Transcripts For LINKTV Democracy Now 20150318

music narrator the thousand yearsgo in souern mexico an urecedent culture flourished in the jungle nearhe gulf coast. Rivers meandering through the hot, tropical lowlands were the regions lifeblood. Theswaterwayfor transportion and tra encouraged agriculture. Annual floods left deposits of fertile soil ideal for growing maize, squash and beans. More than two thousand years later, the aztecs called this region olman, or rubber country, for its many rubber trs. The name of the people who dwelled there in antiquity is lost but they have become known as olmec. To express their political and religious beliefs, the ancient olmec invented imagery of spellbinding power. They carved monumental sculptures fm volcanic rock without mel tools, ing hamms and chisels made ostone. They transported massive blocks of basalt weighing up to 2ns across miles of teory thout benefit of the wel. They built the First Pyramid in the americas, rising 100 feet anma of ren the half millionubic f ofpa th fasoned delicate, and often deeply expressive, works of art in ceramic, serpentine and jade. The result was the most sophisticated artistic style yet created in the americas. Thstyle developed throhout mesoamerica which extes from central meco to presentday costa rica. The most striking olmec achievements have been found in sthern mexico at sites such san lorenzo laenta, tres zapotes nearhe gulf coast, and tlatco and chalcatngo in the highlan. In the 18th and 19th centuries finely carved jades from mesoamerica began to appear in museums and private collections. No one knew what to make of them. Some were labeled chinese, others maya or aztec. In 1862, farmers discovery of a hstone head at tres zapote triggered speculation that it had be carved by africans who had immigrated the americas. Newsre annncer pulling it for two hos ov swampland is the last ste of our trip to the spot whe we hope to find thbig stone ads of wch we have hrd exti rors. Obregon araeologist matthew stirng setutn 1939 tonravel the mystery of these strange works of art which by then were being called olmec. Sponsored the smhsoniainut e al geraphic sieheveleifemari to mexico launchinthe exvations on the southgulf coast no onenew how old the olmec culture was. Many thought it was contemporary or later than tssic maya, w floush from 300 to 9 a. D. Newsel announcer and here is our objective tres zapotes, our source of supplies and ofabor duri theirst t seasons of ahalogical work here in the southern part of the state of veracruz. New speaker wed only been working at tres zapotes for about ree weeks and matt decided he wanted to dig out a big stone in front of the largest mound at the site. So he took ten men and went out to dig it up. New speaker one of the workmen told me of having an encounter with this whole bit of solid stone that was projecting above the ground. Stirling pugh but matt had stubbed his toe on a rock not too far away. And while he was there he thought he might just as well dig that up too. And much to his surprise it turned out to be a broken stela with a jaguar ma on the front. Stirling so we excavad this and und this band date runninacross the back of the monument we deciphered it and und that icarrie a date of noer 4, 31 b. C. Stirli pugh but at the time, 31 b. C. Was the earliest dated monument in the new world. Obregon stirlings reang of the date as 31 b. C. Would mean that is calendar system predated the classic maya by some 300 years. Stirling pugh well, this caused a lot of consternation among the mayanists. Eric thompson, the famous maya epigrapher wrote a paper about it. He wouldnt speak to us at meetings. Obregon but mexican artistndscholar miel cruas and ththpologistlfso casoar sings vi. Stling ph it was athat tim that alfonso caso announced that he considered the olmec the mother culture of mesoamerica and at that time, that just put the olmec on the map because he was the outstanding mexican anthropologist. Obregon in fact, the origins of olmec art turned out to be far older than even covarrubias, caso and stirling imagined. Radiarbon dating at san lorenzo and other olmec sis hapuedack the beginning of olmec culture by more than a milleium, to circa 1,200 b. C. Newsre announc now were off for the second phase of our exploration. Obregon stirling beganigging at san lorenzo in 1946 with the archaeologist philip dcker. Stirling pugh and sure enough, ere was a big head ana beautifully carved big head, much finer [d] more ndsome thanhe ones ata venta. Obregon stirling proposethat these enigmatic sculptures wereortraits of prominent individuals in olmec society. Mostf the vast site of san lorenzo remains to be explored. New speaker we now know atheitecove moran 300 htares, making it the laest d most complex site in mesoamerica duri t earlyressic orhearlyorma piod. Obregon the elite resided on the huge manmade plateau that dominates the site. One house, calle the red palace, had stone columns and steps and was supplied with war channeled fromervoirs. Ordinary pple may have led in the pthatched houses, li