Friday, February 26, 2016

The Americas

      The Americas came about in 2000 BC until 1521 AD. There were 4 different cultures of this time: The Olmecs, Aztecs, Incas, and Mayans. In these areas the temples provided spatial orientation for the towns, and the pyramids were meant to stand out and represent god and powers of regions. The people of this time followed a polytheistic way of life meaning, they belief/worship of more than one god. They also, believed in human sacrifice during this time period. 

      The Olmecs was the first major civilization in Mexico, taking place from 2000 BC to 200 BC. They were often referred to as people of the rubber country because they were the first to use rubber, and they used a lot of it at this time. The Olmecs during this time also developed the hieroglyphical writing style, as well as the first calendar in the western hemisphere. The Olmecs also had a temple focus city type at this time. The first example of this type of city was the 'La Venta.' The Olmecs artwork consisted of delicate carvings of jade, rock crystal, and less valuable stone. They also made up ax heads, masks, and decoration objects. Also, with the Olmecs culture the elites lived in highly decorated homes and they wore elegant jewelry ad clothing. While the commoners lived in "homes" made of stick and mud.

The next civilization was Teotihuacan, which took place from 250 BC to 900 AD. Their city was known as the 'place of gods,' until it was abruptly deserted. Their city was laid out differently than the Olmecs, theirs was in a grid style. Following the Teotihuacan civilization was the Mayans, Aztecs, and Incas. 

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Extra Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEvP5XIKuRc

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