Maya, Aztec, Inca civilizations and their architecture Research Paper

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HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE MAYA | AZTEC | INCA RESEARCH PAPER 10/30/2009 AISHWARYA | AKANKSHA | ANUJ | AMRI | BHAVIKA | UZAIR

Transcript of Maya, Aztec, Inca civilizations and their architecture Research Paper

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HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE

MAYA | AZTEC | INCA

RESEARCH PAPER

10/30/2009

AISHWARYA | AKANKSHA | ANUJ | AMRI | BHAVIKA | UZAIR

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3,000 years before the European discovery, exploration and colonization of the New World, the Native Americans of pre- Columbian America had developed civilizations that rivalled ancient China, India, Mesopotamia, and the Mediterranean world. Their artistic and intellectual accomplishments are even more impressive because most of the basic technology common to the eastern-hemisphere civilizations was unknown to them.

The wheel, for instance, was used in Mesoamerica only for toys and was never developed into the potter's wheel, wagon wheel, or pulley system. Metal tools were rarely used, and that too only in the last stages of pre-Columbian history. The elaborate sculptures and intricate jade ornaments of the Maya, therefore, were created by carving stone with stone.

The Americas thus developed like an isolated island, completely cut off from the rest of the world. The technology they developed was their own. 5000 years after the Natufians 1 and others in the Fertile Crescent had first dabbled with agriculture, hunter-gathering people in the Americas were just beginning to farm. They had absolutely no idea that people on the other side of the world were building huge civilizations based on crops such as wheat, barley and rice, and farm animals like pigs, sheep, cows and goats.

For thousands of years these people lived in harmony with nature, and faced many challenges which made their attempts at civilization unique. For example, in south- central Mexico, where the river valley provided the right soils for cultivation and the climate was conductive to growing annual crops, the only grass capable of domestication was a weedy and rather unappetizing wild bush called teosinte which grew along the banks of the Balsas River. Teosinte had just five seeds, each of which was encased in a hard shell designed to withstand the most acidic of animal stomachs. By choosing those plants with abnormally numerous seeds and those with the softest shells, the patient people of Central America eventually engineered the crop we now know as maize. It took as long as 5000 years of painstaking artificial selection to convert unappetizing teosinte into a nutritious cob suitable for harvesting on an annual basis. (Lloyd, 2009)

The enormous and lengthy struggle to come up with easy to cultivate crops reaped huge rewards for these people, and when the Spanish came in the sixteenth century, they possessed many great accomplishments about which much has been written.

There were two main cultural regions in pre- Columbian America: the Mesoamerican Area, encompassing the present countries of Mexico, Belize,

Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador Central Andean Area, including Peru and Bolivia 

In terms of chronology, the major phases of pre-Columbian civilizations were:  the Pre-Classic, or Formative, period (c. 1500 BC- c. AD 300) the Classic, or Florescent, period (c. 300-c. 900) the Post-Classic period (c. 900-1540)

1 The Natufian culture existed in the Mediterranean region of the Levant. It was a Mesolithic culture, but unusual in that it was sedentary, or semi-sedentary, before the introduction of agriculture. The Natufian communities are possibly the ancestors of the builders of the first Neolithic settlements of the region, which may have been the earliest in the world.

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In the Pre-Classic period, the Americas were primarily isolated chiefdoms and small kingdoms whose respective cultures developed largely independently of one another. However, some religious ideas and visual motifs are common. 

During the Classic period complex empires developed. Their rulers were often priests, rather than the warrior-priests who were the principal heads of Post-Classic civilizations, and cultures were more readily spread and incorporated. Earlier considered to be a peaceful period, recent evidence suggests that major Classic civilizations were warlike. Conquest and extensive trade resulted in wealth that was spent on constructing ceremonial centres or cities, as well as creating increasingly luxurious personal belongings and high-quality objects for funerary or ritual use.

The Post-Classic period was characterized by frequent wars resulting from social and economic pressures: increased population and technological development. The cultures and civilizations of this period are the best documented because they were directly encountered by the Spaniards.

The Mayans occupied the Yucatan peninsula, modern Honduras, and modern Guatemala. They date back perhaps to the second millennium BC, but peaked between 600 and 900 AD. While the many Maya city-states never achieved political unity on the order of the central Mexican civilizations, they exerted a tremendous intellectual influence upon Mexico and Central America. The Maya built some of the most elaborate cities on the continent, and made innovations in mathematics, astronomy, and calendrics. The Mayans also evolved the only true written system native to the Americas using pictographs and syllabic elements in the form of texts and codices inscribed on stone, pottery, wood, or highly perishable books made from bark paper. (www)

The Aztec Empire dominated Mesoamerica from Mexico and Guatemala to the territories of Salvador and Honduras in the 15th and 16th centuries for almost 100 years. The Mexica-Aztecs were the rulers of much of central Mexico by about 1400, having subjugated most of the other regional states by the 1470s. At their peak, 300000 Aztec presided over a wealthy tribute-empire comprising about 10 million people. The modern name "Mexico" comes from their name, and their capital, Tenochtitlan, is the site of modern-day Mexico City. (www)

Holding their capital at the great cougar-shaped city of Cuzco, the Inca civilization dominated the Andes region from 1438 to 1533. Known as Tawantin suyu, or "the land of the four regions", in Quechua, the Inca civilization was highly distinct and developed. Inca rule extended to nearly a hundred linguistic or ethnic communities, some 9 to 14 million people connected by a 25,000 kilometer road system. Cities were built with precise, unmatched stonework, constructed over many levels of mountain terrain. Terrace farming was a useful form of agriculture. There is evidence of excellent metalwork and even successful brain surgery in Inca civilization. They flourished at the same time as the Aztec empire. (www)

Certain features were more or less common to all three pre- Columbian civilizations, although they were all distinct in details.

