Cover Page. The handle holds various files of this Leiden University dissertation

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1 Cover Page The handle holds various files of this Leiden University dissertation Author: Bajema, Marcus Jan Title: A comparative approach toward understanding the Mycenaean and Late Preclassic lowland Maya early civilisations through their art styles Issue Date:

2 A COMPARATIVE APPROACH TOWARD UNDERSTANDING THE MYCENAEAN AND LATE PRECLASSIC LOWLAND MAYA EARLY CIVILISATIONS THROUGH THEIR ART STYLES Proefschrift ter verkrijging van de graad van Doctor aan de Universiteit Leiden, op gezag van Rector Magnificus prof. mr. C.J.J.M. Stolker, volgens besluit van het College voor Promoties te verdedigen op dinsdag 24 november 2015 klokke 15:00 uur door Marcus Jan Bajema geboren te Gouda in 1979

3 Promotores Prof. Dr. M.E.R.G.N. Jansen Prof. Dr. J.L. Bintliff Promotiecommissie Prof. Dr. R.H.A. Corbey Prof. Dr. N. Grube (Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhems-Universität Bonn) Prof. Dr. M.L. Sørensen (Universiteit Leiden / Cambridge University) Dr. G.J. van Wijngaarden (Universiteit van Amsterdam)

4 TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of contents. i-viii List of illustrations. ix-xii List of tables. xiii-xiv Chapter one: Thesis subject and outline. 1 Section 1.1: Thesis subject and research questions. 1 Section 1.2: Thesis outline. 2 Chapter two: Philosophical-methodological issues for cross-cultural comparison in archaeology. 4 Section 2.1: Introduction. 4 Section 2.2: Conceptions of human nature and cross-cultural comparison. 5 Section 2.2.1: Dualism and the role of analogy in archaeological theory. 5 Section 2.2.2: A critique of analogical theories of human nature. 7 Section 2.3: History-based conceptions of human nature and cross-cultural comparison. 10 Section 2.3.1: Introduction. 10 Section 2.3.2: The emergence of a history-based conception of human nature. 11 Section 2.3.3: Vico's method, human nature and history. 14 Section 2.3.4: History-based conceptions of human nature in their longue durée context. 20 i

5 Section 2.3.5: An outline of the philosophical-methodological ideas in Gordon Childe's later work. 24 Section 2.3.6: Wittgenstein's remarks on Frazer s Golden Bough and their methodological implications. 35 Section 2.3.7: History-based conceptions of human nature and cross-cultural comparison. 43 Section 2.4: The methodological framework for comparing early civilisations and their art. 49 Section 2.4.1: Introduction. 49 Section 2.4.2: Approaches to cross-cultural comparison in archaeology. 51 Section 2.4.3: Defining and comparing early civilisations. 58 Section 2.4.4: Defining and comparing the art of early civilisations. 66 Chapter three: Introduction to Mycenaean early civilisation. 82 Section 3.1: Introduction. 82 Section 3.2: The terminology and chronology of Mycenaean early civilisation. 82 Section 3.3: The main sources for interpreting Mycenaean early civilisation. 86 Section 3.4: Interpretations of Mycenaean early civilisation. 89 Section 3.4.1: Introduction. 89 Section 3.4.2: Elements of Mycenaean early civilisation. 90 Section 3.4.3: Interpreting Mycenaean early civilisation in its longue durée context. 105 ii

6 Chapter four: General characteristics of Mycenaean art. 112 Section 4.1: Introduction. 112 Section 4.1.1: Chapter overview. 112 Section 4.1.2: Sources for the interpretation of Mycenaean art. 112 Section 4.2: The material forms of Mycenaean art. 116 Section 4.2.1: Introduction. 116 Section 4.2.2: Three-dimensional containers in Mycenaean art. 117 Section 4.2.3: Two-dimensional containers in Mycenaean art. 120 Section 4.2.4: Instruments in Mycenaean art. 125 Section 4.2.5: The material forms of Mycenaean art. 128 Section 4.3: Craft and materiality of Mycenaean art. 129 Section 4.3.1: Introduction. 129 Section 4.3.2: Craft-work and Mycenaean art. 130 Section 4.3.3: Conceptions of materiality in Mycenaean art. 134 Section 4.3.4: Craft and materiality of Mycenaean art. 149 Section 4.4: The iconography of Mycenaean art. 151 Section 4.4.1: Introduction. 151 Section 4.4.2: Iconographic conventions in Mycenaean art. 152 iii

