Talk:La Venta

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

	This article falls within the scope of WikiProject Mesoamerica, a WikiProject interested in improving the encyclopaedic coverage and content of articles relating to pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, its civilizations, history, accomplishments and other topics. If you would like to help out, you are welcome to drop by the project page and/or leave a query at the project's talk page.
Resources and guidelines for editing Mesoamerica-related articles: Guidelines— Outline of suggested guidelines and editing conventions References— Selected resources and compendia of Mesoamerican sources and studies Citations— Bibliography and pre-filled citations for Mesoamerican sources Worklists— Project worklists and activities
NB: Assessment ratings and other indicators given below are used by the Project in prioritising and managing its workload.
B	This article has been rated as B-Class on the Project's quality scale.
Top	This article has been rated as Top-importance on the Project's importance scale.
WikiProject Mesoamerica priority open tasks: (click "show" to expand) WikiProject Mesoamerica Open Tasklist: a shortlist of things you can do to help out. Queries welcomed here. (Project Main • Activities • Catalogue • Guidelines • Strategy• Tools and refs) edit | watch | purge NEWS and ANNOUNCEMENTS: → Mesoamerica, Mayan languages, Olmec, Palenque are WP:MESO collaboration targets of the moment. → Pre-filled citation templates for Mesoamerican sources at Citations. → Recently promoted to GA status: Yuri Knorosov, Nahuatl language, Charles Etienne Brasseur de Bourbourg. PROJECT ACTIVITIES: Meta-tasks and subprojects: • add project banner to articles • document Strategy • assign article ratings per the assessment scheme • add to Project references • collate images and maps • More... Categorisation: • develop full Category scheme • reorganise Cat:Mesoamerica contents • More category tasks... Templates: • {{Mesoamerica site infobox}} (create) • {{Mesoamerica ruler infobox}} (create) • {{Maya civilization}} (improve) • {{WP Mesoamerica}} project banner (populate) • More... ARTICLE TO-DO: Requested articles: • History of Mesoamerica • Chenes (Maya subregion & architectural style) • 260-day Mesoamerican calendar • List of Mesoamerican cultures • Hermann Beyer • Huastec civilization • Valley of Oaxaca • More... Expand from stub: • Calendar round • Chiapas highlands • Chilam Balam • Chol language • Trecena • Veintena • More... Cleanup/attention needed: • Domesticated plants of Mesoamerica • Gender roles in Mesoamerica • History of Mesoamerica (Paleo-Indian) • Maya women • Olmec figurine • More... Improvement drive: Start-Class • Mesoamerican calendars • Mesoamerican chronology • Mixtec • Monte Albán • Toltec • Yucatán Peninsula • More... Improvement drive: B-Class • Chichen Itza • La Venta • Maya calendar • Maya civilization • Maya script • Olmec • Quetzalcoatl • More... Prepare for Quality reviews (GA, PR, FAC): • Mesoamerica • Mayan languages • Spanish conquest of Mexico • Palenque • Chunchucmil • More...

[edit] Expansion potential

This article is coming along very nicely. Per Madman's request, there are a couple of areas for expansion/mentioning that I can think of at the moment, which would be useful to cover when considering putting forward for review/promotion:

1. some detailing of the archaeological/ceramic phases and chronologies which have been defined for the site. Some more context on the site's antiquity in relation to other Mesoamerican areas and overall mesoamerican chronology.
2. some more exposition on the site's relationships with other Gulf Coast sites and complexes (both geographically and chronologically), and the relative timings of these sites' activities (eg where the peak development at La Venta fits in with earlier, contemporary and later Gulf Coast floresences, maybe also comparison of models of competitive settlements controlling certain resources vs state-like entities, etc).
3. in particular, some survey of the innovations found at La Venta (mid-Formative), not identified in previous complexes
4. some mention of La Venta's association with the early development of stela erection in Mesoamerica
5. some coverage of burials and goods, cached celt & jadeite finds
6. some mention of the aqueduct/drainage system, and and interpreted associations of water regards to rituals
7. The site map is great, but I think the location map can be substantively improved upon (too dark for my liking, a custom-made one would be best)

The references might need some expanding, too. The above just an outline of suggestions for any further expansions, probably some of which could be optional for the purposes of getting the article through, say, a GA nomination.--cjllw | TALK 08:47, 22 September 2006 (UTC)

[edit] The Decipherment of the Olmec Writing.

I don't know how to start a new section that can be edited from the section above, so if someone can handle that part for me I would appreciate it. I'm including research on Olmec writing and the links for the complete article as well as photographs of other Olmec heads. Complete research references can be found on the host sites as well. The article on Olmec writing is locatedd at www.geocities.com/Athens/Academy/8919/decip1.html Part of it reads: The Olmec people introduced writing to the New World. Many Meso-American accept the possibility that the Olmecs were the first to 1) invent a complex system of chronology; 2) a method of calculating time; and 3) a hieroglphic script which was later adopted by the Izapan and Mayan civilizations (Soustelle, 1984). As a result, the Olmec people left numerous inscriptions on monuments, celts and portable artifacts that give us keen insight into the Olmec culture, religion and politics.

Over a decade ago Winters (1979, 1997) deciphered the Olmec writing and discovered that you could read the Olmec inscriptions using the sound value of the Vai signs. The Olmecs spoke and aspect of the Manding (Malinke-Bambara) language spoken in West Africa (Winters, 1979, 1980, 1981,1984). There is some controversy in the article which makes for interesting reading. For some startling pictures of the Olmec heads see www.dudeman.net/siriusly/ac/mex.shtml and scroll down. Tom 03/17/07

This theory is addressed in Olmec alternative origin speculations#Epigraphic evidence. You will find a start there and are welcome to add referenced information on the subject to that article, or clean up the prose - IMHO it could use some further copyediting. I will certainly be able to help you edit, but I think you'll catch on quick. Thanks, Madman 03:24, 18 March 2007 (UTC)