Atrocities of mass graves have been a repetitive image portrayed for countries to position a strategy to enter into military action in today’s global culture. The Holocaust during World War II, the mass graves of Serbians in Yugoslavia in the 1990’s, and the mass executions and graves by the hand of ISIS in our current day bring to light the inhumanity of these actions. Discoveries of mass graves from the Moche civilization that existed in Peru between 200 BC and 600 AD has caused concern among archeologists. Regardless of the purpose of what brought about the mass graves, they all seem to have one thing in common—an intense religious belief. In the Moche culture, the ritualistic practice of warfare and sacrifice for the protection of …show more content…
Without a better understanding, one cannot look critically at the purpose behind the functions of the Moche society and actions of its nobility in regard to warfare and battle. Agriculture was a necessary means of sustaining a healthy society in all types of civilizations across the globe. Fishing and agriculture were the primary means for subsistence to the Moche. The Moche civilizations was w world plagued with droughts and El Nino” (Fagan, 1999, p.3). The need for consistent yields from the crops meant that the people could maintain their economic lifestyles and continue to flourish and survive. It is interesting that the irrigation systems that sustained …show more content…
Pyramids, similar to Egypt, were constructed and the warriors lived among these amazing structures separated from the working class down in the fields. Fagan, (1999) adds that although we do not know the names of the Moche rulers, we know they were people of “remarkable wealth and power” based on evidence from their burials. Also, Fagan contends there is no documentation of “military campaigns or diplomatic alliances that linked valley to valley” suggesting that the warriors did not aggressively conquer other cities, nor did they defend their land against aggressors. The dangers awaiting the warriors were most likely internal as they engaged in battles against each other, as their “lives revolved around warfare, ritual, and diplomacy, in an endless cycle of competition for prestige with their fellow leaders” (Fagan). The ritual was intense and dramatic. The blood was drained from their bodies and the warriors who did not engage in the battle drank from a cenermonial cup according to Donnan (2013). Pringle (1991) points out that the Aztecs explained to the Spanish that human blood was needed to give the sun the strength to rise from the underworld. It sounds horrific, but when a ritual is steeped in tradition, believers will act according to the doctrine, probably in hopes of honor in
At the root of these interesting rituals, were the beliefs that the gods needed to be nourished by human beings. This was accomplished through human blood. They did this through a practice called bloodletting. Bloodletting is intentionally harming and drawing blood from the body. Those who were higher in status within the Aztec religion were expected to give the most blood during these Aztec rituals.
The religion and culture of the Aztecs played a role in the way the way they thought and fought. They worshiped the war-god Huitzilopochtli. He was identified with the sun and was called "the Giver of life" and "the Preserver of Life" (xxxix). The religion carried some ridiculous rituals such as human sacrifice along with using magicians and wizards to cast spells. In war conditions, human sacrifice played a big role because the Aztecs would not fight to kill,...
In terms of agriculture, Moche and Mayan civilizations were similar in that they both had water management systems that would help them grow the crops more efficiently; however, since agricultural styles were dependent on the landscapes and the climate of the region, Moche and Mayan had different techniques of growing their crops, as well as irrigation system, which Moche had more complexed ones. Moche irrigation system was surely “complex...requiring constant maintenance, which funneled runoff from the Andes into fields,” since the Moche civilization contained thirteen river valleys and dynamic landscapes including the Andes mountains, that they required an extensive irrigation system. Rainfalls were extreme, that it occasionally brought drought and
A major element of Aztec life was religion, as often is in the case in ancient civilizations. The Aztecs were a polytheistic people, and they often made use of human sacrifice to please their gods. Diaz often makes reference to the blood-stained walls of the Aztec temples in his account of the conquest. In reference to the success of Cortes and his soldiers, an anci...
There has been evidence of over two hundred human sacrifices in just one general area of Mesoamerica. Not just in an area of a city – but a “building”. Many pyramids, temples, and art forms such as sculptures were made and used just for the purpose of sacrifices and blood-letting rituals. Such violent rituals are shown in art and architecture to show the effect of symbols on the humans of Ancient Mesoamerica. The question that will be uncovered is, how far did the Mesoamericans go? To what extend do symbols effect Mesoamerican art and architecture? These effects could of course lead to the stronger subjects, specifically human sacrifices. The extent of symbols on the architecture and art therefore is reflected as the extent it had on ancient Mesoamericans. It will first be evaluated how Architecture is made to reflect their beliefs on the lives of their gods. Second, how architecture and art can depict symbols will be revealed, and lastly it will be discussed how architecture and art shows the effect of symbols on ancient human lives and interactions. Finding these things will answer the research question by revealing how much effort believers would make to please their symbols, how Mesoamericans believe their gods to be, and how far they would go with tradition or rituals.
