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Dorothy Menzel y el estudio del estado Wari

Faculty Advisor

Date

2011

Keywords

Dorothy Menzel, Wari state, archeology, Peru, chronology, Middle Horizon

Abstract (summary)

One of the people who has had a profound impact on the study of the Wari State is undoubtedly Dorothy Menzel. Early in the development of archaeological research related to the Wari State, Menzel was able to trace the stylistic sequence of the Wari ceramics and, from that sequence, begin to reconstruct the development process of a quite complex society such as the Wari State. Her conviction that art is not only a means to transmit ideas and values ​​of a society, but that art can also be deciphered to explain ancient social formations, were advantages that allowed Menzel to visualize the Wari State from a unique perspective. For her effect, Menzel paid particular attention to the association of the materials, as well as to the changes of diverse nature in the motifs that decorate the ceramics. Based on this procedure, Menzel visualized with an unprecedented certainty the way in which the Wari State originated, and then began with an entire process of expansion that came to incorporate much of what is now Peru. Finally, her analysis also facilitated her to outline the way in which the Wari State began to decline, the same that culminated with the total abandonment of its capital city. Until Menzel made this ambitious outline there was no similar work. Since then, those who participated and participate in this fascinating project to understand and explain the growth of the Wari State, have largely followed the scheme proposed by Menzel. The latter shows not only the acceptance of the model proposed by Menzel by many other specialists, but also the validity of the proposals made by Menzel about five decades ago.

Publication Information

DOI

Notes

Presented on March 24-25, 2011 at the I Coloquio Tras las Huellas de los Wari held in Cusco, Peru.

Item Type

Presentation

Language

Spanish

Rights

All Rights Reserved