Pre-Columbian Civilizations
A.Y. 2021/2022
Learning objectives
The course aims to offer to the students an overview of the condition of women in the Maya culture in the context of Mesoamerica and the most recent anthropological reflections.
Expected learning outcomes
Knowledge
Students get an articulated picture of the condition of women in the Maya culture in the context of Mesoamerica.
They also become aware that sources must be used and evaluated critically
Skills
Students acquire the ability to critically analyze archaeological data and ethnohistorical sources.
Students get an articulated picture of the condition of women in the Maya culture in the context of Mesoamerica.
They also become aware that sources must be used and evaluated critically
Skills
Students acquire the ability to critically analyze archaeological data and ethnohistorical sources.
Lesson period: First semester
Assessment methods: Esame
Assessment result: voto verbalizzato in trentesimi
Single course
This course cannot be attended as a single course. Please check our list of single courses to find the ones available for enrolment.
Course syllabus and organization
Single session
Lesson period
First semester
More specific information on the delivery modes of training activities for academic year 2021 / 22 will be provided over the coming months, based on the evolution of the public health situation.
Course syllabus
The course is entitled: "The condition of women in Maya culture" and consists of the following three didactic units, which will be addressed in sequence.
Teaching unit A - The Mesoamerica and the Maya culture
Antonio Aimi, Arte azteca, Artedossier [monografia], n. 370, Florence, 2019, pp. 1-50
Antonio Aimi e Raphael Tunesi, L'arte Maya, Artedossier [monografia], n. 294, Florence, pp. 1-50
Nikolai Grube (ed.), Maya: Dei incoronati della foresta vergine, Cologne, 2001, pp. 20-47, 50-64; 86-95, 98-111; 148-171; 172-173; 322-337, 356-383
Antonio Aimi, Le culture preispaniche oltre la "barriera del significato", in: Itinerari di cultura ispano-americana, a cura di: E. Perassi e L. Scarabelli, UTET Università, Novara, 2011, pp. 7-33
Leonardo López and Michelle de Anda, Teotihuacan en Mexico-Tenochtitlan: descubrimientos recientes, nuevas perspectivas, Estudios de Cultura Náhuatl, 2017, n. 54, pp. 17-60
Teaching unit B - The condition of women in Maya culture: ethnohistorical sources and archaeological data
Landa Diego de, Relazione sullo Yucatán, [1566], capp. I-XXXIII (Any edition).
Popol Vuh, [1554-1557], (Any edition).
Antonio Benavides Castillo. Algunas mujeres de Calakmul, Glifos, 2020, 7, 24, pp. 24-35
Miriam Judith Gallegos Gómora, Mujeres mayas en la antigüedad: una mirada arqueológica, Glifos, 2020, 7, 24, pp. 6-15
David A. Freidel and Héctor L. Escobedo, Stelae, Buildings, and People: Reflections on Ritual in the Archaeological Record at El Peru-Waka', Archaeology at El Perú-Waka': Ancient Maya Performances of Ritual, Memory, and Power, O. Navarro-Farr and M. Rich (eds.), University of Arizona Press, Tucson,
pp. 18-33
Simon Martin and Nikolai Grube, Chronicle of the Maya Kings and Queens, Thames & Hudson, London, 2000, pp. 68-83, 116-137, 154-175
María Elena Vega, El legado de los escultores: un estudio de las firmas de artistas registradas en los monumentos mayas del periodo Clásico Tardío, Anales del Instituto de Investigaciones Estéticas, 2016, 38, 108, pp. 149-169
Teaching unit C - The condition of women in Maya culture: interpretative models
Susan Gillespie, Gendering the Hero Twins in the Popol Vuh. Género y Arqueologia en Mesoamérica: Homenaje a Rosemary A. Joyce, M. Rodríguez-Shadow and S. Kellogg (eds.), CEAM, Mexico 2013, pp. 139-151.
Marvin Harris, L'evoluzione del pensiero antropologico, Il Mulino, Bologna, 1971, pp. 242-270.