7 Section 4.4.3: Images, words and narratives in Mycenaean art. 160 Section 4.4.4: The iconography of Mycenaean art. 166 Chapter five: Contexts and agency of Mycenaean art. 168 Section 5.1: Introduction. 168 Section 5.2: Contexts of Mycenaean art. 168 Section 5.2.1: Introduction. 168 Section 5.2.2: Public ritual in Mycenaean art. 173 Section 5.2.3: Warfare and elite culture in Mycenaean art. 178 Section 5.2.4: The human and natural worlds in Mycenaean art. 182 Section 5.2.5: Contexts of Mycenaean art. 186 Section 5.3: The agency of Mycenaean art. 188 Section 5.3.1: Introduction. 188 Section 5.3.2: The agency of Mycenaean art. 188 Section 5.3.3: The agency of Mycenaean art in its longue durée context. 198 Chapter six: Introduction to Late Preclassic lowland Maya early civilisation. 208 Section 6.1: Introduction. 208 Section 6.2: Terminology and chronology of the Late Preclassic lowland Maya. 208 Section 6.3: Sources for the interpretation of the Late Preclassic lowland Maya. 212 iv

8 Section 6.4: Interpretations of the Late Preclassic lowland Maya. 215 Section 6.4.1: Introduction. 215 Section 6.4.2: Elements of Late Preclassic lowland Maya early civilisation. 216 Section 6.4.3: Late Preclassic lowland Maya early civilisation in its longue durée context. 225 Chapter seven: General characteristics of Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 229 Section 7.1: Introduction. 229 Section 7.1.1: Chapter overview. 229 Section 7.1.2: Sources for the interpretation of Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 229 Section 7.2: The material forms of Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 231 Section 7.2.1: Introduction. 231 Section 7.2.2: Monumental containers in Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 233 Section 7.2.3: Non-monumental containers in Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 235 Section 7.2.4: Instruments in Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 238 Section 7.2.5: The material forms of Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 239 Section 7.3: Craft and materiality of Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 240 Section 7.3.1: Introduction. 240 Section 7.3.2: Craft-work and Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 240 v

9 Section 7.3.3: Conceptions of materiality in Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 249 Section 7.3.4: Craft and materiality of Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 255 Section 7.4: The iconography of Late Preclassic lowland Maya art art. 255 Section 7.4.1: Introduction. 255 Section 7.4.2: Iconographic conventions in Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 256 Section 7.4.3: Images, words and narratives in Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 268 Section 7.4.4: The iconography of Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 273 Chapter eight: Contexts and agency of Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 275 Section 8.1: Introduction. 275 Section 8.2: Contexts of Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 275 Section 8.2.1: Introduction. 275 Section 8.2.2: Preclassic art at Nakbé and the Mirador Basin. 278 Section 8.2.3: Preclassic art at Cival. 281 Section 8.2.4: Preclassic art at San Bartolo. 283 Section 8.2.5: Preclassic art at K'axob. 288 Section 8.2.6: Preclassic art at Chan. 290 Section 8.2.7: Contexts of Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 292 Section 8.3: The agency of Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 293 vi

10 Section 8.3.1: Introduction. 293 Section 8.3.2: The agency of Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 294 Section 8.3.3: The agency of Late Preclassic lowland Maya art in its longue durée context. 298 Chapter nine: Comparing the art of the Mycenaean and Late Preclassic lowland Maya early civilisations. 305 Section 9.1: Introduction. 305 Section 9.2: Comparing the Mycenaean and Late Preclassic Maya early civilisations. 305 Section 9.2.1: Introduction. 305 Section 9.2.2: Comparing chronology and terminology. 306 Section 9.2.3: Comparing sources. 308 Section 9.2.4: Comparing interpretations of early civilisations. 309 Section 9.2.5: Comparing Mycenaean and Late Preclassic Maya early civilisations. 323 Section 9.3: Comparing the art of the Mycenaean and Late Preclassic lowland Maya early civilisations. 325 Section 9.3.1: Introduction. 325 Section 9.3.2: The comparability of Mycenaean and Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 325 Section 9.3.3: Comparing the metaphors of Mycenaean and Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 328 vii

