The site took a generation or two to build and was inhabited for maybe 100 years. Wooden beams were brought down from the mountains. River cobbles for building were close by. The sandstone for most of the building had to be brought from miles away. And greenstone for decorative layers of wall had to be brought from quite a distance.
The outer walls are more or less flat, but buried inside the walls the rocks are irregular and shaped together with mortar or mud. So, much of the wall material is buried inside the thickness of the mud.
Archeologists have found pottery and baskets, probably connected to rituals, buried intact in layers of midden and soil. These objects were apparently buried as is, not thrown away or lost under layers of ruin. Like sacred bundles, they are hidden and part of the site. After they were documented and studied they were reburied by the archeologists.
The long lines of greenstone are curious and perhaps hold some hint of how people thought about their structures and their world. They seem to be decorative, perhaps commemorative or symbolic. They are reminiscent of serpents, rivers, etc., all of which are symbolic in Mesoamerican expression. Green may also symbolize life, growth, and fertility. But the interesting thing is that these lines of greenstone, which took enormous effort to bring to the site, were also buried intentionally by the builders.
It's as if it were enough just to have the presence of the stone, the symbol of life and fertility, hidden in the walls of the structure, again like a sacred bundle.
In some ways it's hard to understand what people were thinking when they engaged in this kind of nuilding project. In some ways though, it's not. Our culture revels in the visible, the apparent, the facies. But artists are also concerned with process, the hidden or buried effort that goes into artistic expression. In science as well there is almost overwhelming stress othe internal, processes and patterns "hidden" in molecular combinations deep within the cell.
So when we explore the "mysterious" cultures of "non-western" people perhaps we can look for hints in our own ways of thinking and problem solving. Maybe there are human universals that are expressed variously by various cultures. Alternatively, we can try to understand the "other" on it's own terms, a challenging, frustrating proposition that may offer insights of its own.
I find it very interesting that the things we find buried in the ground are intentionally hidden. I also really like the fact that there are so many different levels that go into almost all facets of life quite literally like the Grand Canyon picture with all the rocks stacked on top of each other.
ReplyDeleteI was really intrigued by the architecture and how most of the building has been brought from miles away. Also how it represents rivers and growth (with the green). This blog post, like many things I read from you, make me realize that if you observe and analyze something for a long enough of time then you will learn something and make new observations and realizations that you probably would not have noticed the first time around.
ReplyDeleteWhat stands out most to me about this post concerns the link between natural science and the humanities. One short excerpt in particular reminds me of a line that could be poetically placed among others describing the beauty and mystery you observed: "It's as if it were enough just to have the presence of the stone, the symbol of life and fertility, hidden in the walls of the structure, again like a sacred bundle." This helps me understand the motivation of Romantic poets like Keats, who looked out on both vast and small landscapes for inspiration for his art. Inspirational.
ReplyDeleteI like the fact that they buried the greenstone after they put it there. It makes it seem like the grounds had a vascular system consisting of these stones that people can not see (just like the human vascular system). This idea brings the area to life and adds a spiritual element to it.
ReplyDeleteI'm intrigued by the fact that the Aztec Ruins Monument is a natural beauty that is artistically appealing beyond its physical appearance. The pictures help portray the historic processes and effort that goes into creating art. Also, the pictures help exhibit the symbolism of the environment in Mesoamerican culture.
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ReplyDeleteReading through this article, I found t interesting that the Mesoamericans intentionally buried their monuments. One would assume that it was not intentionally but it seems the burial of such artifacts and monuments had some sort of sacred and symbolic meaning to them. These ruins seem very aesthetically pleasing in that there seems to be a delicate balance of the man made and the natural within them.
ReplyDeleteIsabel Vera
ReplyDeleteI am curious and intrigued that the Ancient Mesoamericans hid their art and creations by burying them, yet even more intrigued that they covered it up with such beautiful and compelling material that would attract millions with desire to dig deeper. By observing the burying of what took a vast amount of people and an extraordinary amount of effort to make possible, I am able to extract the true value and the essence of the Mesoamericans’ idea of art and creation. Perhaps these people were trying to preserve what they valued most. Taking into account the oil and gas fields surrounding the Aztec Ruins National Monument that are most likely tampered with frequently in our modern world and the untouched beauty of the Monument, it seems that the ancient Mesoamericans have done a remarkable job in the preservation of their valued art.
This post got me thinking of things in nature in other structures besides this one that became part of the landscape and that many take for granted but for these people who built them they were so sacred to them and held a great value. This reminded me of what we discussed in lecture that the past is key to understanding the present an idea which Lyell brought forth. The reason for studying artifacts of the past is to get an idea of the values they had like fertility and life and compare them to values we have now which in many cases are very similar regardless of the time difference.
ReplyDeleteThis was such an interesting post. First of all, I loved your pictures. All of them are so phenomenal. It's amazing that there is a whole world of culture underneath the soil. It really shows us that we don't know the extent of our beautiful world until we search, dig, and find the treasures that our ancestors left for us!
ReplyDeleteI find it very interesting to learn about people of past places and cultures. In this blog post, having the pictures is a great tool to visualize the area in which you are speaking. I find it interesting that the individuals buried their artifacts and also that they were reburied after documentation.
