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Civilizations of Meso-America

Civilizations of Meso-America. Aztecs, Mayans and Incas. Aztecs. Who were the Aztecs?. Civilization in the Valley of Mexico Ruled the region from 1100s to 1500s . Aztec Empire. Aztec Empire Arrived in the Valley of Mexico in 1148 Economy based on agriculture

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Civilizations of Meso-America

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  1. Civilizations of Meso-America Aztecs, Mayans and Incas

  2. Aztecs • Who were the Aztecs? • Civilization in the Valley of Mexico • Ruled the region from 1100s to 1500s

  3. Aztec Empire • Aztec Empire • Arrived in the Valley of Mexico in 1148 • Economy based on agriculture • Spanned from the Pacific Coast to the Gulf of Mexico • Major city: Tenochtitlan • By 1520, included 20 million people

  4. Aztec Culture • What was life like in Aztec Culture? • Aztec culture divided into 2 classes, commoners and nobles • Noble male children attended school until 15 • Women were subordinate to men • Slavery was common

  5. Aztec Culture • What was life like in Aztec Culture? • Laws were simple and harsh • Most crimes punishable by death, beatings or mutilation • Slander ( or lying) was punishable by the loss of your lips!

  6. Aztecs • What caused the end to the Aztec Civilization? Aztec Rule Montezuma though Spanish explorer Cortez was a returning god. Montezuma offered gifts of gold. Excited by the riches, Hernan Cortes and an army to defeat the Aztecs in 1520

  7. Aztecs • What were some contributions the Aztecs made to the world? • Education • One of the first civilizations to require education • Medicine • Surgery • Muscle relaxing medication • Mathematics • Idea of zero • Accurate calendar • Food • Popcorn • Chocolate • Chewing gum • Contributions difficult to trace because of destruction by Catholic missionaries

  8. Aztec Beliefs • What were the beliefs of the Aztec people? • Aztecs religion was polytheistic (more than one god), they worshiped about 1,000 different gods. • The head of the gods was Huizilopochtlid, god of war and god of sun.

  9. Aztec Beliefs • What did the Aztecs Believe? • They put their greatest efforts into making strong, beautiful temples to please their gods. • Their arts had a part in their religion. They drew pictures that told about their gods. • They recorded religious events with hieroglyphics and even number symbols. • They worshipped the sun god the most.

  10. Aztec Beliefs • What did Aztecs believe? • The god of the Sun had told the Aztecs to wander until they found an eagle with a serpent in its mouth perched on a cactus growing from a rock. When they found this, they claimed the area around it, which is now known as Tenochtitlan.

  11. Aztec Beliefs • Who was responsible for worship in Aztec Culture? • Priests and priestesses were very important people. They acted as doctors, and taught science, art, writing, music, dance, history, and counting.

  12. Aztec Beliefs • Where did people worship? • Religious ceremonies took place in a temple called a teocalli. • This temple had sacred pools for ceremonial cleansing, gardens, living quarters for a priest, and racks to hold the skulls of victims. • Religion played a great part in Aztec life.

  13. Aztec Beliefs • How did Aztecs worship? • Sacrifice was one of the main events in the Aztec religion. • Priests made human sacrifices to make the sun god happy. • Aztecs fought in wars to capture men to sacrifice. • On God's Feast Day, they killed their slaves for the gods. • Human sacrifices were offerings to the sun and earth so that food would grow.

  14. Mayan Civilization Pre-Classic(2600 B.C.E-250 B.C.E) Classic (250 C.E-900 C.E) Mayan Collapse Post-Classic period ( 1000-1600 C.E)

  15. Mayan Civilization • Where did Mayan Civilization occur? Southern Mexico: Yucatan peninsula, and modern Chapas, and Tabasco in Mexico

  16. leader nobles Trade/warriors Farmers/slaves Mayan Society • What was life like in the Mayan Civilization? • Land divided into states (major city and surrounding towns) were headed by a ruler who was often a priest

  17. Mayan Society • What was life like in the Mayan Civilization? • Very few people lived in the urban centers • Mostly involved in agriculture

  18. Mayan Society • What was life like in the Mayan Civilization? • Mayan civilization had unique ideas of beauty • Crossed Eyes:Considered particularly beautiful • Babies were given objects to stare at to encourage crossed eyes • High, flat, sloping forehead • Tied boards to babies foreheads

  19. Mayan Beliefs • What did Mayan People believe? • Polytheistic (more than one god) • Gods were not good or evil, • Like Aztecs, religious ceremonies closely tied to natural cycles ( moon phases, seasons, etc.)

