The Aztec Empire: Iconographies and Ideologies of Power
Beverly and Raymond Sackler
Art and Archaeology Lectures Symposium, 2007
Friday, November 2nd, 2007
University of Connecticut

To examine empire in the context of Aztec Mesoamerica is to think critically about the dynamics of power. Comparative study of the Aztec empire – especially of the cultural, political and economic structures it used to assert control –furthers our understanding of diverse imperial polities, and provides crucial insight into the phenomenon of imperialism itself. From the religious and political significance of Templo Mayor sculptures, to commoner arts and their influence on monumental stone sculpture of the Aztec state; from the material evidence of temple architecture to pottery, the mechanisms of Aztec imperial rule have much to teach us today.

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The 6th annual Beverly and Raymond Sackler Art and Archaeology Symposium investigates the nature of Aztec imperial organization. The symposium addresses issues such as the Aztec promotion of hegemonic (vs. strictly military) control over a diverse group of quasi-independent city-states, and imperial integration of economics, religion and politics in state rituals. Speakers will also examine the complex interactions between ruling metropole and subject peoples. Through these interactions, the central Aztec state negotiated economic and social stability with its peripheral neighbors so as to counteract political instability.

Schedule for Friday November 2nd, 2007

Dr. David G. Woods, Dean of the School of Fine Arts, University of Connecticut
2 p.m.: Introduction
Dr. Michael E. Smith, Arizona State University
2:15 p.m.
“Material culture of the Aztec Empire in central Mexico: local, regional, and global patterns.”
Dr. Cecelia Klein, University of California, Los Angeles
3:00 p.m.
“From Clay to Stone: The Role of Ceramic Figurines in the Formation of the Official Aztec Pantheon.”

Tea Break

Dr. Elizabeth Brumfiel, Northwestern University
4:00 p.m.
"Cosmology at home"

Dr. Eulogio Guzmán, Boston Museum of Fine Arts School/Tufts University
4:45p.m.
“Iconographic Variability: Shifting Meanings in Aztec Sculpture and the Political Expansion of the Mexica State”

Location
The Beverly and Raymond Sackler Art and Archaeology Lectures Symposium is open to the University community and the greater public.

Admission is free and a reception follows.

The symposium will be held at the Thomas. J. Dodd Research Center, 405 Babbidge Road, on the Storrs campus of the University of Connecticut.

The Beverly and Raymond Sackler Art and Archaeology Lectures
The Beverly and Raymond Sackler Art and Archaeology Lectures, now in their sixth year, provide a unique opportunity to explore critical issues in the fields of Archaeology and Art History on the University of Connecticut campus at Storrs. This annual symposium fosters an exchange of ideas between scholars, faculty, and students across the University of Connecticut campus, and throughout the New England area. Dr. Raymond Sackler and his wife Beverly have generously provided funding to make this event possible.

For more information and directions, please explore this website, or contact Professor Robin Greeley at robin.greeley@uconn.edu.

Beverly and Raymond Sackler
Art and Archaeology Lectures
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2003: Mesopotamia under fire
2004: Writing Civilization
2005: Egypt
2006: Ancient Near East
2007: The Aztec Empire