January 27, 2010
DO NOW! DESCRIBE THE
SIGNIFICANCE OF SACRIFICE TO
THE PEOPLE OF THE AMERICAS
Architecture
Written and Oral Traditions
Calendars and Numbers
DESCRIBE THE PURPOSES OF EACH OF
THESE STRUCTURES...
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
OF THE AMERICAS
7.7.4-7.7.5
HOUSE
CHURCH
SCHOOL
January 27, 2010
WHAT WERE THE MANY PURPOSES
OF THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE
AMERICAS?
PYRAMID STRUCTURES WERE USED
FOR RELIGIOUS CEREMONIES AND
RITUALS, AND TO HONOR THEIR GODS
El Castillo - Chichen Itza
Temple of the Sun - Tenochtitlan
THESE TEMPLE PYRAMIDS WERE ALMOST ALWAYS BUILT
DIRECTLY IN THE CENTER OF CITIES. ALL MEMBERS OF
SOCIETY WERE REQUIRED TO ATTEND CEREMONIES
TIKAL
January 27, 2010
MACCHU PICCHU
TENOCHTITLAN
Built on a mountain top!
Chinampas (floating
gardens)
MANY PYRAMIDS AND OBSERVATORIES
WERE BUILT TO OBSERVE THE HEAVENS.
THE KNOWLEDGE GAINED WAS USED TO
PREDICT CELESTIAL EVENTS AND
CREATE THE SOLAR CALENDAR.
El Caracol - Chichen Itza
Griffith Observatory - LA
PYRAMIDS SUCH AS EL CASTILLO IN
CHICHEN ITZA WERE STANDING
CALENDARS THEMSELVES
SPRING EQUINOX
January 27, 2010
TEMPLES AND PYRAMIDS COULD ALSO
BE USED AS TOMBS FOR DECEASED
LEADERS, OR IN THE CASE OF THE
INCA...MUMMIFIED LEADERS!!!
BESIDES HOMES, ALL STRUCTURES WERE
BUILT FROM STONE. SACSAYHUAMAN
(SASSHUAMAN) A FORT IN THE INCA
EMPIRE WAS BUILT ENTIRELY WITHOUT
MORTAR. ***MORTAR IS THAT STUFF THAT
HOLDS BRICK TOGETHER
QUICK CHECK: Describe some of the
main functions and characteristics of the
architecture of the Americas.
HOW DID THE PEOPLE OF THE
AMERICAS RECORD IDEAS AND PASS
DOWN THEIR HISTORY?
INCA
HIGHLIGHT ONE WORD FROM EACH OF
YOUR NOTES FIRST
With your partner, sketch your own
sacred building. Describe its
significance. What is it used for?
Who does it honor? Etc.
MAYA
AZTEC
January 27, 2010
HIEROGLYPHICS (MAYAN)
-WRITING SYSTEM THAT USES
SYMBOLS TO REPRESENT
WORDS, SOUNDS, AND IDEAS
PICTOGRAPHS (AZTECS)
-PICTURES THAT REPRESENT
IDEAS OF OBJECTS
Mayan Number System - used for
mathematics and recording astronomical
observations
QUIPUS
(INCA)
-NOT A WRITING SYSTEM
-USED TO HELP REMEMBER
ORAL MESSAGES WITH
DIFFERENT COLORED ROPES
AND SERIES OF KNOTS
January 27, 2010
APPLY:
With your small group, create a
system of writing using either symbols
or markings. Write a main idea
statement about the Americas using
your system.
Do Now!
Create a glyph to represent one
idea you have learned about with
the Americas. On front of your
post it draw the glyph, on back
describe what your glyph
represents.
WHAT IS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE
MAYAN AND AZTEC CALENDARS?
MAYAN SACRED ROUND
THE SUN STONE CIRCA 1500
THE SOLAR CALENDAR HELPED THE PEOPLE OF THE
AMERICAS TO TRACK SEASONAL CHANGES AND
HELPED THEIR AGRICULTURAL TECHNIQUES.
January 27, 2010
THE MAYA WERE THE FIRST TO
DEVELOP A CALENDAR THAT
ACCURATELY TRACKED THE 365 DAYS
OF THE YEAR.
EACH DAY WAS
ASSIGNED A NUMBER
AND A DAY NAME
THE AZTECS LATER ADOPTED THE
MAYAN SOLAR CALENDAR.
THEY ALSO DIVIDED THE SOLAR
YEAR BETWEEN 12 ASTROLOGICAL
SIGNS
THE MAYAN SACRED ROUND WAS ONLY
READ BY PRIESTS
LETS PUT YOUR KNOWLEDGE OF
THE SACRED CALENDAR TO THE
TEST....
CAN YOU THINK LIKE A MAYAN
PRIEST AND MAKE PREDICTIONS
FOR THE FOLLOWING EVENTS?
THE COMBINATIONS OF DAY
NUMBERS AND GLYPH NAMES
WERE INTERPRETED TO
DETERMINE GOOD AND BAD
OMENS (NUMBERS 1-13 W/ 20
DAY GLYPHS
Each glyph had a
special meaning
(Described on Guide to
the Glyphs)