Topic 4: Pre-Columbian Americas

2. What common assumptions did Americans share?

Pre-Columbian Americas Incredibly diverse Created complex societies, spectacular cities, complex understandings of the world, complicated writing systems, religious rituals But DIDN’T Domesticate large animals Develop iron Develop a wheel

Geography and the Americas isolated, “biological sameness” one continent, no physical separations open to arrivals, good harbors, rivers hospitable climate diversity of lifestyles, from hunter gatherers to complex empires

North America Most sparsely populated region of Americas Hundreds of tribes or nations which historians have grouped into “cultural areas” Many were predominately hunter-gatherers though many groups also engaged in agriculture full- or part-time Maize introduced from Mesoamerica after 1000 BCE

Cultural zones of North America

The Lenni Lenape

Anasazi dwellings Mound Builders

Mesoamerica “Meso” = middle Earliest agriculture and complex societies in the Americas – BCE cultivated beans –4000 BCE maize –2000 BCE agriculture spread throughout Mesoamerica

Creation myth of the Mayans in the Popol Vuh “… They sought and discovered what was needed for human flesh… Broken Place, Bitter Water Place is the name: the yellow corn, white corn came from there… And these were the ingredients for the flesh of the human work, the human design, and the water was for the blood… It was staples alone that made up their flesh.”

Chronology of Mesoamerica Early complex society BCE  Olmec society “Rubber People” “Classical” societies 200 BCE-750 CE  Teotihuacan society CE  Maya society “Post-classical” societies CE  Toltec society CE  Aztec / Mexica society

Zones of Mayan and Aztec influence

The Olmecs “The inhabitants of rubber country” Built complex ceremonial centers at San Lorenzo, La Venta, Tres Zapotes Best known for huge stone heads

15 heads have been found Between 5-10 feet tall The heaviest is 20 tons!

Olmecs: The “mother culture” of later Mesoamerican societies Cultivation of maize Ceremonial centers with temple pyramids Calendar Sacrificial bloodletting rituals Ball games

Sacrificial bloodletting Shedding blood honored the gods who watered crops; it was believed essential to the survival of agricultural society From rulers and priests to prisoners Bloodletting extended to human sacrifice Stone relief depicting Mayan Princess shedding blood from her tongue.

Mayan artwork also depicting bloodletting through tongues

The “ball game” 3600 years old Played from Arizona to Paraguay Played on an I-shaped court with a rubber ball Played one-on-one or in teams Had religious significance Mayan statue of a ball player

Ball court and goal at Chichen Itza

Teotihuacan Emerged as a village 500 BCE A major city-state for over a thousand years High point: 200,000 people, 8 square miles

Pyramid of the Moon Pyramid of the Sun Avenue of the Dead

The Maya A series of “city- kingdoms” CE: built 80 large ceremonial centers Pyramids at Tikal

The Maya Calendar Maintained by priests Built upon Olmec calendar Combined solar and ritual calendars Solar calendar very accurate Could predict eclipses and equinoxes

The Ritual Calendar Meshed with the solar calendar of 365 days 19,000 permutations It took 52 years to complete a cycle Within the ritual calendar, the numbers 1 – 13 were matched up with a sequence of 20 day names

Maya numerals  ZERO

Maya writing Over 800 symbols Most writings were destroyed by the Spanish—stone inscriptions and four codices survived Only 85% deciphered

The Dresden Codex Codices were fold-up books written on tree bark. All but four were destroyed by the Spanish

Andean Civilizations The mountainous environment made agriculture and political organization difficult “stacked” agriculture The ayllu

1000 BCE – 700 CE

Chapter 5: The Americas and Oceania Early Societies of Oceania –Early Societies in Australia and New Guinea Insert map on page 120