THE ANCIENTAMERICAS
Early Civilizations-Classic Civilizations-Empire
I. Early American Civilization Basics
A. Religious Shrines-first centers of civilization began as religious shrines
B. City-States-developed into city states that exercised enormous power over surrounding cultural groups.
C. Waters Edge- Civilization centers were built on the edge of water sources, NOTalong rivers
D. Technological Differences: expert at irrigation systems, no draft animals, no wheel.
1. Dry Fields-used to harvest grain such as maize or manioc
2. Slash and Burn-burn jungle under growth for fertilizer
3. Pot Irrigation-dip a pot in the well-pour water onto field
4. Canal Irrigation
5. Chinampas-raised fields for swampy areas
E. Basic Timeline & Maps
40,000-8000 BCE-earliest migration across the Bering Strait
5000-4,000 BCE
☞ Norte Chico of Peru-Oldest Civilization in the Americas
☞ Maize cultivation in Mexico
3,000-1500 BCE
☞ Evidence of cotton cultivation, metallurgy, ceramics
☞ Ceremonial centers in the highlands of S. Mexico
1500 BCE-1500 CE
*Central America
☞ Olmec Civilization flourishes-San Lorenzo (major Olmec city)-1500BCE-800 BCE
☞ Zapotec Civilization flourishes-Monte Alban (major Zapotec city)-500 BCE-700 CE
☞ Teotihuacan flourishes-1CE-650 CE
☞ Maya Civilization flourishes-900 BCE-900 CE
☞ Toltec Empire flourishes-900 CE-1200 CE
☞ Aztec Civilization flourishes 1350 CE-1520 CE
*South America
☞ Early Chavin Culture flourishes-Peru-1200 BCE-200BCE
☞ Mochica State-200 CE-700 CE
☞ Huari State 500 CE-800 CE & Tiahuanaco State 500 CE-1000 CE
☞ Chimu Civilization flourishes-1200 CE-1400 CE
☞ Inca Civilization flourishes 1400 CE-1500 CE
*North America
☞ Hopewell Civilization flourishes-200 CE-500 CE
☞ Mound Builders or Mississippi Culture flourishes-900 CE-1350 CE
☞ Anasazi Culture flourishes-Chaco Canyon-300 CE-1300 CE
II. Early Central American Civilzations
A. Olmec Civilization (1500 BCE-800 BCE)
1. Took shape on the gulf coast of Mexico-see map
2. Built San Lorenzo-destroyed 900 BCE
3. Built La Venta 800 BCE-400BCE
a. 110 ft high Pyramid
4. Successful Traders with central and western Mexico
5. Technology: Champas fields, drainage systems
6. Society: Complex Ceremonialism, Elite hierarchy, city-state system-not centralized
7. Religion: Complex ceremonialism, practiced ritual human sacrifice
8. Artwork: Full of mystical creatures and animals
******* a. LARGE STONE SCULPTURES-defining feature
B. Zapotec Civilization (500 BCE-700 CE)
1. Developed in tangent with Olmec Society
2. Developed in Oaxaca Valley
3. Imported products-reflecting trade with the Olmecs, Teotihuacan
4. Society: peaked in main city Monte Alban-50,000 inhabitants!!
5. Technology: terraced homes, home water supply
6. Religion: Monte Alban
C. Teotihuacan (1 CE-650 CE)
1. Emerge as an enormous urban center-100,000 inhabitants!
2. Successful trade between Valley of Mexico
3. Technology: intensive agriculture, advanced architecture-Pyramid of the Sun, Pyramid of the Moon, Temple of Quetzalcoati
4. Society: Powerful government, close relationship between gov. and religion
5. Religion: Offered human hearts for sacrifice, close relationship between gov. and religion
D. Mayan Civilization (900 BCE-900 CE)
1. Developed in Yucatan Peninsula
2. Agriculture: slash and burn
3. Classic Period 300 CE-700 CE
4. Great City of Tikal
a. 5 temples
b. 50,000 people
c. covered 1,000 sq miles
d. 360,000 people at its peak
5. Mayan Culture extended over Southern Mexico, Guatemala , Belize ,Honduras
El Salvadore. See Map.
El Salvadore. See Map.