Lucía Quiñones e José Gamboa, Alianzas matrimoniales entre los Mayas prehispánicos, in: Mujeres en tierras mayas: nuevas miradas, a cura di G. e C. Rosado, Mérida, 2014, pp. 17-38
Irene Silverblatt, Women in States, Annual Review of Anthropology, 1988, 17, pp. 427-460
María Elena Vega Villalobos, Señoras del linaje: un acercamiento a las mujeres y al gobierno maya en el periodo Clásico Tardío, El gobernante en Mesoamérica, M.E. Vega Villalobos and M. Pastrana Flores (eds.), UNAM, Mexico, 2019, pp. 85-120
The course program is valid until the 28th February 2023.
Teaching unit A - The Mesoamerica and the Maya culture
Antonio Aimi, Arte azteca, Artedossier [monografia], n. 370, Florence, 2019, pp. 1-50
Antonio Aimi e Raphael Tunesi, L'arte Maya, Artedossier [monografia], n. 294, Florence, pp. 1-50
Nikolai Grube (ed.), Maya: Dei incoronati della foresta vergine, Cologne, 2001, pp. 20-47, 50-64; 86-95, 98-111; 148-171; 172-173; 322-337, 356-383
Antonio Aimi, Le culture preispaniche oltre la "barriera del significato", in: Itinerari di cultura ispano-americana, a cura di: E. Perassi e L. Scarabelli, UTET Università, Novara, 2011, pp. 7-33
Leonardo López and Michelle de Anda, Teotihuacan en Mexico-Tenochtitlan: descubrimientos recientes, nuevas perspectivas, Estudios de Cultura Náhuatl, 2017, n. 54, pp. 17-60
Teaching unit B - The condition of women in Maya culture: ethnohistorical sources and archaeological data
Landa Diego de, Relazione sullo Yucatán, [1566], capp. I-XXXIII (Any edition).
Popol Vuh, [1554-1557], (Any edition).
Antonio Benavides Castillo. Algunas mujeres de Calakmul, Glifos, 2020, 7, 24, pp. 24-35
Miriam Judith Gallegos Gómora, Mujeres mayas en la antigüedad: una mirada arqueológica, Glifos, 2020, 7, 24, pp. 6-15
David A. Freidel and Héctor L. Escobedo, Stelae, Buildings, and People: Reflections on Ritual in the Archaeological Record at El Peru-Waka', Archaeology at El Perú-Waka': Ancient Maya Performances of Ritual, Memory, and Power, O. Navarro-Farr and M. Rich (eds.), University of Arizona Press, Tucson,
pp. 18-33
Simon Martin and Nikolai Grube, Chronicle of the Maya Kings and Queens, Thames & Hudson, London, 2000, pp. 68-83, 116-137, 154-175
María Elena Vega, El legado de los escultores: un estudio de las firmas de artistas registradas en los monumentos mayas del periodo Clásico Tardío, Anales del Instituto de Investigaciones Estéticas, 2016, 38, 108, pp. 149-169
Teaching unit C - The condition of women in Maya culture: interpretative models
Susan Gillespie, Gendering the Hero Twins in the Popol Vuh. Género y Arqueologia en Mesoamérica: Homenaje a Rosemary A. Joyce, M. Rodríguez-Shadow and S. Kellogg (eds.), CEAM, Mexico 2013, pp. 139-151.
Marvin Harris, L'evoluzione del pensiero antropologico, Il Mulino, Bologna, 1971, pp. 242-270.
Lucía Quiñones e José Gamboa, Alianzas matrimoniales entre los Mayas prehispánicos, in: Mujeres en tierras mayas: nuevas miradas, a cura di G. e C. Rosado, Mérida, 2014, pp. 17-38
Irene Silverblatt, Women in States, Annual Review of Anthropology, 1988, 17, pp. 427-460
María Elena Vega Villalobos, Señoras del linaje: un acercamiento a las mujeres y al gobierno maya en el periodo Clásico Tardío, El gobernante en Mesoamérica, M.E. Vega Villalobos and M. Pastrana Flores (eds.), UNAM, Mexico, 2019, pp. 85-120
The course program is valid until the 28th February 2023.
Prerequisites for admission
The course is held entirely in Italian, but the exam bibliography presupposes good Spanish and English language skills.
Students who do not know Spanish or English will not be able to rely on Italian translations; therefore, if interested in the course, they should contact the teacher in advance to assess any adjustments to the program.
