Early Americas: History and Culture
2 primary works
Book 1
The Mixtec Pictorial Manuscripts
by Maarten Jansen and Gabina Aurora Perez Jimenez
Published 1 January 2010
The Mixtec civilization (of Oaxaca, Mexico) is one of the most interesting to survive from pre-colonial Mesoamerica. Among its characteristic products were highly artistic pictographic codices depicting the history and dynasties of its city-states. This handbook surveys and describes the illustrated Mixtec manuscripts that survive in Europe, the United...Read more
The Mixtec civilization (of Oaxaca, Mexico) is one of the most interesting to survive from pre-colonial Mesoamerica. Among its characteristic products were highly artistic pictographic codices depicting the history and dynasties of its city-states. This handbook surveys and describes the illustrated Mixtec manuscripts that survive in Europe, the United States and Mexico, outlines the history of their decipherment, current questions, discussions and methodologies relating to readings, social organisation, religion and historical drama, and surveys the six centuries of Mixtec history covered in the texts.
Book 5
In Time and the Ancestors: Aztec and Mixtec Ritual Art, Maarten Jansen and Aurora Perez present new interpretations of enigmatic masterpieces from ancient Mexico. Combining iconographical analysis with the study of archaeological contexts, historical sources and living cultural traditions, they shed light on central symbols and values of the...Read more
In Time and the Ancestors: Aztec and Mixtec Ritual Art, Maarten Jansen and Aurora Perez present new interpretations of enigmatic masterpieces from ancient Mexico. Combining iconographical analysis with the study of archaeological contexts, historical sources and living cultural traditions, they shed light on central symbols and values of the religious heritage of indigenous peoples, paying special attention to precolonial perceptions of time and the importance of ancestor worship. They decipher the meaning of the treasure deposited in Tomb 7 at Monte Alban (Oaxaca) and of artworks such as the Roll of the New Fire (Selden Roll), the Aztec religious sculptures and, last but not least, the mysterious chapter of temple scenes from the Book of Night and Wind (Codex Borgia).