Date: Friday, September 13, 2013
Time: 12:00 PM - 12:45 PM
Building: Caroline Richardson Building, Anna Many Lounge
Location: uptown campus

 
This presentation examines the role played by prehispanic Maya women at various times and places and highlights their contributions within the realms of economics, politics, art, religion, and ritual.  One of the traditional roles undertaken by Maya women both in the past and today involves the production of textiles, including clothing and other items.  Motifs woven into the cloth, as well as the colors chosen, supply information about the weaver’s community and often have mythological significance.  Join Dr. Vail as she leads us on a visual tour of the rituals and sacred stories important to Maya women today and in the prehispanic past.
 Dr. Gabrielle Vail specializes in the study of prehispanic Maya culture as depicted in screenfold books called codices and also works with contemporary Maya weavers from the Guatemalan highlands and Chiapas, Mexico.  She received her Ph.D. from Tulane University in 1996 and has published seven books, over 40 articles and book chapters, and an online database (www.mayacodices.org) with funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities.  Additionally, Dr. Vail has curated several exhibitions focusing on Maya weaving and textiles and has sponsored workshops with master Maya weavers from the Alta Verapaz region of Guatemala.  She holds a research and teaching appointment at New College of Florida in Sarasota.

Sponsored by: Newcomb College Institute

Admission: Free
Attendance: Open to the public
Open to: Alumni, Faculty, Graduate students, Parents, Prospective undergrads, Staff, Undergraduates, Visitors

For more information contact Jan Mulvihill via email to jmulvihi@tulane.edu or by phone at 504-247-1639

Additional information may be found at the event website at http://tulane.edu/newcomb/