Ch 7 – Civilizations of the Americas

Major Pre-Columbian Civilizations

The Olmecs 1400-500 BC

Geography lived in the tropical forests along the Mexican Gulf Coast

Religion probably polytheistic rich tombs & temples suggest powerful class of priests Olmec people attended religious ceremonies Rain Deity

Achievements built ceremonial centers of pyramid-shaped temples most known for giant carved stone heads moved without wheeled carts or animals invented a calendar carved inscriptions seen as a form of writing

ruins of an Olmec temple

Giant Stone Head one of the four Olmec colossal heads at La Venta This one is nearly 9 feet tall.

The Olmec Calendar

Sixty-two signs incised on a block of serpentine date to the first millennium B.C. and are thought to be the earliest writing in the New World. The Cascajal block, an artifact of the Olmec civilization, was found by road builders in a pile of debris.

Politics Most Important Legacy – civilization led by priests who performed the religious ceremonies Olmec priest

Economics & Society farming & trade Social Hierarchy: priests at the top followed by aristocrats everyone else on the bottom

The Aztecs AD 100 – 1519

Geography located in the Valley of Mexico a high plateau in central Mexico ringed by snowcapped volcanoes Aztec capital

Religion polytheistic priests performed rituals to please the gods Huitzilopochitli – chief god, the Sun God battled forced of darkness each night and was reborn each morning humans were sacrificed to appease the gods usually POWs

Sacrificing Neighboring Tribes to the Sun God

Wall of Skulls, Tenochtitlán

Achievements Teotihuacán - early people’s capital well planned, wide roads, huge temples, & apartment buildings culture influenced the Aztecs Pyramid of the Sun

Achievements Tenochtitlán - Aztec capital of a complex well ordered empire built on a swampy island in the middle of Lake Texcoco (site of present-day Mexico City)

Achievements built chinampas to create more farmland raised corn, squash, beans canals created for transportation causeways linked the city to the mainland chinampas – 15’ to 30’ wide

Achievements priests recorded laws & historical events ran schools for nobles’ sons used knowledge of astronomy & math to foretell future accurate calendar medicine original taco chocolate Aztec Calendar

Politics emperor - a single ruler chosen by a council of nobles & priests to lead in war nobles served as judges, officials, & governors of conquered lands

Economics farming war tribute payments from conquered peoples brought immense wealth

Society AD 1500 – empire numbered 30 million people emperor at top of society nobles enjoyed special privileges warriors could earn noble status by killing or capturing enemy soldiers farmers made up majority of society slaves – POWs or criminals (had legal rights) class of traders were protected by Aztecs worked as spies priests were in a class all their own

The Maya AD 300 - 900

Geography flourished in Yucatán Peninsula through much of Central America Tikal – capital (present-day Guatemala)

Tikal – Main Court

Religion polytheistic priests performed sacrifices high on temples while people watched below priests held great power only they could conduct ceremonies to ensure good harvests & success in war

Mayan priest, Apocalypto

temple scene, Apocalypto

Achievements cleared rain forests for farmland built raised fields that caught & held water built channels to drain excess water books made of tree bark accurate time measurement invented a numbering system & understood concept of zero

Mayan Glyphs Mayan Mathematics sky king house child city Mayan Mathematics

Achievements pyramid shaped temples covered with elaborate carvings that recorded events in Mayan history developed a hieroglyphic writing system accurate 365-day solar calendar & 260-day calendar based on the orbit of Venus

Mayan Glyphs

Chichen-Itza Temple

Chichen-Itza Observatory

Chichen-Itza Ball Court

Mayan Calendar

Politics & Society chiefs ruled each city nobles served as military leaders officials managed public works, collected taxes, & enforced laws farmers were majority of population priests held great power women occasionally governed on their own or in the name of a young son

Economics wealth came from trade farming also supported fast growing cities corn, maize, beans, squash, fruits, cotton, flowers farmers paid taxes in food underground granary

Mayan warrior, Apocalypto

Mayan warrior, Apocalypto

Mayan, Apocalypto

The Inca AD 1438 - 1533

Geography located in the Andes Mountain range of South America present day Ecuador, Peru, & Chile capital at Cuzco

Religion polytheistic powerful priest class served the gods chief god – Inti, the Sun God religion tied to daily routines festivals celebrated with ceremonies, sports, & games “Chosen Women” were trained to attend the Inti studied religion, prepared food & drink, made clothes of Sapa Inca & Coya

Inti, the Sun God

Achievements language called Quechua “All Roads Lead through Cuzco” – one of greatest road systems in history 12,000 miles through mountains & deserts suspension bridges built over chasms (better than Rome’s) temples w/ stones cut so precise they survived earthquakes (no mortar used) best metal workers in the Americas practiced surgery on skull terrace farming

dry fit, precisely cut stone wall, Machu Picchu

Inca Gold & Silver

Incan Brain Surgery Inca surgeons in ancient Peru commonly & successfully removed small portions of patients' skulls to treat head injuries – a practice called trepanation

terraced fields, Machu Picchu

Achievements Machu Picchu – means 'Old Peak' in the Quechua language over 7000 ft above sea level revered as a sacred place from a far earlier time invisible from below & completely self-contained surrounded by agricultural terraces sufficient to feed the population watered by natural springs abandoned for 300 years rediscovered by Hiram Bingham in 1911

Machu Picchu

A complete overview of the site as seen from Huayna Picchu

terraced fields, Machu Picchu

Politics 1438 – Pachacuti proclaimed himself Sapa Inca (emperor) & set out to conquer land absolute ruler, claimed divine right as the “Son of the Sun” = a god-king ran efficient government nobles ruled provinces with local chiefs officials carried out day-to-day business like collecting taxes & enforcing laws kept records on a quipu noting dates, events, & stats on population & crops

Sapa Inca, Pachacuti 1391(?) – 1473(?)

Quipu

Economics farming conquest trade taxes

Society Sapa Inca at top – considered a god his wife, the Coya, carried out religious duties nobles were below the emperor farmers lived in communities called ayllus leaders of each ayllu carried out governmental orders like assigning jobs & organizing what family would work the land