Event Response #1

I attended a presentation by L. Antonio Curet titled life, death, and remembrance at the center of the Cosmos. While I thought Mr. Curet was a fascinating man with a  wealth of knowledge. I believe the way in which he delivered his information, as well as his presentation style, was lacking in a variety of ways. I felt as though he came into the presentation underprepared and found his points of discussion during his presentation. In addition, I wish he would have placed more text in his individual slides to highlight the main points he was trying to convey allowing the audience to understand the main topics. I hate being so critical over his presentation style but I felt as though if he was able to communicate the information in a more effective manner I would have been able to understand his presentation. What I did understand from his presentation was this Pre-Columbian culture called the Saladoides which is in present-day Venezuela as well as the Carribean. It is believed that this culture is from the lower Orinoco River near what is today Saladero and Barrancas in Venezuela. They migrated from the Orinoco River and established themselves in the Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico, and Hispaniola. They inhabited the wetter and more fertile islands which allowed for their success in agriculture as well as their profound skills in pottery making, bead making, and jewelry making. The craftsmanship and details placed into their ceramic bowls as well as jewelry were incredible. The Saladoides were present from 300 B.C. to 600 A.D. which after that the Ostionoides came into the picture. The origination of the Ostionoides is still debated and they originally were thought to have come from the Saladoides but new research indicates that they primarily evolved from Archaic people who had migrated from Central America into Cuba and Hispaniola. This society of people was known for their complex societies and skilled agricultural practices. However, unlike the Saladoides their pottery and craftsmanship were far less complex. Their pottery was known to have simple black smudging, basic structuring, and an orange-red slip applied to the entire ceramic piece. Many of these artifacts which have been recovered today have chips in them due to the thinness of the pottery. Whereas many if not all of the Saladoide artifacts found today are in perfect shape. As mentioned above their pottery was far more complex due to the natural resources which allowed for better quality clay. On account of this better clay, the Saladoides were able to trademark their pottery with elegant designs such as rectilinear incisions, crosshatched designs, punctuation, appliqué clay ridges, and small geometric and zoomorphic lugs. What was also very interesting about the Saladoides is that for burials they would bury the dead in one place with marking. The reason why this was the case is to express the idea that during and afterlife this culture of people will always stay together both throughout life and throughout death.