history homework2
dannyyang
OlmecMayaAztecInca.pptxEarly Americas
Olmec, Maya, Aztec, and Inca
Olmec- “mother Civilization”
Earliest known civilization
Central America
Live along coastal waters
Hieroglyphic writing
Farming- intercropping
Growing beans, squash, and corn in one mound
Maya (100 C.E.)
Central America
Located in rain forests-
challenge to clear lands
Hieroglyphic writing
# system- a symbol for zero
Calendar to track planting,
harvesting, flooding and
celebrations
Maya Architecture
Chichen Itza- ceremonial complex
Temple of the Giant Jaguar in Tikal, honors the rain god.
Temple of the Inscriptions
In Tikal
1st Mayan temple used as a burial chamber for the ruler Pacal. He was the greatest known king of the Maya.
He deified himself by making his mother a goddess
MAYA Religion
Polytheistic
Need to appease gods
Bloodletting and human sacrifice
Blood Debt-
needs to be paid because
one was created- human
Blood is sacred
Maya- Domain of the Gods
Caves- portals to the underworld
Chechem Ma-
Is a cave 120 feet deep, 820 feet long
remains found in the cave of
human sacrifice
Underworld- 9 levels
Above ground – 13 levels
Maya Math
Concept of zero
Use of multiplication
Square roots
Golden mean - proportion
Maya Downfall
Over population
Not enough land to produce food
Possibly droughts
Diseases from the arrival of the Spanish
Catholic friars destroy most Mayan records and documentation
Aztec
Engineering an Empire – Aztecs
Empire located in lake Texcoco
Tenochtitlan- present day Mexico City
Aztecs
Aqueducts – twin tubes
Chinampas- floating islands for growing crops
Aztec Religion
Polytheistic
Believe in human sacrifice to appease the gods- Aztec sacrifices were intense- remove heart from someone's chest while it was still beating. Decapitation as well.
Skull racks to display skulls of those sacrifices
Smear blood of dead inside the temple walls
Believe sacrifices are needed and they call blood precious water, because it is the most precious gift
Aztec Beliefs
world has been created 5 times, destroyed 4
There were 9 levels of underworld
13 levels of heaven
4 creator gods
How you were on earth affected your afterlife
Mictlan- was paradise for the dead, but to get there one needed to go through 9 trials and it took 4 years
9 trials to enter Mictlan
1) cross a deep river, dogs were buried with their dead owners to guide them on this journey.
2) pass between two mountains which were joined together
3) climb an obsidian mountain
4) pass through icy wind that cut like a knife
5) pass through a place where flags waved
6) be pierced by arrows
7) pass among wild beasts which ate human hearts
8) pass over a narrow path of stone
9) reach this level where the soul found rest.
Mictlan continued
In order to make this trip, people were buried in a squatting position with items to help them on the way.
These included water, a dog and a jade bead to act as the dead person’s heart
Aztec Downfall
Spanish invaders lead by Hernando Cortez
Cortez had been welcomed by Aztec king Mochtezuma II
Cortez will take control of king and city
Confrontation
Cortez will destroy the city
Aztecs also die off from diseases of the Spanish
Inca (1400-1532)
South America – Peru
Andes Mountains
Capital City – Cuzco
Cuzco had palaces, temples, schools, gardens, public squares, aqueducts. The Temple of the Sun was in the center of the city. The city was guarded by a toll gate.
Inca - structure
Live in kin groups- called ayllu
Allyu were divided into small kin groups
Men marry women from other allyu
Conquer other peoples
Integrate the peoples into the empire
Machu Picchu- Inca city
Incan ruler
Sapa Inca or only Inca
Claims descent from the sun god
Lived as a deity among his subjects
Controlled education – therefore knowledge
Controlled produce
Regulated marriages
Monitored labor force
Most powerful person after the
ruler- was the priest of the
sun god.
Inca Aristocracy
3 groups
Close relatives of the ruler and previous rulers
More distant relatives
Leaders of groups conquered by Inca
Inca assimilate peoples into empire
Strategy- allow local leaders who have been conquered to serve as leaders but swear loyalty to the Inca ruler
Inca Warfare
Storm enemy forts
Use large infantry
Cut off access to food and water
Weapons
Arrows
Stones and sling shots
Stone spears
Noble Families
Life of luxury
Exempt from taxation
Could own land and Llamas
Had fine clothing
Boys went to school
labor
Males between 25-50 must perform 2-3 months of labor each year
Households must contribute goods to the empire that were kept in storehouses
Boys – coming of Age- age 14
Boys must demonstrate physical and military skill
Boys ears will be pierced with gold disks. As they become men they wear earplugs of shell or metal which grow in size with their age.
Mummification
Inca want to preserve bodies of the dead rulers and high ranking family members.
just like Egypt, except mummies are
usually in a sitting position and
are smoked to dry the body out
Inca- Master Builders
Stonework on buildings fit perfectly without the use of mortar.
They quarried their stone – which means they dug the stone from the ground and made huge pits in the earth.
26
Inca Agriculture
Use their environment- build terraces
Farm in the terraced steps
Incan roads
25,000 miles of roads
No wheeled vehicles
Foot travel
Llamas
Language – only oral no written language
Quipu- knotted strings used for record keeping
Different lengths, colors, and off shoots have specific meanings
Skipped knots represented a zero
Different knots have different numeric units
Used in trade
used to record time, such as the length of a kings reign
It can not be used to record names
Must be supplemented by witnesses
Used for the census
Each town had a knot keeper
Inca religion
Polytheistic
Gods demanded sacrifice
31 recorded human sacrifices
The Spanish effect
1528- Inca suffer from smallpox epidemic
Sapa Inca dies-infighting develops for control
1532 Francisco Pizarro arrived at this time of unrest
Pizarro met with Inca ruler Atahualpa who welcomed Pizarro
2nd day in Cuzco, Pizarro attacks- 7,000 Inca die
Pizarro captures Atahualpa, who agrees to pay a ransom of silver and gold. When the ransom is paid, Pizarro kills the Inca ruler
It took 20 years for the Spanish to have complete control over Inca empire
By 1551- over ½ the Inca population had died
Inca – Egyptian comparison
Sun god is important and royal families descend from the sun god
Mummification
Divine leaders
Belief in an afterlife
Social classes
Building of pyramids
Smooth in Egypt
Step in Peru