11 Section 9.3.4: Comparing the semiotics of Mycenaean and Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 338 Section 9.3.5: Comparing the praxis of Mycenaean and Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 344 Section 9.3.6: Comparing the agency of Mycenaean and Late Preclassic lowland Maya art. 347 Section 9.3.7: Implications for general ideas about the agency of the art of early civilisations. 360 Chapter ten: Retrospect and prospect. 368 Section 10.1: Introduction. 368 Section 10.2: Evaluating the approach to comparing early civilisations. 368 Section 10.3: Implications for the philosophical-methodological framework. 371 Section 10.4: Prospects for further research. 374 Appendix: Overview of the narrative micro-structures in the San Bartolo wall-paintings 376 Bibliography. 383 Figures. 478 Acknowledgments 520 Curriculum Vitae 521 Dutch summary 522 viii

12 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Levels of archaeological theory. Figure 2: Wittgenstein's colour language game. Figure 3: Map of the eastern Mediterranean and Near East in the Late Bronze Age. Figure 4: Map of the major Mycenaean sites on the Greek mainland. Figure 5: A model for the regional expansion of the Pylian state. Figure 6: Painted plaster head from Mycenae. Figure 7: Armless figure on the Ayia Triada sarcophagus. Figure 8: The 'Lion Gate' at Mycenae. Figure 9: The throne installation at Knossos. Figure 10: Reconstruction of the throne installation wall-paintings at Knossos Figure 11: Stone block with blue glass inlays from Tiryns. Figure 12: Ikria frieze from Mycenae. Figure 13: Detail of a ship's hull in a wall-painting from Akrotiri. Figure 14: Griffin with blue wings from Akrotiri. Figure 15: Landscape with blue elements from Akrotiri. Figure 16: Second griffin with blue wings from Akrotiri. Figure 17: Beads used as jewellery from Akrotiri. Figure 18: Shapes of Mycenaean blue-glass beads. Figure 19: Lyre from the Royal Cemetery at Ur with lapis lazuli beard. Woolley 1934, plate 107. Figure 20: Changes in naturalism from Minoan to Mycenaean art. Figure 21: Repetitive frieze of nautili from Pylos. Figure 22: Repetitive frieze of bluebirds from Pylos. Figure 23: Leaping dolphins in a wall-painting from Gla. Figure 24: Floor-painting with a nautical theme from Tiryns. ix

13 Figure 25: Floor-painting with a nautical theme from Pylos. Figure 26: Figure holding a lyre from Pylos. Figure 27: Griffin and lion from Pylos. Figure 28: Two sides of a 'black bronze' dagger from Shaft Grave at Mycenae. Figure 29: Megaron vestibule procession scene from Pylos. Figure 30: Outline of the position of the different wall-paintings in the Pylos megaron. Figure 31: Plan of the palace of Knossos. Figure 32: Plan of the palace of Tiryns. Figure 33: Reconstruction of the interior of the Pylos megaron by Piet de Jong. Figure 34: Reconstruction of a procession scene from the palace of Knossos. Figure 35: Campstool wall-painting from Knossos. Figure 36: Reconstruction of procession scene in its architectural context from Ayia Triada. Figure 37: Toasting pairs of men at tables from Pylos. Figure 38: Wall-painting from the Cult Centre at Mycenae. Figure 39: Mourning scenes on the Tanagra larnakes. Figure 40: Reconstruction of a part of the battle-scene wall-painting from Mycenae. Figure 41: Reconstruction of a part of the battle-scene wall-painting from Pylos. Figure 42: Reconstruction of a figure-8 shield frieze from Tiryns. Figure 43: Chariot scenes on exported Mycenaean painted vases. Figure 44: Bull-leaping wall-painting from Knossos (Taureador panel). Figure 45: Reconstruction of a part of the hunting-scene wall-painting from Tiryns. Figure 46: Renfrew's commodity nexus. Figure 47: Map of Mesoamerica. Figure 48: Map of major sites Preclassic lowland Maya area. Figure 49: Evolution of maize god. x

