The Mayan Civilization was a very well developed civilization. Their way of life and how they survived is remarkable. The Mayans created several things that we use today. This civilization started small and expanded to a culture that still exists. The Mayans had strong beliefs in their gods. The Mayan civilization began in South America. There are several states that are linked to the Mayans in South America. “ Present day southern Mexico, Guatemala, western Honduras, El Salvador, and northern Belize” (Maya History 1). The Mayans are well known for having nice decorated temples and pyramids. “Mayans were noted for having elaborate and highly decorated ceremonial architecture, including temple-pyramids, palaces and observatories, all built …show more content…
They later flourished in different regions. They were classified into seven different periods. “The Archaic period ascended from 7000-2000 BCE” (Maya Civilization 1). This period was a hunter-gather period. They were well known for growing several crops. Agriculture was the center of this periods life. The domestication of animals also arose during this period. “ Maize, beans, plants and the domestication of dogs and turkeys were practiced during this time” (Maya Civilization 1). “The Olmec period arose from 1500-200 BCE” (Maya Civilization 1). This period was also known as the “Pre-Classic or Formative Period” (Maya Civilization 1). This civilization moved from location. they settled in the Gulf of Mexico. The Olmecs brought something else to the table. They started building cities of stone and brick. “ Olmec heads strongly suggest highly sophisticated skill in sculpture” ( Maya Civilization …show more content…
In this period they started creating games. “ The very important ball game, known as Poc-a-Toc was developed” (Mayan Civilization 2). This game symbolized “human struggle and reflected the way the Maya viewed existence” (Maya Civilization 4). The last two periods of the Mayan Civilization were the “Classical Maya Period from 250-950 CE” (Maya Civilization 2). This period was known for perfecting past methods that were invented by past civilizations. “ Perfected mathematics, astronomy, architecture, visual arts, and also refined and perfected the calendar” (Mayan Civilization 2). After the Classical Period, was the “Post Classic Period from 950-1524 CE” (Mayan Civilization 2). This period was more of the decline of the Mayan
It is very likely that most people have heard about the Mayan Civilization in one way or another. Whether fictitious or factual, this ancient culture iw idelt recognized. The Mayan people lived from about 250 to 900 CE in Mesoamerica. Which includes modern day Belize, Honduras, Guatemala, and parts of southern Mexico.These people had many remarkable achievements, all of which can fit under the categories of scale, genius effort, and significance. These achievements include an advanced trade system, an amazing understanding of numbers, and the ability to design and build cities that are still mostly standing today. However, their most impressive achievement is their complex calendars.
The Maya and Aztec civilizations were both indigenous people that flourished in Mesoamerica during different periods of time. Maya 's classic period is dated from 250 to 900 AD, which was considered to be the peak of their civilization. They covered much of the Yucatan Peninsula and were centered in what is now known as Guatemala. The Aztecs dominated from 1325 AD to 1521 AD, in what is now modern day Mexico. Although they shared cultural similarities such as their social structure, they also had their differences in military and religious rituals.
However, it is clear that they derived influence from each other. This paper provides an insight into how these cultural arts are strikingly similar yet different in their own way. The Maya Civilization This was the first civilization of the Mesoamerica. It was developed by the people of Maya between the period of 800 BC and 900 AD (Maya Art History, 2016). Maya civilization is widely acknowledged for its development of a full writing system known as the hieroglyphic script, and the development of remarkable systems of astronomy, architecture, art, mathematics and calendar (Maya Art History, 2016).
The ancient Mayans were a very well developed society with a very accurate calendar, skilled architects, artisans, extensive traders and hunters. They are known to have developed medicine and astronomy as well. All of this was developed while the Europeans were still in the Dark Ages.
For example, they used them for time, like to calculate the time of day. The Mayans built stronger buildings and cities than the Egyptians ever could, which is amazing to me considering how the Egyptians were able to build huge pyramids, but not a building. The Mayans also had to worry about floods that would flood their entire farm in an instant, so they were forced to adapt and raise their crops on a higher field. They would raise each terrace four feet higher and allow fish to swim through every single channel while they dropped eggs which would fertilize the soil. I found this amazing and this made me realize how smart the Mayans were.
Mayan architectural achievements were remarkable, given the difficulties brought on by fragile soil, dense forest, and a harsh tropical climate. During the Classic period (250-900 A.D.), the largest Mayan cities had populations in excess of 50,000 people. These high populations required them to practice more intensive agriculture, instead of the typical slash-and-burn.