The article equips the reader with the tools needed to better understand other cultures, in terms of their own beliefs and rituals. Miner’s original approach does create a certain level of confusion that forces the reader to critically evaluate his purpose. “Body Ritual among the Nacirema” by Horace Miner ultimately brings people together, by illuminating the eccentricities present in all
The Aztec civilization was a very complex society that was feared and known well for their various gory sacrifices done to please their many gods in their polytheistic religion. The much feared civilization began by the exile of one of the two Toltec leaders, which lead to the decline of the Toltec state that was later replaced by Mexica, or the Aztecs. According to the Aztecs, the land chosen to build their main city was chosen by the portrayal of an eagle perched on a cactus with a snake in its mouth. Through military might, the Aztecs managed to become the most powerful civilization in the mid-fourteenth century. They maintained their power through military might and the fear they caused other civilizations because of the human sacrifices they performed on their captured victims.
The article focuses on the 150-year-old public cemetery, Stone Mountain, to map out the transition of gravestones over the years. The gravestones were categorized based on their symbolism, which was divided i...
The Mbuti people are known as foragers because their main source of survival lies on hunting and gathering as they move from one place to another. They originated from a region in Africa called Congo. The Mbuti people even with their fairly decent population prefer to be grouped into smaller groups or bands which are mostly made up of close relatives. They live in the rainforests of central Africa, where they have lived popularly for more than 6000 years now.
Lets start in the Formative period, the beginning. Between 1800 BCE and 200 BCE the Olmec empire was one of the leading powers of Mesoamerica. The Olmecs believed that humans transformed or evolved from Jaguars (Carrasco, 32). They believed there was a strong connection between all animals and people. Many of their temples and rituals were designed to praise or show acknowledgement of different animals. That is how they viewed the make up of their society, or how it came to be. The Olmecs also had a very big concern for burying their dead near their sacred areas. According to Carrasco, “this combination of human and temple at the heart of a settlement indicates the early pattern of what we have called world centering” (Carrasco, 34). This shows they believed there was a strong connection between sacred spaces, ceremonial structures, the earth, the dead, and the underworld. Their calendar system called the long count, was a huge part of organizing rituals and social life in Mesoamerica. They also had a sacred ball game that was very influential to their culture. It was more of a ritual than a game, being that, in some cases, the losing team would be sacrificed to the gods (Carrasco, 36). They believed that using these things would maintain order in their
I shall gather various types of archaeological publications dealing with deviant burial. It is important to include differing types of publications to see if it affects the way in which deviancy is dealt with. I will then determine if any common patterns are apparent within the study of deviant burial. If common patterns are found, each one will be explored individually. Searching for specific statements within the texts, I will attempt to determine how the patterns relate to the interpretation of deviant burial. As I have not previously dealt with deviant burials, I will also briefly convey my interpretations – as a simulated intended audience reader – of the way in which deviancy is conveyed through the material. This will give a distinctive perspective as to how the true intended audience of the publications may view the evidence as presented by the archaeologists. A discourse analysis is never complete as there are too many aspects to ever fully dissect a subject (Dijk 2001; Phillips and Hardy 2002). However, it is my intent to try to examine deviant burial as thoroughly as this thesis permits, as well as to bring a unique point of view to the
...s greatly affected in different ways. This has greatly undermined the archaeological work done and the final output. In fact, archaeology is no longer determined by the research done and the findings but instead by what a minority of people wants it to be. In dictatorships, it has been used to change people’s mindset and to influence the way people think thus used in the justification of even the worst of atrocities. In capitalists’ societies, however, it is more of a business and thus the owners of these companies are mostly interested in the gains that they can get from them and not the qualities of their findings and research. Though there are rules and regulations on the ethics of archaeology especially in democratic states, they have not been effective enough to deter these wrong practices and thus the cultural heritage for a long time has been tampered with.
The French are all about preserving their culture and being individualized. They often take great pride in the French products and the French style, and believe in keeping the French culture “pure” so they also limit the amount of foreign goods that are being imported. But during the World Wars the French began to allow foreigners to immigrate into France to take jobs due to an increase in job shortages. The immigration from the World Wars added to the diversity of the French culture. Ever since the 1850’s there has been a steady flow of immigration into France, and now nine percent of the French population is made up of immigrants (Gofen 62). The break down of the cultures in France is eighty-five percent of the French population is Roman Catholic, eight percent Muslim, two percent Protestants, and one percent Jewish. From 1801-1905, Roman Catholicism was the man religion in France and bishops and priests were being paid by the government to be state officials. But this was broken in 1905 (“France” 460). The current debate in France is the banning of religious symbols in public school systems. An example of a religious symbol being banned is headscarves. Headscarves have been banned since 2004, but the French do not allow ANY religious symbols in public school systems (“In Knots”) France should not continue to ban the wearing of religious symbols in public school systems because since the World Wars France began to allow foreigners to immigrate into France, in the United States there are no laws restricting the wearing of religious symbols, and important French figures have had foreign parents.
Many planners on expanding South Asian farm production through irrigation have placed great hopes. A constant water supply could permit the growing of more than one crop a year, if the peasants were willing to work that hard. Broadl...
Sandra Postel, on the other hand, has a different opinion than Danielle’s. She proposed that “without increasing water productivity in irrigation, major food-producing regions will not have enough water to sustain crop production”.