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Gender, Anatomical Knowledge, and Pottery Production: Implications of an Anatomically Unusual Birth Depicted on Mimbres Pottery from Southwestern New Mexico

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Michelle Hegmon  and
Wenda R. Trevathan
Michelle Hegmon
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-2402
Wenda R. Trevathan
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Department 3BV, Box 30001, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM 88003-0001
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Abstract

The anatomical details of a birth scene depicted on Classic Mimbres (A.D. 1000-1150) bowls from southwestern New Mexico can provide clues to gender relations in Classic Mimbres society. The scenes show an infant emerging facing forward (unusual in human birth) with its arms up (virtually unknown in human birth). These details suggest that the scene was painted by someone unfamiliar with the birthing process. Ethnographically, men rarely see human births. Thus, it is likely that the birth scene, and perhaps other Mimbres pottery designs, were painted by men.

Resumen

Resumen

Los detalles anatómicos de una escena que muestra el nacimiento de un niño representada en los tazones Mimbres del Clásico (1000–1550 d.C.) provenientes del suroeste de Nuevo Mexico pueden proporcionar indicios de relaciones de género en la sociedad Mimbres de ese periodo. Estas escenas muestran un infante surgiendo con la cara hacia adelante (hecho poco común en los nacimientos humanos) con sus brazos hacia arriba (hecho casi totalrnente desconocido en los nacimientos humanos). Estos detalles sugieren que la escena fue pintada por alguien que no estaba familiarizado con el proceso de nacimiento. Etnográficamente, se ha observado que los hombres raramente precencian los nacimientos humanos. Por lo tanto, se considera que es probable que la escena del nacimiento, ytal vez otros diseños de la cerámica Mimbres, fueran pintados por hombres.

Type
Reports
Information
American Antiquity , Volume 61 , Issue 4 , October 1996 , pp. 747 - 754
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for American Archaeology 1996

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