Cette recherche de doctorat est le fruit d’une analyse innovante de l’architecture méso-américaine, et plus précisément de la planification urbaine et du temple mayas. Elle touche aux domaines de l’archéologie, de l’anthropologie, de la symbolique et de la sémiologie. L’auteur montre, grâce à une documentation extensive, que l’architecture maya répond à un modèle d’ordre sémantique, où chaque construction anthropique est réalisée selon une codification particulière respectant la forme du glyphe, créant ainsi un espace urbain « scriptural », et par conséquent, hautement symbolique. Cette étude mène non seulement à une nouvelle interprétation de la fonction du temple et à la création d’un modèle de caractérisation des édifices non pyramidaux comme temples, mais également, par l’acquisition d’une perspective anthropologique interne, à une relecture des concepts-clés de la cosmologie méso-américaine.

This book, based on the author's PhD research, is the result of an innovative analysis of Mesoamerican architecture, and especially of the temple and the urban planning concept of Maya ceremonial centres. The study draws on the fields of archaeology, anthropology, symbolic and semiology. The author shows, thanks to an extensive corpus, that Maya architecture responds to a semantic code. In fact, each human construction is built according to a particular glyph-shaped arrangement, creating in this way a 'writing urban space', and is, therefore, highly symbolic. This analysis leads not only to a new model for characterising as temples buildings which are not pyramidal, but also, through the acquisition of an internal perspective, to a reinterpretation of some of the key concepts of Mesoamerican cosmology.

AUTHORS

Aliénor Letouzé a obtenu un doctorat en archéologie préhispanique à la Sorbonne. Elle a reçu, en janvier 2017, le Prix de Thèse du Cercle France Amérique, à Paris. Elle est membre du Centre de Recherche sur l’Amérique Préhispanique (EHESS / Université Paris-Sorbonne) où elle mène actuellement ses recherches sur la Méso-Amérique. Elle est également directrice des fouilles du Sistema Siete Venado, conduites à Monte Albán depuis 2009. Aliénor Letouzé is an archaeologist, who received her PhD at the University of Paris-Sorbonne. In January 2017 she was awarded a Thesis Prize by the Cercle France Amériques à Paris. She is currently working on her research on Mesoamerica as a member of the CeRAP, Paris (EHESS/Sorbonne University). She is also director of the archaeological project Sistema Siete Venado, conducted at Monte Albán since 2009.

REVIEWS

‘The originality of Ms Letouzé’s research lies in studying the urban planning and religious architecture of the Maya world, not on a case-by-case basis, but as a whole, in order to demonstrate that they respond to semantics. … The results that [she] has obtained enable her to redefine the terms of the religious architectural vocabulary, and to question the partition between the Maya area and Mesoamerica...This publication will interest specialists in the Maya area, as much as any researchers working on Mesoamerica, because [the author] introduces the idea of temple and ceremonial urban planning as shared features, in time and space, for pre-Hispanic people.’ Dr François Gendron, Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, France
‘This is a new reading, a reinterpretation. [It] explains that ceremonial centres respond to “graphic” codes, which are similar to those of Maya writing. The author highlights that we can thus “read” architecture or even Maya urban planning. The architecture conveys a meaning, which is detailed and analysed throughout the book.’ Peer reviewer
‘This book would interest all specialists in Mesoamerica, but also every archaeologist who works on the Old World. This book opens up new prospects, gives ideas, and stimulates reflection.’ Peer reviewer