6. Made up of 50 city-states
7. Art: Use of stelae to commemorate triumphs, and important event events
8. Technology:
a. number system based on 20
b. Understood the concept of 0
c. Sacred Calendar cycle-260 days divided into 20 days
d. Solar Calendar cycle-365 days-18 months-20 days each
e. long count-dated everything from a specific date in the past-3114 BCE
f. written system-287 symbols-books on the cult of the dead
9. Religion:
a. Pantheon of Gods
b. emphasis on unity
c. Mayan centres built around religious pyramids
d. Religious rulers exercised civil and religious powers
e. Rulers and scribes participated in self-mutilation and human sacrifice
f. Chichan Itza-
i. Ritual Basket Ball Game: game played with their hips and elbows-if lose you are sacrificed
10. Society/Gender: All craftsman worked to glorify rulers and gods. Patrilineal families formed the basis of families, gendered labour, elite women retained many rights. Most people were peasant farmers. Mayan children
11. Mayan Decline: Agricultural exhaustion, population density, epidemic diseases, social unrest. 900 CE Decline
E. Toltec Confederation (900 CE-1200 CE)
1. Developed in Central Mexico under the leadership of Toliptzin-see map
2. Tula
3. Religion: Toliptzin took on the position as high priest and ruler
. Influence-spread north-perhaps as far as the Anasazi, may have even reached Mississippian Culture
F. Aztec Empire (1350 CE-1520 CE)-Decentralized Federation
1. Developed in the region around Lake Texcoco island of Tenochtitlan
2. Tenochtitlan
a. 60,000 households
b. 500,000 total population
3. Government: Leaders claimed authority based on military power and connection to Toltec lineage (spoke Nahuatl-Toltec language.)
4. Society
a. Great Speaker-Aztec Leader-elected by noble council
b. Priests-oversaw ceremonial auspices and administered rites
c.Tecuhtli: or nobility came from most distinguished calpulli(city clans). Tecuhtli served as judges, warriors, and governors. Only ones that could wear jewels and cloaks with embroidery.
d. Pochteca: special merchant class-regulated markets
e. Peasants: free labourers
f. Slaves: slaves could intermarry with free people, they could also own goods and land, and they could purchase their freedom-based on captivity not race
e. Calpulli-ruling clans designated in each city-state-
governed by councils of family heads-
f. Nobility overshadowed by the administrative
nobility and military
g. social distinction based on clothes
h. Highly stratified society under a supreme ruler
i. Cult of Human Sacrafice was used in part for political terror
j. You must pay tribute to Tenochtitlan
k. You must provide military service-king determines the length of time
5. Religion:
a. Centred the god Huitzilopochtli-god of the Sun
b. Offered human sacrifices as nourishment to the gods
c. Montezuma II’s coronation saw 5,100 people sacrificed
d. 128 major deities
e. 3 Major Cults:
i. Fertility gods: Tlaloc-water, rain, maize, fertility
ii. Creator gods
iii. Warfare and Sacrifice gods: Huitzilopochtli
f. Flower Wars-wars fought specifically to acquire sacrificial captives
6. Economy:
a. Confiscated lands were appropriated
b. Tax: given in food
c. Chinampas-raised fields
d. Markets: highly regulated and controlled byPochteca-special merchant class
7. Gender:
a. Refer to ‘Mexican Marriage’
b. Peasant women helped in fields, trained their daughters in weaving and cooking
c. Noble families-polygamist
d. Commoners-monogamist
e. Elite women could inherit property and pass it on
f. W/o animal power-women spent hours grinding maize
g. What do you learn about the role of men and women from ‘MexicanMarriage?’________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
8. Fall of Aztec Empire
a. Cortez…continues in New Spain Lecture
III. Early South American Civilizations
A. Chavin (1200 BCE-250 BCE)-Horizon Culture (widely dispersed culture)
1. Developed in the Andean Highland and along the arid Pacific Coast
2. Technology: Several large temple platforms, adobe stone buildings, ceramics, textiles, mining gold.
3. Art: Art featured jaguars, snakes, birds of prey, humans with feline characteristics, and scenes of war.
4. Decline by around 300 BCE
B. Nazca Culture (100 CE-800 CE)
1. Developed along arid Pacific Coast
2. Technology: Advanced weavers, hundreds of colours and designs. Great aerial images were made in fields-there purpose is still unknown.
C. Mochica State (200 CE-700 CE)
1. Developed along the arid Pacific Coast
2. Society: Nobles, priests, soldiers, farmers, slaves. During was
Moche warriors took the heads of their victims as trophies.
3. Religion: believed in ritual sacrifice
4. Technology: Advanced irrigation systems, monumental tombs, ceramics, fine jewellery
D. Huari State (500 CE-800 CE) & Tiahuanaco State (500 CE-1000 CE) New Horizon
1. Tiahuanaco developed along the shores of Lake Titicaca as an urban ceremonial centre with 40,000 people. The Huari state developed further to the North originally as a colony of the Tiahuanaco State
2. Artistic styles and religious practices spread to other areas of the Andean world.
3. Tiahuanaco extended control through colonies as far away as Chile
4. Technology: raised fields-produced 7 times the regular yield of Andean fields
E. Chimu State (800 CE-1465 CE)
1. Developed along the North Peruvian coast, controlled 12 coastal villages and more than 600 miles of land.
2. Chan-Chan-Chimu capital, had 35 ft high walls
3. By 1370-arguably the largest Peruvian state-lead by Nancen Pinco
4. Government: Each King built his own compound, built subsidiary administrative centres reaching to Lima
F. Twantinsuyu (Incan) Empire (1400 CE-1500 CE)
1. Developed around Cuzco-Quechua-speaking clans in 1350 CE.
a. By 1438 CE under the direction of Pachachuti, they launched a series of military alliances and campaigns that gave them control of the whole area of Cuzco to Lake Titicaca .
