The geographic region of Mesa Verde captivates me because of its sheer concentration of archeological sites in an area, and the plethora of cliff dwellings found in this region of Colorado. Mesa Verde, a place ancestral Puebloan people called home for hundreds of years from 500 A.D. to the 13th century, is situated on Colorado’s diverse landscape, which consists of 4,400 archaeological sites and 600 cliff dwellings (Smith, 7). Mesa Verde National Park was officially established in the early 1900’s by Theodore Roosevelt in hopes of protecting history and preserving human culture. Since then it has been a site for thousands of archaeologists to dig in to. Before Mesa Verde was receiving the attention it gets today archeologists Bob Lister, …show more content…
According to researchers at the University of Texas, the dates of construction can be deciphered by counting tree rings from lumber used in building. There was also speculation around the arrangements of pueblos and other buildings in regards to the cosmos around us. As we can see in Cliff Palace and Sun Temple, they both have a clear line of vison with no other buildings interrupting its path. Because of their placement there is reason to believe that the Puebloan people incorporated astronomy into their architecture. We can learn about the personal beliefs of these people through the excavation of buildings erected on the site. As noted earlier, astronomy was a clear influence on architecture. Religion and community dynamics were brough fourth following the discovery that not all buildings were for residential use. Rather for spiritual and communal use (Munson, Bates and Nordby, 45). Although construction began towards the end of the time of the pueblo people in this region, the cliff dwellings seen at Mesa Verde are some of the best preserved in north America. Their miraculous preservation is bizarre because of their use of such organic materials in construction. The ancestral pueblo people would use a combination of wooden beams, sandstone, and mortar to construct these dwellings which lie right beneath the mesa top, where they would practice agriculture (Breternitz,
Located in present day Collinsville, Illinois is Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site, which was once home to the largest city north of Mexico from 700 to 1400 A.D. Settled by the Mississippian people, today their decline remains a mystery. First visited in 1811 by traveler Henry Brackenridge and considered the “discoverer of Cahokia” only in the sense that he wrote several papers and articles about the findings to the public’s attention. After walking around the mounds, Brackenridge described that the locations of the last inhabitants were clearly visible to him, as were fragments of their tools and utensils. Many extensive archeological excavations and several case study theories have come about through the years as to why this magnificent ancient metropolis faced such demise.
Chaatsmith, M. L.(2013). Singing at a Center of the Indian World: The SAI and Ohio Earthworks. The American Indian Quarterly 37(3), 181-198. In her article, Chaatsmith presented the Newark Earthworks as the largest geometric earthen enclosures owned by the historical society of Ohio, whilst the Hopewell (the name given to the people who is believed to have constructed these earthwork) culture historic national park is owned by the National Park Services of Ohio. Chaatsmith argues that, the earthwork exemplify cultural significance of the ancient Ohio occupants. She further claimed, the observatory at the Octagon Earthworks was engineered to serve a special purpose. More to the point, the Indigenous people of the Eastern Woodlands built the Octagon Earthworks walls and entryways to track all eight of the alignments during the entire lunar cycle. The article also claim it’s possible that those who formulated and constructed the Newark Earthworks used the earth and sky to bring into existence something central and transformation to their communities. It is reports that attempts was made to connect with American Indian natives to further understand the complexity of such structures, but was unsuccessful. A framework was suggested of the importance for the future generations of American Indian decent to work alongside archaeologist and others in attempts to However, in relevance to this project the article present some of the challenges of understanding the significance of
Religion has played a huge role in the history of the world of architecture. We can get a deeper look in the minds and attitudes of people when we look at their beliefs – specifically their religion. But even though religion played a huge role in the approach to architecture, the pursuit of beauty and power can also explain to us the approaches and the outlooks of those who built or designed buildings from the ancient world.
Around 650 A.D., the Mesa Verdean peoples initiated construction of apartment-style homes, termed by Spanish explorers as pueblos. The Puebloan architecture is original in that it utilized the local stone and mud deposits of the region to maintain the structural integrity of their burgeoning developments. As this community evolved into the twelfth century, Mesa Verdeans further integrated the geology of their environment into their lifestyles by building homes, known as cliff dwellings, within the naturally formed alcoves of Mesa Verde. By the thirteenth century, the Mesa Verdeans vacated this region due to severe droughts and subsequent social instability. Despite the later abandonment of their cliff dwellings, it is clear that the geology of Mesa Verde National Park impacted the lives of the Ancestral Puebloans significantly. The following sections provide detailed information regarding the rock formations that make up the geological
The first time I heard about the Mound Builders, which was in this class, these people seemed like a very primitive group. What was so exciting about having the skill of piling up a bunch of dirt. Then I was able to see some of these mounds and the scale was nothing I had imagined. These mounds were huge and also contained distinct structural shapes. Tombs, houses, and religious structures were constructed in or on top of the mounds. What made the edifices even more amazing was the time period they were built. Constructed all the way back to 3000 B.C., the mounds rivaled the most advanced engineering techniques in the world.
