Palaces and courtly culture in ancient Mesoamerica /
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Mesoamerica is one of the cradles of early civilizations in the ancient world, featuring a wide diversity of cultures exhibiting a high degree of social inequality and stratification. At the pinnacle of the society was the ruler, the court and the high elite. This social segment was responsible for the creation and consumption of the hallmarks of civilizations, including monumental architecture, great monolithic monuments and a wide array of highly decorated, exotic and exceptional material culture. As such royal courts defined the very tastes and styles that characterise entire civilizations. This volume collects eight recent and innovative studies on the subject rulership, palatial compounds and courtly culture by staff and students of the American Indian Languages and Culture studies programme at Department of Cross-cultural and Regional Studies, University of Copenhagen, Denmark.
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1 online resource : illustrations (black and white, and colour). :
Specialized. :
9781784910518 (PDF ebook) :
Charles-Étienne Brasseur de Bourbourg, premier grand mayaniste de France /
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200 years ago, on September 8, 1814, in the northern French city of Bourbourg, a boy was born into a family of local entrepreneurs connected to the local political or judicial elite. The young Charles-Etienne Brasseur was lucky to spend days and days in the impressive library of Alexandre Nicolas Muchembled, the son of his godmother. The reading of exciting travel books there mapped out the course of his truly adventurous life to come. Although a rebellious schoolboy, he acquired a huge knowledge in many fields by his omnivorous reading of books and journals. He was also a very curious young man, delving into the private libraries of the local grand families, resulting in him contributing many historical articles to newspapers and learned societies. At the age of 24, while still in high school, he published his first novel. This text tells his story.
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1 online resource : illustrations (black and white, and colour). :
Specialized. :
Includes bibliographical references. :
9781784910990 (PDF ebook) :