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09-08-2006, 07:12 AM
Secrets of Casas Grandes
Exhibit Explores Little Known Prehispanic Culture of The Southwest
By Shay Cannedy - NM Dept of Cultural Affairs
© 2006 Shay Cannedy - Reprint Permission Granted
Santa Fe, NM - Mystery surrounds Casas Grandes. Located in northwestern Chihuahua, Mexico, Casas Grandes was once a bustling village with sophisticated adobe architecture, Mesoamerican-style ball courts, and a complex system of stone-lined canals. By the time the Spanish arrived in the 1500s, however, this important regional center was an abandoned ruin.
http://sonewmex.com/images/MIAC_20752.jpg
Ramos Polychrome jar with modeled snakes, Casas Grandes, AD 1200-1450.
Photographer: Blair Clark
Credits: Museum of Indian Arts & Culture / Laboratory of Anthropology, 20752/11
Secrets of Casas Grandes explores questions which have baffled archaeologists for decades, and is the first exhibition to highlight not only an array of beautiful pottery, but also utilitarian objects. The exhibit runs November 5, 2006, through October 7, 2007. An opening reception free to New Mexico residents will be held November 5 from 2:00-4:00 p.m.
Secrets of Casas Grandes is unique in its focus on both archaeology and ceramics. Concentrated around the prehistoric site of Paquimé, Casas Grandes was the most complex society of its time, blending elements of ancestral Puebloan and Mesoamerican culture. During the Medio period of A.D. 1200-1450, Casas Grandes was a major regional center of interaction and trade, with evidence of ball courts and exotic goods such as copper, shell, turquoise, and macaws.
http://sonewmex.com/images/MIAC_8335.jpg
Casas Grandes plain ware effigy with closed eyes, Casas Grandes, AD 1200-1450
Photographer: Blair Clark
Credits: Museum of Indian Arts & Culture / Laboratory of Anthropology, 8335/11
In 1998, UNESCO selected Casas Grandes as an internationally recognized World Heritage Site for its "exceptional universal value." Since then, interest in this site has increased, but the Casas Grandes culture is still relatively unknown.
"We want to introduce visitors to the archaeology and ceramics of Casas Grandes, which has received relatively little attention from scholars on either side of the US-Mexico border," said curator Melissa Powell. "Casas Grandes is far north of Classic Mesoamerica and south of the US Southwest, and for this reason has been overlooked despite being one of the most significant prehistoric cultures of its time. This exhibit reaches across international boundaries to link Casas Grandes in Mexico with its closely related Native American neighbors to the north. The intent of the exhibit is to bring to light a forgotten part of the Native American heritage of the Southwest."
http://sonewmex.com/images/MIAC_22016.jpg
Villa Ahumada Polychrome Janus-faced effigy jar with cheek decoration and red-slipped spout, Casas Grandes, AD 1200-1450.
Photographer: Blair Clark
Credits: Museum of Indian Arts & Culture / Laboratory of Anthropology, 22016/11
At Casas Grandes, potters made striking, intricately painted effigy vessels and geometric polychrome ollas. The vibrant pottery features elaborate symbolic imagery and depicts humans, supernatural beings, fantastic creatures, and animals, including macaws, owls, fish, turtles, serpents. Some scenes portray dancing figures with animal headdresses, and appear to tell stories of transformation from the human to spiritual realm. Along with other archaeological evidence, the variety of ceramic forms and intriguing iconography offer a window to the ancient Casas Grandes world.
Today these ceramics are considered remarkable works of art, and several recent museum exhibits have displayed them from the perspective of art history. Secrets of Casas Grandes explores what the ceramics tell us about the people who made and used them-beyond their beauty as art objects-by examining their utilitarian and ritual functions.
http://sonewmex.com/images/MIAC_37763.jpg
Villa Ahumada Polychrome owl effigy jar, Casas Grandes, AD 1200-1450.
Photographer: Blair Clark
Credits: Museum of Indian Arts & Culture / Laboratory of Anthropology, 37763/11
Shelby Tisdale, Director of the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture remarked, "Casas Grandes ceramics come in a variety of whimsical anthropomorphic shapes and beautifully executed colorful designs that communicate a variety of meanings. They also represent the apex of creativity and artistic excellence among the Casas Grandes ceramic specialists of the time."
Secrets of Casas Grandes uncovers some of the mysteries of this vibrant and vanished culture and invites visitors to ponder the many that still remain.
http://sonewmex.com/images/MIAC_20679.jpg
Ramos Polychrome Janus-faced effigy jar with human-like features and coiled snakes for ears, Casas Grandes, AD 1200-1450.
