Transcript Inca - SharpSchool

Cities and Empires
A). Long before the arrival of Europeans in the
early 1500s, several great civilizations, or
highly developed societies, arose in presentday Mexico and in Central and South America.
B). These civilizations built:
• Enormous cities (in thick jungles and on
mountain tops that were hard to reach).
• Developed complex systems for writing,
counting, and tracking time.
Early American Civilizations
The largest and most
advanced of these
civilizations were the:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Olmec
Maya
Aztec
Inca
•
•
•
•
•
•
Olmec
Lived in what is now Mexico,
Guatemala, and Honduras
Lived between 3000 B.C. and
1500 B.C.
Built stone pavement and
drainage systems
Farmers produced enough
food to sustain cities
containing thousands of
people
Sculptured large stone
monuments
Their civilization influenced
their neighbors.
Mayan Cities
The Maya
•Built their civilizations in
the steamy rain forests of
present-day Mexico,
Guatemala, Honduras, and
Belize.
•Planted Maize, Beans,
Sweet potatoes, and other
vegetables to eat.
•Pulled enormous stones
from the earth to build
monuments and pyramids
that still stand today.
•Much of labor was
performed by enslaved
people, usually prisoners
of war.
Tikal—the largest Mayan city was
surrounded by 5 pyramids.
• The Mayan civilization was a Theocracy,
or a society ruled by religious leaders.
• The Mayans believed that the gods
controlled everything that happened on
earth.
• Only the priests knew the gods’ wishes
and therefore the priests held great
power in the Mayan society and made
most of the important decisions.
• The temples on the top of the pyramids
were religious and governmental
centers.
• The priests wore gold jewelry and
detailed headdresses; the priests in the
temples performed rituals dedicated to
the Mayan gods.
Skilled Astronomers and Writers
• The Mayan became skilled astronomers and
developed a writing system called
hieroglyphics. Hieroglyphics uses symbols or
pictures to represent things, ideas, and
sounds.
• They used their knowledge of the sun and
starts to develop a 365-day calendar.
Mayan Transport and Trade
Transportation
Trade
• Did not have wheeled
vehicles or horses!
• Transported on human’s
backs using a network of
roads that had been carved
out of the jungle.
• Traveled by canoe up and
down Mexico’s east coast.
• Farmer’s brought maize and
vegetables to outdoor
markets in the cities;
Exchanging their crops for
cotton, cloth, pottery, deer
meat, and salt.
• Canoes carried jade statues,
turquoise jewelry, cacao
beans for making chocolate,
and other goods.
Decline of a Civilization
• Around A.D. 900, the Mayan civilization in the lowlands
began to decline.
• By A.D. 1100, the great cities were almost ghost towns.
• No one knows what caused the decline!
• Perhaps:
• Slaves and farmers revolted against their Mayan
masters???
• The soil became too exhausted by erosion and fire to
produce enough food for the people???
• Mayan civilization collapsed , but descendants still
live in parts of Mexico and Central America.
Aztec
• Centuries after the fall of the Maya, a group of hunters
wandered through central Mexico in search of a
permanent home.
• In 1325, they came upon an island in Lake Texcoco
(today part of Mexico City).
• There, the Aztec saw a sign: an eagle sitting on a
cactus, with a snake in its beak.
• That meant this island was to be their home.
Tenochtitlan
• One of the greatest and largest cities in the Americas
• Home of the Aztec’s capital city
• Center of trade, attracting thousands of merchants to its
outdoor market places
• Its construction was a miracle of human labor and engineering
• Directed by priests and nobles, workers toiled day and night
A). Workers created bridges and causeways by pulling soil
from the bottom of the lake linking the island to the
shore
B). Workers filled parts of the lake with earth so that
crops could be grown
War and Religion
• Aztec civilization grew
into a military empire
• 1400s, the Aztec army
conquered nearly all rival
communities
• Aztec warriors raided
their victims taking:
maize, cotton cloth,
copper, and weapons
• Conquered people were
forced to work as slaves
• Like the Maya, the Aztec
organized their society
around religion
• Aztec believed that
human sacrifices were
necessary to keep the
gods pleased and to
ensure abundant harvests
• Thousands of prisoners
were sacrificed in
religious ceremonies
Inca
• Inca Empire developed in the western highlands of
South America.
• Its capital city, Cuzco, was founded around A.D. 1200.
• Inca Empire was the largest of the early American
civilizations.
• 1438, Emperor/Inca ruler, Pachacuti and his son, Topa
Inca, conquered neighboring lands building their
empire, stretching for more than 3,000 miles!
• More than 9 million people at its height (includes many
conquered people).
Life of the Inca
• Incas were very advanced. They
built 10,000 miles of stone paved
roads, that ran over mountains,
deserts, and through jungles.
• Rope bridges made from grass
crossed canyons and rivers
• Runners carried messages both to
and from the Emperor to remote
outposts of the empire to Cuzco.
• Quechua—Language of the Inca.
Became the official language of
the entire Inca empire.
• Inca did not have a system of
writing, but they developed a
system of record-keeping with
string called Quipus.
• Inca developed a system of
TERRACING the land by building
broad platforms so that they
could plant crops on
mountainous slopes. Stone walls
were built on the terraces to hold
the soil and plants in place.
• Farmers grew: maize, squash,
tomatoes, peanuts, chili peppers,
melons, cotton, and potatoes.
Worshipping
• All land belonged to the Emperor, who was
believed to be a descendant of the sun god.
• Inca believed that the sun god enjoyed displays of
gold. Therefore, the Inca created magnificent
gold jewelry and temple ornaments.
• Inca built special cities devoted to religious
ceremonies: Machu Picchu, one of these cities,
was on a mountaintop site.
Key Terms
Define the following terms:
1. Civilization
2. Theocracy
3. Hieroglyphics
4. Terrace
5 Question Quiz
1. Machu Picchu is a small ________ city.
a). Aztec
b). Maya
c). Inca
2). Tikal was the largest _______ city.
a). Aztec
b). Maya
c). Inca
3). Tenochtitlan was an ________ city.
a). Aztec
b). Maya
c). Inca
4). Developed hieroglyphics
a). Aztec
b). Maya
c). Inca
5). The ___________ grew into a military empire.
a). Aztec
b). Maya
c). Inca