HI 3803 Pre-Columbian Art and Architecture Study Guide

Flashcards covering key vocabulary terms and definitions related to Pre-Columbian Art and Architecture for the HI 3803 study guide.

sacabes

elevated stuccoed white roads that spanned the swamps

Caracol

A Maya structure known for its spiral interior layout, located in the architecture of ancient Maya cities.

Uaxactun

An archaeological site in Guatemala, significant for its Mayan ruins (8 stones)

Popol Vuh

The Maya creation myth that includes the adventures of the Hero Twins.

Hero Twins (Hunter and Jaguar Deer)

Main characters in the Popol Vuh, known for their adventures and victory over the Lords of Death.

Quetzalcoatl

A Mesoamerican deity represented as a feathered serpent, associated with wind and learning.

tzompantli

Skull rack

Huitzilopochtli

The Aztec god of war, sun, and human sacrifice.

Tlaloc

The Aztec god of rain and fertility.

chinampa

A Mesoamerican agricultural technique that involves creating floating gardens.

New Fire Ceremony

An important Aztec ritual that marks the completion of a 52-year cycle.

Coyolxauhqui

Bells on the cheeks

Tolteca

A Mesoamerican civilization that preceded the Aztec, known for its influence on art and culture.

Codex

Books produced in ancient Mesoamerica, containing pictorial records or glyphs.

puna

Space between mountains. (a high treeless plateau in the Peruvian Andes)

huaca

A term for sacred objects or places in Andean cultures.

hanan and hurin

Terms referring to the upper and lower parts of the world in Andean cosmology.

uncu

A traditional Andean garment worn by men, often representing cultural identity. (mens shirt)

Maya, Caracol, Chichen Itza

The Spanish name of this structure refers to the spiral layout of its interior.

Maya, Rio Azul tomb painting, Peten

The murals on the side walls are meant to represent the watery underworld.

Teotihuacano, Temple of Feathered Serpent, Teotihuacan, Mexico

The feathered serpent is depicted on the temple’s exterior.

Aztec, Coyolxauhqui Stone Disk

This sculpture shows the goddess dismembered after being thrown down a mountain.

Aztec, Altar of the Frogs at Temple to Tlaloc, Templo Mayor, Tenochtitlan

The frogs symbolize the croaking of frogs that the Aztecs thought announced the coming of
the rainy season

Paracas, Embroidered Mantle with Medicine People Figures

The medicine people figures are holding hallucinogenic mushrooms.

Moche, Vessel of an owl-headed medicine woman

The owl-headed woman represents the transformation medicine people would undergo when
taking hallucinogens

Wari or Tiwanaku, Four-cornered hat

This unusual hat would have been considered more valuable than gold among the Wari and
Tiwanaku.

Inca, Colcapata tunic

These tunics were made for members of the Inca military to wear.

Francisco Chivantito, Virgin of Montserrat, oil on canvas

The Inca royal estate of Chinchero is depicted in this painting.

7 attributes of Inca architcture

masonry, battered walls, gabled and hipped roofs, single room structures, trapezodial openings, terraces, relationship to sacred landscape