some still found ertoday. The populationncluded artisans skilled in specializedrafts. Cyphers we have a lot of evidence for workshop activity here. There are areas where theyorked obdian green stone and even monuments were worked re. The olmecs stored previously made stone monuments and then reworked them or recycled them into another shape withnother iconogrhy. We found the tenth and newest colossal head at san lorenzo last year. It wasound in the ravine a ravine called e ca de la hoche where three other coloal headhave been found. Across the top of the headdress, a threedigited hand or claw descends. This insignia probably has something to do with the name of the person represented. Each colossal head is a portrait of a ruler from olmec times. Eachis very different from all the other faces and the expressions are different. Thisne has a very benign expressio the lossal hd anorted to comnitym tenochtitla soow, with the help of the town were building aetter home for all the sculpture we have housed there. Obregon these portraits are carved of stone in a region where stone is not naturally available. Enormous blocks of basalt weighing many tons apiece were carried witut beasts of burden some 60 miles from distant mountains. The magnitude of this task is clear evidence of the rulers power and authority over a large and Efficient Labor force. Olmec culture at san lorenzo declined around 900 b. C. Perhaps because of environmental change warfare, or competition from other sites. Whatever the cause, the demise of san lorenzo cocid wi the rise of another olmec cter, la vta. Cated near t gulf coast on high ground surrounded in ancient times by swamps and rivers la venta floished from about 900 to00 b. C. This hill is actuay a manmade mounta of earth, pack io theshe of pyramid. The pyramid is theocus of a who complex mallerthen mounds, carefully consucted on a northsouth axis to form la ventas political and religious center. Excavations in the area to the north of the pyramid, lefirst by stirling in the 40s and later in the 1950s by Philip Drucker and robert heizer, reveed a ceremonial courtyard encled by hundreds of basalt columns, each weighing close to one ton. Burial mout the north side of thcourt contained a ba tomb for two highanking children. Theibos hadisintegrate buthr nts in buried beneath e layers of clay, each of a different color, and several more layers of adobe blocks, was a saic pemt measuring 15y 20 feet. Its green serpentine stones form the slid fa of supertural being. The mosaic rested on top of 28 layers of rough stones, more than 1,000 tons worth bbrought 150 miles from the mountains near the pacific coast. This was aenormous feat, and ree such mosaics were found at the site. Few feet bth thcere court cache of small, typically olmec figures appeared with almondaped eyes and bald, elongated heads. As a mark of beauty or status, the skulls of somendividuals were deformed in early cldhood when the bones were stilsoft. Made of jade, serpentine and granite, these figures seem to enact a ritual now forgotten. These carefully buried works of art may be offerings to spirits dwelling deep within the earth. Their hidden presence may have charged the sacred precinct with spiritual energy. The olmec world was alive with unseen spirits that contrled all natural phenomena. Thunder cracks represent theower of these mysterious forces, olmec artists combined features of the most fearsome predators of the jungle, creating hybrid images of awe inspiring supernatural beings. Ual aders, or ans, li humans to the fs controinthe uner. Peleelieved that t s could slo tnc and gically trsform themselv tohepe oa jagu transported by thianimal spirit, they road e cosmos gaining knowledge that allowed them to ensure rich harvests heal the sick and protect the community. Rulers also claimed the power to mediate between human and spirituarealms. Some are shown cradling a supernatural infant part human, part jaguar who may have been their link to the spiritual world. Similar figures appear on sculptound at la venta tirlg me to be altars. But decades later, a clue to their true function was discovered far from the coast at thentainous site of oxtotitclan. Its name means place of caves, which ancient mesoamericans regarded as sacred entrances to the underrld, the mythic realm of ancestral and supernatural spirits. A rock painting above the cave mouth shows a ruler weing a bird mask and feathered costume. His elaborate throne depicts a monstrous supernatural face, similar to tse on the socalled alta of la venta incating thath too, were ros. Priousesearch proposed that la venta was exclusively a site where priests resided and conducted ritual activities. However, new research has shown that it was a more complex urban area. New speaker with the new findings, we find a much more dense population not only on the site on the ancient city, but also in the outlying lowland areas. Obregon dr. Alez has ao been studying the central pyram to determine how this sacr mouain was de. Gonzalez this pyramid is, for this time periodaround 400 b. C. Probly the