This carved bone implement is incised with a woven mat design and crowned by foliage at the top. Scholars have associated these types of interwoven designs with royalty and thus may have identified the owner as a member of the elite, perhaps a ruler. Though the function of this implement is unknown, sharpened bones were often used as bloodletting implements to pierce the body

This Late Classic vessel comes from the Maya site of Quirigua, located in the southeastern lowlands of Guatemala. The vase was excavated archaeologically in 1912 from Structure 2 (B) in the principal Temple Plaza. The structure was empty save for this vessel, which was found broken in the final room of the main corridor, along with a fragmented hematite mirror.

The ancient Maya perfected the art of chipping flint to create flat blades for sacrificial and ceremonial use. The complex shapes of many of these objects have earned them the designation “eccentric flints.” Archaeologists have found them in offertory caches associated with dedication and termination rituals for architecture and stone monuments.

The Yup'ik Eskimo of western Alaska believe that everything has a spirit (or soul)—people, animals, and things—and all participate in an endless cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. The boundaries between the spirit world and the real world, and between the human world and the world of animals, are not always clear.

The Yup'ik Eskimo of western Alaska, believe that everything has a spirit (or soul)—people, animals, and things—and all participate in an endless cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. The boundaries between the spirit world and the real world, and between the human world and the

Mimbres potters developed one of the Southwest’s most appealing painting styles, distinguished by geometric compositions and narrative imagery that provides an eloquent record of Mimbres life. The painting on many Mimbres vessels suggests concepts of sacred space or cosmic geography.

The Hohokam people, who lived in present-day south central Arizona, had developed a significant pottery tradition by about 500 CE. Hohokam ceramics are easily recognized by their buff‑colored clay and dark red painting.