Adolph F. Bandelier
Adolph F. Bandelier was a Swiss-born anthropologist, born on August 6, 1840, in Bern, Switzerland. His family moved to Highland, Illinois, in 1884, where he grew up in a multilingual environment, speaking French, German, and English, and later learning Spanish and Latin. Initially working in banking, Bandelier's career trajectory shifted after meeting anthropologist Louis Henry Morgan in 1873, which inspired him to pursue anthropology. He became known for his extensive research on Native American populations in the American Southwest, northern Mexico, Peru, and Bolivia, aiming to challenge prevailing myths and stereotypes through scientific study and participant observation.
Bandelier published significant works, including the two-volume "Final Report of Investigations Among Indians of the Southwestern United States" (1890-1892), which focused on the cultures of the southwestern United States and Mexico, and the fictionalized ethnography "The Delight Makers" (1890). His notable contributions also include detailed examinations of Central American mythologies and studies of various Native American cultures' histories and politics. Bandelier passed away on March 18, 1914, in Seville, Spain, leaving a legacy that includes the establishment of Bandelier National Monument in New Mexico in 1916, which preserves ancient Pueblo sites and reflects his dedication to the understanding and appreciation of Indigenous cultures.
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Adolph F. Bandelier
Archaeologist
- Born: August 6, 1840
- Birthplace: Bern, Switzerland
- Died: March 18, 1914
- Place of death: Seville, Spain
Biography
Adolph F. Bandelier was born on August, 6, 1840, in Bern, Switzerland. Bandelier enjoyed a comfortable upbringing in a well-educated family. In 1884, his family relocated to the United States, settling in the Swiss community of Highland, Illinois, near St. Louis, Missouri, where he spent his youth working on his parents farm and vineyard. Because of the large immigrant population of Highland, Bandelier grew up speaking French, German, and English and would later learn Spanish and Latin. Bandelier spent his young adulthood working in a bank.
In 1860, he began recording meteorological data and became associated with the scientific community in St. Louis. Following in his father’s footsteps, Bandelier studied law but became enamored with the natural history works of Alexander von Humbolt. After traveling to New York in 1873 on business, he meet anthropologist Louis Henry Morgan. The meeting would prove life changing, as Bandelier made the decision to alter his career path and become an anthropologist.
Bandelier worked in museums and as a professor in universities in New York and Washington, D.C. He left the United States for Spain in 1913 to further his research about the Pueblo Indians. Bandelier’s main focus of research was on the Native American populations of the American Southwest, northern Mexico, Peru, and Bolivia. His goal was to disprove the myths and stereotypes surrounding these cultures through scientific study and by participating in these peoples’ daily routines. Although Bandelier was not professionally educated or trained in anthropology, he was a firm believer in the methodology of participant observation; he would live with the people whose cultures he was studying and perform painstaking analysis of relics, works of art, and ancient pueblo sites.
From 1890 until 1892, Bandelier published the two-volume anthropological and ethnographical documentary study, Final Report of Investigations Among Indians of the Southwestern United States, Carried on Mainly in the Years from 1880 to 1885, which disproved myths and folklore surrounding native cultures of the southwestern United States and Mexico. He also produced a fictionalized Pueblo ethnography, The Delight Makers, in 1890. His most important work during this period is arguably The Islands of Titicaca and Koati, which details his experiences and findings resulting from his stays in Peru and Bolivia.
Other works of Bandelier’s include in-depth examinations of central American mythologies; site plans and archeological studies of New Mexico; a detailed history of the Zuni Indians; and a variety of studies of the politics, environments, governments, and histories of North, Central, and South American Indian cultures.
In 1916, the Bandelier National Monument was erected near Santa Fe, New Mexico. The monument preserves prehistoric homes of the later Pueblo period and was one of Bandelier’s favorite places. Bandlier died on March 18, 1914, in Seville, Spain. Bandelier’s commitment to studying Native American cultures and presenting his findings in a manner that was comprehensive and interesting to both scientific and nonscientific readers was his greatest literary achievement.