~America.
"The Site of Ciudad Perdida (Lost City)"
Santiago Giraldo, Director of the Colombia Heritage Program of the Global Heritage Fund in Colombia
"The Beauty, Importance, and Meaning of Colombian Gold and Metalworks"
Maria-Alicia Uribe,~Director of Museo del Oro in Bogotá
There will be a break with complimentary Colombian coffee.
To enable you to visit both exhibitions (at LACMA and the Fowler Museum), a free round-trip shuttle to the Fowler from LACMA will be available, departing at~1:30 pm.~To reserve a spot on the shuttle, contact~fowlerp...@arts.ucla.edu.
Co-presented by LACMA and the UCLA Cotsen Institute of Archaeology.
http://www.lacma.org/event/ancient-colombia
http://www.lacma.org/art/exhibition/ancient-colombia-journey-through-cauca-valley
http://www.fowler.ucla.edu/exhibitions/fowler-focus-encountering-ancient-colombia
Co-presented by LACMA and the UCLA Cotsen Institute of Archaeology.
Los Angeles County Museum of Art Symposium
Coinciding with two exhibitions of ancient Colombian-art-currently on view in Los Angeles, LACMA's~Art~of the Ancient~Americas Department, in association with the Fowler Museum at UCLA, invites you to a morning of public presentations on the rich history and development of Colombian~art~and archaeology.
We are pleased to announce that three distinguished scholars will share their knowledge of the extraordinary ancient history, culture, and artifacts from this region, about which so much remains unknown.
LACMA, Brown Auditorium
"Ancient Colombian History and Cultures in Relation to Wider Northwest South-America"
Colin McEwan, Director of Pre-Columbian Studies at Dumbarton Oaks Research Library & Collections, contextualizes ancient Colombian history and cultures in relation to wider northwest South~America.
"The Site of Ciudad Perdida (Lost City)"
Santiago Giraldo, Director of the Colombia Heritage Program of the Global Heritage Fund in Colombia
"The Beauty, Importance, and Meaning of Colombian Gold and Metalworks"
Maria-Alicia Uribe,~Director of Museo del Oro in Bogotá
There will be a break with complimentary Colombian coffee.
To enable you to visit both exhibitions (at LACMA and the Fowler Museum), a free round-trip shuttle to the Fowler from LACMA will be available, departing at~1:30 pm.~To reserve a spot on the shuttle, contact~fowlerp...@arts.ucla.edu.
Co-presented by LACMA and the UCLA Cotsen Institute of Archaeology.
http://www.lacma.org/event/ancient-colombia
http://www.lacma.org/art/exhibition/ancient-colombia-journey-through-cauca-valley
http://www.fowler.ucla.edu/exhibitions/fowler-focus-encountering-ancient-colombia
November 14, 1:30 PM
"Ancient Colombian Gold Under the Microscope @the BM"
Marcos Martinón-Torres has been invited to give a lunchtime lecture at the British Museum on 14 November.
At this event, Marcos will share the latest analysis of scientific research on Muisca goldwork from Colombia, showing the skills and errors of individual artists, a peculiar use of gold which challenges our perception of this precious metal, and offer a new interpretation of the famous raft of El Dorado.
While this event is free, booking is essential.
BP Lecture Theatre,
British Museum,
London WC1
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/archaeology/calendar/articles/20131114
"Ancient Colombian Gold Under the Microscope @the BM"
Marcos Martinón-Torres has been invited to give a lunchtime lecture at the British Museum on 14 November.
At this event, Marcos will share the latest analysis of scientific research on Muisca goldwork from Colombia, showing the skills and errors of individual artists, a peculiar use of gold which challenges our perception of this precious metal, and offer a new interpretation of the famous raft of El Dorado.
While this event is free, booking is essential.
