Intersections

Memory and Cosmology

Peoples throughout the world have devised complex and useful visual systems for recording and transmitting their traditions and beliefs. Each of the objects in this group played a part in activating memory or cosmology for critically important social situations and for ensuring cultural continuity. Among the Maya, for example, hieroglyphic writing was merged with visual imagery to communicate important dynastic information. In other cultures, systems of graphic inscription were developed for many purposes, including the transmission of calendrical and cosmological knowledge for divination or forecasting events. Additionally, motifs on many works of art serve to recall stories for retelling in the present through oral narratives and performances that keep traditions alive.