b. By 1493 CE under Huayna, the Empire stretched from Columbia to Chile
2. Society/Government: see Incan Panorama
a. Split
b. Empire divided into 4 provinces-each province had a governor
c. Inca-ruler was considered almost a god
d. High priests-administered religious auspices of state
e. Nobles-played a role in government positions
f. Curacas-local ruler-left to rule in return for loyalty-Curacas sons were taken to the capital for insurance-if curacas did anything wrong they would be severely punished.
g. Yamas: class of people that served permanently as servants and artisans
h. Encouraged settlement to enforce land rights
i. Roads were built throughout the Empire
j. Ayllu-basic clan structure around which organization was originally built-nobles come from these clans
j. Tambos-inns built to assist traders and merchants in long travels
k. Mita-Demanded tribute in labour for projects rather than food like the Aztecs
l. Sensitive to local customs and culture-each community was meant to be self sufficient-good integration of regional and ethnic diversity
m. Mitima-deported the population of newly conquered lands and replaced them with more docile groups
n. see Ten Incan Commandments
o. see Incan Crimes
p. read Incan remedies
3. Technology/Cultural Achievements
a. agricultural terraces
b. 2500 miles of roads over gorges and rivers
c. stonecutting
d. Quipu-system of knotted strings to record
numerical orders-calculate military and population
4. Gender
a. see becoming a man and
b. most women worked in the fields and wove cloth
c. theoretically labour was equal and interdependent
d. Property rights passed from mother to daughter, father to son
5. Religion
a. Cult of the Sun-Pyramid of the Sun-centre of the state religion confines the mummies of past Incas
b. Cult of the Sun was spread throughout the Empire but other gods were allowed
c. Animism was ever prevalent
d. Huacas-holy shrines that consisted of mountains, stones, rivers, caves, tombs, and temples.
e. Animals, goods, and humans were sacrificed to the gods
f. Temples
IV. Early North American Civilizations
A. Hopewell Civilizations (200 BCE-500 CE)
1. Developed in the area from Lake Michigan to the Gulf Coast and from the present day middle US to the Appalachian Mountains .
2. Technology: Introduced new levels of scale and complexity to large earth structures or mounds.
3. Long distance trade with other groups from the Gulf Coast to theRocky Mountains
4. Art: Jewellery, pottery, pipes, effigies
B. Mississippi Mound Builders (900 CE-1350 CE)
1. Developed along the Mississippi river and spread across the area influenced by the Hopewell tradition-Cahokia, Illinois-Moundville, Alabama-Ocmulgee, Georgia.
2. Economy-farmers grew corn, squash, beans, pumpkins, and tobacco.
3. Cahokia 1050 CE-1150 CE
a. 6 miles
b. 120 mounds
c. Monk’s Mound-15 acres, 100ft
d. population between 10,000-40,000
e. Woodhenge-calendar
f. decline by 1200 CE, gone by 1400 CE
4. Ocmulgee
a. population of 1,000 people
b. 7 mounds
c. Great Temple Mound-45 ft high 300 ft across
C. Anasazi (300 CE-1300 CE)
1. Developed first around what is now the intersection of Utah , Colorado , New Mexico , and Arizona
2. Technology: Began to build Kivas in 900 CE, villages spread through the southwest. They built cliff dwellings several stories high and so high in the cliff that they were easily defended.
3. Chaco Canyon
a. Centre for Anasazi civilization in 900 CE.
b. produced beautiful turquoise jewellery
c. around 1160 Chaco Canyon
4. Measa Verde
a. Southwestern Colorado
b. Elaborate cliff dwellings and whole villages were built
c. Cliff Palace-217 rooms, 23 kivas, 200-250 people lived here
d. Spruce Tree House-144 rooms
e. Balcony House-600 feet above the floor
f. Decline: drought, climatic changes, and depletion of resources is probably responsible for Anasazi abandonment in 1270 CE
V. Terms to consider:
1. Bering Straight
2. Anasazi
3. Olmec
4. San Lorenzo
5. Monte Alban
6. Teotihuacan
7. Maya
8. Quetzalcoatl
9. Toltec Confederation
10. Tenochtitlan
11. Calpulli
12. Aztecs
13. Inca
14. Ayllu
15. Curacas
16. Mita
17. Mound Builders
VI. Please complete the following:
1. Social Pyramid for Incan Society using the following terms: Inca, Nobility, High Priest, Yamas, Peasants, Caracas
2. Compare and Contrast Incan and Aztec Civilization considering: Agriculture, nobility class (hint clan groups from which nobility comes), integration, tribute, trade, ruling system
