Saburo Sugiyama

Worldview Materialized in Teotihuacan, Mexico

Teotihuacan was probably laid out from its inception according to a master plan intended to express a specific worldview in material form. It is argued that a proposed measurement unit of 83 cm reveals mesoamerican calendrical numbers such as 52 (x 10), 73, 260, 584, and 819, when applied to city axes and major monuments. The channelized Rio San Juan divides the central zone into two sections: the watery underworld to the south, especially represented at the Ciudadela, and to the north the earthly representation of the passage from the underworld to the heavens, where the Sun Pyramid at the center symbolizes a sacred time bundle in the 260-day ritual calendar. The sacrificial burial complex found at the Feathered Serpent Pyramid seems to have been a part of the city-foundation program, and the iconography of the pyramid apparently commemorated this dramatization of the creation of time and space.

THE MOON PYRAMID PROJECT AND THE TEOTIHUACAN STATE POLITY

Abstract The Moon Pyramid is the second largest monument at Teotihuacan and represents a key source of information regarding the state polity and its underlying ideology. It was little known archaeologically until now. Extensive excavations around the pyramid and tunnel operations within its nucleus have discovered an elaborate architectural sequence, including seven overlapping monumental constructions and five burial complexes of sacrificed individuals and sacred animals associated with rich offerings. The excavations in nearby structures and the three-dimensional mapping of the Moon Plaza complex provide valuable new data relevant to better understanding the ancient city, including its foundation and urbanization processes and the ideology of leadership that was materialized by successive monumental constructions. RESUMEN La Pirámide de la Luna, el segundo monumento más grande en Teotihuacán, fue seleccionada para investigación intensiva ya que ha sido poco explorada, pero es claramente una estructura de importancia vital para entender la ideología política, las organizaciones sociales y la historia del estado teotihuacano. Nuestra excavación extensiva de túneles en su interior reveló que la pirámide sufrió una serie de modificaciones y ampliaciones arquitectónicas, dando una gran cantidad de materiales inusuales para diversos análises. Se encontró que habían siete niveles constructivos superpuestos uno cubriendo otro anterior sucesivamente, así como que cinco complejos de entierros-ofrendas fueron dedicados a tres de los siete niveles detectados en la Pirámide de la Luna. Estaban asociados a ellos abundantes ofrendas simbólicas de calidad excepcional, incluyendo objetos de obsidiana, piedra verde, conchas, cerámicas, materiales orgánicos y huesos de animales sacrificados, todos dedicados a los monumentos; estas aparentemente reflejaban sacrificios humanos con significados religiosos, símbolos de poder político de los dirigentes y de la institución militar sagrada. Este artículo describe brevemente los resultados de las excavaciones relizadas tanto en el interior como en el contorno de la pirámide, cada fase constructiva con datos de cerámicas incluidas y resultados del análisis de 14C, así como comentarios preliminares al momento de concluir el trabajo de campo que se llevó a cabo desde 1998 hasta 2004.

DEDICATORY BURIAL/OFFERING COMPLEXES AT THE MOON PYRAMID, TEOTIHUACAN A preliminary report of 1998-2004 explorations

Abstract A series of highly elaborated burial/offering complexes have been discovered recently in association with seven superimposed monumental constructions at the Moon Pyramid. The archaeological contexts excavated during the past seven years indicate that these dedicatory complexes were symbols of a state religious ideology and communicated sociopolitical information on behalf of ruling elites. Rich artifacts made of obsidian, greenstone, shell, pyrite, ceramics, wood, and textile, as well as abundant skeletal remains of sacrificed animals and human beings, stand out in these unusual ritual deposits. Many of the offerings possess strong connotations of warfare and ritual sacrifice. After describing the five burial/offering complexes and discussing their possible function and religious significance, we conclude that, when the expanding Teotihuacan state orchestrated these monumental constructions, the most important ritual paraphernalia was buried in the new enlargement programs to express the ideology of sacred rulership. RESUMEN Las exploraciones del Proyecto Pirámide de la Luna (1998–2004) han permitido comprender cómo fue construido el segundo monumento de mayores dimensiones de la antigua ciudad de Teotihuacan. La excavación sistemática de largos túneles en su interior ha revelado una larga secuencia constructiva, compuesta por siete agrandamientos. Dicha secuencia va desde los modestos inicios de la pirámide, hacia el 100 d.C., hasta el colapso de la ciudad, alrededor del 600 d.C. Las exploraciones también han demostrado que al menos tres de los siete edificios de la pirámide contenían ricos complejos de entierro/ofrenda, los cuales fueron sepultados para consagrar cada nuevo agrandamiento. Hasta la fecha han sido recuperados cinco de estos complejos (entierros 2–6), casi todos integrados por una amplia variedad de artefactos, plantas, animales y seres humanos sacrificados. Los entierros 2, 3, y 4 se encontraron en la base de la pirámide, mientras que los entierros 5 y 6 se detectaron en la cúspide y en el centro de la pirámide, respectivamente. Los análisis antropofísicos practicados hasta ahora a las víctimas sacrificiales señalan una amplísima preferencia por los individuos subadultos o adultos y de origen extranjero. Esto, aunado a las armas, la indumentaria, y los símbolos bélicos que muchas veces estaban asociados a los esqueletos, apunta a que la mayoría de ellos eran militares cautivos. Junto a ellos fueron inhumadas varias decenas de mamíferos carniceros y aves rapaces, animales que suelen estar asociados directamente a la guerra y el sacrificio en la pintura mural, la cerámica y la escultura teotihuacanas. Lo anterior pone de manifiesto la enorme importancia del aparato bélico y de los holocaustos colectivos desde épocas muy tempranas y a todo lo largo de la historia teotihuacana, principalmente en el contexto de una ideología religiosa que sustentaba el poder del estado.