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Pre-Columbian civilizations were primarily agricultural. They had many species of cultivated plants and developed many superior varieties, and raised nearly all the known varieties of maize, beans, potatoes, squashes, pumpkins, melons, peanuts, cacao, banana and pineapples. Cultivated maize (corn) became the staple food in Mesoamerica, and the potato did in Andean Peru and Bolivia. They also raised many medicinal plants, and had domesticated turkeys, ducks, geese, pheasants and other birds. These civilizations had well established and elaborate irrigation and drainage systems.  

Religion was also central to the formulation and development of pre-Columbian culture. Religious ideas and rituals, however, were largely determined by concerns for crop fertility that tend to dominate agricultural societies. The people were extremely superstitious, and developed complicated religions and mythologies which became the chief inspirations for their arts and their efforts- temples, monuments, sacred objects. There was almost a fanatical fervour for religion, which was full of mysticism and symbolism. Their gods, demigods, spirits were innumerable, and they had deities for nearly every act, deed, use, purpose, object, art, industry and desire. (Verrill, 1943)

They organized elaborate ceremonies to placate their invented deities, to win the favour of the gods, and to save themselves from dire results. All held human sacrifices, though varied in form, in occasion and their significance.

Much pre- Columbian art and architecture is connected with astronomy, by which the Native Americans determined appropriate times for planting and harvesting their crops. They had a deep knowledge of natural sciences and mathematics, and had well-worked out calenders, sun-dials and other means of computing time.

The earliest pre-Columbian buildings were constructed from wood, bundled reeds, fibre matting or thatch, and other perishable materials. Permanent, monumental structures built of stone or adobe2 were developed later on. 

Pre-Columbian building techniques were rudimentary. Most structures were built with the post-and-lintel or trabeated3 system, although the Maya employed the corbelled, or false, arch, in which one stone was extended above another to form an arch-like shape. 

Stone rather than metal tools were used, and the transport and building of such characteristic structures as pyramids, palaces, tombs, and platform temples (temples built on earth platforms) were accomplished entirely by human labour unaided by any form of machinery. The size of stones they use in their buildings, walls and fortresses was remarkable.

Though none of the civilizations were exactly alike, all of them built on a titanic scale and seemed to find it easier to quarry, move and use gigantic masses than to use smaller blocks of materials. Stones weighing several tons each were used very commonly, and in many instances, masses weighing from sixty to nearly two hundred tons each were

2 Adobe is a natural building material made from sand, clay, and water, with some kind of fibrous or organic material (sticks, straw, dung), which is shaped into bricks using frames and dried in the sun.3 Post and lintel (or Post and beam) is a simple architrave where a horizontal member (the lintel—or header) is supported by two vertical posts at either end.

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quarried, accurately cut and faced, moved many kilometres and places in position at considerable heights. Immensely high and thick walls were built of enormous stones so accurately cut and fitted, without the use of mortar or cement, that even today it is impossible to insert a knife blade between the blocks. (Verrill, 1943)

The pre-Columbian pyramid was once regarded as different from its Egyptian counterpart because it was intended not as a burial structure but as the residence of a deity. Recent excavations, however, increasingly indicate that tombs were sometimes incorporated into pyramids. Pictographs in Mesoamerican screen-fold books known as codices4 suggest that pyramids had a strong civic and cultural significance. The Aztec symbol for conquest was a burning pyramid of which the calli, or house of the god (the temple atop the pyramid), had been toppled by the conqueror. In order to make them more monumental, and therefore increase the prestige of the current ruler, many Mesoamerican pyramids were periodically rebuilt over a pre-existing structure. (2003)

The pre- Columban people also had a very extensive knowledge of engineering, and built bridges, aqueducts5, irrigation facilities and roads throughout their regions.

Urban development in the Americas occurred in two ways:  one was the ceremonial centre, a complex of structures primarily consisting of

religious and administrative buildings constructed around plazas, but without common houses or streets. Only the secular and religious rulers and their courts lived in these centres, while the majority of the population resided on small farms in a surrounding suburban zone. 

the other type, akin to true cities, had streets segregating the residences of rich and poor, as well as plaza-oriented temples and administrative buildings. 

Both ceremonial complexes and true cities served as centres for religion, government, and commerce. While trade was important for supplying necessities and luxuries, it was also through trade that ideas, technology, and art forms and motifs were transmitted. (2003)

There has been a prevalence of certain forms and figures; a striking feature common to nearly all of these civilizations is that they were sun-worshippers. Other common figures are the plumed serpent, a squatted human figure and masked human faces. 

All three civilizations were very rich in gold, silver and precious stones, although it seems as if the precious metals were valued only for their beauty and ornamental purposes. From its probable origins in the northern Central Andean Area about 700 BC, metalworking spread north and reached Mesoamerica around AD 1000. Because of the insatiable demand for gold and silver on the part of Europeans during and after the Conquest, most objects that were not buried or hidden were melted down by the Spanish conquerors and exported to Spain as ingots6. Although iron and steel were unknown, copper was widely worked and the alloying of bronze was discovered about AD 1000. Tumbaga, an alloy of copper and gold, was used by the Incas. Many techniques were

4 A codex (Latin for block of wood, book; plural codices) is a book in the format used for modern books, with separate pages normally bound together and given a cover.5 An aqueduct is a water supply or navigable channel (conduit) constructed to convey water.6 An ingot is a material, usually metal, that is cast into a shape suitable for further processing.

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used for working metal, including the cire perdue (lost-wax) process, soldering, and repoussé or embossing. Metalwork was frequently engraved, gilded, or inlaid with various stones and shells.

The majority of surviving pre-Columbian sculptures are clay figurines and effigy7 pots. Pottery may have developed first in Colombia or Ecuador, and displaced baskets and gourds8 as containers. Both hand-modelled and moulded pots and clay objects were made. Decoration took the form of incised designs, carved or moulded reliefs, and various techniques of painting and polishing. Although ceramics were sometimes decorated in polychrome, most pottery was either painted in one or two colours or left unpainted.

