Smoke, flames, and the human body in Mesoamerican ritual practice
"Epitomizing the radiating sun and perpetuating the cycles of life and time, fire was, and continues to be, a central force in the Mesoamerican cosmos. Mesoamericans understood heat and flames as animate forces that signified strength and vitality; the most powerful of individuals were embodied...
| Contributors: | ; |
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| Format: | Print Book |
| Language: | English |
| Subito Delivery Service: | Order now. |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Washington, D.C
Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection
[2018]
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| In: | Year: 2018 |
| Volumes / Articles: | Show volumes/articles. |
| Series/Journal: | Dumbarton Oaks Pre-Columbian symposia and colloquia
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| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Mesoamerican Indians
/ Maya
/ Aztecs
/ Body
/ Fire ritual
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| RelBib Classification: | AG Religious life; material religion BR Ancient religions of the Americas |
| Further subjects: | B
Collection of essays
B Human Sacrifice Religious aspects Congresses B Mayas Rites and ceremonies Congresses B Fire Religious aspects Congresses B Indians of Mexico Rites and ceremonies Congresses B Aztecs Rites and ceremonies Congresses B Sacrifice Religious aspects Congresses |
| Online Access: |
Table of Contents Blurb |
| Summary: | "Epitomizing the radiating sun and perpetuating the cycles of life and time, fire was, and continues to be, a central force in the Mesoamerican cosmos. Mesoamericans understood heat and flames as animate forces that signified strength and vitality; the most powerful of individuals were embodied with immense heat. Moreover, fire was transformative; it was both a means to destroy and to transport offerings to otherworldly places. The importance of heat and flames is evident in a spectrum of ritual practices, ranging from the use of sweat baths to the burning of offerings. Human bodies were among the most valuable resources heated or consumed by fire. This volume addresses the traditions, circumstances, and practices that involved the burning of bodies and bone in order to move toward a better understanding of the ideologies behind these acts of body burning. It brings together scholars working across Mesoamerica who approach these dual themes (fire and the body) from different methodologies and interdisciplinary lenses. Each contributor uses fire on bodies as a cue to illuminate the deeper grounds of Mesoamerican ritual practice through time and space, while highlighting what is unique and distinct to each of the societies that shared its territories"-- Fire and sacrifice in Mesoamerican myths and rituals / Oswaldo Chinchilla Mazariegos -- Divine fire: transformation in Highland Mexican thought and practice / Markus Eberl -- 'Where the sun came into being': rites of pyrolatry, transition, and transformation in early classic Teotihuacan / Jesper Nielsen and Christophe Helmke -- Blood, fire, death: covenants and crises among the classic Maya / Andrew K. Scherer and Stephen Houston -- The burning and the burnt: the transformative power of fire, smoke, and flames in conquest and Colonial Maya ritual, warfare, and diplomacy / John F. Chuchiak IV -- O tame fire: a Tzeltal viewpoint / Pedro Pitarch -- The fiery dead: igniting human bodies in the Maya Northern Lowlands / Vera Tiesler -- Fire and smoke in Postclassic Maya culture / Gabrielle Vail and William N. Duncan -- Where there's fire there's smoke: Lacandon Maya burning rites and cremation symbolism / Joel W. Palka -- Transforming the body: fire rituals involving the body in ancient Michoacan, Mexico / Gregory Pereira -- Relics, divination, and regeneration: the symbolism of ashes in Mesoamerica / Guilhem Olivier -- Fire, transformation, and bone relics: cremated remains at the Templo Mayor of Tenochtitlan / Ximena Chavez Balderas -- The new fire and corporal penance: comparative perspectives between the Tlapanecs and the Aztecs / Daniele Dehouve -- Reflections on smoke, flames, and the human body / John W. Verano |
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| Item Description: | "Volume based on papers presented at the Pre-Columbian Studies symposium "Smoke, Flames, and the Human Body in Mesoamerican Ritual Practice," held at Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Washington, D.C., on October 9-10, 2015 Literaturangaben |
| ISBN: | 0884024261 |