BP Lecture Theatre,
British Museum,
London WC1
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/archaeology/calendar/articles/20131114
November 17, 7:00 PM
AIA Lecture
"Transportation and Regional Exchange in the Ancient Andes”
Nicholas Tripcevich, Archaeological Research Facility, UC Berkeley
The Inca road system that much impressed 16th century Spanish explorers is thought to have extended over nearly 25,000 miles, and yet the Inca empire existed for less than 100 years. How did the empire grow so quickly from Cusco Peru to cover much of western South America and develop such a tremendous road network in their mountainous lands? The answer lies in studying the polities that preceded the Inca and the trade networks that had emerged over millennia that moved items between ecological zones and linked communities across distances. One type of evidence for the development of these ties between distant regions comes from studying artifacts like obsidian that can be sourced using geochemistry, and the links between obsidian source areas and sites where obsidian has been recovered by archaeologists.
This talk will describe my work in Peru, Bolivia, and Chile examining obsidian quarries in the high Andes and patterns in the distribution of archaeological obsidian over time that has been organized in a geographical information system (GIS). These patterns are considered in light of observations gathered during a two-week ethnoarchaeological study in 2007 with a llama caravan bearing salt on a 200 km journey to neighboring valley in southern Peru. The regular circuits traveled by llama caravans over thousands of years transported portable goods but these traders also moved information and maintained social ties, which enabled the forging of cultural traditions over a broad region long before the Inca.
370 Dwinelle Hall
Archaeological Research Facility
College Building 2251
University of California at Berkeley
http://events.berkeley.edu/index.php/calendar/sn/arf.html?event_ID=90508&date=2015-11-17&filter=Secondary
December 2, 7:00 PM
AIA Lecture
"Land and Underwater Archaeology Research at Lake Sibinacocha Cusco, Peru”
Carlos Ausejo, Peruvian Center for Maritime and Underwater Archaeology
Preston Sowell, Environmental Scientist
Carlos Ausejo and Preston Sowell will present the findings of their 2015 archaeological reconnaissance expedition to Laguna Sibinacocha, located at 5000m (16,000 ft) in the
cordillera Vilcanota range of southern Peru. The importance of maritime and underwater archaeology in Peru lies in the material’s extraordinary state of preservation, which allows access to information not previously recorded (especially in the case of pre-Hispanic findings). In August 2011, Preston Sowell made the initial discovery of submerged ruins and artifacts, 4.3 m below Sibinacocha’s surface. The submerged cultural features discovered so far consist of a 100m long wall with a zigzag-shaped section and intact offering pots on the surrounding lakebed. Pre-Hispanic artifacts and architectural features,utilized rock shelters, and a possible burial site were also located around the lake. Many of the features discovered to date indicate that Sibinacocha had been in use from
pre-ceramic to colonial times. The 2015 archaeological reconnaissance expedition includes the first observations made by archaeologist at this remote, high-altitude, land and underwater site.
CU Boulder,
Museum of Natural History
Henderson Building,
15th and Broadway
Boulder, Colorado
https://www.archaeological.org/events/20084
AIA Lecture
"Transportation and Regional Exchange in the Ancient Andes”
Nicholas Tripcevich, Archaeological Research Facility, UC Berkeley
The Inca road system that much impressed 16th century Spanish explorers is thought to have extended over nearly 25,000 miles, and yet the Inca empire existed for less than 100 years. How did the empire grow so quickly from Cusco Peru to cover much of western South America and develop such a tremendous road network in their mountainous lands? The answer lies in studying the polities that preceded the Inca and the trade networks that had emerged over millennia that moved items between ecological zones and linked communities across distances. One type of evidence for the development of these ties between distant regions comes from studying artifacts like obsidian that can be sourced using geochemistry, and the links between obsidian source areas and sites where obsidian has been recovered by archaeologists.
This talk will describe my work in Peru, Bolivia, and Chile examining obsidian quarries in the high Andes and patterns in the distribution of archaeological obsidian over time that has been organized in a geographical information system (GIS). These patterns are considered in light of observations gathered during a two-week ethnoarchaeological study in 2007 with a llama caravan bearing salt on a 200 km journey to neighboring valley in southern Peru. The regular circuits traveled by llama caravans over thousands of years transported portable goods but these traders also moved information and maintained social ties, which enabled the forging of cultural traditions over a broad region long before the Inca.