Stone sculpture is found primarily in Mesoamerica and only occasionally in the Central Andean area, a region in which metalworking developed earlier and was used more extensively. Although metalworking technology was highly sophisticated, carving was done with stone rather than metal tools; though innumerable bronze or copper tools and implements have been found, none of them can cut even the softest stone.

Thus these people executed the most amazing sculptures in hard stone -rock crystal, agate, jasper, jade and obsidian- with crude and rudimentary stone implements. Judging by the amount of rock cut away, the relief of the sculptures and the accuracy of the carvings, it is almost impossible to fully grasp the magnitude of their skill. There are single blocks of stone, weighing many tons, fifteen feet by nine- ten feet large and nearly three feet thick, which have been elaborately sculpted and formed into monolithic gateways, with openings cut with great mathematical accuracy. (Verrill, 1943)

There are immense buildings, such as temples, pyramids and underground chambers whose entire façades have been covered with deeply cut, intricate carvings. There are also ornamented idols and monuments, and human and animal figures carved from transparent quartz, black obsidian, and even gemstones.

Archaeological excavations continue to reveal new examples of painted architectural decoration. At Teotihuacán, in Mexico, both the interior and exterior walls of buildings were covered with a thick plaster that was painted either with decorative patterns or with narrative scenes. At Chichén Itzá, also in Mexico, the Maya painted their temple interiors with realistic frescoes depicting historical events. (2003)

The refined painting and drawing abilities of many pre-Columbian peoples can be seen in the pictographic writing in Maya and Aztec codices. The pages of these screen-fold books, made from deerskin, vegetable fibres, or the bark of various trees, were covered with colourful and meticulously drawn figures and symbols recording historical or semi-mythological events. Codices were diligently destroyed during the 16th century by Spanish missionaries, who saw them as instruments of evil. Among the few preserved, all of which date from the Post-Classic period, are three Mayan codices (now in Dresden, Paris, and Madrid) and some Aztec works. (Weaver, 1972)

7 An 'effigy' is a representation of a person, especially in the form of sculpture.8 Hollow melon/ pumpkin shells

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Pre-Columbian painting also extended to the decoration of pottery. Maya ceramics provide many of the finest examples of design and technique. 

Many objects excavated at pre-Columbian sites are associated with burials and have a utilitarian or ceremonial, rather than decorative, function. Even without the advantages of even the most basic mechanized techniques, these objects, in their design and execution, are equal to any of the finest examples of art in any part of the pre-industrial world.

The Maya, Aztec and Inca all wove textiles of hair, wool or fibres. Because of its extremely dry climate, the Peruvian coast is the only region where major examples of early pre-Columbian textiles have survived. Buried in desert tombs, especially on the Paracas Peninsula, 2,500-year-old textiles have been perfectly preserved. Cotton was the most common fibre used for weaving cloth, although in the Central Andean Area llama, alpaca, and vicuña wool was also used. These materials were often coloured with mineral and vegetable dyes. Patterns and images were created in the weaving itself, or by painting, stamping, embroidering, and appliqué9. In Post-Classic Mesoamerica and Peru, fabric was also made out of feathers; they were also woven into blankets or cloaks.  

All three maintained large standing armies, well armed and trained, and constructed remarkable forts and defences placed at strategic locations. They expanded by conquering other tribes and collected tribute and taxes. The majority of their weapons were strikingly alike in character. Bows and arrows, blow-guns10 and darts, wooden clubs (with or without stone heads), axes, stone knifes, daggers and spears were common to all. Although stone weapons were most familiar, these people also made use of bronze and copper weapons.

9 An applique or appliqué is a smaller ornament or device applied to another surface.10 A blowgun (also called a blowpipe or blow tube) is a simple weapon consisting of a small tube for firing light projectiles, or darts. The wielder blows into one end, forcing the dart out the other.

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The Maya was a Mesoamerican civilization, noted for the only known fully developed written language of the pre-ColumbianAmericas, as well as its art, architecture, and mathematical and astronomical systems. Initially established during the Preclassic period (c. 2000 BC to 250 AD), many Maya cities reached their highest state of development during the Classic period (c. 250 AD to 900 AD), and continued throughout the Postclassic period until the arrival of the Conquistadors. At its peak, it was one of the most densely populated and culturally dynamic societies in the world.

The Maya civilization shares many features with other Mesoamerican civilizations due to the high degree of interaction and cultural diffusion that characterized the region.The Mayan civilization fully developed writing, epigraphy, and the calendar. Maya influence can be detected from Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and to as far as central Mexico, more than 1000 km (625 miles) from the Maya area. Many outside influences are found in Maya art and architecture, which are thought to result from trade and cultural exchange rather than direct external conquest. The Maya peoples never disappeared, neither at the time of the Classic period decline nor with the arrival of the Conquistadors.

As the largest sub-region in Mesoamerica, the Mayan civilization encompassed a vast and varied landscape, from the mountainous regions of the Sierra Madre to the semi-arid plains of northern Yucatán. Climate in the Maya region can vary tremendously, as the low-lying areas are particularly susceptible to the hurricanes and tropical storms that frequent the Caribbean.

The Maya area is generally divided into three loosely defined zones: the southern Maya highlands, the southern (or central) Maya lowlands, and the northern Maya lowlands.

These areas were initially inhabited around the 10th century BC.Time-withstanding remnants of Mayan glory include monumental structures. The Maya calendar, which is based around the so-called 'Mesoamerican Long Count calendar', commences on a date equivalent to 11 August, 3114 BC. However, according to "accepted history" the first clearly “Maya” settlements were established in approximately 1800 BC in Soconusco region of the Pacific Coast. For many centuries it controlled the Jade and Obsidian sources for the Petén and Pacific Lowlands. The important early sites of Izapa, Takalik Abaj and Chocolá at around 600 BC were the main producers of Cacao. Mid-sized Maya communities also began to develop in the northern Maya lowlands during the Middle and Late Preclassic, though these lacked the size, scale, and influence of the large centers of the southern lowlands.

