Guide to the Carol F. Jopling Papers, 1966-1975

Scope and Contents

The papers of Carol F. Jopling relate to her work as an instructor of primitive and Pre-Columbian art as well as her fieldwork in Yalalag, Oaxaca for her doctorate in Anthropology. The materials cover the years 1966-1975, the bulk being 1968-69. The collection can be divided into two sections. The first and smaller part contains correspondence relating to the publication of the book edited by Jopling in 1971. The second portion and bulk of the collection contains the materials relating to her work in Yalalag. This material contains correspondence, fieldnotes, photographs, color slides and cassette tape recordings. The majority consists of her fieldnotes and forms recording family history interviews and the results of the Welsh Figure Preference test. The fieldnotes often explain events which were photographed as well as describing the community life in Yalalag.

Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.

Arrangement

Biographical Note

Carol F. Jopling received her doctorate in Anthropology in 1973 from the University of Massachusetts after completing her dissertation entitled Women Weavers of Yalalag; Their Art and Its Process. Prior to the field work for her dissertation, she visited Yalalag, Oaxaca in 1969 in order to study the art of the Zapotec people. She has long been interested in art, having taught courses in primitive and pre-Columbian art at the Catholic and American Universities in Washington, D.C. She also edited an anthology of articles about primitive art. It was published by E.P. Dutton in 1971 and titled, Art and Aesthics in Primitve Societies. Mrs. Jopling was a librarian for the Bureau of American Ethnology and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama.