Central and South American Peoples The Olmec, Mayan, Incan, and Aztec civilizations are some of the greatest ancient civilizations in history, and yet we know very little about them compared to other parts of the world

The Mayas From about 400 BC to about 900 AD the Maya Civilization stretched from the highlands of modern day Guatemala to the hot coastal planes along the Pacific Coast to the tropical rainforest of the Yucatan Peninsula

To find the ruins of the ancient Maya cities hidden deep in the rainforest, Archaeologists have to hunt on foot. The rainforest is home to many poisonous animals Some archaeologists are willing to brave the dangers to find out more about the clever Maya

A Deadly Coral Snake I saw at Chechen Itza Mexico

Maya cities 2 thousand years ago the Yucatan Peninsula was a busy place, the Mayas did not have metal tools- they used stone, bone and wood tools to build hundreds of magnificent cities Cities were centres for Religion and learning. The Mayas studied Art, mathematics,, drama, architecture medicine and music.

Every Maya city had an impressive palace for its ruler, a bustling market place, an open air plaza where people could gather, and at least one huge pyramid, a large temple and one ball court similar to the stadiums we have today People came to town to shop, to worship and to cheer at the ball games

Ball Game The Maya had a ball game called Pok-A-Tok. It was played on an odd shaped field. The object of the game was to move a hard rubber ball without the use of hands or feet through a hoop. There is debate whether it was the losing team or the winning team that was sacrificed.

3 of the Largest Cities were: Tikal – located in Guatamala Copan- located in Honduras Chichen Itza – Located in The Yucatan Peninsula Mexico Chichen Itza was named one of the New Seven Wonders Of the World

Question??? What were 3 things you could find in every Maya city?

Gods of Nature The Maya worshiped the Gods of Nature, some of their gods included Lady Rainbow, the Gods of Rain, Maize and Sun Without the help of these gods there would be no crops and everyone would starve

Sacrifices The Maya believed in blood sacrifice. Blood letting was common. At some festivals, the Maya would cut themselves so they would bleed. This was one way they offered blood to the gods to keep their gods happy. Sometimes, they sacrificed animals, especially goats. On occasion, when the need was great and their problems were many, they also used human sacrifice.

When they had to sacrifice a person or an animal, the priests first painted them blue. That was the sacrifice colour of the ancient Mayas. One way a human sacrifice was conducted was to throw the victim down a well. If they were still alive by morning, obviously the gods wanted that person to live. But some people were not given a chance to survive. They were simply killed.

Most human victims of sacrifice were slaves. But anyone could be chosen. The selection of what or who would be sacrificed was up to the priests. Their decision was final. That gave the priests incredible power.

Priests The priests along with the leader in each city state, were the most powerful people in the Maya civilization. The Maya believed that the priests could talk to the Gods The priests decide when to plant crops, when to marry and to whom. Before doing pretty much anything the Mayas would have to ask the priest for permission.

The Underworld The Mayas believed in the underworld, the place of Awe. The priests held ceremonies to keep demons and spooky creatures locked inside the underworld where they belonged During these ceremonies the priest wore masks and jaguar costumes. They wanted to look as scary as the magical creatures of the underworld

The Legend of Mirrors The Mayans believed that one could communicate with the gods by looking into a mirror Legend says.. warriors going into battle wore mirrors on the backs. The idea was that if an enemy tried to sneak up on a Maya warrior, a demon might reach out from the underworld and snatch the enemy

Mathematics Had a system based on 20 Recognized the zero (unlike the Romans for instance) One two three four five six eight nine ten nineteen twenty