Courses

The jungles and mountains of the New World continue to unveil previously unknown details about fascinating cultures and ancient cities, largely thanks to newly applied satellite and remote sensing techniques such as lidar and drones. It's now possible to see thousands of new sites under deep jungle cover or in places so steep they are inaccessible to human exploration on foot. In this course, we will explore the unique artistry and accomplishments of the Olmec, Maya, Teotihuacan, Toltec, and Aztec peoples of Mesoamerica and the Chavín, Nazca, Moche, Tiwanaku, Wari, and Inca cultures of the Andean and coastal areas of South America through their history and archaeological remains.

In each class session, we will examine the architecture, art, religion, ancient topography, technologies, and material artifacts of these cultures and the places where they lived and worked, often in spectacular landscapes, utilizing their natural resources in clearly deliberate and distinctly creative ways the Old World never imagined. We will also explore the archaeological techniques making these New World cultures more accessible.