Transcript MesoAmerica PPT 2

Theories of where they came from:
 First Americans originated in the Gobi Desert
 Some migrated to Siberia around 15,000 years ago
 Crossed the Bering Strait in Alaska
 Land bridge probably existed at the time
 Gradually dispersed
Throughout North and
South America
Newest Theories
 Ancestors of modern native Americans originated in
Europe
 Ice Age extended shorelines of North America, Europe
and Greenland far into the Atlantic Ocean
 Prehistoric people traveled along the shoreline
hunting and crossed over Settled here and gradually dispersed throughout the
hemisphere.
Emergence of Indian Civilization
 Indians developed different cultures depending on the
ecology of the region where they settled.
 Some developed true civilizations
 Those in Southern Mexico, Northern Central America,
and the Andes Mountains in Peru.
Olmec Civilization
 Appeared around 1200 BCE
 In Swampy region along the Gulf of Mexico near
modern-day Veracruz
 Not in a river valley
 3 major cities:
 San Lorenzo, La Venta, and Trees Zapotes
Olmecs
Olmec Achievements
 Talented engineers and architects
 Built underground sewer system at San Lorenzo
 Built pyramids and palaces from stone
 Also carved giant stone heads
Largest is 9 feet tall and weighs 15 tons
 No one knows their exact function
*Also developed a writing system and a
System to record calendar dates.

Olmec Religion
 Polytheistic
 Most important god portrayed as half man/half jaguar
 Believed that certain people could turn into jaguars at
will ( a variation of the werewolf myth)
Teotihuacan
 Olmec civilization faded around 900 BCE
 Later influenced later civilizations
 TEOTIHUACAN
 200-700 AD
 Giant city containing 200,000 people
 Two giant pyramids
Pyramid of the Sun
 Pyramid of the Moon
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Mayans
 Located in Yucatan, Honduras and Guatemala
 300-900 AD
 Sophisticated agriculture
 Two- three harvests a year
 Supported population of 2 million people
 Divided into a number of small states

Never a single united state
Mayan Cities
 Semi-urban people
 Built huge ceremonial centers that resembled cities
 Contained pyramids, wide streets
 Only used during religious celebrations
 Most Mayans lived in small villages that surrounded the
centers
TIKAL
CHICHENITZA
PALENQUE
Mayan Religion
 Complex
 Polytheistic
 Chief god was Itzamna
 Creator of human beings and inventor of art and science
 Countless other gods below him
 Heaven and hell

13 levels of heaven
9 levels of hell
Mayan God
Mayan Achievements
 Sophisticated Mathematics
 Understood concept of zero
 Developed place-value system
 Developed elaborate but accurate calendar
 Literate, but little of their writing survives
Mayan basketball
Collapse of Mayan States
 Mayan states collapsed around 900 AD-perhaps due to
natural catastrophe
 Left behind impressive ruins, achievements in
sciences, and language
Toltecs
 Moved around southern Mexico from north around
time of Mayan collapse
 Took over and expanded Mayan centers
 Built capital city of Tula using Mayan architecture and
construction techniques.
Tula
More on Toltecs
 Developed impressive metal-working industry-
specialized in jewelry.
 Established trade network which stretched into
northern South America
 Civilization flourished for around 100 years
 Empire eventually fragmented into small states,
constantly fighting among themselves
The Aztecs Arrive
 Also known as Mexicas
 Originally a nomadic tribe from the north
 Looking for a “Promised Land”
 Found it in 1325 Ad on island in middle of Lake Texoco
in Central Mexico
 Built capital city on island
Tenochtitlan
Aztecs
 Rich mud of island home ideally suited for agriculture
 Produced abundant crops
 Standard of living increased dramatically
 Were in high demand as mercenaries in wars between
post-Toltec states
 Rose rapidly Stepped into power vacuum and took over much of
central and coastal Mexico and North Central America
Tenochtitlan
 Grew wealthy from Tribute(tax) from conquered
territory
 Turned city into magnificent place Canals served as arteries of transportation
 Aqueduct system for fresh water and sophisticated waste
removal system
 Huge temples and palaces
 Brightly colored art
Tenochtitlan
Aztec Farming
Aztec Language
Aztec Religion
 Two sets of gods
Nature gods Worshipped by farmers
 Had shape of the item the god controlled

Great gods of state• Usually portrayed themselves as half human/half animal or as a
monster
• Chief god was Huitzilopochtli
• God of the sun
Quetzacoatal
Human Sacrifice
 Believed that the world has passes through 4 previous
stages Each one destroyed by catastrophe
 To prevent destruction of fifth “sun”, the sun god had
to be appeased


By feeding him human hearts
Aztecs therefore sacrificed victims by ripping out their hearts
and holding them up for the Sun God to symbolically eat.
Human sacrifice
How often did they do it?
 The Spanish claimed that sacrifice was performed on a
daily basis and that thousands were sacrificed on
religious holidays.
 Many say the Spanish exaggerated the number of
sacrifices to justify their conquest and destruction of
the Aztec civilization
End of the Aztecs
 Spanish conquistador, Hernando Cortez, destroyed the
Aztec civilization in 1519.
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
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Very tragic act
Wiped out a rich and vigorous culture
Enormous loss
The end of the Aztec Empire
Inca
 Rose to power in the 15th century through strong
armies
 a 6+ million population
 Developed an Incan language- Quechua
 More than 7 million people speak it today.
 Had an emperor ruling class with nobility (dynasty)
 The empire was divide into 4 quarters

The center was CUZCO, the capital
Quechua
Social Structure Comparison
Inca Territory
More on the Incans
 Spending through taxes ( taxes were collected at
different rates)
 Men could be called into the military
 A public works labor
 Awesome communication system
 Empire was thousands of miles long
 Two main highways (coastal and highland)

Used relay runners to transport messages

Could run 150 miles per day
Quipu- An accounting system for
taxes
Inca Highway
Incan Architecture
 Maters in architecture
 Used masonry construction to produce palaces, temples,
fortress

Still standing today

Machu Picchu
 Consists of civic and domesticated buildings
 Fields were created on steep slopes

Conquered by the Spaniards
Ancient Inca Architecture
Machu Picchu
More of Machu Pichu
A one-hour tour or a five-day
hiking extravaganza to Machu
Pichu
Inca Religion
Achievements
 Produced art of Gold and Silver
 Could perform operations on the brain.
 Built massive building made of stone blocks.