The Maya were an advanced society, rich and full extraordinary architecture with great complexity of patterns and variety of expressions, that flourished in Mesoamerica long before the arrival of the Spanish in the sixteenth century. They were skilled architects, building prodigious cities of primarily of limestone that remain a thousand years after their civilization fell into decline. Greatness and Grandeur was the signature of all Mayan cities, from the terminal pre-classic period and continued until the abandonment of all the city states by the beginning of the ninth century. The Maya built pyramids, temples, palaces, walls, residences and more. The limestone structures, faced with lime stucco, were the hallmark of ancient Maya architecture.
When people think of the Mayans, they think of people that live in the deep, dark jungle. People are wrong. The Mayans are a smart group of people that lived in a big city on the top of the mountain. Their culture was centered on their belief in many gods. The ancient Maya were religious people that enjoyed practicing their religion by using sacrifices, sport and a strong belief in the afterlife.
It was also during the Preclassic period that the Maya developed a greater interest in art and began some degree of manufacturing. A number of Preclassic Maya pottery and clay figures that were fired in primitive kilns survive to this day. Many of these clay and pottery artifacts, that are well over four thousand years old, give us clues as to their origin and purpose. Indicators as to how advanced their technology is. The process of using buildings as a means of recording history had also begun to develop during the Maya Preclassic era.
The Olmecs were the first significant civilization to develop in Mesoamerica. They are essentially the mother culture of pre-Hispanic Mexico. The Olmec people were also known by other groups as the "rubber
Near 1800 B.C, the Maya people found settlement within Teotihuacan territory and quickly became known as one of the most dominant indigenous societies within Mesoamerica. Best known for their agricultural skills, pottery work, hieroglyphic writing, mathematics and of course calender making this civilization. However, the Maya were the regional groups of Olmec heritage who were the first major Mesoamerican civilization.(Grahm, Liz. 2014) In 1500 B.C, the Olmecs began the effective cultivation of the crops of corn, beans, chili peppers and cotton, along which they established fine arts and the use of symbols to record history. Due to the Olmecs innovative talents at the time, they were also able to branch off and establish other cities.
The Early Classic Period: 300-600 A.D. Considered to have begun when the mayans started tio carving ornate, with dates in the Maya long count calendar. Continues to develop their intellectual pursuits such as math, architecture, and astronomy. Late Classic Period: 600-900 A.D. Marks a highpoint in maya culture. The approximately 80 surrounding states warred with each other, some allied, and others just traded things. A ceremonial baseball game was a famous thing to do during this
The Mayan civilization was located in southeastern Mexico on the Yucatan Peninsula. One of the first American civilizations, it lasted from about 1000 B.C.-1542 A.D. Their civilization flourished during the Sixth Century. They built many temples and over forty cities. The Mayan population consisted of almost fifteen million people who were all living in one of the many cities. The Mayan people were extremely religious and believed in multiple gods which meant they were polytheistic. Their most commonly worshiped god was the Maize God, or god of corn, as corn was the most grown and most relied on crop. The Mayans grew all of their own food so they needed to have useful farming methods. The one they used most often was the slash and burn method, which involved cutting down trees and burning them to make the soil fertil which was necessary to grow crops. This method worked for many years, but soon started to backfire. The Mayans were ahead of their time, but that did not prevent their mysterious decline which occurred between the years 800 A.D.-900 A.D. Although it is not known exactly why the powerful empire fell, but there are various probable theories. The mysterious decline of the Mayans may have been caused by
The Mayans lived in Southern Mexico and Central America in their capital, Tikal, which is in present day Guatemala. The Mayans were known for their engineering, one structure they were famous for is their pyramid temple in Tikal (Document 1). This pyramid was the tallest structure in the Americas up until the 20th century and is still standing today. The government must have been strong and well organized in order to carry out such a large task. The Mayan religion had multiple gods and this pyramid was most likely devoted to one or used as a place for sacrifices. Another accomplishment of the Mayans was the creation of their calendar. An extra document that would be useful is one that explains how the calendar was created. The Mayans must have studied astronomy and math to a great length. Similar to the Ancient Egyptians, they wrote with symbols and pictures known as glyphs that were used in the calendar. These glyphs were gods, such as Zotz (Document 2). The use of glyphs is an acknowledgement of a writing system, which is another accomplishment.
The Maya culture has a long history that started in about 1000 BC. The history of the Maya is divided up into four different time periods: The Middle Preclassic Period, Late Preclassic Period, Classic Period, and Postclassic Period. The Middle Preclassic Period was when the small areas started to become city-like in the way that they started to build larger temples. The Late Preclassic Period was when the cities began to expand with paved roads and massive pyramids. The Classic Period was the time the Maya civilization hit it’s peak. Populations were growing rapidly and the structure of politics was formed. The Postclassic Period was when warfare was on the rise and cities were being abandoned(Coe 2005). This paper will focus on the Classic Period due to the fact that that is the greatest time period in Maya history.