370 Dwinelle Hall
Archaeological Research Facility
College Building 2251
University of California at Berkeley
http://events.berkeley.edu/index.php/calendar/sn/arf.html?event_ID=90508&date=2015-11-17&filter=Secondary
December 2, 7:00 PM
AIA Lecture
"Land and Underwater Archaeology Research at Lake Sibinacocha Cusco, Peru”
Carlos Ausejo, Peruvian Center for Maritime and Underwater Archaeology
Preston Sowell, Environmental Scientist
Carlos Ausejo and Preston Sowell will present the findings of their 2015 archaeological reconnaissance expedition to Laguna Sibinacocha, located at 5000m (16,000 ft) in the
cordillera Vilcanota range of southern Peru. The importance of maritime and underwater archaeology in Peru lies in the material’s extraordinary state of preservation, which allows access to information not previously recorded (especially in the case of pre-Hispanic findings). In August 2011, Preston Sowell made the initial discovery of submerged ruins and artifacts, 4.3 m below Sibinacocha’s surface. The submerged cultural features discovered so far consist of a 100m long wall with a zigzag-shaped section and intact offering pots on the surrounding lakebed. Pre-Hispanic artifacts and architectural features,utilized rock shelters, and a possible burial site were also located around the lake. Many of the features discovered to date indicate that Sibinacocha had been in use from
pre-ceramic to colonial times. The 2015 archaeological reconnaissance expedition includes the first observations made by archaeologist at this remote, high-altitude, land and underwater site.
CU Boulder,
Museum of Natural History
Henderson Building,
15th and Broadway
Boulder, Colorado
https://www.archaeological.org/events/20084
September 27, 2015-January 3, 2016
Fowler Museum at UCLA Exhibit
"Fowler in Focus: Encountering Ancient Colombia; A Journey through the Magdalena Valley
The Fowler Museum at UCLA presents “Encountering Ancient Colombia—A Journey through the Magdalena Valley,” a selection of rare ceramic objects from pre-colonial Colombia. Drawn primarily from the Muñoz Kramer Collection of ancient Colombian ceramics at LACMA, these works include fascinating vessels and sculptural forms, many never exhibited before. A small number of breathtaking gold objects from a private collection are included. Most of these works come to us separated from their original archaeological contexts, challenging us to reconstruct their origins from the evidence still available.
The reconstruction of Colombia’s ancient past involves the work of archaeologists, ethnographers, art historians, and historians—each discipline illuminating different facets of a vanished world. Given such a complex endeavor, there are a variety of possible interpretations. As visitors make their way through the exhibition, they will find quotations from 16th-century Spanish chroniclers and the insights of 20th-century ethnographers presented alongside the objects. Organized geographically by culture, each display case invites visitors to consider how we know what we think we know about these objects and the peoples who made them. The installation seeks to question our knowledge of the ancient ceramics and gold on view and to illustrate the rich cultures and astonishing world of pre-colonial Colombia.
One particularly compelling section of the installation explores the important theme of supernatural or hybrid beings in art associated with the Tairona culture. Objects in this section show animals with human features and humans with animal attributes, such as protruding snouts, fangs, or limbs in the form of snakes. Using a combination of historical sources and ethnographic research, we now understand such figures to represent shamanic practices, in particular transformation and divination. In the Americas shamans are generally distinguished by their ability to travel out of their bodies in spirit forms. Ceramic and gold representations of figures with animal appendages or attributes appear to depict the moment of actual transformation.