Photographer: Blair Clark
Credits: Museum of Indian Arts & Culture / Laboratory of Anthropology, 20679/11
There are many unanswered questions and historical puzzles concerning Casas Grandes that still perplex archaeologists. For example, is it a Southwestern or a Mesoamerican town? Why were exotic goods stockpiled at the site? What was the function or meaning of the hundreds of T-shaped doorways found at the site? Why were macaws commonly depicted on pots?
Exciting new archaeological research now underway is uncovering more secrets of Casas Grandes. One current study is mapping outlying sites that contain raw nuggets and pendants of turquoise, an apparent trade route that channeled valuable turquoise from the Southwest to northern Mexico.
Casas Grandes was an important part of the history of the North American Southwest, with its sphere of influence extending into what is today southern New Mexico.
Casas Grandes was named an internationally recognized United Nations World Heritage Site in December 1998.
*~~~~~~*
About The Museum: Located on Museum Hill, the Museum of Indian Arts & Culture shares the beautiful Milner Plaza with the Museum of International Folk Art. Here, Now and Always, a major permanent exhibition at the Museum of Indian Arts & Culture, combines the voices of living Native Americans with ancient and contemporary artifacts and interactive multimedia to tell the complex stories of the Southwest. The Buchsbaum Gallery displays works from the region's pueblos. Five changing galleries present exhibits on subjects ranging from archaeological excavations to contemporary art. In addition, an outdoor sculpture garden offers rotating exhibits of works by Native American sculptors.
The Museum of Indian Arts and Culture is a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs.
Information for the Public: The Museum of Indian Arts and Culture is located on Museum Hill, Camino Lejo off Old Santa Fe Trail. For more information call 505-476-1269 or visit www.IndianArtsandCulture.org (http://www.indianartsandculture.org/)
Museum Hours: Tuesday through Sunday, 10:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.
Admission Prices: School groups free. Children 11 and under free. New Mexico residents with I.D. free on Sundays. New Mexico resident Senior Citizens (age 60+) with I.D. free Wednesdays. Museum Foundation members free. Students with I.D. $1 discount. Single visit to one museum: $8.00 for non-state residents; $6.00 for New Mexico residents. Four day pass to five museums including state-run museums in Santa Fe plus The Museum of Spanish Colonial Art $18.00. One day pass for two museums (Museum of International Folk Art and Museum of Indian Arts and Culture OR Museum of Fine Arts and Palace of the Governors) $12.00. Group rate for ten or more people: single visit $6.00, four day pass $16.00.
Exhibit Explores Little Known Prehispanic Culture of The Southwest
By Shay Cannedy - NM Dept of Cultural Affairs
© 2006 Shay Cannedy - Reprint Permission Granted
Santa Fe, NM - Mystery surrounds Casas Grandes. Located in northwestern Chihuahua, Mexico, Casas Grandes was once a bustling village with sophisticated adobe architecture, Mesoamerican-style ball courts, and a complex system of stone-lined canals. By the time the Spanish arrived in the 1500s, however, this important regional center was an abandoned ruin.
http://sonewmex.com/images/MIAC_20752.jpg
Ramos Polychrome jar with modeled snakes, Casas Grandes, AD 1200-1450.
Photographer: Blair Clark
Credits: Museum of Indian Arts & Culture / Laboratory of Anthropology, 20752/11
Secrets of Casas Grandes explores questions which have baffled archaeologists for decades, and is the first exhibition to highlight not only an array of beautiful pottery, but also utilitarian objects. The exhibit runs November 5, 2006, through October 7, 2007. An opening reception free to New Mexico residents will be held November 5 from 2:00-4:00 p.m.
Secrets of Casas Grandes is unique in its focus on both archaeology and ceramics. Concentrated around the prehistoric site of Paquimé, Casas Grandes was the most complex society of its time, blending elements of ancestral Puebloan and Mesoamerican culture. During the Medio period of A.D. 1200-1450, Casas Grandes was a major regional center of interaction and trade, with evidence of ball courts and exotic goods such as copper, shell, turquoise, and macaws.
http://sonewmex.com/images/MIAC_8335.jpg
Casas Grandes plain ware effigy with closed eyes, Casas Grandes, AD 1200-1450
Photographer: Blair Clark
Credits: Museum of Indian Arts & Culture / Laboratory of Anthropology, 8335/11
In 1998, UNESCO selected Casas Grandes as an internationally recognized World Heritage Site for its "exceptional universal value." Since then, interest in this site has increased, but the Casas Grandes culture is still relatively unknown.
