Chapter 11 Peoples and Civilizations of the Americas, 600 - 1500 AP World History

I. Classic-Era Culture and Society in Mesoamerica, 200-900 A. Teotihuacan Large Mesoamerican city with a population of about 150,000. 700 years before and 37 miles from Tenochtitlan. Had pyramids and temples where human sacrifice was carried out. Forced relocation of farm families and agricultural innovation such as irrigation and chinampas. Apartment-like stone buildings housed commoners and elites lived in separate residential compounds and controlled the bureaucracy, taxes, and commerce. Ruled by alliances of wealthy families. Collapsed around 650 C.E. probably by mismanagement of resources and conflict within the elite or invasion.

The city of Teotihuacán (200 B. C. E The city of Teotihuacán (200 B.C.E.) contains the largest pre-Columbian pyramid structures in the Americas. It is also known for large residential complexes, the Avenue of the Dead, and numerous colorful, well-preserved murals.

Ruins of Teotihuacán (200 B. C. E Ruins of Teotihuacán (200 B.C.E.) from the vantage of the Pyramid of the Moon.

The Teotihuacán ruins of the Pyramid of the Moon.

B. The Maya Never formed a unified kingdom. Increased agricultural productivity by draining swamps, building elevated fields, terraced fields, and managed forest resources. Large city-states. Believed cosmos consisted of three layers, the heavens, human world, and the underworld. Rulers and elites communicated with the other worlds. Fought for captives, not for territory. Elite captives were sacrificed and commoners were enslaved. Mayan women held no political power but participated in the bloodletting rituals. Technological developments included the Mayan calendar, mathematics, and the Maya writing system. Reasons for fall include disruption of trade, overpopulation and increased warfare around 800-900 C.E.

Geographic area of Mayan civilization in modern day Guatemala.

Mayan funerary Temple of the Great Jaguar within The Great Plaza of Tikal (745 C.E.)

Residence ruins from Mayan Tikal.

Mayan rain deity, Chaac, with his lightning axe that strikes the clouds and produces thunder and rain.

Chief Mayan deity, Kinebahan, “eyes and mouth of the sun" is the Great God without form, existing only in spirit.

On the winter solstice of Dec On the winter solstice of Dec. 21, 2012, the Maya's "Long Count" calendar marks the end of a 5,126-year era. On this date, the sun will be aligned with the center of the Milky Way for the first time in 26,000 years.

II. The Post-classic Period in Mesoamerica, 900-1500 A. The Toltecs Central Mexico and built civilization based on Teotihuacan. Capital at Tula was ruled by dual kings but were destroyed by invaders around 1156 C.E.

Geographic location of Toltec cities in modern day southern Mexico Geographic location of Toltec cities in modern day southern Mexico. Tula, Hidalgo (#6) was the capital.

Toltec carvings usually depicted warriors or some type of warfare.

Ruins of the Toltec capital in the city of Tula, Hidalgo.

B. The Aztecs Migrated to the lake Texcoco area and established the cities of Tenochtitlan and Tlatelolco. Females maintained control of household and market. Established irrigation and chinampas, but also received food from tribute. Goods were exchanged through barter. Worshipped a large number of gods, but the most important was Huitzilopochtli, the Sun god. He was appeased by sacrifice with human hearts.

Geographic relationship between the Aztecs and Mayans Geographic relationship between the Aztecs and Mayans. (Notice: The Aztecs conquered the Toltecs)

Examples of the Aztec class system.

Depiction of a royal Aztec procession.

Depiction of the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan in the middle of Lake Texcoco.

Example of Aztec sacrifice to the god Huitzilopochtli, the god of war and the sun. He required a daily diet human parts in order bring sun’s warmth to the world.

III. The Northern Peoples A. Southwestern Desert Cultures The Hohokam established extensive irrigation systems in the Salt and Gila valleys around 1000 C.E. The Anasazi constructed Kivas in the American southwest. The Chaco Canyon community engaged in trade, hunting and irrigated agriculture and exerted some political and religious dominance over the area but declined due to drought, overpopulation, and warfare.

Early Native American geographic areas in the southwest part of modern day United States and Mexico.

Anasazi cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde.

