Mesoamerica & Triple Alliance PDF

Archaeology and Humanity’s Story: A Brief Introduction to World Prehistory Any questions about: 1.China transformations? 2.Warring States? 3.Qin Empire? Chapter 13 Mesoamerica, the Classic Maya, & the Aztec Empire Early Food Production Formative Mesoamerica The Lowland Classic Maya After the Classic...

Archaeology and Humanity’s Story: A Brief Introduction to World Prehistory Any questions about: 1.China transformations? 2.Warring States? 3.Qin Empire? Chapter 13 Mesoamerica, the Classic Maya, & the Aztec Empire Early Food Production Formative Mesoamerica The Lowland Classic Maya After the Classic Maya The Aztec Empire Arrival of the Spanish © 2018 2 Chapter 13 Learning Objectives 13.1 Review the timeline for this chapter. 13.2 Understand early food production and formative Mesoamerica 13.3 Understand components of formative Mesoamerican culture. 13.4 Explain elements of Mayan culture 13.5 Analyze the rise and fall of the Aztec empire © 2018 3 Regional Developments FOUR KEY AREAS OF CULTURAL DEVELOPMENT: 1. MAYA REGION, 2. GULF COAST, 3. VALLEY OF OAXACA, 4. BASIN OF MEXICO. © 2018 4 Mesoamerica Map showing location of Archaic period sites and of complex polity sites for Basin of Mexico, Valley of Oaxaca, Gulf Lowlands, and the Maya region. Basin of Mexico Gulf Coast Maya Area Oaxaca © 2018 5 Early Food Production During the Archaic period, maize and squash agriculture (and later, beans) were the subsistence base of Mesoamerica. The earliest maize cobs have been found at Guilá Naquitz Cave (4200 BC) Some regions practiced slash-and-burn agriculture. Permanent villages were present between 3000 and 2000 cal BC. Ceramic technology became widespread during the Late Archaic in Mesoamerica. © 2018 6 Early Food Production Earliest maize cobs at Guilá Naquitz Cave (4200 BC) © 2018 7 Slash-and-Burn Agriculture Xihuatoxtla Shelter (5300 – 5200 BC) Maize @ 8,700 years ago © 2018 8 Trade Formative Mesoamerica Long-distance trade networks Beginnings of specialized craft production Finished obsidian blades – Early Formative (c.1400–1000 BC) © 2018 9 Formative Mesoamerica In the earlier Archaic, villages were set up around the concept of communal ownership or sharing. Circular houses sheltered individual families, and food resources were stored in areas accessible to everyone in the village. Beginning in the Formative period (about 2000 cal BC), village structure begins to change: circular dwellings were replaced by rectangular structures with internal (i.e., nonshared) storage spaces. In the Middle Formative period (1000 cal BC) extended families began building closely connected dwellings. © 2018 10 The Olmec (1 of 2) Beginning in the southern Gulf Coast region around 1800 cal BC. By 1400 cal BC: complex political organization and landscape modification at sites like San Lorenzo, which covered 2.6 square miles and included basalt-lined drains, elite dwellings, public buildings, courtyards, and monumental art. The island of La Venta became prominent after San Lorenzo. Both San Lorenzo and La Venta controlled areas around them in a regional hierarchy of sites. © 2018 11 The Olmec (2 of 2) Imported food resources and prestige items from more remote hamlets— especially La Venta, which was agriculturally poor. Settlements were a series of small, but complex, political entities archaeologists call chiefdoms. © 2018 12 Early Urbanism (?) and Social Complexity OLMEC SITES ALONG THE GULF COAST OF MEXICO: LAGUNA DE LOS CERROR LA VENTA SAN LORENZO AND TRES ZAPOTES 1400 to 1000 BC © 2018 13 Urbanism and Social Complexity @ the Olmec site of San Lorenzo http://bit.ly/3fLSb1Z © 2018 14 Olmec: First great Mesoamerican civilization Increasing Social Complexity and Political Organization Innovations: Calendars Ballgames Mesoamerican pantheon © 2018 15 Influences & Political complexity in the basin of Mexico by 1500 BC Are these really "Olmec" at all, or are they unique to the contemporaneous early cultures of Central Mexico? Olmec “Hollow Dolls” https://bit.ly/3DRYkkZ © 2018 16 Olmec: North America’s first influencers? Any problems with this idea? 1. While perhaps not a direct result of migration of people, the migration of ideas was certainly widespread and enduring. This said, the context of ballcourts and their significance may have changed significantly over space and time. bit.ly/3UiJD1C 2. Some researchers, however, argue that many of the motifs seen in the Basin of Mexico were not indicators of interaction with specific regions but rather pan-Mesoamerican images. (Olszewski 383). © 2018 17 Zapotec capital of monte Albán and its Olmec influence (500 B.C. and 800 A.D) https://www.wmf.org/project/montealb%C3%A1n-archaeological-site © 2018 18 Valley of Oaxaca At 1400 cal BC, San José Mogote was one of several small sites in the Valley of Oaxaca. It would eventually become the center of its settlement