"We want to introduce visitors to the archaeology and ceramics of Casas Grandes, which has received relatively little attention from scholars on either side of the US-Mexico border," said curator Melissa Powell. "Casas Grandes is far north of Classic Mesoamerica and south of the US Southwest, and for this reason has been overlooked despite being one of the most significant prehistoric cultures of its time. This exhibit reaches across international boundaries to link Casas Grandes in Mexico with its closely related Native American neighbors to the north. The intent of the exhibit is to bring to light a forgotten part of the Native American heritage of the Southwest."
http://sonewmex.com/images/MIAC_22016.jpg
Villa Ahumada Polychrome Janus-faced effigy jar with cheek decoration and red-slipped spout, Casas Grandes, AD 1200-1450.
Photographer: Blair Clark
Credits: Museum of Indian Arts & Culture / Laboratory of Anthropology, 22016/11
At Casas Grandes, potters made striking, intricately painted effigy vessels and geometric polychrome ollas. The vibrant pottery features elaborate symbolic imagery and depicts humans, supernatural beings, fantastic creatures, and animals, including macaws, owls, fish, turtles, serpents. Some scenes portray dancing figures with animal headdresses, and appear to tell stories of transformation from the human to spiritual realm. Along with other archaeological evidence, the variety of ceramic forms and intriguing iconography offer a window to the ancient Casas Grandes world.
Today these ceramics are considered remarkable works of art, and several recent museum exhibits have displayed them from the perspective of art history. Secrets of Casas Grandes explores what the ceramics tell us about the people who made and used them-beyond their beauty as art objects-by examining their utilitarian and ritual functions.
http://sonewmex.com/images/MIAC_37763.jpg
Villa Ahumada Polychrome owl effigy jar, Casas Grandes, AD 1200-1450.
Photographer: Blair Clark
Credits: Museum of Indian Arts & Culture / Laboratory of Anthropology, 37763/11
Shelby Tisdale, Director of the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture remarked, "Casas Grandes ceramics come in a variety of whimsical anthropomorphic shapes and beautifully executed colorful designs that communicate a variety of meanings. They also represent the apex of creativity and artistic excellence among the Casas Grandes ceramic specialists of the time."
Secrets of Casas Grandes uncovers some of the mysteries of this vibrant and vanished culture and invites visitors to ponder the many that still remain.
http://sonewmex.com/images/MIAC_20679.jpg
Ramos Polychrome Janus-faced effigy jar with human-like features and coiled snakes for ears, Casas Grandes, AD 1200-1450.
Photographer: Blair Clark
Credits: Museum of Indian Arts & Culture / Laboratory of Anthropology, 20679/11
There are many unanswered questions and historical puzzles concerning Casas Grandes that still perplex archaeologists. For example, is it a Southwestern or a Mesoamerican town? Why were exotic goods stockpiled at the site? What was the function or meaning of the hundreds of T-shaped doorways found at the site? Why were macaws commonly depicted on pots?
Exciting new archaeological research now underway is uncovering more secrets of Casas Grandes. One current study is mapping outlying sites that contain raw nuggets and pendants of turquoise, an apparent trade route that channeled valuable turquoise from the Southwest to northern Mexico.
Casas Grandes was an important part of the history of the North American Southwest, with its sphere of influence extending into what is today southern New Mexico.
Casas Grandes was named an internationally recognized United Nations World Heritage Site in December 1998.
*~~~~~~*
About The Museum: Located on Museum Hill, the Museum of Indian Arts & Culture shares the beautiful Milner Plaza with the Museum of International Folk Art. Here, Now and Always, a major permanent exhibition at the Museum of Indian Arts & Culture, combines the voices of living Native Americans with ancient and contemporary artifacts and interactive multimedia to tell the complex stories of the Southwest. The Buchsbaum Gallery displays works from the region's pueblos. Five changing galleries present exhibits on subjects ranging from archaeological excavations to contemporary art. In addition, an outdoor sculpture garden offers rotating exhibits of works by Native American sculptors.
The Museum of Indian Arts and Culture is a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs.
Information for the Public: The Museum of Indian Arts and Culture is located on Museum Hill, Camino Lejo off Old Santa Fe Trail. For more information call 505-476-1269 or visit www.IndianArtsandCulture.org (http://www.indianartsandculture.org/)
Museum Hours: Tuesday through Sunday, 10:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.
Admission Prices: School groups free. Children 11 and under free. New Mexico residents with I.D. free on Sundays. New Mexico resident Senior Citizens (age 60+) with I.D. free Wednesdays. Museum Foundation members free. Students with I.D. $1 discount. Single visit to one museum: $8.00 for non-state residents; $6.00 for New Mexico residents. Four day pass to five museums including state-run museums in Santa Fe plus The Museum of Spanish Colonial Art $18.00. One day pass for two museums (Museum of International Folk Art and Museum of Indian Arts and Culture OR Museum of Fine Arts and Palace of the Governors) $12.00. Group rate for ten or more people: single visit $6.00, four day pass $16.00.