Mesa Verde

• Location: Montezuma County, Colorado

• Ancestral Puebloan (Anasazi)

• Date: 450-1300

• Material: Sandstone

• Built into cave; dwellings built both on top and in/along the mesas, over 500 structures; made of stone, mortar and plaster

• Used for ceremonies, though not specifically the MV structures, both residential and ceremonial; originally covered, but no roofs now, space around buildings was a plaza; circular and rectangular rooms for living; smaller rooms for storage

• Kivas- underground circular rooms for ritual purposes; murals and other paintings decorated the walls; storage rooms off the hearth have holes to reach into

• Mesa Verde means green table - refers to the mountains

• Ancestral Puebloans lived in Mesa Verde for about 850 years

  • Mostly sedentary farmers

    

Painted Elk Hide

• Location: Wind River Reservation, Wyoming

• Date: 1890-1900 CE

• Attributed to Cotsiogo (American name: Cadazi Cody), Eastern Shoshoe

• Pigment in elk hide; combination of free-hand penciling and stencil; colorful animals and human-like figures

• Economic and cultural benefit of the Wind River Reservation; created sales from white visitors and led them to attend Sun and Wolf dances; helped move tribe artwork into the modern world by making it contemporary

• Displays important ritualistic Sun Dance and Wolf Dance; Sun Dance was especially ceremonial and used to honor deities

• Depicts daily life on the Wyoming reservation such as men hunting buffalo on horses and women sitting near fires at a campsite (teepee)

• Painting on animal hides is a tradition in the Great-Basin region

  • Helped keep the economy and culture alive

    

Black on Black Ceramic Vessel

• Location: Puebloan Culture, New Mexico

• Date: Mid 20th century

• Materials: ceramic, mixed with volcanic ash for black color

• Pot made by building up coils (not a wheel)

• Olla - traditional shape used by Puebloans for storing water (rounded pot)

• ollas and similar dishes hold water, store seed and grain, used for cooking;

• Martinez's pieces became known as fine art and were purchased for the purpose of being art

• Images in the pot based on rain clouds, feathers, corn, and rivers

• Transformed functional tradition of Puebloan pottery into symbols of culture and works of decorative art that became status symbols for many American collectors;

  

Great Serpent Mound

• Location: Adams County, Ohio; Missispian (Eastern Woodlands)

• Date: 1070 C.E

• Earthwork/Effigy - Dirt

• 1300 Feet long (1/4 of a mile)

• Conforms to the natural topography of the area

• Head faces east and tail faces west; head aligns with the summer solstice sunset; tail points to the winter solstice sunrise

• Snakes, which were seen to have supernatural powers, were often incorporated into spiritual rituals;

• astrological alignment; may have served as a natural compass could have marked Haley's Comet event; debate over purpose continues

• Created by Native American Tribes who lived in the alleys of the Ohio, Missouri, Mississippi, and Illinois rivers.

  

Kwakwaka’wakw Transformation Mask

• Location: Northwest Coast of Canada

• Date: Late 19th Century

• Materials: red cedar wood, string, and paint

• Large, exaggerated bird head; large beak

• Opens up to show human-like face

• Bright colors - blue, red, white, yellow, black, and brown

• Hair made of string and feathers

• creates powerful effect during ceremonies; worn during potlach (ceremonial feast to displace wealth) where host displays status; conveyed high social status; portrayed familiy genealogy - family crests; passes between family members

• Worn during dance ceremonies

• Takes years to make

• Carving techniques changed after tools were introduced by Europeans - brighter synthetic colors also introduced