  20. Mayan Beliefs • What did the Mayan people believe? • Religious ceremonies consisted of singing, dancing, competitions, dramatic performances, and some human sacrifice • Human sacrifice usually voluntary • Participants gives blood or pieces (arms, tongue, eye, etc) to the god

  21. Mayan Beliefs • What did the Mayan people believe? • Mayan people believed in an afterlife • Heaven was reserved for people who died in sacrifice, childbirth or hanged • Hell or xibal was for everyone else

  22. Mayan Beliefs • What was the role of priests in Mayan society? • Believed priests could talk to gods • Most daily life directed by priests • Decided: when to plant, who could marry, sometimes leaders

  23. Mayan Beliefs • What did Mayan People believe? • Believed in the underworld, the sky and the Earth • Knowing the past meant knowing the cycle of the present and knowing the present provided information for knowing the future • This focus on time led to development of sophisticated calendars and time keepers

  24. End of the Mayan Civilization • Why did the Mayan Civilization end? • It took 170 years for the Spanish to get control of Mayan lands. • Mayans remained independent until the 1700s • Mayan culture, language, and art still practiced

  25. Mayan Civilization • What are some contributions the Mayan civilization made to the world? • Written language • Calendars • Art and architecture • Temple building • City development

  26. Mayan Temples

  27. Inca Civilization

  28. Inca Location • Where was the Inca civilization? Along the coast of South America. Modern Chile, Peru, parts of Argentina and Boliva Andes Mountain Range

  29. Inca Time Period • When was the Inca civilization? • Little historic record of where the Incas came from. • No written language • Cuzco( in modern Peru) is the center. • Incas began spreading out from Cuzco in the 1400s • eventually created one of the largest empires in all of history

  30. leader Royal family Tribal leader Clan leader Common people Inca Society • What was it like to live in Inca Society? • Royal family had absolute power • Relationships within clans based on community and cooperation • Strongly head belief that there is enough for everyone • Conquered people required to pay a labor tax which provided roads and farmlands through the Andes mountains

  31. Inca Society • What was it like to live in Inca society? • Most people lived above 10,000 feet in elevation • Worshiped at over 15,000 ft. in elevation • Difficult today, scientists still wonder how the Incas did it • Clothing made from Alpaca, and lama wool for the cool temperatures at high altitudes

  32. Inca Beliefs • What did Incas believe? • Polytheistic (more than one god) • Gods mostly tied to natural objects or events • Main god- Sun-god • Sun-god was the only god to have temples • Royal family descended from the sun-god • Referred to as “the Giver of Life”

  33. Inca Beliefs • What did the Incas believe? • Worshipped with monthly festivals to honor gods • Human sacrifice rare in Incan Culture • Reserved for major festivals or the crowning of a new emperor

  34. Contributions of Inca Civilization • What contributions did Inca Civilization make? • Engineering • Forts built of cut stone that fit so precisely together they do not require mortar and are still standing in near perfect condition • Highly sophisticated network of roads, more roads than the Romans • Aqueducts and irrigation systems • Advanced Surgery and Medicine • Textiles and Ceramics

  35. Contributions of the Inca Civilization

  36. End of the Inca Civilization • Why did the Inca Civilization end? • Inspired by Cortes’ victory over the Aztecs, Francisco Pizzaro, another Spanish explorer invaded in 1531 with 200 soldiers • Pizzaro captured the Incan ruler and killed him in 1533. • Pizzaro did not gain complete control over the region until the 1560’s.

  37. Macchu Picchu • Probably built at the height of the Incan Empire around 1450 • 7,500 feet above sea level • Self sustaining city • One of the great wonders of the world

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