B. Mound Builders: The Mississippian Cultures The Hopewell culture came out of the Adena culture and was based in the Ohio Valley. The major Hopewell centers were ruled by chiefs and they served as priests and managed secular affairs such as long distance trade. The Hopewell built large mounds both as burial sites and as platforms upon which temples and residences of chiefs were constructed. The Hopewell sites were abandoned around 400 C.E., but the mound building was continued by the Mississippian culture (700-1500 C.E.). The Mississippian chiefdoms were made possible by increased agricultural productivity, the bow and arrow, and expanded trade networks. The largest center was Cahokia but was abandoned around 1250 because of climate changes and population pressure.

Mound Builder cultural sites around the Mississippi river.

Example of a Mound Builder site. Mounds were used for burial temples and chief residences.

Recreation of the Mound Builders of Caohokia near modern day east St Recreation of the Mound Builders of Caohokia near modern day east St. Louis Illinois. It is the home of the largest mound constructed in N. America (100 ft high) and had a population of about 20,000 (similar in size to Mayan cities)

IV. Andean Civilizations 600-1500 A. Cultural Response to Environmental Challenge Andes, dry coastal plain, and Amazon forced inhabitants to organize labor effectively. The clan (ayllu) held land collectively, and assisted each other in production and to supply goods and labor to the clan chief. The mit’a was introduced around 1000 and required each ayllu to provide a set number of workers each year for religious establishments, royal court, or the aristocracy. Work was divided along gender lines. The Andean region is divided into four different ecological zones; the coast, mountain valleys, higher elevations, and the Amazonian region.

Topography of modern day South America.

The Andes Mountains of modern day South America.

B. Moche North coastal region of Peru in about 200-700 C.E. Moche society was stratified and theocratic. Commoners supplied mit’a labor to the elite while the elite military leaders and priests lived atop large platforms and decorated themselves in magnificent clothing. Moche artisans were skilled in the production of textiles, portrait vases, and metallurgy. Decline can be attributed to a series of natural disasters and pressure from the warlike Wari people.

Major city sites of the Moche.

The Moche were the most accomplished ceramic artists of the Americas. (Ceramic warrior)

An example of stone artistry on structures at Pyramids at Moche.

C. Tiwanaku and Wari Civilization of Tiwanku was located in Bolivia. Urban construction consisted of large terraced pyramid, walled enclosures, and a reservoir. Ruled by a hereditary elite. The Wari had contact with Tiwanaku, but was a separate culture, was built without central planning, with different techniques, and on a much smaller scale than Tiwanaku.

Wari’s political formation emerged in the highlands of Peru Wari’s political formation emerged in the highlands of Peru. Tiwanaku, near Lake Titicaca, are recognized as one of the most important precursors to the Inca Empire.

The ruins of the city at Wari The ruins of the city at Wari. It was surrounded by a large wall and included a large temple at the center.

D. The Inca Inca empire grew out of the small chiefdom of Cuzco. Key to wealth was its strong military and used it to expand the traditional exchange system that linked the Andes together. Inca left local rulers in place and took their heirs to Cuzco. This created an imperial bureaucracy. Cuzco laid out in the shape of a puma and its palaces were the scene of rituals, feasts, and sacrifices of textiles, animals, tribute goods, and the occasional human. Did not introduce new technologies, but made more efficient use of existing technology to increase the profits gained by trade. Technology included astronomy, weaving, copper and bronze metallurgy, and gold and silver working. When the elite fell into civil war in 1525, Inca control over its vast territories weakened.

The scope of the Incan empire.

Trails through the Andean mountains (Incan empire) Trails through the Andean mountains (Incan empire). Demonstrates the importance of the lama.

Machu Picchu (7,970 ft) - Built at the height of the Inca Empire (1450 C.E.) and was never found by the Spanish and consequently was not plundered and destroyed. Its inhabitants were likely wiped out by smallpox before the Spanish arrived.

Ruins of Cuzco, the capital of the Inca Empire, contained the home of the royal court and the state religion.

V. Comparative Perspectives A. Political and Economic Comparisons The Aztec and Inca Empires shared similarities in the use of powerful armies, strong economies based on large workforces, and their dependence on organized government and religious practices that connected secular rulers to the gods. Distinctions were in their systems of distributing goods and in their management of the empire. Aztecs used local leaders, while the Inca created a strong central government administered by trained bureaucrats.

B. Imperial Comparisons Both the Aztec and the Inca were the last in a line of successive indigenous populations organized into strong empires from former collapsed civilizations. The arrival of Europeans ended the cycle of crises and adjustment in both regions.