ReplyDeleteIn reading through the article, the first thing that struct me was the pictures and how beautiful the scenery is. I think the addition of the photos make it a lot easier to connect with the essay and really see what you're talking about. The one big thing that I thought of while reading the parts of the article that had to do with the ancient people purposefully burying things, building things in particular shapes, and using particular colors, I thought about the way that humans have evolved. People had come a long way at this point and were strategically building things and really consciously thinking about what they were doing which really proves the ideas of evolution physically, but also mentally.
ReplyDeleteThe patterns of humans have always seemed interesting to me. The fact that things like architecture and art are passed through the generations and considered worth while or sacred is fascinating. As humans we always strive to achieve even greater goals in art and science even when a purpose might not be immediately in sight and that is what this article made me think about.
ReplyDeleteThis article seems to identify something I've been thinking about for a while and that is most cultures seem to have similar origin stories despite their varying locations. The buried ruins, despite their basic functionality showcase root necessities between cultures while still displaying their unique elements.
ReplyDeleteThese pictures are quite impressive. They certainly capture the vastness and beauty of the area! I thought it was very interesting how the archeologists who discovered the baskets and pottery made sure to rebury them after documenting them. I think that leaving the area as they found it was incredibly thoughtful of them. It will certainly help preserve the area.
ReplyDeleteIt is fascinating to think of all the things that are the remainders of people and culture. These remainders end up being buried themselves and go unnoticed all the time. The earth continues, but has been marked in some way by things that are hidden and buried.
ReplyDeleteGabrielle Kanellos
All of the pictures included in this article are magnificent. I have not been there myself, but it is interesting to have a little understanding of this very different type of culture, then the one I live in. Often people, including myself, are so busy in there daily lives that they don't stop to think about the past, but rather what will happen in the future, and how we can manipulate it to our liking. It is interesting to think that we are able to understand the past through findings through the greenstone. Despite the uncertain facts of the past, it is amazing, as humans, how we are able to understand the past.
ReplyDeleteI think you touched on a great point when you said "it's hard to understand what people were thinking when they engaged in this kind of building project." Because none of us were around at the construction of these structures, every analysis and observation about it is just speculation. No one truly knows what their meaning behind doing what they did was, and because they're all gone, we never will. All we can do is speculate. I enjoyed reading your takes on it though.
ReplyDeleteReading this and looking at the pictures gave me a crystalized glimpse into the minds of people from other, non-western societies. The fact that they left pieces of their culture behind for spiritual reasons is a representation of how metaphysically driven these people were. From an artistic standpoint, it can also suggest that the interior is just as important as the exterior; people must look past the facade.
ReplyDeleteWhat interested me the most was how the inhabitants of this area were able to create such structured buildings and how they knew what materials from nature were best, which sometimes meant traveling for miles to get materials. It is also interesting how they buried their sacred objects in the walls of the buildings for the spirits.
ReplyDeleteI'm really feeling this post. The pictures are incredible and I think it's awesome how you can find so much meaning in places that others would think are pretty plain. I find it simply fascinating to think about how these natural features ended up the exact way they are. I like to think that they're all in their particular places for a reason, just like each of us is who we are for a reason. There's so much beauty in the American Southwest, even though its mostly rocks and desert, you just have to look in the right places, which you do.
ReplyDeleteI honestly find the sites in the American Southwest and Mexico to be some of the most beautiful qualities that this area of the world has to offer. From the natural things like the Grand Canyon to the pottery found buried in the bundles, everything offers a story of history.
ReplyDeleteI found this essay to be very interesting for many reasons. To begin, I enjoyed having the ability to read along and think about the history of such cultures. While reading, my mind travelled back to the times of these societies, trying to picture the world as it was back then. The architecture that they used, and the blankets and pottery that they made is very amazing. It's incredible to be able to identify these parts of their lives and understand how they lived, and why they left things the way they did. The pictures included in this essay were very helpful with having a visual image in my mind of the ancient cultures and their amazing story. My favorite part of this essay was the section in which you discussed the stone, and how it reflected life during this time. The greenstone seems to serve as a time capsule. A symbolic way of preserving the life that lived in and around these societies that we had a chance to understand the culture of these people.
ReplyDeleteThe "buried beauty" of the ruins are a direct parallel of the the beauty and complexity hidden within natural systems (such as the organs of plants). It's hard to tell initially what the builders' intentions were (why go to that much effort to make something beautiful if it's only going to be hidden?) But perhaps they were trying to create an internal system themselves - one of symbolism and great meaning. Perhaps hiding the structures was meant to encourage a spiritual search of some sort.
ReplyDeleteI really agree with what you said in this post. Our culture does have two sides: those who appreciate the intangible, and those who don't. There are the industries that build oil fields among ancient ruins, and there are scientists/archaeologists that take the time to observe things that may not seem "significant" (as in of monetary value) to us. Another thing that I resonate with is something I also posted in my last comment, which is that there IS something "universal" about ancient human culture. That thing is the human desire to control the supernatural. That greenstone may be aesthetically pleasing, but I am pretty sure that it existed to symbolize their wanting to "prosper" or "flourish", as green usually signifies. It is worth it to pursue those "intangibles", or at least, worth not neglecting.
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