Sex, Death, and Sacrifice in Moche Religion and Visual Culture

Nonfiction, History, Americas, Latin America, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Archaeology
Cover of the book Sex, Death, and Sacrifice in Moche Religion and Visual Culture by Steve Bourget, University of Texas Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Steve Bourget ISBN: 9780292783188
Publisher: University of Texas Press Publication: June 28, 2010
Imprint: University of Texas Press Language: English
Author: Steve Bourget
ISBN: 9780292783188
Publisher: University of Texas Press
Publication: June 28, 2010
Imprint: University of Texas Press
Language: English

The Moche people who inhabited the north coast of Peru between approximately 100 and 800 AD were perhaps the first ancient Andean society to attain state-level social complexity. Although they had no written language, the Moche created the most elaborate system of iconographic representation of any ancient Peruvian culture. Amazingly realistic figures of humans, animals, and beings with supernatural attributes adorn Moche pottery, metal and wooden objects, textiles, and murals. These actors, which may have represented both living individuals and mythological beings, appear in scenes depicting ritual warfare, human sacrifice, the partaking of human blood, funerary rites, and explicit sexual activities.In this pathfinding book, Steve Bourget raises the analysis of Moche iconography to a new level through an in-depth study of visual representations of rituals involving sex, death, and sacrifice. He begins by drawing connections between the scenes and individuals depicted on Moche pottery and other objects and the archaeological remains of human sacrifice and burial rituals. He then builds a convincing case for Moche iconography recording both actual ritual activities and Moche religious beliefs regarding the worlds of the living, the dead, and the afterlife. Offering a pioneering interpretation of the Moche worldview, Bourget argues that the use of symbolic dualities linking life and death, humans and beings with supernatural attributes, and fertility and social reproduction allowed the Moche to create a complex system of reciprocity between the world of the living and the afterworld. He concludes with an innovative model of how Moche cosmological beliefs played out in the realms of rulership and political authority.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

The Moche people who inhabited the north coast of Peru between approximately 100 and 800 AD were perhaps the first ancient Andean society to attain state-level social complexity. Although they had no written language, the Moche created the most elaborate system of iconographic representation of any ancient Peruvian culture. Amazingly realistic figures of humans, animals, and beings with supernatural attributes adorn Moche pottery, metal and wooden objects, textiles, and murals. These actors, which may have represented both living individuals and mythological beings, appear in scenes depicting ritual warfare, human sacrifice, the partaking of human blood, funerary rites, and explicit sexual activities.In this pathfinding book, Steve Bourget raises the analysis of Moche iconography to a new level through an in-depth study of visual representations of rituals involving sex, death, and sacrifice. He begins by drawing connections between the scenes and individuals depicted on Moche pottery and other objects and the archaeological remains of human sacrifice and burial rituals. He then builds a convincing case for Moche iconography recording both actual ritual activities and Moche religious beliefs regarding the worlds of the living, the dead, and the afterlife. Offering a pioneering interpretation of the Moche worldview, Bourget argues that the use of symbolic dualities linking life and death, humans and beings with supernatural attributes, and fertility and social reproduction allowed the Moche to create a complex system of reciprocity between the world of the living and the afterworld. He concludes with an innovative model of how Moche cosmological beliefs played out in the realms of rulership and political authority.

More books from University of Texas Press

Cover of the book The Puppet by Steve Bourget
Cover of the book Reinventing Practice in a Disenchanted World by Steve Bourget
Cover of the book Rotten Boroughs, Political Thickets, and Legislative Donnybrooks by Steve Bourget
Cover of the book In a Persian Mirror by Steve Bourget
Cover of the book Notions of Genre by Steve Bourget
Cover of the book Best from Helen Corbitt's Kitchens by Steve Bourget
Cover of the book Food for the Few by Steve Bourget
Cover of the book Ritual Violence in the Ancient Andes by Steve Bourget
Cover of the book The Francklyn Land & Cattle Company by Steve Bourget
Cover of the book Cinema Novo x 5 by Steve Bourget
Cover of the book Finish Forty and Home by Steve Bourget
Cover of the book A Rainbow of Gangs by Steve Bourget
Cover of the book Mexican Anarchism after the Revolution by Steve Bourget
Cover of the book Town in the Empire by Steve Bourget
Cover of the book Texas Turtles & Crocodilians by Steve Bourget
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy