From Alaska to the AndesNATIVE ARTS OF THE AMERICAS BEFORE 1300
Vocabulary Terms
AdobeThe clay used to make a kind of sun-dried mud
brick of the same name; a building
made of such brick.
AtlantidA male figure
that functions as a supporting column.
AtlatlSpear-thrower,
the typical weapon of the
Toltecs of ancient Mexico.
Backstrap LoomA simple Andean loom featuring a belt or backstrap
encircling the waist of the
seated weaver.
CeltIn Olmec Mexico,
an ax-shaped form made of polished jade; generally, a
prehistoric metal or stone implement
shaped like a chisel or ax head.
Effigy MoundsCeremonial
mounds built in the shape of
animals or birds by native North
American peoples.
EmbroideryThe technique of sewing threads onto a finished ground to form
contrasting designs.
Fret or MeanderAn ornament, usually
in bands but also covering broad
surfaces, consisting of interlocking geometric motifs. An ornamental pattern of contiguous straight lines joined
usually at right angles
Gorget
A neck pendant.
KivaA large circular underground
structure that is the spiritual and
ceremonial center of Pueblo
Indian life
MesoamericaThe region that
comprises Mexico,
Guatemala, Belize, Honduras,
and the Pacific coast of El Salvador.
PuebloA communal
multistoried dwelling made of stone or adobe
brick by the Native Americans of the
Southwest; with cap. also used to refer to various groups that
occupied such dwellings.
Roof CombThe elaborately sculpted vertical
projection surmounting a Maya temple-
pyramid.
TapestryA weaving technique
in which the weft threads are packed
densely over the warp threads so that
the designs are woven directly into
the fabric.
TerracottaHard-baked clay,
used for sculpture and as
a building material. It may
be glazed or painted
WarpThe
vertical threads
of a loom or cloth.
WeftThe
horizontal threads of a loom or
cloth.
Mesoamerican Ball Game
The Mesoamerican ballgame was a sport with ritual
associations played for over 3000 years
by the pre-Columbian peoples
of Mesoamerica.
EpigraphersScholars
who decipher writing systems
MetatesCeremonial
grinding stones, possibly used as thrones
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