hierarchy. Around 500 cal BC, San José Mogote was burned and most of its residents moved to the mountaintop site Monte Albán. © 2018 19 Monte Albán http://bit.ly/3NLP3jf Two of the Danzante stones at Monte Albán, which were probably carved by the Olmecs, the city's first occupants. PHOTOS BY JOSEPH SORRENTINO © 2018 20 The Olmec Legacy https://youtu.be/lSO-bFwMx2I © 2018 21 Monte Albán became a densely populated center with temples, palaces, tombs, and a defensive wall. This wall was necessitated by constant rivalry with Tilcajete. During the Late Formative period (around 30–20 cal BC), Monte Albán defeated Tilcajete, consolidated their power over the Valley of Oaxaca, and became the capital of the Zapotec polity. © 2018 22 Archaeology and Humanity’s Story: A Brief Introduction to World Prehistory By Deborah I. Olszewski Timeline: Four Regions of Mesoamerica The agricultural foundations of these politically complex societies included maize, beans, squash, chili peppers, and avocados. The Maya independently developed a written language that describes many aspects of Maya life: the deeds of elite rulers, astronomical observations, ritual, and religion. Maya religion was concerned with the cyclical nature of time, which they tracked with a series of calendars. Maya built pyramids, palaces, temples, and great plazas. Aztec used calendars and written glyphs. Aztec and Spanish documents both record events related to the arrival of the Spanish. © 2018 24 Aztec region Map showing location of Sites in Basin of Mexico Valley of Mexico © 2018 25 The Aztec Empire The Aztec empire (AD 1428 – 1519) was an important polity in the Valley of Mexico until the time of Spanish contact. The Aztec were composed of Nahuatl-speaking Aztlan groups Aztlan settlements grew into city-states with distinctive twin-stair pyramids. One of the Aztlan groups were the Mexica (the source of the modern name Mexico). The Mexica settled in the swampy area of Tenochtitlán which would go on to become the capital of the Aztec Empire. Tenochtitlán was located at the site of what is now Mexico City. City-states of the Valley of Mexico were ruled by royal dynasties who sometimes cemented alliances through marriages. © 2018 26 The Triple Alliance The Triple Alliance was the basis of power for the Aztec Empire. It was a political, economic, and military arrangement between three city-states: Tenochtitlán, Texcoco, and Tlacopan By 1502, the Mexica were the dominant power within the Triple Alliance. The Aztec ruler Motecuhzoma I (“Montezuma” I) ruled beginning in AD 1440 and consolidated power within the valley of Mexico. Later, Motecuhzoma II (“Montezuma” II) reinforces Mexica power, and was the leader encountered by the Spanish. © 2018 27 Important terms for the Aztec: The Mexica = refers to the Nahuatl-speaking group = ethnic identity - This is the term that the Aztecs used to refer to themselves. The Aztec = refers to the “People from Aztlan” the mythical place of origin for Nahua peoples. The word "Aztec" in modern usage would not have been used by the people themselves. It has variously been used to refer to the Triple Alliance empire, the Nahuatl-speaking people of central Mexico prior to the Spanish conquest, or specifically the Mexica ethnicity of the Nahuatl-speaking peoples © 2018 28 How do we know what we know? Aztec writings – Aztec writings were destroyed after the Conquest Indigenous writers (descendants of Indigenous nobility such as) – Fernando de Alva Ixtlixóchitl – Hernando Alvarado Tezozomoc – Domindo Cuautlehuanitzin Chimalpahín Friars & Missionaries: – Toribio de Benavente (Motolinía) – Bernardino de Sahagún – Nahuatl /Spanish – Diego Durán – Bishop Zumárraga - destruction of Aztec writing Spanish Writings by Spanish Soldiers – Hernan Cortés – Bernal Díaz de Castillo © 2018 29 Indigenous writings Codex Ixtlilxochitl And the Aztec Calendars: https://www.loc.gov/item/2021668123/ © 2018 30 Florentine Codex Franciscan Friar Bernadino de Sahagún and his Florentine Codex: incredibly detailed view of Aztec life https://www.loc.gov/item/2021667846/ © 2018 31 Codex Mendoza Social Mobility and Education Codex_Mendoza_folio_60r_Folio from the Codex Mendoza showing the rearing and education of Aztec boys and girls, showing how they were instructed in different types of labor and how they were punished for misbehavior. Codex_Mendoza_folio_64r_fol io form the Codex Mendoza showing a commoner advancing through the ranks by taking captives in war, each attire can be achieved by taking a certain number of captives © 2018 32 Aztec History at Teotihuacán Epitome of New World Urbanism https://www.britannica.com/place/Teotihuacan © 2018 33 Aztec Religion (1 of 2) Ideology, ritual and religion were the tools used to maintain the power of the nobility. Aztec gods and goddesses included some borrowed from earlier pantheons. The walled ceremonial area of Tenochtitlán could