14 Figure 50: Arrangement stucco-masks Preclassic Tikal. Figure 51: Stela 2 from Cival. Figure 52: Fuchsite mask from Burial 85 at Tikal. Figure 53: The flow of k'uh in a royal sacrifice depicted on Stela 7 from Classic-period Yaxchilan. Figure 54: Reconstruction of the gourd birth-scene in a wall-painting from San Bartolo. Figure 55: Detail of 3 'Ik sign in a wall-painting from San Bartolo. Figure 56: Breath volutes in a wall-painting from San Bartolo. Figure 57: Margaret Hagen's four types of projective system in representational art. Figure 58: Painted k'an cross on a bowl from K'axob. Figure 59: Detail of the lower skyband in a wall-painting from San Bartolo. Figure 60: Detail of the upper skyband in a wall-painting from San Bartolo. Figure 61: Jester God on Nakbé Stela 1. Figure 62: Jester God headdress San Bartolo. Figure 63: Jester God DO plaque. Figure 64: Jester God in Cival mural. Figure 65: Jester God in El Achiotal mural. Figure 66: Text accompanying sacrificing figure San Bartolo. Figure 67: Muut birds San Bartolo. Figure 68: Ideal type Maya civic-ceremonial centre. Figure 69: Map of Preclassic period Nakbé. Figure 70: PBD on Structure 1 at Nakbé. Figure 71: Stela 2 from El Mirador. Figure 72: Reconstruction of the civic-ceremonial centre of Cival. Figure 73: Cache 4 at Cival. Figure 74: Map of San Bartolo. xi

15 Figure 75: Outline of Pinturas Sub-1A. Figure 76: Overview of north wall San Bartolo. Figure 77: Detail of figure from gourd birth-scene San Bartolo. Figure 78: Overview of west wall San Bartolo. Figure 79: Outline civic-ceremonial centre K'axob. Figure 80: Detail of operation 1 at K'axob. Figure 81: Outline civic-ceremonial centre Chan. Figure 82: Figurines from Chan. xii

16 LIST OF TABLES Table 1.1: Overview of the remaining thesis chapters. 2 Table 2.1: Approaches to cross-cultural comparison in archaeology. 52 Table 2.2: Cities and state forms in early civilisations. 60 Table 2.3: Sample of early civilisations in Trigger's Understanding. 61 Table 2.4: Elements used to delineate early civilisations. 64 Table 2.5: Basic and high-level analytic categories for the interpretation of art. 80 Table 3.1: Aegean Bronze Age chronology. 85 Table 3.2: Starting-points of each of the ten elements of Mycenaean early civilisation. 106 Table 4.1: Categories of the material forms of Mycenaean art. 117 Table 4.2: Depictions of griffins with blue wings in Aegean-style wall-paintings. 140 Table 5.1: Material, iconographic, and linguistic metaphoric 'connectors' in Mycenaean art. 198 Table 6.1: Shared Mesoamerican practices. 209 Table 6.2: A comparison of the presence of key elements of the Preclassic Maya at El Mirador and Chan. 226 Table 7.1: Categories of the material forms of LPC lowland Maya art. 233 Table 7.2: Overview of production patterns selected LPC material forms. 245 Table 7.3: Overview of projection modes. 257 xiii

17 Table 9.1: Overview of distinct characteristics of Mycenaean and LPC lowland Maya economies. 315 Table 9.2: Idiosyncratic patterns Mesopotamia and central Mexico. 321 Table 9.3: Key characteristics of Mycenaean blue glass and Maya jadeite compared. 332 Table 9.4: Similarities and differences of Mycenaean and LPC lowland Maya art. 347 Table appendix 376 xiv