Mayas

Mesoamerican Setting Central Mexico to northern Central America Maya Homeland Highlands to south Some by active volcanoes – ash made rich fertile soil Cool with wet and dry seasons Lowlands to north Yucatan Peninsula North = flat and hot South = wetter & greener

Mesoamerican Setting Rainforest Agriculture Lowland rainforest Soil fragile & thin Hot and steamy 80 inches of rain/year Farming Method Slash-and- burn Cut down trees/brush & burn Use for a few years and move on Years later return Need 70 acres for 5 people

Maya Civilization Lost Cities John Stephens – American Explorer Frederick Catherwood – British Artist

Maya Civilization Pre-Classic Mayas 1800 BC to AD 250 Developed Skills

Maya Civilization Classic Mayas AD 250 to 900 Cities: Tikal, Palenque, Copan Tikal had about 2700 buildings Had few thousand inhabitants in actual city – most lived on farms within 3-5 miles

Maya Civilization Post Classic Mayas AD 900 to 1520 Ended after Spanish conquered Mexico Chichen-itza built Between 800 and 900 began to collapse Warfare Food shortage Natural disaster Drought

Quiz 1. Where was the Mayan civilization located? 1. What were the three main time periods? 1. How would they farm in the rainforests? 2. Where did most of the people live (city)? 3. Why did the civilization collapse?

Maya Society Life Among the Mayas Social Structure King/Ruler Considered a god-king Had advisors Nobles, Priests, Warriors Nobles Read and write Led armies during war Collected taxes Supervised construction Priests maintained favor with the gods Led rituals, sacrifices, consulted

Maya Society Life Among the Mayas Social Structure Merchants, Artisans Trade and crafts also a part of economy Travel by sea, river, roads to other city-states Painted murals of Mayan life and battles Sculptures for temples Weavers and potters Peasants Backbone of society Grew maize, squash, beans and other crops When not farming, working on temples Soldiers during war Women prepared food, wove Slaves Manual labor for owners Sometimes parents sold children War prisoner Criminals Sometimes better life than peasants Sometimes sacrificed when master died

Maya Society Life Among the Mayas Daily Life Men on farm, hunt, maintained buildings Women raise children, tend to flocks, garden Basic social unit – extended family Day of ceremonies – go to city May trade May attend ballgame

Maya Society Gods and Rulers Maya Rule Each city had own king (city-state) Usually passed from father to son Worked with nobles and priests Gained prestige by winning wars Had a sphere of influence Area dominated by particular ruler Created alliances

Maya Society Gods and Rulers Maya religion Most gods represented natural phenomena like rain, lightning Believe king descended from gods Communicate to gods through sacred rituals King carried on sacred rituals like the ballgame Some rituals required spilled blood – kings pierce self to get blood for ritual Human sacrifice – often removing heart Prisoners Slaves Children Festivals Costumes, music, dancing

Quiz #2 1. What role did nobles play? 2. Who was the backbone of society? Why? 3. How did slaves live better than peasants? 4. What was the kings job? 5. How did the people view him? 6. What is a sphere of influence? 7. What is the ballgame? 8. What do you know about how they would sacrifice humans? 9. What were festivals like?

Maya Achievements Writing Based on hieroglyphs Used to record observations in Astronomy History Carved in Stone Carved in stone Painted on walls, pottery, books Records kept in codex Astronomy Predict solar and lunar eclipse Math Understood concept of “0” Architecture Pyramid with temple at top Move stone with out wheel

Mayan Hieroglyphs

“the Ball Game”

Mayan Math

Mayan Pyramid