Refuting "Noble Savages": Reflections of Nature in Ancient Mesoamerican Artifacts through September 13, 2019 at the Fine Arts Gallery of Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee

Refuting "Noble Savages": Reflections of Nature in Ancient Mesoamerican Artifacts through September 13, 2019 at the Fine Arts Gallery of Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee.
"The heat of sunrise and the growing rumble of jungle life signals morning. It is harvest time, and the smell of corn stalks being cut and removed from the chinampas is refreshing. Women chatter as they begin dyeing large bundles of agave fiber deep red, using the cochineal beetle, while men begin practicing in the nearby ball field, surrounded by the jungle on one side and market stalls on the other. Children run past, throwing a rubber ball to friends, their varied skull shapes signaling their varied progress in achieving the conical definition as a tribute to the corn goddess. This—the sounds, sights, and smells—is just a small glimpse into the daily life in Mesoamerica."
The artifacts on view in this exhibit come from different areas in Mexico and Central America and elucidate the daily life, practices, and values held by ancient Mesoamerican people, as told through the lens of the small artifacts they left behind. The exhibit also seeks to challenge the Westernized term “Noble Savages,” a reference to Western portrayals of ancient Mesoamerican peoples in a subdued and romanticized form. The exhibit includes 3D artifact-replicas that invite hands-on discovery, too.
Also, don't miss Vanderbilt’s permanent collection of ancient Mediterranean art featuring excellent examples from Egypt, Etruria, and Greece including sculpture, decorated ceramic wares, and an exemplary terra cotta antefix from Etruria.



Images: Ball player in warrior bird costume Pre-Columbian Classic Period 600-800 CE. Head of a Maenad terracotta antefix 6th century BCE from Etruria. Images courtesy of Vanderbilt University.

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