1. Mesoamerica
North America S.
America

2. Mesoamerican Civilizations 1500 B.C. – 800 A.D.
The birth of civilized man may have begun in Asia and spread to Africa and beyond but in the middle (meso) land that joins the two American continents (North & South America) there were also similar advanced societies developing with their own distinct cultures.

3. I. Early Mesoamerican Cultures
A. Olmec 1500 B.C.E – 400 B.C.E.
an agricultural society that developed in
Central America along the swampy river
valleys near the Gulf of Mexico
Society - signs of an advanced people
existed
a. stone drains were built
b. early forms of hieroglyphic
writing

4. d. religion – stone carvings, figurines,
c. calendar
d. religion – stone carvings, figurines,
and stone murals suggest religion may
have had an important role in their society
2 primary Olmec sites (San Lorenzo and La Venta) -
Evidence suggests that the population at each site was only
1,000 at their peak.
2. Economy – based on agriculture & trade
farmers of this society practiced what’s
known as slash and burn farming -
where brush/trees are cut down, dried and
then burned to help fertilize the soil

5. Slash & Burn Farming

6. Terrace farming

7. b. maize was planted in the fertile ashes of the
burned brush
after a few years of using this process in
the same area they would rotate to new lands
d. trade was common in Mesoamerica as
Olmec artifacts were discovered in later
societies within the region

8. Maya 300 A.D./C.E. – 900 A.D./C.E.
another agricultural society that developed and adapted to its environment on the Yucatan Peninsula of what is
present day Mexico. The Maya were not unified in one empire. Instead, they were a society of city-states and kingdoms linked by culture, political ties, and trade.
1. religion - was at the center of Mayan life
a. Maya believed in 2 levels of existence.
b. Daily Physical life that they lived.
c. Otherworld or spiritual world (gods, souls of ancestors, and other supernatural creatures).
d. Mayan kings were also their spiritual leaders.

9. e. human sacrifices were practiced to please the
gods and renew life
f. Images on Mayan temples, sacred objects, and pottery provide clues about Mayan beliefs and practices.
2. Sciences – Like the Greeks, the Maya believed that the movements of the sun, moon, and planets were journeys of gods across the sky.
Since gods controlled nature – including harvests – charting the movements of the celestial bodies was essential.

10. c. Invented a number system using 20 as a base
b. In order to chart the movements Mayan priests became excellent mathematicians and astronomers
c. Invented a number system using 20 as a base
instead of 10. They had 3 symbols used to represent numbers.
A dot stood for 1; a bar was 5; and a shell figure stood for 0
d. developed calendars - a sacred 260 day calendar as well as a 365 day calendar (they were used to predict eclipses, schedule religious ceremonies, and determine times to plant and harvest).

11. b. slash and burn farming continued in some
3. economy – based on agriculture and trade
besides maize grew beans, squash,
pumpkins, chili peppers, and tomatoes
b. slash and burn farming continued in some
areas. While raised plots surrounded by canals (irrigation)
produced large harvests.
c. sold surplus crops in outside markets
d. Maize and other produce were traded for cotton cloth, jade ornaments, pottery, fish, deer meat, and salt.

12. e. Mayan merchants also participated in long distance trade throughout Mexico and Central America. Traders transported cargo by canoes on rivers and coastal waterways. Overland, goods were carried by humans (wheeled vehicles and beasts of burden were unknown).
Do you know why?

13. 4. Writing
a. The Maya were one of the first Native American
peoples to develop a writing system. They wrote
accordion-folded books made of flattened bark
covered with a thin layer of plaster. 4 have
survived.
They also carved inscriptions in clay, and on
jade, bone, shells, and on large stone monuments.
The Maya recorded royal genealogies, mythology, history, ritual practices, and trade.

14. 5. Collapse
a. By A.D./C.E. 900 the Maya in the lowlands showed signs of collapse.
b. They stopped building and moved elsewhere.
c. warfare among rival city-states led to the eventual abandonment of its cities.
d. Agricultural breakdown – caused by erosion and over-farming, may have also produced rising malnutrition, sickness, and death rates.

15. OTHER MESOAMERICANS
C. Teotihuacanos - centrally located on the Mexican
Plateau just 30 miles north of present-day
Mexico City.
1. society advanced like the Mayans
At its height their main city, Teotihuacan, had an estimated
120,000 to 200,000 inhabitants.
b. The city was laid out on a complex grid. Excavations of ruins have revealed 600 pyramids, 2,500 apartment compounds, 500 workshop areas, and a huge marketplace.

16. 2. economy
a. agriculture
b. trade
c. obsidian – volcanic glass used for sharp tools and easily used as a trading resource
Collapse
a. Historians are uncertain
about the reasons for its
decline. Drought may have
been the cause, or invasion
by the Toltec, a people from
the north.

17. Toltec - settled on the Mexican Plateau near present day Mexico City
1. society
powerful army – conquered lands as far south as the
Yucatan Peninsula.
2. economy
a. Mining – The capital city of Tula was the center of
this powerful mining and trading empire.
b. Trade
3. Religion - Polytheistic
Would be adopted by the Aztec.
a. Quetzalcoatl – “plumed serpent” god of air
b. Tezcatlipoca – the god of war

18. E. Aztec 1325 A.D-1521 – were early hunters/warriors who founded a city in central Mexico they would turn into an agricultural center and marketplace. Today it is the site of present day Mexico City.
1. economy/society
a. agriculture – built chinampas or artificial islands, by piling mud from bottom of the lake onto rafts secured by stakes. These became floating gardens where farmers grew a variety of crops, including corn and beans.
b. with an agricultural surplus their population grew
and people moved to the mainland
c. A network of canals, bridges, and causeways was built to connect the mainland with the capital city.

19. a. Tenochtitlan – city founded on an
2. Empire
a. Tenochtitlan – city founded on an
island in Lake Texacoco
Estimates of the city’s population by A.D./C.E. 1500
range from 120,000 to 200,000.
Goods and tribute came to the city from all parts of the empire.

20. 3. Government and Society
Aztec civilization was organized as a hierarchy –
divided into levels of authority, each level was
more powerful than the level below it.
Emperor was at the top – his power came from
his control of the army and was reinforced
by religious beliefs.
Aztec social order had 4 classes: nobility, commoners,
serfs, and slaves.

21. Land could be owned by noble families and commoners
Land could be owned by noble families and commoners. Commoners included priests, merchants, artisans, and farmers. Serfs were farmworkers tied to noble lands. The lowest class included criminals and debtors, as well as female and children prisoners of war. Male prisoners of war were sacrificed to the Aztec gods.
4. Religion and the Arts
Believed that live human sacrifices were needed to keep the gods pleased and to prevent drought, floods, and
other natural disasters.
Main deity (god) was the sun god Huitzilopochtli, whose giant pyramid-temple arose in the center of Tenochtitlan.

22. c. Priests used a 360-day religious calendar to determine appropriate days for activities, such as planting crops or going to war.
d. Had a 365-day solar calendar that was made up of 18 months of 20 days plus 5 extra days.
e. Aztec artists decorated temple-pyramids with scenes of deities or battles. Writers glorified Aztec victories in their works.
4. Collapse
a. Revolts in outlying areas weakened Aztec control
b. In A.D./C.E the rebels joined the Spaniards in destroying the Aztec heritage.

23. Mayan Ruins

24. Mayan Pyramids

25. Aztec Warriors

26. Aztec Pyramid

27. Aztec Sacrifice