Erasmus or other mobility students are admitted, provided they have solid Spanish language skills.
Students who do not know Spanish or English will not be able to rely on Italian translations; therefore, if interested in the course, they should contact the teacher in advance to assess any adjustments to the program.
Erasmus or other mobility students are admitted, provided they have solid Spanish language skills.
Teaching methods
The course adopts the following teaching methods: frontal lectures, reading and commenting of some of the passages of the texts to be studied.
Teaching Resources
Teaching unit A - The Mesoamerica and the Maya culture
Antonio Aimi, Arte azteca, Artedossier [monografia], n. 370, Florence, 2019, pp. 1-50
Antonio Aimi e Raphael Tunesi, L'arte Maya, Artedossier [monografia], n. 294, Florence, pp. 1-50
Nikolai Grube (ed.), Maya: Dei incoronati della foresta vergine, , Cologne, 2001, pp. 20-47, 50-64; 86-95, 98-111; 148-171; 172-173; 322-337, 356-383
Laura Ibarra, Las ideas sobre la mujer en los tiempos más antiguos de Mesoamérica, Estudios de Cultura Nahuatl, 1996, 26, pp. 117-132
Leonardo López and Michelle de Anda, Teotihuacan en Mexico-Tenochtitlan: descubrimientos recientes, nuevas perspectivas, Estudios de Cultura Náhuatl, 2017, n. 54, pp. 17-60
Teaching unit B - The condition of women in Maya culture: ethnohistorical sources and archaeological data
Landa Diego de, Relazione sullo Yucatán, [1566], capp. I-XXXIII (Any edition).
Popol Vuh, [1554-1557], (Any edition).
Antonio Benavides Castillo. Algunas mujeres de Calakmul, Glifos, 2020, 7, 24, pp. 24-35
Miriam Judith Gallegos Gómora, Mujeres mayas en la antigüedad: una mirada arqueológica, Glifos, 2020, 7, 24, pp. 6-15
David A. Freidel and Héctor L. Escobedo, Stelae, Buildings, and People: Reflections on Ritual in the Archaeological Record at El Peru-Waka', Archaeology at El Perú-Waka': Ancient Maya Performances of Ritual, Memory, and Power, O. Navarro-Farr and M. Rich (eds.), University of Arizona Press, Tucson,
pp. 18-33
Simon Martin and Nikolai Grube, Chronicle of the Maya Kings and Queens, Thames & Hudson, London, 2000, pp. 68-83, 116-137, 154-175
María Elena Vega Villalobos, El legado de los escultores: un estudio de las firmas de artistas registradas en los monumentos mayas del periodo Clásico Tardío, Anales del Instituto de Investigaciones Estéticas, 2016, 38, 108, pp. 149-169
Teaching unit C - The condition of women in Maya culture: interpretative models
Susan Gillespie, Gendering the Hero Twins in the Popol Vuh. Género y Arqueologia en Mesoamérica: Homenaje a Rosemary A. Joyce, M. Rodríguez-Shadow and S. Kellogg (eds.), CEAM, Mexico 2013, pp. 139-151.
Marvin Harris, L'evoluzione del pensiero antropologico, Il Mulino, Bologna, 1971, pp. 242-270;
Rosemary Joyce, Negotiating Sex and Gender in Classic Maya Society, Gender in Pre-Hispanic America, C. Klein (ed.), Dumbarton Oaks, Washington, 2001, pp. 109-141
Irene Silverblatt, Women in States, Annual Review of Anthropology, 1988, 17, pp. 427-460
María Elena Vega Villalobos, Señoras del linaje: un acercamiento a las mujeres y al gobierno maya en el periodo Clásico Tardío, El gobernante en Mesoamérica, M.E. Vega Villalobos and M. Pastrana Flores (eds.), UNAM, Mexico, 2019, pp. 85-120
Antonio Aimi, Arte azteca, Artedossier [monografia], n. 370, Florence, 2019, pp. 1-50
Antonio Aimi e Raphael Tunesi, L'arte Maya, Artedossier [monografia], n. 294, Florence, pp. 1-50
Nikolai Grube (ed.), Maya: Dei incoronati della foresta vergine, , Cologne, 2001, pp. 20-47, 50-64; 86-95, 98-111; 148-171; 172-173; 322-337, 356-383
Laura Ibarra, Las ideas sobre la mujer en los tiempos más antiguos de Mesoamérica, Estudios de Cultura Nahuatl, 1996, 26, pp. 117-132
Leonardo López and Michelle de Anda, Teotihuacan en Mexico-Tenochtitlan: descubrimientos recientes, nuevas perspectivas, Estudios de Cultura Náhuatl, 2017, n. 54, pp. 17-60
Teaching unit B - The condition of women in Maya culture: ethnohistorical sources and archaeological data
Landa Diego de, Relazione sullo Yucatán, [1566], capp. I-XXXIII (Any edition).
