Posted on 12/05/2002 5:31:34 PM PST by blam
History of words rewritten
By Roger Highfield, Science Editor
(Filed: 06/12/2002)
Symbols carved on to a recently discovered seal and plaque represent the earliest evidence of writing in the New World, a find that challenges previous ideas about who invented writing in the Americas.
The artefacts, described today in the journal Science, strengthen the idea of the ancient Olmecs being the "mother culture" of the Maya and Aztecs in Central America.
The Olmecs of the Gulf Coast region of Mexico were the first to develop urban ritual and political centres and now it seems that they were the first to formalise writing.
A seal and fragments of a greenstone plaque bearing glyphs - carved symbols - linked with a king appear to have been made in 650 BC by the Olmecs, probably some 350 years before the Zapotecs, who were previously thought to have invented writing in Oaxaca, Mexico.
The glyphs seem to emanate from the mouths of people or animals, like text in cartoons, supporting the theory that they represent spoken words.
The clay seal depicts two speech scrolls that emanate from the beak of a bird, ending with glyphs interpreted as representing "King 3 Ajaw", the name of a day in the 260-day Mesoamerican calendar which could also be used as a personal name.
The fist-sized cylindrical seal would have been inked and rolled along cloth or the body to create a repeating design.
The finds were made during a recent excavation to study early agriculture in the Gulf Coast of Tabasco, Mexico, by Prof Mary Pohl, Florida State University anthropologist, and co-researchers Kevin Pope of Geo Eco Arc Research and Christopher von Nagy of Tulane University.
Prof Pohl said: "We knew we had found something important. The motifs were glyph-like but we weren't sure at first what we had until they were viewed more closely."
The discovery provides evidence that the Olmec culture was the first in Mesoamerica [Central America] to formalise writing and a calendar system.
"Our hypothesis is that the Maya and other cultures copied the Olmec glyphs and elaborated on them," said Prof Pohl.
Scholars had previously traced the earliest writing and the calendar, two hallmarks of the Mesoamerican civilisation, to Oaxaca in south-western Mexico, home of the Zapotecs, but the evidence there may date to some time after 300 BC.
"The Olmec initiated many of Mesoamerica's cultural traditions, including urban settlement and monumental architecture, so it was odd that writing had been attributed to other groups," Prof Pohl said.
However, these are not the most ancient writings in the world, since they are pre-dated by finds in the Middle East, some of which go back to 3,000 BC
The earliest forms of writing were either accounting notes or chemistry formulas. This particular text roller was nothing but their version of a rubber stamp and placed a "Use by" date on some agriculture produce.
El Luchador
Unlike the posing or abstracted stances of humans in other Olmec works, this piece has a sense of activity and motion. "El Luchador" means "The Wrestler", named for the defensive posture in the arms and back. An interesting thing about this man is his mustache and goatee - these were rare in Mesoamerica, so rare that they signified nobility or even divinity. NMAH
Statue found in Olmec ruins.
You mean like the guy below?
Count Hayahsi, Japanese Minister Of State for Foreign Affairs,1908. (An Ainu)
On NOW at RadioFR!
Doug from Upland interviews JAYNA DAVIS discussing the OKLAHOMA CITY BOMBING
A lot of this at the below link. Some of it is pretty interesting once you get by the 'centric' part.
Giant Olmec Head (on the right)
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