largest pyramid he oecorld at that time. The olmecs seem to pacd earth and then held it in place by rows of limestone. Obregon electronic sounding devices have detected a dense, rectangular object possibly a tb, close to the summit. Tu excavio may reveal that this manmade mountain was ri mou fo olm rer. The extrinary achievements at la venta and san lorenz were long thght toe uniqueo the cotal lowlands. But ongoing excavations far from the coast indicate otherwise. In the shadoof the volcano popocatepetl in the mexican highlands es chalcatzingo, an ancient Regional Center at i height om arnd 700 to 0 b. C. New speaker chalcatzin is a uniq site in the central mexican highlands. Its thenly in the highlands with basrelief carvings in the olm style the ancient village of chalcatzingo, set on a terraced hillside these were large terraces, perhaps 100 by 100 meters each, at the largest. Below the main terrace is a ge platformod. S a large ctgular form, over0 mers lon platrmounds e ry speal features. Unlike a pyramid a platform can be considered to be a raised stage on which performances, rituals, were carried out that could be viewed by the entireopulation. A large stone slab carved with an earth monster face with a hollow mouth sat on the Northern Edge of that platform mound again where it was visible to the houses on all thterres below. I can alst imagine a ritual with people moving through that open mouth of that carving. Obregon higher up the volcanic ss is a riescpture at t local pple callel e ng like the tes ala ven it shows the figure seated within a cave. Grov above the cave are three trobedn ouds. This is a fantastic rain and fertility scene up on the hillside. Its placed right beside the major drainage of rainwater runoff from the hillside. Thhiside cvi to n tion tonsure li for peelon weshes ry monent, which call the flying olme when i first saw it, i noced that the headdress the flying person was very much like nument 19 in la vea. Not identical, but ty were carvein theame way. So there is a connection in some of the art at chaltzingo with la ventas art. Thlocation of chalcatzingo a huge series of valley systems coming together, sort of suggests that maybe chalcaingo functioned as a gateway city through which gos from across central mexico, and perhaps even western mexico, funneled into chalcatzingo and then moved eastward toward the gulf coast. Obrego in the valley mexico,n the outskirts ofexico city archaeologts have excavated graves from about 900 b. C. Containing clay figures and pottery of the olmec style. Other olmec objects have been found in the surrounding highlands and as far south as honduras and costa rica. The wide distribution of olmecorks of art suggests that many centers participated in the development of the style. Distt vies were evidently linked through trade in cacao, white clay for pottery obsidian, animal skins and the most precious commodity of all, jade. Its nearest known source is in guatemala. This vt tradg network paved the way for the exange of ideas aselas goo and led the ergence of a panmesoameran olmec style. Miguel covarrubias defined this new aesthetic olmec artists were mainly concerned with simplicity and sensual realism of form, with the human being made up of solid, ample masses. They delighted in the smooth highly polished surfaces of their jades broken occasionally by fine, incised lines. These lines are sharp and precise. This new style, vigorous and original was perhaps the finest olmec achievement. They created dynamic works of art with a strength and nobility never known before in the americas. The olmec legacy is still being explored but olmec works of art have been found at maya and aztec sites. Did later civilizations preserve olmec jades simply for the value of this precious material or did they keep them as treasured relics from a culture that influenced their own . Only future excavations will tell. But major discoverieare being unearthed each year, bringing us closer to a fuller understanding of that extraordinary culture we call olmec. ve drums beating music music narrator thomas moran embarked on his first trip to the west in 1871. The United States at the time was still recovering from the ravages of the civil war. Americans turned with hope to the western frontier. By painting the pristine grandeur of these remote places, moran enabled 19thcentury americans to visualize a magnificent landscape mostould never see. His paintings transformed their perceptions of the west. From 1867 to 1879, the United States government sponsored four western expeditions, now known as the great surveys. Of all the aists who accompanied them none is more associated with the surveys than thomas moran. The watercolors he brought back from wyoming, the first color images of yellowstone, played a key role in the creation of the National Parks system. Yellowstone had long been familiar to American Indians mountainmen, traders and travelers. Legendary,eemingly unbelievable stories made their way east. The canyon was said to be a fearful chasm, the river a frightful torrent, the Sulfur