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Ancient Mexico. Mayan, Incan, and Aztec Civilizations By: Mrs. Meredith Sanders. Teotihuacan. 4 well-known buildings in this ancient city:. Pyramid of the Sun. Pyramid of the Moon. Temple of Quetzalcoatl. Temple of the Jaguars. Olmecs. They were the first major Indian Tribe.
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Ancient Mexico Mayan, Incan, and Aztec Civilizations By: Mrs. Meredith Sanders
Teotihuacan 4 well-known buildings in this ancient city: Pyramid of the Sun Pyramid of the Moon Temple of Quetzalcoatl Temple of the Jaguars
Olmecs • They were the first major Indian Tribe. • Olmec means “rubber people.” • Two major cities were San Lorenzo and La Venta. • They used a form of picture writing; had a number system and calendar.
“Rubber people” • The Aztec Indians gave the tribe this name because the Olmecs supplied them with sap from rubber trees.
Mayas • Appearance: Short in height, straight black hair, painted their bodies, had tattoos, valued crossed-eyes and flat foreheads • Three eras: pre-classic, classic, and post-classic • Mayans used glyphs in their writing.
Glyphs Their glyph writing (picture) expanded largely using about 800 different glyphs.
Mayan Religion • Worshipped many different gods • Each day, month, city, and occupation had its special god or goddess • Had a variety of religious festivals and celebrations • Most ceremonies includes human sacrifices • In many ceremonies, the priests cut themselves to get blood to present to the gods • Their religion taught that there were 13 layers of heaven above the earth & 9 underworlds below • Worshipped the dead
Human Sacrifices The Mayas had 3 methods of giving the human sacrifices: • The priests took the victim to the altar at the temple and cut the heart out of the living victim and presented it to the god. • The priests tied the victim to a wooden pole and threw spears and arrows at the victim’s chest in the area of the heart. • They threw the victim into a sacred well. If they survived the fall and did not drown, the priests pulled them back out of the well; believing that the god spared that victim.
Worshipping the Dead • They believed the dead became one with the gods. • They worshipped their ancestors at many religious ceremonies. • They also built pyramids over the sacred remains of their dead rulers.
Aztecs • This ancient tribe wandered for many years • Founded their greatest city, Tenochtitlan (this is the site of modern Mexico City) • They belonged to a large family group called calpolli, meaning “big house” or clan.
Calpolli • Each calpolli elected its own officials to run its business. They were a true democracy and voted on decisions. • Women did not have a vote. • Calpolli expected all of its able-bodied men to fight any wars. The men considered it an honor to fight for their clan. • The family arranged for all marriages. A young person could only marry someone outside the clan. • A woman who married now joined her husband’s clan.
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