All too often our ancient heritage is viewed as coming from nascent beings who did not really know what they were achieving with their works. While many others view the ancients as having been magicians of some kind.

Whatever the particular viewpoint may be, there is yet another possibility for examining ancient artwork: from the perspective of its own internal logic. In the Earth/matriX: Science in Ancient Artwork series, we examine just how much of ancient artwork may be based upon scientific knowledge. In relation to the freedom of artistic expression, we explore the possible mathematical and geometrical base of ancient art. Our research represents an independent effort to examine the and illustrate the relationships of astronomical data, mathematical models, the laws of geometry, and how all of these aspects may have become interpreted and translated into the ancient artwork.

Every culture, every piece of artwork is fair game for analysis. The governing idea is simple: there is only one reality, and that reality exists as spacetime/movement. The laws of nature reflect spacetime coordinates and relations. The ancient artwork, no matter where it may have existed, would necessarily have reflected these same aspects of reality and their laws, those same coordinates. Some aspects of the artwork would be due to those unbending laws of nature, while other aspects would be due to individual expression and imagination.

The essays are presented with more reasoning than academic references in an effort to cut to the core of each particular subject. Each case study presents sufficient elements to decide whether to continue or reroute our analysis. Hopefully, we may learn more from our ancient heritage than what has already been achieved by so many scholars over the years. The Earth/matriX project is based upon the idea that the ancient knowledge may offer insight into reviewing our contemporary approach to science and knowledge about ourselves and about the world that we have created for ourselves. Ours is an attempt to build upon the innumerable contributions of others, who have sought to understand the meaning of our legacy of the past.

Many scholars have studied the ancient record with the purpose of identifying the reasons behind the ancient artwork. The approaches to this subject have been infinite in number; from the imaginatively creative to passing shots in the dark. The ancient artwork has been viewed from almost every conceivable perspective. It has been examined from the viewpoint of astrology and astronomy; now, called arch oastronomy. Its math has been explored and explained in many cases. Its feature for representing a system of counting time has been illustrated in great detail. Its geometrical nature has been exhaustively reviewed and pondered. Its numerological aspects have been rummaged through repeatedly in search of an apparent secret code. Its sthetics has been criticized and admired by every generation.

Nothing has been left unturned. We have shown a tremendous need to honor our past and our ancestors by studying their works in an attempt to decipher possible meanings in the ancient artwork. Much success has been achieved through the dedication of persevering individuals in their personal quest for knowledge. But, much of the meaning of the artwork still escapes us. No sooner is a stone overturned, analyzed and comprehended in some of its aspects, that an infinite number of new questions arise. And, it may just be that the ancient puzzle-makers constructed an open-ended, infinite system of meanings, whereby the meaning of a particular object may never be known. Such a singular concept may not have been a part of their outlook or vocabulary.

The search for those relational meanings forms part of the objectives assumed in the Earth/matriX series. There is no pretense beyond that. The purpose is to contribute with a distinct perspective, another view, which might add to the collection of efforts already achieved by so many individuals throughout the world and throughout history; individuals who have faced their past in search of a doorway to the future of humankind on this planet.

With these ideas in mind, the reader may comprehend the approach assumed in writing the Earth/matriX essays. There is no academic intention of reviewing in detail the past contributions of other writers. There shall be no critique of standing interpretations effected by others. Prior analytical accomplishments are for the reader to ponder, preferably in the words of those who proposed such ideas. We must simply write up our perspective, others have already written theirs. For we are confronted by a conceptual kind of artwork that may precisely validate each and every interpretation and way of looking at the artwork itself. Such an infinite system may be difficult for us to comprehend, since we enjoy seeking causal relations and singular meanings to things, but such a possibility may have been the basis of design of ancient artwork. With that in mind, it just may be that some interpretations which are posed in exclusive, polemical terms, may in fact represent simply complementary notions.

To offer an example: the central figure of the Aztec Calendar has been identified as representing the Earth, the Sun, and even the moon. It may be the case that each one of those seemingly contradictory interpretations may be correct and exact. The question may be one of knowing relationally when the central figure might represent each one of those bodies of the solar system. The Earth/matriX series represents an inquiry into just such a relational perspective in an attempt to comprehend the wealth of knowledge represented in ancient artwork around the world.

Charles William Johnson
e-mail: johnson@earthmatrix.com