Unit 9 PowerPoint

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 1 Unit 9: Early American Civilizations

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 2 Olmec Head The word Olmec comes from an Aztec term for the peoples living in southern Veracruz and western Tabasco, Mexico, between about 1500 and 300 B.C.E. All later Mesoamerican cultures derived from the Olmecs. Measuring 9 feet, 4 inches in height, and over 10 tons in weight, this colossal basalt head monument from San Lorenzo is a superb example of Olmec sculpture intended as architecture. The facial features have led some scholars to suggest African influences, but that hypothesis has not been proven.

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 3 Ancient Peruvian Textile In the early Chavin civilization of Peru, the women weavers developed new raw materials, techniques, and decorative motifs. They began to use the wool of llamas and alpacas in addition to cotton. Limitations to the width of woven fabric imposed by the back-strap loom were overcome by having three women work side by side and pass the weft from hand to hand. These women weavers both wove designs into the fabric and used paint or dyes to decorate plain fabric. This early Chavin painted fabric--decorated with a new religious motif of the jaguar-god--was used in a burial. The high-quality textiles of the Chavin were given as tribute to the elite and were used in trade to acquire luxury goods as well as dyes and metals.

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 4 Palace Doorway Lintel, Maya At the peak of their civilization (ca. 600-699), the Maya attained a level of intellectual and artistic development equaled by no other Amerindian people. They developed a sophisticated system of writing; invented a calendar more accurate than the European Gregorian calendar; and made advances in mathematics that Europeans did not match for several centuries. Archaeologists have uncovered several Maya sites in Mexico and modern Guatemala. A bas-relief on a palace doorway lintel at Yaxchilan, Mexico, depicts Lady Xoc, principal wife of King Shield-Jaguar (who holds a torch over her), pulling a thorn-lined rope through her tongue to sanctify the birth of a younger wife's child with her blood. This scene reflects the importance of blood sacrifice in Maya culture. The elaborate headdresses and clothes of the couple show their royal status.

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 5 Great Plaza at Tikal Still visible in the ruins of Tikal, in modern Guatemala, are the impressive architectural and artistic achievements of the classic-era Maya. Maya centers provided a dramatic setting for the rituals that dominated public life. Construction of Tikal began before 150 B.C.E.; the city was abandoned about 900 C.E. A ball court and residences for the elite were part of the Great Plaza.

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 6 Ballgame Mesoamerican people used rubber for many, varied purposes, and codex drawings depict rubber offering balls in the hands of gods and officiating priests. The ritual ballgame, too, has strong religious connotations and was practiced by various Mesoamerican societies. In this rolled-out version of a Maya cylinder vessel, two elaborately outfitted players are captured in mid-volley in this extraordinary ballgame scene. To the right of the first player is a feathered shield, probably a movable ballcourt marker.

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 7 Mochica Earring Elites of the Moche period (c. 200 B.C.E.– 500 C.E.) on the northern coast of Peru commissioned vast quantities of jewelry. This gold and turquoise earring depicts a warrior-priest wearing an owl-head necklace, holding a removable war club (right hand) and shield (left hand), and flanked by attendants. Peanuts had recently been domesticated in the area, and the peanut beading around the edge suggests the leader's power over natural fertility in an agriculturally marginal region. The reverse side is of silver .

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 8 Mesa Verde Cliff Dwelling Located in southern Colorado, the Anasazi cliff dwellings of Mesa Verde hosted a population of about 7,000 in 1250. The construction of housing complexes and religious buildings in the area's large caves was probably prompted by increased warfare in the region.

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 9 Great Serpent Mound The mound-building cultures began around 1300 B.C.E. The Ohio and Mississippi Valleys contain the richest concentration of mounds, which differ in shape, size, and purpose. This 1,254-foot-long mound, near the town of Adena, Ohio, was probably built between 600 B.C.E. and 200 C.E. Known as the Great Serpent Mound, it was in the form of a writhing snake with its "head" at the highest point, suggesting an open mouth ready to swallow a huge egg formed by a heap of stones.

