Smoke, flames, and the human body in Mesoamerican ritual practice / Vera Tiesler and Andrew K. Scherer, editors.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Tiesler, Vera, editor.

Scherer, Andrew K., editor.

Series:

Dumbarton Oaks Pre-Columbian symposia and colloquia

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Indians of Mexico--Rites and ceremonies--Congresses.

Indians of Mexico.

Mayas--Rites and ceremonies--Congresses.

Mayas.

Aztecs--Rites and ceremonies--Congresses.

Aztecs.

Fire--Religious aspects--Congresses.

Fire.

Human sacrifice--Religious aspects--Congresses.

Human sacrifice.

Sacrifice--Religious aspects--Congresses.

Sacrifice.

Fire--Religious aspects.

Aztecs--Rites and ceremonies.

Mayas--Rites and ceremonies.

Indians of Mexico--Rites and ceremonies.

Genre:

Conference papers and proceedings.

Physical Description:

viii, 471 pages : illustrations (chiefly color), map ; 29 cm.

Place of Publication:

Washington, D.C. : Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, [2018]

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"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Introducing smoke, flame, and the body in Mesoamerican ritual practice / Vera Tiesler and Andrew K. Scherer

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

To 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 Michoacán, Mexico / Grégory 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 Chávez Balderas

The new fire and corporal penance: comparative perspectives between the Tlapanecs and the Aztecs / Danièle Dehouve

Reflections on smoke, flames, and the human body / John W. Verano.

Notes:

"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."

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780884024262

0884024261

OCLC:

1006452892