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The Classic period (c. 250–900 AD) witnessed the peak of large-scale construction and urbanism, the recording of monumental inscriptions, and a period of significant intellectual and artistic development, particularly in the southern lowland regions. They developed an agriculturally intensive, city-centered empire consisting of numerous independent city-states. This includes the well-known cities of Tikal, Palenque, Copán and Calakmul, and also the lesser known Dos Pilas,Uaxactun, Altun Ha, and Bonampak, among others.

The most notable monuments are the stepped pyramids they built in their religious centers and the accompanying palaces of their rulers. The palace at Cancuen is the largest in the Maya area, though the site, interestingly, lacks pyramids. Other important archaeological remains include the carved stone slabs usually called stelae (the Maya called them tetun, or "tree-stones"), which depict rulers along with hieroglyphic texts describing their genealogy, military victories, and other accomplishments.

The Maya civilization participated in long distance trade with many of the other Mesoamerican cultures, including Teotihuacan, the Zapotec and other groups in central and gulf-coast Mexico, as well as with more distant, non-Mesoamerican groups, for example the Tainos in the Caribbean.Important trade goods included cacao, salt, sea shells, jade and obsidian.

During the succeeding Postclassic period (from the 10th to the early 16th century), development in the northern centers persisted, characterized by an increasing diversity of external influences. The Maya cities of the northern lowlands in Yucatán continued to flourish for centuries more for example Chichen Itza, Uxmal, Edzná, and Coba. After the decline of the ruling dynasties of Chichen and Uxmal, Mayapan ruled all of Yucatán until a revolt in 1450. (This city's name may be the source of the word "Maya", which had a more geographically restricted meaning in Yucatec and colonial Spanish and only grew to its current meaning in the 19th and 20th centuries). The area then degenerated into competing city-states until the Yucatán was conquered by the Spanish.

Shortly after their first expeditions to the region, the Spanish initiated a number of attempts to subjugate the Maya and establish a colonial presence in the Maya territories of the Yucatán Peninsula and the Guatemalan highlands. It took some 170 years before the Spanish established substantive control over all Maya lands.

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Unlike the Aztec and Inca Empires, there was no single Maya political center that, once overthrown, would hasten the end of collective resistance from the indigenous peoples. Instead, the conquistador forces needed to subdue the numerous independent Maya polities almost one by one, many of which kept up a fierce resistance. Most of the conquistadors were motivated by the prospects of the great wealth to be had from the seizure of precious metal resources such as gold or silver; however, the Maya lands themselves were poor in these resources.

The Spanish Church and government officials destroyed Maya texts and with it the knowledge of Maya writing but by chance three of the pre-Columbian books dated to the post classic period have been preserved.The last Maya states, the Itza polity of Tayasal and the Ko'woj city of Zacpeten, were continuously occupied and remained independent of the Spanish until late in the 17th century. They were finally subdued by the Spanish in 1697.

A typical Classic Maya polity was a small hierarchical state (ajawil, ajawlel, or ajawlil) headed by a hereditary ruler known as an ajaw (later k’uhul ajaw).Such kingdoms were usually no more than a capital city with its neighborhood and several lesser towns, although there were greater kingdoms, which controlled larger territories and extended patronage over smaller polities. Each kingdom's identity was that of a political unit associated with a particular ruling dynasty. Interestingly, despite constant warfare and eventual shifts in regional power, most kingdoms never disappeared from the political landscape until the collapse of the whole system in the 9th century AD. In this respect, Classic Maya kingdoms are highly similar to late Post Classic polities encountered by the Spaniards in Yucatán and Central Mexico: some polities could be subordinated to hegemonic rulers through conquests or dynastic unions and yet even then they persisted as distinct entities.

Mayanists have been increasingly accepting a "court paradigm" of Classic Maya societies which puts the emphasis on the centrality of the royal household and especially the person of the king. This approach focuses on Maya monumental spaces as the embodiment of the diverse activities of the royal household. It considers the role of places and spaces (including dwellings of royalty and nobles, throne rooms, temples, halls and plazas for public ceremonies) in establishing power and social hierarchy, and also in projecting aesthetic and moral values to define the wider social realm.

Even the largest Maya settlements were dispersed collections of dwellings grouped around the temples and palaces of the ruling dynasty and lesser nobles. None of the Classic Maya cities shows evidence of economic specialization and commerce of the scale of Mexican Tenochtitlan. Instead, Maya cities could be seen as enormous royal households, the locales of the administrative and ritual activities of the royal court. They

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were the places where privileged nobles could approach the holy ruler, where aesthetic values of the high culture were formulated and disseminated, where aesthetic items were consumed. They were the self-proclaimed centers and the sources of social, moral, and cosmic order. The fall of a royal court as in the well-documented cases of Piedras Negras or Copan would cause the inevitable "death" of the associated settlement.

Many consider Maya art of their Classic Era (c. 250 to 900 AD) to be the most sophisticated and beautiful of the ancient New World. The carvings and the reliefs made of stucco at Palenque and the statuary of Copán are especially fine, showing a grace and accurate observation of the human form that reminded early archaeologists of Classical civilizations of the Old World, hence the name bestowed on this era.The things that have survived are mostly funerary pottery and other Maya ceramics, and a building at Bonampak that holds ancient murals that survived by chance. A beautiful turquoise blue color that has survived through the centuries due to its unique chemical characteristics is known as Maya Blue or Azul maya, and it is present in Bonampak, TajínCacaxtla, Jaina, and even in some Colonial Convents. The use of Maya Blue survived until the 16th century when the technique was lost.With the decipherment of the Maya script it was discovered that the Maya were one of the few civilizations where artists attached their name to their work.

