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Maya, Aztec, and Inca Civilizations

Maya, Aztec, and Inca Civilizations. Mesoamerica. Some of the greatest civilizations in the Americas developed in Mesoamerica The Maya and Aztec lived in the Mesoamerican region. Mesoamerica. Mesoamerica = Mexico & Central America. How did people first get to the Americas?.

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Maya, Aztec, and Inca Civilizations

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  1. Maya, Aztec, and IncaCivilizations

  2. Mesoamerica • Some of the greatest civilizations in the Americas developed in Mesoamerica • The Maya and Aztec lived in the Mesoamerican region

  3. Mesoamerica Mesoamerica = Mexico & Central America

  4. How did people first get to the Americas? • Theory #1 = Bering land bridge Humans migrated into North America from Asia by crossing over a land bridge between Alaska and Siberia…

  5. How did people first get to the Americas? • Theory #2 = Coastal migration Humans migrated to the Americas by crossing the seas, most likely the Pacific Ocean, and settling along the western coasts of the Americas…

  6. Where did the ancient Maya live? • The Maya settled on the Yucatan Peninsula in central America.

  7. Maya Political Structure • The Maya were NOT AN EMPIRE and NOT UNITED politically… • Maya civilization was made up of city-states • Each city-state had its own ruler

  8. Mayan Civilization • Between 300 and 900 A.D. • -Flourished during this time. We do not know why it fell into decline. The Maya abandoned their cities, we do not know why.

  9. Political and Social Structure • Cities-Were built around a central pyramid • Pyramid-Was topped with a shrine to the gods. • City-States-Each governed by a hereditary ruling class

  10. Mayan Kings • -Ruled the Mayan Kingdom • They claimed they were divine • Were assisted by nobles and a class of scribes • Made special blood sacrifices to maintain the kingdom.

  11. Mayan Religion The Mayas were Polytheistic. • They believed that all of life was in the hands of a divine power. • They were responsible for pleasing the gods. • Their gods were ranked in order of importance, the Jaguar was the god of night and was seen as evil. • The Maya practiced human sacrifice to appease their gods

  12. Mayan Calendar The Maya developed a calendar that had two different parts: --It had a solar calendar with 365 days, divided into 18 months with 20 days each with 5 extra days at the end. --A Lunar calendar and a Calendar based on the movement of the Planet Venus.

  13. This was a sacred calendar with 260 days and 13 weeks of 20 days each. • The Mayan calendar says our present world was created in 3114 B.C. and the current world will end on December 23 2012 A.D.

  14. Accomplishments • Language • The Maya developed an independent Hieroglyphic language. • The Spanish destroyed most of the Mayan writings. They were not seen as having any value. Their language was not translated until the 20th century.

  15. Maya Architecture • built towering temples and palaces • Atop the temples, priests performed religious ceremonies and sacrifices while people watched from the plazas below • Ceremonial platforms, temples, pyramids, observatories, ball courts all built by the Maya

  16. Maya today …more than 2 million Maya people live in Guatemala and southern Mexico today.

  17. Tikal

  18. ChichénItzá

  19. Aztecs

  20. Where did the Aztecs live? • The Aztecs lived in what is known as the Valley of Mexico in central Mexico starting around the 1200 AD.

  21. Tenochtitlan • Tenochtitlan was the capital city of the Aztec Empire.

  22. How did the Aztecs build a city in the center of a lake? • Tenochtitlan was built on an island • It was connected to the mainland by causeways leading north, south, and west of the city. • The city was interlaced with a series of canals, so that all sections of the city could be visited either on foot or by canoe.

  23. Legend of Tenochtitlan The gods told the Aztecs to search for an eagle holding a snake in its beak perched atop a cactus. This is where they were to build their capital city. The Aztecs saw this sign on a swampy island in lake Texcoco.

  24. Legend of Tenochtitlan

  25. Tenochtitlan • Today, Tenochtitlan is Mexico City

  26. Religion & Mythology • Aztecs were polytheistic • Huitzilopochtli was the main Aztec god. (weets se lo poch tlee) • The Aztecs built massive temples and pyramids dedicated to their gods

  27. Religion & Mythology Pyramid of the Sun Pyramid of the Moon

  28. Government • The Aztecs created an empire through conquest • Conquered people and local rulers had to pay tribute to the Aztecs

  29. Human Sacrifice • Human sacrifice was a common practice of the Aztecs. • For the reconsecration of Great Pyramid of Tenochtitlan in 1487, the Aztecs reported that they sacrificed 84,400 prisoners over the course of four days. • To give the sun strength to rise each day, human sacrifices were offered.

  30. Destruction of the Aztec The subjugation of the people of the Aztec Empire bred hatred and discontent among the people. When the Spanish arrived they did not have a difficult time finding allies to fight the Aztec. Hernán Cortés 1519--Spanish Conquistador who came to the valley of Mexico in 1519 with 550 soldiers and 16 horses. He was at first greeted by the Aztec Emperor Montezuma (Moctezuma). The Spanish later kidnapped the Emperor and made him a puppet. The people rebelled and the Emperor was killed. The Spanish barely escaped. The Spanish returned several months later. Many of the natives had fallen ill with Smallpox. Cortés and his allies destroyed the Aztec capital and subjugated the Aztec people.

  31. What happened to the Aztecs? • Spanish conquistadors led by Hernan Cortes conquered Tenochtitlan and defeated the Aztecs in 1521.

  32. Aztec Video Clips “Engineering An Empire” http://www.watchknow.org/Video.aspx?VideoID=6255 “What the Ancients Did For Us” http://www.watchknow.org/Video.aspx?VideoID=10964

  33. Student Assignment,chapter 16-3 • 1-Explain the story of Quetzalcoatl • 2-Explain the importance of the Triple Alliance • 3-Describe the class system in Aztec society • 4-What made Tenochtitlan so unique?

  34. Inca

  35. Where did the Inca live? • The Inca controlled an empire in the Andes Mountain region of South America.

  36. Government • The Sapa Inca (emperor) had absolute power. • The emperor claimed to be the son of the sun. • The emperor was also the empire’s religious leader. • The empire was divided into four regions with the capital at Cuzco.

  37. Uniting the Empire • The Inca built a massive road network through mountains and across rivers and gorges.

  38. Stonework • The Inca constructed stone temples without using mortars yet the stones fit together so well that a knife would not fit between the stones.

  39. Religion • The Inca were polytheistic. • The primary god was Inti, the sun god.

  40. Religion • Inca believed in reincarnation. • The Inca practiced cranial deformation. -They achieved this by wrapping tight cloth straps around the heads of newborns to alter the shape of their soft skulls into a cone-like shape.

  41. Medical Advances • The Inca performed successful skull surgery. • The Inca also used medicines to make patients unconscious during surgery

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