The Temple of Quetzalcoatl at Teotihuacan: Its Possible Ideological Significance

In this article the significance of Teotihuacans most sumptuous monument is studied: the Temple of Quetzalcoatl. Based on iconographie studies, together with the results of recent archaeological excavations, it is possible to deduce that the building was dedicated to the myth of the origin of time and calendric succession. The sculptures on its facades represent the Feathered Serpent at the moment of the creation. The Feathered Serpent bears the complex headdress of Cipactli, symbol of time, on his body. The archaeological materials discovered coincide with iconographie data and with this interpretation. Other monuments in Mesoamerica are also apparently consecrated in honor of this same myth and portray similar symbolism.

Complete mitogenome analysis of indigenous populations in Mexico: its relevance for the origin of Mesoamericans

Mesoamerica has an important role in the expansion of Paleoamericans as the route to South America. In this study, we determined complete mitogenome sequences of 113 unrelated individuals from two indigenous populations of Mesoamerica, Mazahua and Zapotec. All newly sequenced mitogenomes could be classified into haplogroups A2, B2, C1 and D1, but one sequence in Mazahua was D4h3a, a subclade of haplogroup D4. This haplogroup has been mostly found in South America along the Pacific coast. Haplogroup X2a was not found in either population. Genetic similarity obtained using phylogenetic tree construction and principal component analysis showed that these two populations are distantly related to each other. Actually, the Mazahua and the Zapotec shared no sequences (haplotypes) in common, while each also showed a number of unique subclades. Surprisingly, Zapotec formed a cluster with indigenous populations living in an area from central Mesoamerica to Central America. By contrast, the Mazahua formed a group with indigenous populations living in external areas, including southwestern North America and South America. This intriguing genetic relationship suggests the presence of two paleo-Mesoamerican groups, invoking a scenario in which one group had expanded into South America and the other resided in Mesoamerica.

IMAGE AND SYMBOL

Image and symbol can be found widely in the archaeological record, and have been dealt with a variety of ways in material culture studies. As humans, we are fundamentally cultural beings who have long used images and symbols to communicate with other members of our society and beyond, beginning in the Paleolithic period. One may say that virtually all artifacts can be explored as ‘images’ or ‘symbols’, or as the product or by-product of symbolic behavior to a certain degree. During the last two decades, new theoretical movements influenced by post-modernism and focusing more on ideology and individual actions have impacted many social sciences, including archaeology. As a consequence, image and symbol have become key themes in more fully and contextually understanding ancient societies. Particularly in postprocessual, behavioral, symbolic, or cognitive archaeology, images and symbols are discussed in terms of possessing meanings and functions beyond what they visually represent. This article begins with the definition of related words and concepts, presents certain theories associated with the study of images and symbols, then discusses some of their specific aspects, first by material, then by stylistic features.

Image Reproduction based on Texture Image Extension with Traced Drawing for Heavy Damaged Mural Painting

Abstract Not only geometric information but also optical information is needed to reproduce ruins using three-dimensional realistic computer graphics as they were when those were founded. In order to give a model a sense of reality, it is common to carry out the texture mapping of the photographed image. However such information can not be acquired from either weathered or partially destroyed ruins. While there are various conventional techniques for image restoration, which can overcome in the case of small missing and cracks, it is difficult to restore such a heavy damaged mural painting well when there is no information from the periphery. In this paper, we propose an image reproduction of a heavy damaged mural painting using a texture information extracted from another mural painting which has actually been restored by conservators and a traced drawing which the specialist guessed and drew. The restored image was used same pigment inks. Based on texture information from the restored image and a segmented traced drawing, we produce a restored image by applying the texture extension to each segment.

Imputation approach for deducing a complete mitogenome sequence from low-depth-coverage next-generation sequencing data: application to ancient remains from the Moon Pyramid, Mexico

It is considered that more than 15 depths of coverage are necessary for next-generation sequencing (NGS) data to obtain reliable complete nucleotide sequences of the mitogenome. However, it is difficult to satisfy this requirement for all nucleotide positions because of problems obtaining a uniform depth of coverage for poorly preserved materials. Thus, we propose an imputation approach that allows a complete mitogenome sequence to be deduced from low-depth-coverage NGS data. We used different types of mitogenome data files as panels for imputation: a worldwide panel comprising all the major haplogroups, a worldwide panel comprising sequences belonging to the estimated haplogroup alone, a panel comprising sequences from the population most closely related to an individual under investigation, and a panel comprising sequences belonging to the estimated haplogroup from the population most closely related to an individual under investigation. The number of missing nucleotides was drastically reduced in all the panels, but the contents obtained by imputation were quite different among the panels. The efficiency of the imputation method differed according to the panels used. The missing nucleotides were most credibly imputed using sequences of the estimated haplogroup from the population most closely related to the individual under investigation as a panel.

Characterization of complete mitochondrial genomes of indigenous Mayans in Mexico

Abstract Background: The authors have previously published the complete mitochondrial genome (mitogenome) sequences of two indigenous Mesoamerican populations, Mazahua (n = 25) and Zapotec (n = 88). Methods: This study determined the complete mitogenome sequences of nine unrelated individuals from the indigenous Maya population living in Mexico. Results: Their mitogenome sequences could be classified into either of the haplogroups A2 and C1. Surprisingly, there were no mitogenome sequences (haplotypes) that the Maya, Mazahua, and Zapotec people share in common. Conclusions: This indicates that no genetic exchange, at least matrilineally, has occurred among them.