host hundreds of witnesses for ceremonies. © 2018 34 Aztec Religion (1 of 2) Human sacrifices were often captive warriors, whose sacrifice represented a reenactment of the self-sacrifice of the gods in Aztec myth. The practice of human sacrifices may have served to impress visiting dignitaries, reinforce power relations, and discourage uprisings. © 2018 35 Like Qin Empire - Human Sacrifices Religious in nature but late in Aztec history seems to have served as a political terror; Intense and large-scale – said to have involved 10,000 victims in 4 days; controversial claim of an “ecological necessity”; beating heart offered to the Sun God, Huitzilopochtli to sustain him to reemerge the next day © 2018 36 Aztec Trade and Exchange The Aztec had well-developed markets and trade networks including both small village markets and larger markets in cities. Each street in the largest markets specialized in one type of commodity. Some markets were specialized, while others were more general in their selection of goods. The highest ranking merchants were the pochteca, who ranked just below Aztec nobility and also served as spies and armed warriors due their travels. The Aztec established a system of pricing for common goods ad used two types of goods as standards for pricing: cotton textiles and cacao beans. © 2018 37 Pochteca Administrated/Sponsored, long-distance traders/merchants Important as part of (1) Aztec imperial expansionist policy, (2) their role within the religious system, (3) their association with the nobility, (4) and their journey to distant "ports of trade” (primarily for exotic and sumptuary items) © 2018 38 Markets, Tributes and Land Tenure Great market of Tlatelolco Tribute paid to Tenochititlan in exotoic goods by a provincial group on the Pacific coast © 2018 39 Aztec Social Life Though the market was very important, social life was class-based. Classes were mostly fixed (without possibility of movement from one class into another) and were visually distinguished by clothing and other means. An exception was the military, where warriors could achieve nobility. Aside from the military exception, nobility titles were hereditary. Both commoner and slaves provided labor for nobility. The highest ranked were the “great speakers” (huey tlatoque, commonly called emperors today). © 2018 40 The Aztec and Its Contemporaries © 2018 41 Tenochititlan: Aztec Capital City https://www.loc.gov/item/2021668122/ Of all the known manuscripts recounting Aztec history, the Codex Azcatitlan is probably the most valuable and important. In contrast to other histories written later in the colonial period, it is known for the unique way in which it records indigenous memories from the preHispanic past. Like other Aztec codices, it is written in pictograms. © 2018 42 Tenochititlan: Aztec Capital City © 2018 43 Chinampas (“Floating Gardens): Agrarian foundation of the Valley of Mexico The chinampas agricultural system is a set of artificial floating islands, primarily used in southern Mexico; lake area Xochimilco in Mexico City has the most famous present-day chinampas system. Chinampas are traditionally built based on oral wisdom transmitted since the time of the Aztecs. © 2018 44 5/5/2024 45 Mexican [Aztec] Chinampas The chinampas have a world, domestic and local significance. Why is that? The chinampas are an important source of food for one of the most populated cities on the planet, generating 40 thousand tons of agricultural production per year. The chinampa system has been an intensive farming method, expanding local food production through technological innovation, it has brought new land under cultivation and increased labor inputs. This efficient production form enables intensive cultivation throughout the year and it has been one of the main activities that have supported the regional economy. © 2018 45 5/5/2024 46 Mexican [Aztec] Chinampas The chinampas have a world, domestic and local significance. Why is that? © 2018 46 5/5/2024 47 Mexican [Aztec] Chinampas: Crucial for Local Agrobiodiversity The chinampas have a world, domestic and local significance. Why is that? https://www.preventionweb.net/news/chinampas-mexico-indigenous-and-highlysustainable-agriculture-system © 2018 47 5/5/2024 48 Chinampas © 2018 48 5/5/2024 49 Mexican [Aztec] Chinampas Illegal Development threatens to dry up Mexico City’s floating market gardens https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/17/mexico-city-canals-chinampas-urban-development © 2018 49 Arrival of the Spanish The Spanish arrived and ultimately defeated the Aztec Empire in AD 1521. When the Spanish made their way into the Maya region, they disrupted Maya political systems and eventually, allied with Mexican warriors, subjugated the Maya lowlands between AD 1527 and 1546. © 2018 50 Lowland Classic Maya (1 of 2) Tikal and Calakmul, which most archaeologists recognize as the