Ancient%20Civilizations

1
Ancient Civilizations

• MesoAmerica
• Olmecs MesoAmericas Mother Culture
• Chavin along the South American coast

2
Olmecs Civilization 1200 B.C. 400 B.C.

• Olmec head or colossal head (the king)

• Central American Location

3
OlmecsSpecialized Workers

• Priests
• fishers
• farmers
• traders
• artisans

4
OlmecsComplex Institutions

• Ruling Priest
• Religious centers (Great Pyramid)
• ritual ball game
• trade network from Mexico City to Honduras
• rivers provide for transportation

5
OlmecsAdvanced Cities

• San Lorenzo 1150 B.C
• La Venta 800 B.C
• Bay of Campache
• up too 100 inches of rain
• hills to the north
• present states of Veracruz and Tabasco

6
OlmecsAdvanced Technology

• Chinampas irrigation system
• Used stone for tools
• monuments
• iron ore reached Olmecs through trade

7
OlmecsRecord Keeping

• No written records kept!!
• Only sculptures of leaders or religious figures

8
Chavin900 BC to 200 BC

• South American Location

• Carved head of a half human,  half feline deity

9
ChavinSpecialized Workers

• Priest
• artisans
• masons

10
ChavinComplex Institutions

• Very religious featuring ziggurats and earthen
  mounds
• No political institutions
• Religious centers not outposts for great empires
• columns is characterized by an essentially
  zoomorphic repertory (jaguars, snakes, condors,
  caimans) to which human faces are added here and
  there

11
ChavinAdvanced Cities

• Chavín de Huántar-one of the oldest known and
  most admired pre-Hispanic sites. Center of the
  Chavin Dynasty.

12
ChavinAdvanced Technology

• people created a successful drainage system.
  Several canals built under the temple acted as
  drainage
• used early techniques to develop refined early
  gold work

13
ChavinRecord Keeping

• What was found aided in influencing future
  civilizations.