Maya architecture spans many thousands of years; yet, often the most dramatic and easily recognizable as Maya are the stepped pyramids from the Terminal Pre-classic period and beyond. There are also cave sites that are important to the Maya, like Jolja Cave, the cave site at Naj Tunich, the Candelaria Caves, and the Cave of the Witch.

It has been suggested that temples and pyramids were remodeled and rebuilt every fifty-two years in synchrony with the Maya Long Count Calendar. The rebuilding process was often instigated by a new ruler or for political matters, as opposed to matching the calendar cycle. However, the process of rebuilding on top of old structures is indeed a common one. Most notably, the North Acropolis at Tikal seems to be the sum total of 1,500 years of architectural modifications. In Tikal andYaxhá, there are the Twin Pyramid complexes (seven in Tikal and one in Yaxhá, that commemorate the end of a Baktún). Through observation of the numerous consistent elements and stylistic distinctions, remnants of Maya architecture have become key to understanding the evolution of their ancient civilization.In the variety and quality of their architecture, the Maya were unrivalled by any other pre-Columbian civilization. Mayan architecture is characterized by an exquisite sense of proportion and design and by structural refinement and subtle detailing. The Maya used sculpture more extensively for architectural decoration than any other pre-Columbian civilization. The corbel arch was employed not

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only to vault interior spaces, but also to construct free-standing arches. The Maya also built paved roadways connecting major religious and administrative centres; these seem to have been used mostly for ceremonial processions and to symbolize political links.

Mayan art is the most highly refined and elegant of any pre-Columbian civilization. It has dignity and majesty, and is exuberant and sensual, with lavish ornamentation.

Stelae with figurative carving and inscriptions are the most characteristic examples of the monumental free-standing stone sculpture of the Maya. The most elaborate examples are found at Copán, where the softness of the stone made possible Baroque flamboyance of ornament. Most major sites have well-developed traditions of architectural relief panels in stone, and at Palenque stucco was effectively used for reliefs.

The Maya mastered all known pre-Columbian art forms except metalworking. Although no Mayan textiles remain, their character and decoration can be discerned from representations in painting, figurines, and sculptures. Jade was skilfully carved, as were wood, bone, and shell; in clay, however, the Maya excelled. Realistic figurines (especially those from the island of Jaina) and polychrome pottery with mythological or genre scenes (produced at Chama) are among the finest accomplishments of pre-Columbian painted pottery.

Particularly fine examples of Mayan fresco painting have been found at Bonampak, Palenque, and Tikal. The Maya also produced codices, with hieroglyphic script. Of the surviving Mayan codices, the Dresden Codex (Sachsische Landesbibliothek, Dresden, Germany) best illustrates the Maya's descriptive and formally dynamic use of line.

As Maya cities spread throughout the varied geography of Mesoamerica, site planning appears to have been minimal. Maya architecture tended to integrate a great degree of natural features, and their cities were built somewhat haphazardly as dictated by the topography of each independent location. For instance, some cities on the flat limestone plains of the northern Yucatán grew into great sprawling municipalities, while others built in the hills of Usumacinta utilized the natural loft of the topography to raise their towers and temples to impressive heights. However, some semblance of order, as required in any large city, still prevailed.

Classic Era Maya urban design could easily be described as the division of space by great monuments and causeways. Open public plazas were the gathering places for people and the focus of urban design, while interior space was entirely secondary. Only in the Late Post-Classic era did the great Maya cities develop into more fortress-like defensive structures that lacked, for the most part, the large and numerous plazas of the Classic.

At the onset of large-scale construction during the Classic Era, a predetermined axis was typically established in a cardinal direction. Depending on the location of natural

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resources such as fresh-water wells, or cenotes, the city grew by using sacbeob (causeways) to connect great plazas with the numerous platforms that created the sub-structure for nearly all Maya buildings. As more structures were added and existing structures re-built or remodeled, the great Maya cities seemed to take on an almost random identity that contrasted sharply with other great Mesoamerican cities such as Teotihuacan and its rigid grid-like construction.

At the heart of the Maya city were large plazas surrounded by the most important governmental and religious buildings, such as the royal acropolis, great pyramid temples and occasionally ball-courts. Though city layouts evolved as nature dictated, careful attention was placed on the directional orientation of temples and observatories so that they were constructed in accordance with Maya interpretation of the orbits of the heavenly bodies. Immediately outside of this ritual center were the structures of lesser nobles, smaller temples, and individual shrines; the less sacred and less important structures had a greater degree of privacy. Outside of the constantly evolving urban core were the less permanent and more modest homes of the common people.

A surprising aspect of the great Maya structures is their lack of many advanced technologies seemingly necessary for such constructions. Lacking draft animals necessary for wheel-based modes of transportation, metal tools and even pulleys, Maya architecture required abundant manpower. Yet, beyond this enormous requirement, the remaining materials seem to have been readily available. All stone for Maya structures appears to have been taken from local quarries. They most often used limestone which remained pliable enough to be worked with stone tools while being quarried and only hardened once removed from its bed. In addition to the structural use of limestone, much of their mortar consisted of crushed, burnt and mixed limestone that mimicked the properties of cement and was used as widely for stucco finishing as it was for mortar. Later improvements in quarrying techniques reduced the necessity for this limestone-stucco as the stones began to fit quite perfectly, yet it remained a crucial element in some post and lintel roofs. In the case of the common Maya houses, wooden poles,adobe and thatch were the primary materials; however, instances of what appear to be common houses of limestone have been discovered as well. Also notable throughout Maya architecture is the corbel arch(also known as a "false arch"), which allowed for more open-aired entrances. The corbelled arch improved upon pier/post and lintel doorways by directing the weight off of the lintel and onto the supporting posts.

Notable constructions

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Ceremonial platforms were commonly limestone platforms of typically less than four meters in height where public ceremonies and religious rites were performed. Constructed in the fashion of a typical foundation platform, these were often accented by carved figures, altars and perhaps tzompantli, a stake used to display the heads of victims or defeated Mesoamerican ballgame opponents.