first states in the area, gained importance during the Classic period. © 2018 51 Lowland Classic Maya (2 of 2) Characteristics of Tikal and Calakmul: – Ruling dynasties, – Administrative hierarchy – Control over large labor forces – Established religion and its associated ideology, – Control over extensive trade and exchange networks © 2018 52 The Maya Written Word (1 of 2) Maya glyphs combine logographic (word) symbols and phonetic (sound) signs This writing system recorded the birth, ascension to power, marriages, significant alliances, war histories, and death of Maya kings. © 2018 53 The Maya Written Word (2 of 2) Maya glyphs also recorded more mundane things like economic transactions or tribute payments. We have samples of Maya glyphs on tree bark codices, and on stone stelae and ceramics. Glyphs express numbers as bars, dots, and shells. The shell glyph represented zero, a concept that the Maya were the first to symbolize. Maya calendars began at 3114 BC, on into our own future. © 2018 54 Maya Resource Networks, Trade, and Exchange Individual households grew their own maize and ramon nuts, which they cooked and stored in homemade ceramic vessels. Households acquired stone, like obsidian or basalt, and made ground stone tools. Salt was considered a basic household item, but it was also traded throughout Mesoamerica and even in the southwestern United States (Chapter 7). Rare and exotic trade goods included jade, bark paper, pyrite mirrors, feathers, coral, shell, jaguar pelts, stingray spines, shark teeth, and cacao beans. Cacao beans would eventually be used as a kind of currency, and their use to make a ritually significant frothy chocolate beverage dates back to the Olmec. © 2018 55 Maya Social Life Maya cities had defined social classes including rulers, skilled scribes, religious specialists, managers, warriors, farmers, craftspeople, and slaves. Maya rulers maintained the good will of the people by (1) being effective rulers and (2) hosting ritual feastsand ballgames. Elite Maya had more and higher quality exotic grave goods Elite Maya often exhibited cranial deformation and notched incisors inlaid with jade. © 2018 56 Maya Ritual and Religion (1 of 3) The Maya attributed sacred power to all things, animate and inanimate. The themes of death and rebirth were common; Maya rulers were believed to die and be reborn as stars. © 2018 57 Maya Ritual and Religion (2 of 3) Well-known Maya deities include: – Chaak (storm and rain god depicted as a reptile). – Kimi (death god depicted as a skeleton or bloated corpse). – Hun Hunapu (maize god and father of the Hero Twins). – Itzamnaaj (ruler of opposing forces such as night and day, life and death; depicted as two-headed serpent). Maya cities were associated with specific, local gods. Maya kings would perform in costume as their city’s god during public ceremonies of bloodletting and human sacrifice. © 2018 58 Maya Ritual and Religion (3 of 3) The Mesoamerican ballgame was played at many levels, from low-stakes “friendly” matches to life-and-death contests. The ritual version played in front of large audiences reenacted the Hero Twins ballgame victory over the death gods. War captives played the doomed role of the death gods and were sacrificed after the game. © 2018 59 Maya Warfare and Violence Warfare between political entities was frequent Example: Tikal and Calakmul, who frequently competed via proxies Tikal was defended by a large ditch and steep bank Other evidence: intentionally destroyed palaces and temples and mass burials of elite families. Written records of leaders such as Chak Tok Ich’aak (“Great Misty Claw”), Sihyaj K’ahk’ (“Fire Born”), and Yax Nuun Ahiin I (“Curl Snout”) provide further evidence. By AD 869, Tikal’s political dynasties and regional influence had come to an end. © 2018 60 After the Classic Maya The Classic Maya period ends about AD 900 and what is often called the Maya collapse begins. Several factors that contributed to this process were: – – – – Increased warfare. Prolonged drought. Unstable political alliances. Commoners’ loss of faith in leaders and their ideology. © 2018 61 Terminal Classic and Postclassic Maya Terminal Classic: AD 900 – 1100 Postclassic: AD 1100 – 1524 Terminal Classic capital Chichén Itzá was strategically located near sea coast routes. People there placed less emphasis on individual rulers, and more on the local feathered serpent deity (called Quetzalcoatl in Mexico). During the Postclassic period, Chichén Itzá was conquered by the city of Mayapan. Mayapan remained the capital for another 250 years. © 2018 62 Chapter 13 Review Learning Objectives 13.1 Review the timeline for this chapter. 13.2 Understand early food production and formative Mesoamerica 13.3 Understand components of formative Mesoamerican culture. 13.4 Explain elements of Mayan culture 13.5 Analyze the rise and fall of the Aztec empire © 2018 63