The Incas: An Ancient Civilization To Be Remembered
Aztecs, Incas, and Mayans, these were three of the largest ancient civilizations in the western hemisphere, beasts of their time. They all had amazing qualities, the Aztecs were the fearsome warriors, the Incas were agricultural geniuses, and the Mayans were impeccable inventors. They all brought so much to the table and left so much behind for us to uncover. But, the question of who truly was the best of these three immaculate cultures? I believe that the Inca civilization is the superior of the three other major civilizations. This is true because of their resourceful farming methods, high-caliber art, and innovational architecture.
The Incas choose to establish themselves on a grand mountain
…show more content…
The Incas art was not just for aesthetic purposes, it was often used in day to day life. They used ceramics to create bowls and dishes, the royalty would only drink out of gold or silver cups, and they would often make bags out of textile. Since at the time they did not have a potter's wheel to assist in the making of ceramics everything was made by hand. The type of pottery they made would often be used to store maize and decorated with abstract plants and geometric designs. The metalwork that the Incas made was mainly for decor or jewelry, they said that gold was the sweat of the sun and silver was the tears of the moon. The rich and royal would only drink out of gold or silver cups and often their shoes had silver …show more content…
The Incas used a wide range of building materials including three types of stones: Yucay limestone, green Sacsayhuaman diorite porphyry, and black andesite. Each block of stone could have weighed many tons. They had to be cut in order to be transported using nothing more than harder stones and bronze tools. Most of the structures were just one room with the outer walls sloping in about 5 degrees to make the walls look higher and thicker then they actually are, this is called ‘the trapezoid form’. In every large Inca settlement there was a structure called a ushnu, this was a sort of platform, that symbolized the Inca state rule across the whole empire and they were used for state-ceremonies, judicial purposes, and processions. Since the Incas never invented the wheel they had no use for roads so instead of traveling along roads they used bridges made of rope and pathways to get from place to place conveniently in the mountains. The Incas had a number of other architectural advancements, but these are just the general ones that the common people would
The Aztec’s and Incas seemed like a very well devoted tribe to one another. Even though they only lived a few thousand miles away from each other and didn’t know about each other they were well known. The artifacts left behind shows that they were very advanced, and the food they ate they knew how to take care of their bodies. The Aztec and Inca’s also knew how to prepare for war also. These two tribes are some of the best warriors known to man.
In the New World were the three main Civilizations, The Aztecs, The Mayans, and the Incas. Even though these civilizations were from the same area, they all have different cultures and thoughts. Many similarities can be found but the differences can be spotted when the cultures are looked at in depth.
The Aztecs and Incas served an important role in the primal Native American civilizations. They were similar and different with the treatment of women, the economy, and intellectual achievements. Economically, both civilizations used trade, tribute, and agriculture to build their economy. However, the Aztecs had a more mixed economy, used trade more frequently than the Incas, and had a merchant class whereas the Incan civilization had more governmental control. Intellectually, both civilizations achieved in fields such as architecture, and art; however, the Incan empire had a wider range of achievements, disregarding their lack of writing. Throughout both civilizations, women had a tough life and were underappreciated but comparing the two, Incan women had it better off due to parallel descent.
Artifacts such as vases and pots were left behind in the Incan provincial centers. The Incan pottery was not only manufactured by the Inca empire but traded among the “distant regions through state channels”(Gyarmati) as well. The discoveries regarding “Paria’s size and density of surface finds with the settlement sizes and the finds densities of the Late Intermediate Period”(Gyarmati) reveal the immense growth of demand for Incan pottery
The Aztec Empire was one of the strongest if not the strongest civilizations in the Americas. It is a testament of how a strong foundation from the ground up can result in a grand thing.
All things considered, I think the Inca contributed more to the modern day culture because it seems as though the Inca society of then is more like Latin America culture now minus the technology.*/textarea**/form**/center**/body**/html*
In conclusion you can see how different the Inca and Aztec civilizations were, from government, to economy, and cultural to even human sacrificing. They were very
The Incas are much more advanced. Labor specialization was common, especially in the large densely populated areas like Cuzco. The Incas made roads, irrigation channels, fortresses, and mines. They used crop rotation, terracing and other advanced agricultural methods. These civilizations had retainers and all had slaves, usually slaves from other villages that they had fought in wars.
Art in the Aztec empire came from a long line of history. The history was made from many different tribes. It is known that “most of the historical and archaeological testimonies of ancient Mexico come from the Aztec world and, in particular, its capital city, Mexico City- Tenochtitlan” (Brumfiel & Feinman, 2008, 153). The techniques used in the Aztec art were influenced by years of artistry. Ancient Aztec art was usually traded from countries nearby. Aztecs took pride in creating very beautiful pottery. The Aztecs, were thought to have originated as a nomadic tribe in Northern Mexico. The Aztecs considered their “own household wares to be less fine than Mixteca-Puebla pottery” (Pasztory, 1998, p. 292). There is a lot to be known about the ancient Aztec Pottery.
This primary source tells the reader a great deal about the Incas. The Incas were extremely wealthy. Most of the document tells the reader about the wealth and riches of the Incas, describing their wealth in depth. Jobs in the Incas’ society included many lavish occupations. “[M]any silversmiths who did nothing but work rich pieces of gold or fair vessels of silver; large garrisons were stationed there, and a steward who was in charge of them all” (Pedro). The Incas were organized and intelligent. Large armies were set up to protect their villages, and they had plenty of silver and gold to experiment with and create new beautiful objects. They used their systems to create a fair,
middle of paper ... ... The Aztecs were defeated, partially because they had been weakened by smallpox, but also because the Spanish fought together as a single force, while Aztecs fought as individuals (Schweikart 6-7). These three civilizations were focused on their religions, causing some similarities. They all built cities as religious centers.
In order to build this city, the Incans used stone tools, bronze tools, and chisels. The materials they used were mud, clay, adobe, and granite blocks. Each block weighed fifty tons! They would thatch the roofs with tree trunks and straw. After the buildings were constructed, the Incan people would smooth the stones with sand, mud, and clay to make the structures look polished.
Cultures vary over different times and locations because of the different environmental and political pressures that are at play in each different situation. For material culture, the resources available and the local geography determine the architecture of a society, what forms of artistry and tools they can make, and the physical aspects of their livelihoods. For example, the monolithic carving of Mount Rushmore would not be possible without the large granite mountains of the Black Hills. Due to the mountainous terrain of southern Mexico, Central America, and western South America, the Maya and Inca civilizations developed systems of terrace farming, as opposed to the sprawling manors and feudal farming communities that emerged in the vast
The Maya civilization is a very important culture that has left a great impact on our world today. They are known for their written language, art, mathematical system and astronomical system. The Maya territory includes Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Belize, and southern Mexico. In these areas the Maya thrived in their religious practices, politics, and their use of the territory.