Palaces were large and often highly decorated, and usually sat close to the center of a city and housed the population's elite. Any exceedingly large royal palace, or one consisting of many chambers on different levels might be referred to as an acropolis. However, often these were one-story and consisted of many small chambers and typically at least one interior courtyard; these structures appear to take into account the needed functionality required of a residence, as well as the decoration required for their inhabitants stature.

E-Groups are specific structural configurations present at a number of centers in the Maya area. These complexes are oriented and aligned according to specific astronomical events (primarily the sun’s solstices and equinoxes) and are thought to have been observatories. These structures are usually accompanied by iconographic reliefs that tie astronomical observation into general Maya mythology. The structural complex is named for Group E at Uaxactun, the first documented in Mesoamerica.

Pyramids and temples. Often the most important religious temples sat atop the towering Maya pyramids, presumably as the closest place to the heavens. While recent discoveries point toward the extensive use of pyramids as tombs, the temples themselves seem to rarely, if ever, contain burials. Residing atop the pyramids, some of over two-hundred feet, such as that at El Mirador, the temples were impressive and decorated structures themselves. Commonly topped with a roof comb, or superficial grandiose wall, these temples might have served as a type of propaganda. As they were often the only structure in a Maya city to exceed the height of the surrounding jungle, the roof combs atop the temples were often carved with representations of rulers that could be seen from vast distances.

Observatories. The Maya were keen astronomers and had mapped out the phases of celestial objects, especially the Moon and Venus. Many temples have doorways and other features aligning to celestial events. Round temples, often dedicated to Kukulcan, are perhaps those most often described as "observatories" by modern ruin tour-guides, but there is no evidence that they were so used exclusively, and temple pyramids of other shapes may well have been used for observation as well.

Ball courts. As an integral aspect of the Mesoamerican lifestyle, the courts for their ritual ball-game were constructed throughout the Maya realm and often on a grand scale. Enclosed on two sides by stepped ramps that led to ceremonial platforms or small temples, the ball court itself was of a capital "I" shape and could be found in all but the smallest of Maya cities.

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The Maya writing system was a combination of phonetic symbols and logograms. It is most often classified as alogographic or (more properly) a logosyllabic writing system, in which syllabic signs play a significant role. It is the only writing system of the Pre-Columbian New World which is known to completely represent the spoken language of its community. In total, the script has more than a thousand different glyphs, although a few are variations of the same sign or meaning, and many appear only rarely or are confined to particular localities. At any one time, no more than around 500 glyphs were in use, some 200 of which (including variations) had a phonetic or syllabic interpretation.

The earliest inscriptions in an identifiably-Maya script date back to 200–300 BC.In the succeeding centuries the Maya developed their script into a form which was far more complete and complex than any other that has yet been found in the Americas.

Since its inception, the Maya script was in use up to the arrival of the Europeans, peaking during the Maya Classical Period (c. 200 to 900). Although many Maya centers went into decline (or were completely abandoned) during or after this period, the skill and knowledge of Maya writing persisted amongst segments of the population, and the early Spanish conquistadors knew of individuals who could still read and write the script. Unfortunately, the Spanish displayed little interest in it, and as a result of the dire impacts the conquest had on Maya societies, the knowledge was subsequently lost, probably within only a few generations.

At a rough estimate, in excess of 10,000 individual texts have so far been recovered, mostly inscribed on stone monuments, lintels, stelae and ceramic pottery. The Maya also produced texts painted on a form of paper manufactured from processed tree-bark, in particular from several species of strangler fig trees such as Ficus cotinifolia and Ficus padifolia.This paper, common throughout Mesoamerica and generally now known by its Nahuatl-language name amatl, was typically bound as a single continuous sheet that was folded into pages of equal width, concertina-style, to produce a codex that could be written on both sides. Shortly after the conquest, all of the codices which could be found were ordered to be burnt and destroyed by zealous Spanish priests. Only three reasonably intact examples of Maya codices are known to have survived through to the present day. These are now known as the Madrid, Dresden, and Paris codices.

The decipherment and recovery of the now-lost knowledge of Maya writing has been a long and laborious process. Some elements were first deciphered in the late 19th and early 20th century, mostly the parts having to do with numbers, the Maya calendar, and astronomy. Major breakthroughs came starting in the 1950s to 1970s, and accelerated rapidly thereafter. By the end of the 20th century, scholars were able to read the majority of Maya texts to a large extent, and recent field work continues to further illuminate the content.

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Most surviving pre-Columbian Maya writing is from stelae and other stone inscriptions from Maya sites, many of which were already abandoned before the Spanish arrived. The inscriptions on the stelae mainly record the dynasties and wars of the sites' rulers. Also of note are the inscriptions that reveal information about the lives of ancient Maya women. Much of the remainder of Maya hieroglyphics has been found on funeral pottery, most of which describes the afterlife.

Although the archaeological record does not provide examples, Maya art shows that writing was done with brushes made with animal hair and quills. Codex-style writing was usually done in black ink with red highlights, giving rise to the Aztec name for the Maya territory as the "land of red and black".

Scribes held a prominent position in Maya courts. Maya art often depicts rulers with trappings indicating they were scribes or at least able to write, such as having pen bundles in their headdresses. Additionally, many rulers have been found in conjunction with writing tools such as shell or clay inkpots. Although the number of logograms and syllabic symbols required to fully write the language numbered in the hundreds, literacy was not necessarily widespread beyond the elite classes. Graffiti uncovered in various contexts, including on fired bricks, shows nonsensical attempts to imitate the writing system.

In common with the other Mesoamerican civilizations, the Maya used a base 20 (vigesimal) and base 5 numbering system. Also, the preclassic Maya and their neighbors independently developed the concept of zero by 36 BC. Inscriptions show them on occasion working with sums up to the hundreds of millions and dates so large it would take several lines just to represent it. They produced extremely accurate astronomical observations; their charts of the movements of the moon and planets are equal or superior to those of any other civilization working from naked eye observation.