Another section focuses on objects associated with death and burial practices in the middle Magdalena Valley. A large proportion of ancient Colombian objects, including many of the ceramic and gold pieces on display, were most likely found in tombs. The reasons for their inclusion in burials are varied: some were containers filled with food and drink to sustain the deceased on his or her journey to the afterlife; others were personal belongings; still others may have been made especially for burial, to act as companions, guides, or protectors. Urns also were made to contain the bones and cremated ashes of the deceased. The exhibition features a large and dramatic burial urn from the area. Archaeological evidence strongly suggests that the urns were used for burial, many other questions about their use and decoration remain.
Encountering Ancient Colombia—A Journey through the Magdalena Valley is a collaboration between the Fowler and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) and was organized by Julia Burtenshaw, Postdoctoral Curatorial Fellow, Art of the Ancient Americas, LACMA.
The Muñoz Kramer Collection was acquired by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) as a shared resource for LACMA and the Fowler as part of an ongoing collaborative collections/exhibitions initiative. A selection of works from the Muñoz Kramer collection is concurrently on display at LACMA in the exhibition Ancient Colombia: A Journey through the Cauca Valley, on view through April 10, 2016.
http://bit.ly/1WhPDXU
Fowler Museum at UCLA Exhibit
"Fowler in Focus: Encountering Ancient Colombia; A Journey through the Magdalena Valley
The Fowler Museum at UCLA presents “Encountering Ancient Colombia—A Journey through the Magdalena Valley,” a selection of rare ceramic objects from pre-colonial Colombia. Drawn primarily from the Muñoz Kramer Collection of ancient Colombian ceramics at LACMA, these works include fascinating vessels and sculptural forms, many never exhibited before. A small number of breathtaking gold objects from a private collection are included. Most of these works come to us separated from their original archaeological contexts, challenging us to reconstruct their origins from the evidence still available.
The reconstruction of Colombia’s ancient past involves the work of archaeologists, ethnographers, art historians, and historians—each discipline illuminating different facets of a vanished world. Given such a complex endeavor, there are a variety of possible interpretations. As visitors make their way through the exhibition, they will find quotations from 16th-century Spanish chroniclers and the insights of 20th-century ethnographers presented alongside the objects. Organized geographically by culture, each display case invites visitors to consider how we know what we think we know about these objects and the peoples who made them. The installation seeks to question our knowledge of the ancient ceramics and gold on view and to illustrate the rich cultures and astonishing world of pre-colonial Colombia.
One particularly compelling section of the installation explores the important theme of supernatural or hybrid beings in art associated with the Tairona culture. Objects in this section show animals with human features and humans with animal attributes, such as protruding snouts, fangs, or limbs in the form of snakes. Using a combination of historical sources and ethnographic research, we now understand such figures to represent shamanic practices, in particular transformation and divination. In the Americas shamans are generally distinguished by their ability to travel out of their bodies in spirit forms. Ceramic and gold representations of figures with animal appendages or attributes appear to depict the moment of actual transformation.
Another section focuses on objects associated with death and burial practices in the middle Magdalena Valley. A large proportion of ancient Colombian objects, including many of the ceramic and gold pieces on display, were most likely found in tombs. The reasons for their inclusion in burials are varied: some were containers filled with food and drink to sustain the deceased on his or her journey to the afterlife; others were personal belongings; still others may have been made especially for burial, to act as companions, guides, or protectors. Urns also were made to contain the bones and cremated ashes of the deceased. The exhibition features a large and dramatic burial urn from the area. Archaeological evidence strongly suggests that the urns were used for burial, many other questions about their use and decoration remain.
Encountering Ancient Colombia—A Journey through the Magdalena Valley is a collaboration between the Fowler and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) and was organized by Julia Burtenshaw, Postdoctoral Curatorial Fellow, Art of the Ancient Americas, LACMA.
The Muñoz Kramer Collection was acquired by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) as a shared resource for LACMA and the Fowler as part of an ongoing collaborative collections/exhibitions initiative. A selection of works from the Muñoz Kramer collection is concurrently on display at LACMA in the exhibition Ancient Colombia: A Journey through the Cauca Valley, on view through April 10, 2016.
http://bit.ly/1WhPDXU
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