Springs wre diabolical, the place where hell bubbled up. While the eruption of old faithful was said to be the most magnificent sight ever witnessed. In 1870, a group of private citizens from montana led by henry washburn, had ventured into yellowstone to see if these stories were true. An account of their experiences appeared in scribners monthly thllowing spring. The editors ha hid young mora to turn field sketches made by amateur artists in the party into publishable illustrations. This commission introduced moran to a landscape he had not yet seen and changed the course of his career. His interest piqued, moran arranged to join an upcoming expedition to yellowstone led by ferdinand hayden, a geologist who had lobbied congress for funding. Moran borrowed 500 from the publisher of ribners using his painting children of the mountain as collateral. He obtained an additnal 500 and a letter of introduction from jay cooke, a prominent philadelphia financier and a principal investor in the Northern Pacific railroad. In july of 1871, moran traveled by train to utah, where just two years earlier the Union Pacific and the cel pacific had linked to form the first transcontinental railway. He joined haydens party in montana. They proceeded to fort ellis and soon entered the fabled region of yellowstone. Moran worked closely with the expedition photographer, William Henry jackson. Together they selected the most impressive views. Moran made drawings and watercolor sketches, blocking in forms and contours quickly noting the colors of the terrain and the sulfurous deposits for which yellowstone is named. Back in newark, new jersey moran began what he termed his big picture, the grand canyon of the yellowstone. For moran, the spiritual natural and aesthetic realms should blend to create a great impression. To that end, he combined different points of view into one dramatic panorama. Moran explained, the precipitous rocks on the right were really at my back when i stood at that point. Yet in their present position, they are strictly true to pictorial nature. My aim was to brinbefore the public the character of that region. Narrator reporting to congress, hayden suggested that the geyser region of yellowstone be set apart as a national park. Congressman William Kelly of pennsylvania also promoted the legislation, no doubt eager to please jay cooke, a prominent constituent. Cooke undetood the economicenefits for his northe pacific railad the Senate Debated the proposed bill. Man i have grave doub about the propriety of passing this bill why settlers should be excluded from a tract of land for a public park . Persons would go and settle and cultivate the ground. various voices you cannot cultivate that kind of ground. But if it cannot be occupied and cultivated, why should we make a park of it . Here is a region of country away up in the rocky untains where there are the most wonderful geysers on the face of the earth. It is a very proper bill to pass, and now is the time to enact it. Narrator hayden arranged for mbers ofhe house and senate to see photographs by William Henry jackson and sketches by moran. Jackson recalled it was his wonderful coloring in pictures of canyons and hot springs that made the convincing argument for their preservation. Narrat morans paintings spelled any remaining disbelief about the transcendent wonders of yellowstone and provided congressmen with a glimpse of this place none of them had seen. Congress passed the bill in the winter of 1872, and in early march president ulysses s. Grant signed it into law. Yellowstone officially became the First National park of e United States of america. The significance of preserving this vast and remote tract of land was profound. The nation, not yet a century old, was still seeking its own cultural and national identity. The natural wonders and unspled grandeur of the american landscape were now promoted as the countrys unique heritage. The New York Herald wrot their beauty, their splendor, their extraordinary and sometimes terrible manifestations of nature form a series of attractions possessed by no other nation. Three months later morans the grand canyon of the yellowstone was bought by the federal government for 10,000. The painting was hung in the u. S. Capitol a triumph for moran. Soon after, he began signing his work with the monogram t. Y. M. For thomas yellowsto moran. Yellowstone remained a source of inspiration throughout morans career. In 1892, the artist returned to the park to create new paintings of its wonders. By this time, yellowstone was a popular tourist attraction. The idea of the national park, suggested two decades before had been fully realized. Morans depictions of yellowstone left a permanent mark on the american consciousness transforming the Public Perception of the west fr a frightful land of mystery into a patriotic symbol of the beauty and promise of america. music annenberg media by narrador Bienvenidos Al episodio 35 de destinos an introduction to spanish. En Este Episodio pati se va a nueva york. Claro, juan no esta muy contento