In common with the other Mesoamerican civilizations, the Maya had measured the length of the solar year to a high degree of accuracy, far more accurately than that used in Europe as the basis of the Gregorian Calendar. They did not use this figure for the length of year in their calendars, however; the calendars they used were crude, being based on a year length of exactly 365 days, which means that the calendar falls out of step with the seasons by one day every four years. By comparison, the Julian calendar, used in Europe from Roman times until about the 16th Century, accumulated an error of only one day

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every 128 years. The modern Gregorian calendar is even more accurate, accumulating only a day's error in approximately 3257 years.

Like the Aztec and Inca who came to power later, the Maya believed in a cyclical nature of time. The rituals and ceremonies were very closely associated with celestial and terrestrial cycles which they observed and inscribed as separate calendars. The Maya priest had the job of interpreting these cycles and giving a prophetic outlook on the future or past based on the number relations of all their calendars. They also had to determine if the "heavens" or celestial matters were appropriate for performing certain religious ceremonies.

The Maya practiced human sacrifice. In some Maya rituals people were killed by having their arms and legs held while a priest cut the person's chest open and tore out his heart as an offering. This is depicted on ancient objects such as pictorial texts, known as codices. It is believed that children were often offered as sacrificial victims because they were believed to be pure.

Much of the Maya religious tradition is still not understood by scholars, but it is known that the Maya, like most pre-modern societies, believed that the cosmos has three major planes, the underworld, the sky, and the Earth.

The Maya underworld is reached through caves and ball courts.It was thought to be dominated by the aged Maya gods of death and putrefaction. The Sun (Kinich Ahau) and Itzamna, an aged god, dominated the Maya idea of the sky. Another aged man, God L was one of the major deities of the underworld.

The night sky was considered a window showing all supernatural doings. The Maya configured constellations of gods and places, saw the unfolding of narratives in their seasonal movements, and believed that the intersection of all possible worlds was in the night sky.

The life-cycle of maize lies at the heart of Maya belief.

The Mayan creation MYTH:

how the world was created- three divine creatures in the form of water dwelling feathered serpents decided to create humans to keep them company. First they tried to make them out of mud, but that didn’t work. Next they used wood, but that also proved unsuccessful. Finally, ‘true people’ were modelled out of maize.This shows importance and dependence of Mayans on crops, particularly maize.

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Among the many types of Maya calendars which were maintained, the most important included a 260-day cycle, a 365-day cycle which approximated the solar year, a cycle which recorded lunation periods of the Moon, and a cycle which tracked the synodic period of Venus.

Philosophically, the Maya believed that knowing the past meant knowing the cyclical influences that create the present, and by knowing the influences of the present one can see the cyclical influences of the future.

The ancient Maya had diverse and sophisticated methods of food production. It is believed that permanent raised fields, terracing, forest gardens, managed fallows, and wild harvesting were crucial to supporting the large populations of the Classic period in some areas. Indeed, evidence of these different agricultural systems persist today: raised fields connected by canals can be seen on aerial photographs, contemporary rainforest species composition has significantly higher abundance of species of economic value to ancient Maya, and pollen records in lake sediments suggest that corn, manioc,sunflower seeds, cotton, and other crops have been cultivated in association with the deforestation in Mesoamerica since at least 2500 BC.

Contemporary Maya peoples still practice many traditional forms of agriculture, although they are dynamic systems and change with changing population pressures, cultures, economic systems, climate change, and the availability of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides

The Maya appear to be the only pre-telescopic civilization to demonstrate knowledge of the Orion Nebula as being fuzzy, i.e. not a stellar pin-point.

The Maya were very interested in zenial passages, the time when the sun passes directly overhead. The latitude of most of their cities being below the Tropic of Cancer, these zenial passages would occur twice a year equidistant from the solstice. The maya even had a God to represent the position of the Sun overhead.

The Dresden Codex contains the highest concentration of astronomical phenomena observations and calculations of any of the surviving texts (the data in this codex is primarily or exclusively of an astronomical nature). Examination and analysis of this codex reveals that Venus was the most important astronomical object to the Maya, even more important to them than the sun.

Spanish clergy and administrators dating to the 16th century were largely familiar with ancient Maya sites, writing and calendar systems. These spurred serious investigations of Maya sites by the late 18th century.In 1839 United States traveler and writer John Lloyd

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Stephens, familiar with earlier Spanish investigations, visited and rediscovered Copán, Palenque, and other sites with English architect Frederick Catherwood.

In many locations, Maya ruins have been overgrown by the jungle, becoming dense enough to hide structures just a few meters away. To help find ruins, researchers have turned to satellite imagery. The best way to find them is to look at the visible and near-infrared spectra. Due to their limestone construction, the monuments affected the chemical makeup of the soil as they deteriorated.The effects of the limestone ruins are still apparent today to some satellite sensors.

Much of the contemporary rural population of theYucatán Peninsula, Chiapas (both in Mexico),Guatemala and Belize is Maya by descent and primary language.

There are hundreds of significant Maya sites, and thousands of smaller ones. The largest and most historically important include:

Cancuén

Chichen Itza

Coba

Comalcalco

Copán

Dos Pilas

Kalakmul

El Mirador

Nakbé

Naranjo

Palenque

Piedras Negras

Quiriguá

Seibal

Tikal

Uaxactún

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Uxmal

Yaxh

For reasons that are still debated, the Maya centers of the southern lowlands went into decline during the 8th and 9th centuries and were abandoned shortly thereafter. This decline was coupled with a cessation of monumental inscriptions and large-scale architectural construction. Although there is no universally accepted theory to explain this “collapse,” current theories fall into two categories: non-ecological and ecological.