Popol Vuh, [1554-1557], (Any edition).
Antonio Benavides Castillo. Algunas mujeres de Calakmul, Glifos, 2020, 7, 24, pp. 24-35
Miriam Judith Gallegos Gómora, Mujeres mayas en la antigüedad: una mirada arqueológica, Glifos, 2020, 7, 24, pp. 6-15
David A. Freidel and Héctor L. Escobedo, Stelae, Buildings, and People: Reflections on Ritual in the Archaeological Record at El Peru-Waka', Archaeology at El Perú-Waka': Ancient Maya Performances of Ritual, Memory, and Power, O. Navarro-Farr and M. Rich (eds.), University of Arizona Press, Tucson,
pp. 18-33
Simon Martin and Nikolai Grube, Chronicle of the Maya Kings and Queens, Thames & Hudson, London, 2000, pp. 68-83, 116-137, 154-175
María Elena Vega Villalobos, El legado de los escultores: un estudio de las firmas de artistas registradas en los monumentos mayas del periodo Clásico Tardío, Anales del Instituto de Investigaciones Estéticas, 2016, 38, 108, pp. 149-169
Teaching unit C - The condition of women in Maya culture: interpretative models
Susan Gillespie, Gendering the Hero Twins in the Popol Vuh. Género y Arqueologia en Mesoamérica: Homenaje a Rosemary A. Joyce, M. Rodríguez-Shadow and S. Kellogg (eds.), CEAM, Mexico 2013, pp. 139-151.
Marvin Harris, L'evoluzione del pensiero antropologico, Il Mulino, Bologna, 1971, pp. 242-270;
Rosemary Joyce, Negotiating Sex and Gender in Classic Maya Society, Gender in Pre-Hispanic America, C. Klein (ed.), Dumbarton Oaks, Washington, 2001, pp. 109-141
Irene Silverblatt, Women in States, Annual Review of Anthropology, 1988, 17, pp. 427-460
María Elena Vega Villalobos, Señoras del linaje: un acercamiento a las mujeres y al gobierno maya en el periodo Clásico Tardío, El gobernante en Mesoamérica, M.E. Vega Villalobos and M. Pastrana Flores (eds.), UNAM, Mexico, 2019, pp. 85-120
Assessment methods and Criteria
The exam consists of an interview, which includes questions asked by the teacher.
The interview has a variable duration depending on the teaching units studied by the student and is held in Italian.
The interview aims to verify the knowledge of the texts of the program, the ability to contextualize the authors and their works, the ability of critical and personal reflection on the proposed themes.
The final grade is expressed out of 30, and the student has the right to reject it (in which case it will be recorded as "withdrawn").
International students or incoming Erasmus students are invited to make timely contact with the teacher. The exam modalities for students with disabilities and/or DSA must be agreed with the teacher and with the competent Office.
The interview has a variable duration depending on the teaching units studied by the student and is held in Italian.
The interview aims to verify the knowledge of the texts of the program, the ability to contextualize the authors and their works, the ability of critical and personal reflection on the proposed themes.
The final grade is expressed out of 30, and the student has the right to reject it (in which case it will be recorded as "withdrawn").
International students or incoming Erasmus students are invited to make timely contact with the teacher. The exam modalities for students with disabilities and/or DSA must be agreed with the teacher and with the competent Office.
Unita' didattica A
L-LIN/06 - LATIN AMERICAN LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Unita' didattica B
L-LIN/06 - LATIN AMERICAN LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Unita' didattica C
L-LIN/06 - LATIN AMERICAN LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours