The Americas
Skyler Hunter & Kennedy Eckels
The New World
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A land bridge was once exposed
between northwestern Alaska and
northeastern Asia because of
glacial ice during the last ice age
(which began about 2.5 million
years ago)
12,000-30,000 years ago,
Paleolithic hunter-gatherers
crossed this bridge and spread out
into two main, uninhabited areas
– Central America
– South America
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New cultures began to develop
BERING STRAIT
The New World
• Paleo-Indians in the
Western Hemisphere
were essentially isolated
after the glacial ice
retreated, destroying the
land bridge
• Now that they were cut
off from contact with
other civilizations, they
were able to establish
their own
• Domestication of some
animals
– Turkeys
– Guinea Pigs
– Llamas, Alpacas,
Guanacos, Vicuñas
– Dogs
• Transition from hunting to agriculture
with the cultivation of
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Corn
Beans
Squash
Potatoes
Tabacco
Cacoa (Chocolate)
Tomatoes
Avocados
• The shift to an agricultural lifestyle
– fostered population growth
– brought rise to hierarchal societies
– founded ceremonial centers and
towns with monumental architecture
– Helped the development of sculpture,
ceramics, and other arts
MESOAMERICA
CENTRAL AMERICA
SOUTH AMERICA
Mesoamerican Time Periods
• “Formative” or “Preclassic” (1500 BCE – 300 CE)
– Olmec dominated
• “Classic” (300-900 CE)
– Maya flourished
– Teotihuacán flourished
• “Postclassic” (900-1500 CE)
– Itza rose to prominence
* You should probably write down the bolded information above
Mesoamerica
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Encompasses the area north of the
valley of Mexico, or Mexico City, to
modern day Belize, Honduras, and
western Nicaragua in Central America
A region of greatly contrasting
climates, ranging from tropical rain
forest to semiarid mountains
Reflecting the physical diversity of
the lands, the civilizations established
throughout Mesoamerica widely
varied
Each civilization remained connected
through a network of long-distance
and local trade
Mesoamerican society was sharply
divided into elite and commoner
classes
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Common features among the
differing cultures include, but are not
limited to:
– A calendrical system based on
interlocking 260-day and 365-day
cycles
– A ritual ball game known as,
“The Cosmic Ball Game”
– Aspects of the construction of
monumental ceremonial centers
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Transition to farming began between
7000 and 6000 BCE
By 3000-2000 BCE, settled villages
were widespread
Mesoamericans developed writing,
astronomy, a complex and accurate
calendar, and a sophisticated system
of mathematics
The Cosmic Ball Game
• Generally played on a long, rectangular court with a large, solid, heavy
rubber ball
• Objective: direct the ball toward a goal or marker
– elbows, knees, and hips  no hands
– The rules, court size/shape, number of players on a team, and nature of
the goal varied among different Mesoamerican peoples
• The game was a defining characteristic of Mesoamerican society
• It had profound religious and political significance and was often a subject
of Mesoamerican art
– The movement of the ball represented celestial bodies  the sun, moon,
and stars
• The largest surviving ball court is at Chichen Itza and
– is about the size of a modern football field
– has large, stone ring goals set in the walls of either side of the court, about
25 feet above the field
The Olmec
• The first major Mesoamerican art style, that of the Olmec, emerged
during the Formative/Preclassic period.
• The Olmec cleared farmland, drained fields, and raised earth mound on
which they constructed religious and political ceremonial centers.
• Ceremonial Center: In the prehistoric New World, a ceremonial center
was a complex of buildings or structures that served as the focus of
religious and governmental activities, On-site living was for VIP’s only;
that includes ruler-priests, certain elites, and their retainers.
• The presence of goods such as obsidian, iron ore, and jade (all of which
are not native to the Gulf of Mexico) at Olmec sites indicates that they
participated in extensive long-distance trade; this is supported by Olmec
art found in places as far away as Costa Rica and Central Mexico.
• As agriculture took a deeper root in daily life and their survival, the
Olmec’s religious beliefs shifted from highly shamanistic practices to
rituals for controlling the sun and rain, which they became more and
more dependent upon.
Great Pyramid and Ball Court
• May have been
intended to
resemble a volcanic
mountain, but its
present form may
be the result of
erosion from the
regions heavy rains
• Stands at south end
of a large, open
court
• Possibly used as a
playing field
La Venta, Mexico
900-600 BCE
Approx. 100 ft.
Colossal Head
• Basalt boulders were
mysteriously transported to
the Gulf Coast from the
Tuxtla Mts. (60 mi. inland)
without the use of wheels or
beasts of burden
• Carved with stone tools
• 4/9 Colossal Heads
• Each head is distinguishably
different from the others
• They were likely carved to
commemorate various
Olmec rulers
• Similar sculptures found at
San Lorenzo, Veracruz
La Venta, Mexico
900 BCE
Medium: Basalt
 8 ft. in diameter, 7½ ft. tall
La Venta Park, Villahermosa, Tabasco, Mexico
City of Teotihuacán
City of Teotihuacán
• Rapid growth of the city began in
the 1st millennium CE
• By 200 CE, the city had emerged
as a significant center of
commerce, and manufacturing
• It was the first large city-state in
the Americas
• Maintained control over a source
of high-quality obsidian
• The city became the destination
for the trade and exchange of
goods throughout Mesoamerica
• Goods included:
– obsidian tools and pottery
– luxury items such as
• the brilliant green feathers
of the quetzal bird (used for
priestly headdresses)
• the spotted fur of the jaguar
(used particularly for
ceremonial garments)
• Worshipped two primary gods:
– the goggle-eyed Storm God
– the Great Goddess, an earthsurface and groundwater
deity
City of Teotihuacán
• The city’s farmers terraced
hillsides and drained swamps,
which they then used to grow
common Mesoamerican staples
such as corn, squash, and beans.
• They also fermented pulque from
the fruit of the spikey-leafed
maguey plant to create a mildly
alcoholic brew.
• It is unclear as to what happened
or why, but sometime in the
middle of the 8th century, disaster
struck Teotihuacán; the
ceremonial center burned and
the city went into a permanent
decline.
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Although the city died out, it
continued to influence other
northern Mesoamerican centers for
several centuries.
The site has never become
completely abandoned, though.
Today it is a tourist hotspot and has
remained a legendary pilgrimage
center.
The later civilization of the Aztec
greatly revered the site, as they
believed it to be the place where the
gods created the sun and the moon.
The city’s name, “Teotihuacán,” is an
Aztec word meaning, “The City
[Gathering Place] of the Gods.”
Pyramid of the Sun
Avenue of the Dead
206ft 8in
3 mi.
500 CE
Viewed from the Pyramid of the Moon
Teotihuacán
FUN FACT: The Pyramid of the Sun at
Mexico’s Teotihuacan, lies at the center of
a complex of pyramids, each aligned with a
planet in the solar system.
Temple of the Feathered Serpent
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The Rain God and the Feathered Serpent may represent alternating wet and dry
seasons and may be symbols of regeneration and cyclical renewal.
Painted reliefs of the Feathered Serpent, the goggle-eyed Rain God
250 CE
Huge round eyes originally inlaid with obsidian
The Ciudadela, Teotihuacán
Maguey Bloodletting Ritual
Teotihuacan, Mexico,
600-750CE
Pigment on lime plaster
32.25 in x 45.25 in
• An Elaborately dressed man
impersonating the storm
God enriches and revitalizes
the earth with his own
blood
• Head-dress indicates high
rank
• Speech scroll emerging
from his open mouth
Suggests that the man’s
priestly office and chanted
words are essential
elements of the ceremony
The Maya
• Homeland includes Guatemala, the Yucatan peninsula, Belize, and the
northwestern part of Honduras
• Noted for many achievements including
– developing the most advanced hieroglyphic writing in Mesoamerica
– developing the most sophisticated version of the Mesoamerican
calendrical system
– documenting meticulously with stelai, books, ceramic vessels, wall
paintings, etc.
– developing the mathematical concepts of zero and place value
• Studied astronomy and the natural cycles of plants and animals
• Rulers established their legitimacy, maintained links with their
ancestors, and sustained the gods through elaborate rituals,
bloodletting ceremonies, and human sacrifices
• A complex pantheon of deities , many with several manifestations,
presided over the Maya universe
Base of North Acropolis
• Part of the
ceremonial core
of Tikal
• Early Classical
Period
• Contains many
royal tombs
• Built on top of
earlier structures
of the city dating
back to 500 BCE
Tikal, Guatemala
5th century CE
Temple of the Giant Jaguar
Tikal,
Guatemala
700 CE
140 ft. tall
• The tomb of Ah
Hasaw
• Faces Temple II
• Limestone
bedrock
• Nine levels
• Reflects the
nine layers of
the underworld
• Corbel vaults
Palace
• A series of buildings
on two levels around
three open courts
• May have been an
administrative building
Palenque, Mexico
600-900 CE
(Pyramid: 75 ft.)
Tomb of Lord Pacal
• 9 levels, similar to Temple 1
• AKA the “Temple of Inscriptions”
• Shrine
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Vaulted Chamber
Stucco Façade
Named after 3 large inscriptions on the back
Stairs descended 80 ft. and lead to the
underground tomb of Lord Pacal
Sarcophagus Lid
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Low relief
Lord Pacal is laying on a creature that
represents the setting sun and is, therefore,
like the setting sun
Sacred Tree of the Maya
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Vertical line across the lid is a fourth element
that joins the three levels of the Olmec
universe
Shifts from bottom to top as materialistic to
spiritual
• Roots = earth
• Trunk = world
• Branches = support heavens
Bird monster that ruled the sky
Ancestors witness death and apotheosis
In the tomb of Lord Pacal
683 CE
Medium: Limestone
12 ft. 6 in x 7 ft.
Portrait of Lord Pacal
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Found with his sarcophagus
Wearing a diadem of jade and
flowers
Nose enhanced with a ornamental
bridge
Characteristics of Maya ideal beauty
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Full lips
Open mouth
Large curved nose
Sloping forehead and elongated skull
Like most Maya culture, it was
colorfully painted
Stucco and red paint
Palenque, Mexico
Mid-7th Century CE
16 ⅞ in
Currently at the Museo Nacional
de Antropología, Mexico City
Comparison
Colossal Head
Portrait of Lord Pacal
Cylindrical Vessel
600-900 CE
Maya Culture
Painted Ceramic
6½ x 8⅜ in
Currently at The Art Museum,
Princeton University, New Jersey
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May illustrate an episode from the Maya sacred
text “Popol Vuh”
Hero Twins overcome death by defeating the lords
of Xibalba, the Mayan underworld
– Xibalba sits on platform with five female deities attending
to him
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Inscriptions have not been entirely translated
Pyramid “El Castillo”
• Different than previous
pyramids– uses pillars and
columns (look like inverted
descending serpents)
• Appears lower and broader
• Colored relief sculpture and
animal paintings
– Emphasize valiant warriors and
ball playing
• Mayan architecture
• 800-1000CE
• Post classical period (when
the Itza rose to power)
• During spring and fall
equinoxes, entering the setting
sun casts serpent bodies
Chacmool -represents fallen warriors
Central America: Diquis
• Lived in extended family groups led by chiefs
• Notable example: Diquis Culture
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Developed in present-day Costa Rica
700 CE - 1500 CE
Fortified villages in constant warfare
No monumental sculptures or architecture
Produced featherwork, ceramics, textiles, gold objects
Metallurgy is HUGE here
“Lost-Wax Casting” began in present-day Columbia
around 300-500 BCE and spread north to Diquis
Shaman with Drum and Snake
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Male figure wearing bracelets, anklets,
and a belt with a snake headed penis
sheath
Playing a drum while holding the tail of
a snake in his teeth and its head in his
left hand
The wavy forms with serpent heads
emerging from his scalp suggest an
elaborate headdress
The creatures emerging from his legs
suggest some kind of reptile costume
The inverted triangles on the headrest
probably represent birds tales
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Resides in Costa Rica
13-16 century
Gold
4¼ in x 3¼ in
Now in Costa Rica
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And Diquis mythology serpents and
crocodiles in habited a lower world
Humans and birds a higher one
He could be Transforming himself into a
composite serpent bird or performing a
ritual snake dance surrounded by
serpents or crocodiles
South America: The Central Andes
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Like Mesoamerica, the central Andes of South America saw the development
of hierarchical societies
The narrow coastal plain, bordered by Pacific Ocean to the west and Andes
Mountains to the east, is one of the driest deserts in the world
Life is dependent upon marine resources of the Pacific and the rivers that
descend from the Andes
Andes are made up of snowcapped peaks, high grasslands, steep slopes, and
deep, fertile river valleys
The high grasslands are home to the Andean camelids that have served for
thousands of years as beasts of burden and a source of wool and meat
In 2nd millennium BCE, herding and agriculture became prevalent in the
highlands
Between 1000 and 200 BCE an art style associated with the northern highland
site of Chavin de Huantar (suspected to involve an influential religious cult)
spread through the Andes; this era is known as the Early Horizon
Paracas
Culture
• Flourished from about 1000
BCE to 200 CE
• Best known for stunning
textiles which were found
in cemeteries, wrapped in
many layers around the
dead
