Abstract

JAFFE, Alessandra Caputo. Approaching pictographs from Punta Brava and flood myths registers from the middle Orinoco. Rev. colomb. antropol. [online]. 2022, vol.58, n.3, pp.139-166.  Epub Sep 01, 2022. ISSN 0486-6525.  https://doi.org/10.22380/2539472x.2365.

This paper studies from an art historical perspective the rock paintings from the shelter of Punta Brava (Cedeño county, Bolívar state, Venezuela) in which a great variety of patterns and shapes from different periods may be observed. Until this moment, no exhaustive studies have been conducted on this particular rocky shelter, nor do we have absolute dates on the paintings. We will focus on a specific iconography from this shelter, which will be put in relation to the myth of Amalivaca of the Tamanaco (a Carib speaking society), which was registered at the end of the 18th century by Felipe Gilij and the beginnings of the 19th century by Alexander von Humboldt. We will use this opportunity to open a debate on the possible validity of the associations between myths and iconography, and hopefully shed light on the discovery of the eventual meanings and origins of these paintings.

Keywords : Bolivar state; Venezuela; iconography and myth; rock art; Amalivaca.

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