Elizabeth Benson: Three Edited Volumes

Elizabeth Benson: Three Edited Volumes

Elizabeth P. Benson (1924–2018) was an art historian known for her extensive contributions to the study of Pre-Columbian art, in particular that of Mesoamerica and the Andes. The three volumes in this set, all edited by Benson, were first published in the early 1970s and are based on conferences held at Dumbarton Oaks. All are seminal works in Pre-Columbian studies.

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Series information

Dumbarton Oaks Conference on Chavín

First published in 1971, the essays in Dumbarton Oaks Conference on Chavín were presented at a conference held at Dumbarton Oaks in October 1968. As the earliest civilization in Andes, Chavín had an undeniable influence on later cultures. Carefully collated and expertly edited by Elizabeth P. Benson, these essays explore ideas regarding the origin, rise, and spread of the Chavín culture throughout Andean South America.

From the Preface:
“The papers in this conference were concerned with the possible origins of Chavín civilization and its spread to other regions. Chavín, the earliest civilization in Peru, with its great ceremonial center in the northern highlands, spread to the north coast and as far south as the Nasca Valley. Its influence is clear, but its origins are unknown, as is the nature of its diffusion. It was as an attempt to expand knowledge of these subjects that we planned this conference.”
—Elizabeth P. Benson and Michael D. Coe
Death and the Afterlife in Pre-Columbian America

First published in 1975, Death and the Afterlife in Pre-Columbian America contains eight essays first presented a conference held at Dumbarton Oaks in October 1973. Expertly edited by Elizabeth P. Benson, these essays adopt iconographic, socioeconomic, historical, and ethnographic approaches to examine the subjects of death and the afterlife as they occur over a wide span of space and time in diverse Pre-Columbian cultures.

From the Preface:
“Many of the finest artifacts of Pre-Columbian civilizations have been found in tombs. It is possible that most of the handsomest objects may have been made only as grave goods for use in an afterlife; if some were also used as ceremonial or prestige objects in the world of the living, they still ended up in burials that were often of great opulence. The knowledge that death and the belief in an afterlife were immensely important to Pre-Columbian peoples is part of the background that those who work with Pre-Columbian studies must always consider.”
—Elizabeth P. Benson and Michael D. Coe
The Cult of the Feline

First published in 1972, The Cult of the Feline was based on papers given at a conference held at Dumbarton Oaks in November 1970. The conference brought together anthropologists, archaeologists, art historians, and ethnologists to explore the iconography of the feline, from Central Mexico to South America, from 1200 BC to the present. Carefully selected and expertly edited by Elizabeth P. Benson, the nine essays in the volume provide an excellent overview of the iconography of the feline in the Pre-Columbian world.

From the Preface:
“The Bliss Collection has been, since its beginning in 1912, primarily an esthetic one—probably the first esthetically oriented collection of Pre-Columbian artifacts—so it seemed appropriate to organize a conference that would focus on a cross-cultural, art-historical approach. When we sought for a theme, the first that came to mind was that great unifying factor in Pre-Columbian cultures—the feline. Large cats such as the jaguar and puma preoccupied the artists and religious thinkers of the very earliest civilizations, the Olmec in Mesoamerica and Chavín in Peru. The feline continued to be an important theme throughout much of the New World until the European conquests. . . . This conference was not only cross cultural but also cross disciplinary, with contributions from anthropologists, archaeologists, art historians, and ethnologists.”
—Elizabeth P. Benson and Michael D. Coe

Elizabeth P. Benson (1924–2018) was an art historian known for her extensive contributions to the study of Pre-Columbian art, in particular that of Mesoamerica and the Andes. The three volumes in this set, all edited by Benson, were first published in the early 1970s and are based on conferences held at Dumbarton Oaks. All are seminal works in Pre-Columbian studies.

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Elizabeth P. Benson

Elizabeth P. Benson (1924–2018) was an art historian known for her extensive contributions to the study of Pre-Columbian art, in particular that of Mesoamerica and the Andes. A former Andrew S. Keck Distinguished Visiting Professor of Art History at the American University in Washington, DC, Benson had also a long association with Dumbarton Oaks, where she served as curator of the Pre-Columbian Collection, and then, most influentially, as the inaugural Director of Pre-Columbian Studies.

 Death and the Afterlife in Pre-Columbian America, Dumbarton Oaks Conference on Chavín, The Cult of the Feline