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 10 Tenochtitlan The great Mexican archaeologist Ignacio Marquina designed this reconstruction of the central plaza of the Mexican city of Tenochtitlan as it looked in 1519. The temple precinct, an area about 500 square yards, contained more than eighty structures, pyramids, pools, and homes of gods and of the men and women who served them. Accustomed to the clutter and filth of Spanish cities, the Spaniards were amazed at the elegance and cleanliness of Tenochtitlan when they entered the city (which they called Mexico City) in November of 1519.

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 11 Goddess Tlazolteotl The Aztecs controlled much of central Mexico in 1519. Religion was the dynamic factor that transformed other aspects of their culture, and they had many gods. The Aztecs believed that Tlazolteotl (sometimes called "Mother of the Gods") consumed the sins of humankind by eating refuse. As the goddess of childbirth, Tlazolteotl was extensively worshipped. Notice the squatting position for childbirth, then common all over the world.

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 12 Aztec Youth As shown in this codex, Aztec society had basic learning requirements for each age (indicated by dots) of childhood and youth. In the upper panel, boys of age 13 gather firewood and collect reeds and herbs in a boat, while girls learn to make tortillas on a terra-cotta grill. At the age of 14 (lower panel), boys learn to fish from a boat, and girls are taught to weave.

Aztec youth: 

13 | 13 Aztec youth In addition to its religious significance, human sacrifice eliminated potential enemies while ensuring obedience. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 14 Inca Tunic Like the Aztecs, the Incas were a small militaristic group that established one of the most extraordinary empires in the world. Gradually, Inca culture spread throughout Peru; roads built by the Incas linked most of the Andean region. Weavers in this region produced beautiful textiles from cotton and from the wool of llamas and alpacas. The Inca inherited this rich craft tradition and produced some of the world's most remarkable textiles. The quality and design of each garment indicated the weaver's rank and power in this society. This tunic was an outer garment for a powerful male.

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 15 Machu Picchu In May 1536 Inca Mancu Yupanque led a massive revolt against the Spanish and then led his people to Machu Picchu, deep in the Valcahamba range of the Andes. The citadel of Machu Picchu, surrounded by mountains in the clouds, clings to a spectacular crag in upland Peru. It was discovered in 1911 by the young American explorer Hiram Bingham. Its origin and the reason for its abandonment remain unknown.

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 16 Pachacuti Inca, from de Ayala In this drawing from Nueva Coronica y Buen Gobierno, by Guaman Poma de Ayala, we see Pachacuti Inca at the height of his powers. Revered as a great conqueror and lawgiver, Pachacuti Inca here wears the sacred fringed headband symbolizing his royal authority, and the large earrings of the oregones (nobility).

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 17 Olmec and Chavín Civilizations The regions of Mesoamerica (most of modern Mexico and Central America) and the Andean highlands of South America have hosted impressive civilizations since early times.

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 18 Major Mesoamerican Civilizations, 1000 B.C.E.-1519 From their island capital of Tenochtitlan, the Aztecs militarily and commercially dominated a large region. Aztec achievements were built on the legacy of earlier civilizations such as the Olmecs and Maya.

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 19 Andean Civilizations, 200 B.C.E. - 1532 In response to environmental challenges posed by an arid coastal plain and high interior mountain ranges, Andean peoples made complex social and technological adaptations. Irrigation systems, the domestication of the llama, metallurgy, and shared labor obligations helped provide a firm economic foundation for powerful, centralized states. In 1532 the Inca Empire's vast territory stretched from modern Chile in the south to Columbia in the north.

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 20 The Maya World, 300-900 Archaeologists have discovered the ruins of dozens of Maya city-states. Only the largest of them are shown here. Called the "Greeks of the New World," the Maya perfected the only written language in the Western Hemisphere, developed a sophisticated political system and a flourishing trade network, and created elegant art.

PowerPoint Presentation: 

13 | 21 The Aztec Empire, 1519 The Aztecs controlled much of central Mexico. The Maya survived in the Yucatan peninsula and some of the present day Guatemala. Notice the number of cities.