ANT-2100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Serpent Mound, Upper Paleolithic, Monks Mound
38 views2 pages
Ideology, Symbolism, and Cosmology in the Past
•Symbol:
• an object or an act (verbal or nonverbal) that by cultural convention stands for
something with which it has no necessary connection
•because of this disconnect, the same symbol can be used in different ways
depending on the cultural context
•how can an outsider know the meaning of a particular symbol?
•difficult to understand symbols archaeologically
•physical symbol survives in archaeological record, meaning does not
•must make sure we’re not giving the symbol a meaning based solely on
what it looks like
•ex: Venus figurine
•said to symbolize fertility - have to analyze the context in which it was found
in order to determine true meaning
•upper paleolithic period
•ex: serpent mound, Ohio
•interpreting symbols - context is key
•ways it is used
•where it is found
•associated with female/male?
•associated with adults/children?
•Cosmology:
•study/understanding of the origin, large-scale structure, and future of the
universe
•a cosmological explanation demonstrates how the universe developed and
describes what principles keep it together
•iconography: art forms or writing systems that symbolically represent ideas
about religion or cosmology
•Mississippian Period ~ AD 850-1450
•Monks Mound, Cahokia
•most sites aligned along rivers
•ex: copper plate - bird man effigy, shell gorgets, statues, head-pots
•“Stone Graves Race” - Thruston 1897
•middle Tennessee
•graves lines in limestone rocks & slabs
•limsteones neutralizes acidity of soil, preserves artifacts and bones (except
for organic materials)
•“Middle Cumberland Culture” - Ferguson
•the people are more than their burial style
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com