When Prof. Green wrote his conclusion in his March 1969 report, he proposed that there was evidence for Pueblo I-III periods and postulated that Basketmaker II & III materials should be found in the same area with more survey efforts. All the stone implements I catalogued and analyzed were given the provenience of “surface” (Green 1969, 1970).
speak with a certain eloquence. They tell of a people adept at building, artistic, in
Throughout the humanities course, I have been intrigued by a vast amount of information on different cultures. However, there was a particular section that truly caught my attention, and has piqued an interest in me that has caused me to do my own research aside from this paper. The culture of the Mayas, and the Aztecs has been extremely fundamental in understanding my ancestry, being that I am Mexican American. I took an interest in their beautiful architecture, their ritualistic and sacrificial religious practices, as well as their history and how they began. Throughout this paper I will outline the similarities and differences of these two cultures, as well as articulate an understanding of the humanity disciplines outlined above.
The site is managed by both the city of Albuquerque and the National Park Service, and features a spectacular variety of natural and cultural elements. The latter are of great interest for their age and specificity: more than 20,000 carved images can be seen on the volcanic facades, all recorded to be the product of prehistoric and historic Native American and Hispanic peoples. While many of these images are very difficult to
Astronomy was extremely important to the people of Mayan culture and it was also a big part of their day to day lives. Priests of the Mayan culture would spend nights upon nights studying the stars for hundreds of years. According to Christopher Minster in the article “Ancient Mayan Astronomy”, “..They believed that the will and actions of the Gods could be read in the stars, moon and planets, they dedicated much time to doing so and many of their most important buildings were constructed with astronomy in mind.” What this quote is saying, is that the
Mayan culture existed a thousand years ago, in what is now part of Central America. Its ruins were almost entirely abandoned by 600 A.D, and were not rediscovered until the early 1500’s, by Spanish settlers. Mayan architecture astounded the early conquistadors, and continues to be of great interest to modern archeologists as well. These scientists have labeled a certain period of Mayan architectural history as the “Classic” period.
Architectural structures are immobile constructed elements. The structures are buildings or non-building that is used for temporary or permanent. However religion is a set the belief defining the relations existing between the divinity and the human being. This paper therefore analyzes each of the different structures in respect to aspect of religion and the types of buildings that are associated with each structure.
Richard Longstreth, the director of historic preservation at George Washington University, edited a compendium of case studies and presentations that addressed the ever-evolving state of cultural landscape preservation at the turn of the twenty-first century. Longstreth culled these articles from some of the best presentations at the 2004 National Forum on Historic Preservation Conference that dealt with the changing issues confronting those involved in the field of historic, cultural, and landscape preservation. Most of the practitioners agree that there is no one size fits all workflow, as the cultural resources, ecological considerations, and community involvement differ dramatically from place to place. However, Longstreth attempts to organize the individual essays into themes of landscape interpretation issues and cultural landscape management that have and will continue to change.
Ancient Mayan cities are, as suggested by site maps, built with a spatial order within a grid layout. Avenues stretch from east to west, signifying the cosmological cycle of the sun traveling across the sky. Structures are purposefully built in specific locations to hold significant meanings during days of astronomic phenomenon. Michael Smith analyzes the works of Ashmore and Sabloff, Regarding their research methods on the role of cosmology in Mayan city planning. Although Smith agrees with them that cosmology did play a role in generating the layouts of Mesoamerican cities,
Have you ever wondered how ancient civilization built massive structures? Many ancient civilizations built things that served a multitude of purposes. Most of the purposes of these structures are already known but, there still may be unknown uses for the thing these ancient civilizations built. There also many different ancient civilizations like the Greeks, Romans, Chinese, Egyptian, Mayans, and Aztecs. Many of the things built in ancient times influenced the things that we build today. For example, the coliseum influenced the basic designs of modern football stadiums. Also the designs made by these ancient civilizations helped to change the way other civilizations made there monuments. For example, when the romans started to different types of columns and arches the style was adopted, modified, and used in the designs of cathedrals in Europe .There are many parts of these ancient buildings still undiscovered. For example there could still be sealed rooms in the pyramids of Giza. Usually when people start to research architecture made by ancient civilizations, they have to answer how were they built, and what were they built for.