pre-columbian civilizations in the americas

Early Human MigrationsEarly Human Migrations

Major Pre-Columbian CivilizationsMajor Pre-Columbian Civilizations

Lands of the Maya

Political Characteristics Never form a unified

political system Do create a unified

culture Larger city-states

dominated smaller city-states

Large city-states built elaborate commercial and religious centers Chichen-Itza

El Castillo at Chichen Itza

Maya Economy

• Cultivated maize, cotton, and cacao– Increased agricultural production by draining

swamps, terraced fields, and irrigation ditches – Led to environmental degradation

• Hereditary nobility controlled most of the land• Maya merchants came from ruling class– Traded primarily in luxury products

Maya Religion

• Polytheistic• Cosmos consisted of three layers: the

heavens, the human world, and the underworld– Priests could communicate with residents of both

supernatural worlds• Mayan developments: calendar, writing

system, and mathematics – Used to determine religious holidays

Maya sacrifice• Had to please the gods via sacrifice– Piercing of bodies with needle– Human Sacrifice• Sacrificed prisoners of war, slaves, and children

Mayan Bloodletting

Mayan Ball Game

Mayan Calendar

Maya Decline

• Maya city-states were abandoned or destroyed between 800-900 CE

• Causes for decline include:– The disruption of trade after the decline of

Teotihuacan in Central Mexico– Environmental degradation caused by overpopulation– Epidemic disease

Rise of the Aztecs

• Aztecs (Mexica) migrate to Lake Texcoco in central Mexico c. 1325

• Founded city of Tenochtitlan in 1325

• Empire started in 1434• Aztec kings represented

civil power and served as a representative of the gods on Earth

Aztec Government

• City-states ruled by a speaker chosen from the nobility

• The Great Speaker, ruler of Tenochtitlan, was in effect an emperor– Increasingly considered a living god

• Conquered peoples maintained some autonomy if they paid tribute

Human Sacrifice

• Human sacrifice was a typical part of Mesoamerican religion– Aztec expand practice

into a cult where military supplied war captives for sacrifice

• Why?– Political purposes– Population control– Cannibal kingdom

Human Sacrifice

Tenochtitlan “The Venice of the Americas

Chinampas

Aztec Society

• Women’s primary role was the household– Women spent six hours a day grinding corn;

restricted women’s rights• Marriages were arranged• Polygamy existed amongst the nobility• Women could inherit property

The Inca

Inca Economy

• Unlike Aztecs, not a lot of trade– Tried to be self-sufficient

• Primarily agricultural– Terrace farming & complex irrigation– Over 200 types of potatoes

• Inca Socialism• Used forced labor for massive projects

Terrace Farming

Inca Technology

• Built a complex system of roads and bridges– 2500 miles of roads– Used a system of runners to carry messages

throughout the empire• Beautiful pottery, cloth, and metalworking• Quipu• Masonry

Bridges and Roads

Quipu

Inca Metalworking