• Some bodies were found
wrapped n as many as 200
pieces of cloth
• Designs on Paracas textiles
include repeated
embroidered figures of
warriors, dancers, and
composite creatures such
as bird-people
Nazca
Culture
• Dominated the south coast
of Peru from 200 BCE to 600
CE
• Overlapped Paracas culture
• Nazca artisans continued to
weave fine fabrics, but also
produced multicolored
pottery with painted and
modeled images that were
reminiscent of Paracas
textiles
• Best known for geoglyphs
Mantle With Bird Impersonators
From Paracas peninsula
50-100 CE
Camelid fiber, plain stich with stem-stich embroidery
40 in x 7 ft 11 in
• Culture flourished from 1000
BCE to 200 CE, overlapping
Chavin period
• Used tiny overlapping stitches
to create colorful patterns
• Found in cemeterys wrapped
in many layers around the dad
• Textiles where a source of
prestige and wealth
• Featured repeating
embroidered patterns of
warriors, dancers, and
composite creatures (bird
people)
Earth Drawing of a Hummingbird
Nazca Plain, Southwest Peru
Around 500 CE
Rocks
900 ft. long
Nazca
• Earth drawing of a hummingbird
• Nazca geoglyph 100 BCE- 700 CE
• Naca’s dominated the south coast of Peru from 200 BCE
to 600 CE
• Best know for geoglyphs
• Made on great stretches of desert by removing dark
stones and exposing the light underlying stones
• Each geoglyph was maintained by a clan and at certain
times clans would gather and exchange goods and look
for marriage partners
• Purpose is unclear
The Moche Culture
• Dominated north coast of Peru from the Piura Valley to the
Huarmey Valley (370 miles) between 200 BCE and 600 CE
• Lords ruled each valley in this region from a ceremonialadministrative center
• Moche were exceptional potters and metalsmiths
• They developed ceramic molds, which allowed them to
mass-produce some pieces
• Vessels were made in the shape of naturalistically modeled
human beings, animals, and architectural structures
• Recorded mythological narratives and ritual scenes in
intricate fine-line painting
• Similar scenes were painted on the walls of temples and
administrative buildings
Moche Lord with a Feline
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Moche Valley, Peru
100 BCE – 500 CE
Painted Ceramic
7½ in
Wears and Elaborate headdress and
large ears spools and strokes a cat or
a jaguar cub
The stirrup, or U shaped spout,
appears on many high-quality moche
vessels
Considered luxury items of high
status
Paintings indicate they were used in
Moche riturals
A Central theme in moche
iconography is the sacrifice ceremony
in which prisoners captured in battle
are sacrificed and several elaborately
dressed figures drink their blood
Buried with its owner in ceromony
Earspool
• Earspool
• Common decorative pieces
among Moche people
• Inserted through holes of
earlobes
– Stretched earlobes
– Worn in pairs
– Held in place by thread
Spain, Peru
Gold with terquoise, quartz, and shell
5 in diameter
2-5 century CE
• (center) Crescent shaped nose
ornament and carries a gold
club and shield
• Wears a necklace of owls head
beads
• Very detailed
North America
• North America, unlike South America and
Mesoamerica, was sparsely populated
• People mainly lived by hunting, fishing, and
gathering edible plants
• A more settled way of life began to emerge near the
Mississippi and Missouri river systems
• By 1000 BCE, people began to cultivate squash,
sunflowers, and other plants to supplement their
diet of game, fish, and berries
Beaver Effigy Platform Pipe
4 9/16 in x 1 7/8 in x 2 in
100 – 200 CE
Pipestone, river pearl, and bone
• Used in trade and social
groupings
• Realism and stylized
simplification
• Beaver crouching on platform
• Pearl eyes represent a spirit
world creature
• Leaves are placed in the
beavers back and then smoked
from the back end
The Mound Builders
• Sometime before 1000 BCE, people living in the river
valleys of the American East began building
monumental earthworks, or mounds, and burying
their leaders with valuable grave goods
Great Serpent Mound
Ohio, Adams Country
1070 CE
Approx. 1,254 ft
• Worlds largest effigy
mound
• Mounds of clay rock
covered by soil
• The serpent appears
to open its Jaws to
swallow an
enormous egg
followed by heap of
stones
Reconstruction of Central Cahokin
• East St. Louis, Illinois
• The sites most prominent
feature it’s a giant earth hill
covering 15 acres the location
of the mound
• the axis of the ceremonial
center is dominated were
established during The early
part of the city’s occupation
• the most construction
occurred later between about
1050 and 1200
Pelican Figurehead
• Decorative architectural
element possibly part of the
shrine
• once had wings
– found elsewhere later
disintegrated
Florida Glades Culture
Key Maroco
1000 CE
Wood and paint
4⅜ in x 2⅜ in x 3⅛ in
The University Museum of archaeology and
anthropology, Philadelphia
• clan symbols for a bird or
animal colt other animals
– sea turtle, alligator, Fish
Hawk, owl, bear, crap, wolf