What Was Being Sealed? Cranial Modification and Ritual Binding Among the Maya
Document Type
Book Contribution
Publication Date
9-2018
Description
Summary of book provided by publisher: "The meanings of ritualized head treatments among ancient Mesoamerican and Andean peoples is the subject of this book, the first overarching coverage of an important subject. Heads are sources of power that protect, impersonate, emulate sacred forces, distinguish, or acquire identity within the native world. The essays in this book examine these themes in a wide array of indigenous head treatments, including facial cosmetics and hair arrangements, permanent cranial vault and facial modifications, dental decorations, posthumous head processing, and head hunting. They offer new insights into native understandings of beauty, power, age, gender, and ethnicity. The contributors are experts from such diverse fields as skeletal biology, archaeology, aesthetics, forensics, taphonomy, and art history."
Citation Information
Duncan, William N.; and Vail, G.. 2018. What Was Being Sealed? Cranial Modification and Ritual Binding Among the Maya. Social Skins of the Head: Body Beliefs and Ritual in Ancient Mesoamerica and the Andes. Albuquerque, NM: University of New Mexico Press. 19-35. https://unmpress.com/books/social-skins-head/9780826359636 ISBN: 9780826359636