Non-ecological theories of Maya decline are divided into several subcategories, such as overpopulation, foreign invasion, peasant revolt, and the collapse of key trade routes. Ecological hypotheses include environmental disaster, epidemic disease, and climate change. There is evidence that the Maya population exceeded carrying capacity of the environment including exhaustion of agricultural potential and overhunting of megafauna.Some scholars have recently theorized that an intense 200 year drought led to the collapse of Maya civilization.

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The last major Mesoamerican civilization was that of the Aztec, who were also called Mexica (from which the name Mexico is derived). Between 1428 and 1521 the Aztec produced and collected as imperial tribute artefacts that constitute some of the finest examples of pre-Columbian art surviving to this day.

At the time of the Spanish conquest, the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán, now the site of Mexico City, was possibly the largest and one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Built in Lake Texcoco on natural islands and artificial islands called chinampas, Tenochtitlán was similar in concept to the Italian city of Venice. The streets were primarily canals, and boats were the major form of transport. Today, the central plaza of Mexico City overlies the main Aztec ceremonial centre. Recent excavations in the Aztec Templo Mayor by Mexican archaeologists have yielded some of the most spectacular archaeological discoveries of this century in Mexico.

The Aztec produced monumental free-standing stone sculpture. In this sculpture the Aztec were capable of abstraction, as well as a realism that reveals both the internal and external character of the deity, person, or animal portrayed. Much Aztec stone sculpture was used for architectural decoration and representations of deities; it was also employed for human sacrificial altars, cuauhxicalli (containers for human hearts and blood), calendar stones, and other major ceremonial objects.

In execution and conception the codices produced by the Aztec are of an extremely high quality. Only a few survived the destruction of the Aztec libraries by Spanish missionaries during the 16th century.

According to their own history, when the Mexicas arrived in the Anahuac valley (Valley of Mexico) around Lake Texcoco, the groups living there considered them uncivilized. The Mexicas borrowed much of their culture from the ancient Toltec whom they seem to have at least partially confused with the more ancient civilization of Teotihuacan. To the Mexicas, the Toltecs were the originators of all culture; "Toltecayotl" was a synonym for culture. Mexica legends identify the Toltecs and the cult of Quetzalcoatl with the mythical city of Tollan, which they also identified with the more ancient Teotihuacan.

The center of the Aztec civilization was the Valley of Mexico, a huge, oval basin about 7,500 feet above sea level. The Aztec empire included many cities and towns, especially in the Valley of Mexico. The largest city in the empire was the capital, Tenochtitlan.

The early settlers built log rafts, then covered them with mud and planted seeds to create roots and develop more solid land for building homes in this marshy land. Canals were also cut out through the marsh so that a typical Aztec home had its back to a canal with a canoe tied at the door.

The story of the Aztecs' rise to power is awe inspiring one, and is one of the most remarkable stories in world history. They were a relatively unknown group of people who

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came into the Valley of Mexico during the 12th and 13th century A.D., and rose to be the greatest power in the Americas by the time the Spaniards arrived, in the 16th century.

Little is known of the earliest Aztecs, they did not keep a written record. Their history was passed on by word of mouth from one generation to the next. Legend has it that they came from an Island called Aztlan, meaning White Place - Place of Herons.

In the Aztec codex Tira de la Peregrinacion, commonly called the Migration Scrolls. The scrolls have the Aztecs leaving Aztlan, which was described as an island in a lake with Chicomoztoc depicted as seven temples in the center of the island. The Aztecs felt they were the "chosen people" of Huitzilopochtli. The Aztecs believed Huitzilopochtli their war god was their protector, how had them search for their promised land.

Sometime during the 12th & 13th century the Aztecs straggled into the Valley of Mexico, led by their chieftain Tenoch. They were a poor, ragged people who survived on vermin, snakes, and stolen food. They were hatred and rejected by all the surrounding inhabitants of the valley, for their barbarous and uncultured habits. They were driven from one location to another. Early in the 14th century, Huitzilopochtli told Tenoch to lead his people to a place of refuge on a swampy island in Lake Texcoco. When they reached their destination, they were to look for an eagle perched on a cactus, growing from a rock or cave surrounded by water. At that location, they were to build their city and honor Huitzilopochtli with human sacrifices. The city they built was called Tenochtitlan, the city of Tenoch.

In the beginning stages of Tenochtitlan, development, Aztec life was very difficult in their undesirable location. Tenochtitlan was located on a marshy island with limited resources, they built a few thatch and mud huts, and some small temples. The Aztecs would have to work constantly to maintain a city on swampy land. There was also continuing tensions between the Aztecs and the neighboring peoples on the mainland who despised them. Despite these obstacles, the Aztecs worked hard to improve the quality of their lives. They adopted an agricultural system of farming called the Chinampas. and in a short period of time, the land was transformed into a fertile and highly productive island.

As the Aztec empire expanded, specialized craftsmen and common laborers were brought to Tenochtitlan to expand the city. Since it was built on swamp land, large wooden stakes were driven into the soft ground to provide secure foundations for the new buildings. They were able to use the stone Tezontli to construct the buildings on the unstable ground. Despite these precautions, the larger temples and palaces would often sink below ground level. As a result, the older building were continuously repaired or rebuilt with the newer structures built over the older core.

By 1376, the Aztecs knew that they had to select a emperor of royal lineage, to gain respect of their neighbors. With political genius, they chose a man by the name of Acamapichtli as their emperor. He was related to the last rulers of Culhuacan, and his

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lineage extended back in time to the great Toltec ruler Quetzalcoatl. With the selection of Acamapichtli as the Aztecs first true emperor, their were able to claim descendancy from the great Toltecs.

During the 15th century the military strength of the Aztecs increased. They grew from a small tribe of mercenaries into a powerful and highly disciplined military force. They also formed alliances with their powerful neighbors Texcoco and Tacuba, known as the Triple Alliance. It was a time for building and the city Tenochtitlan grow and prospered.

By the end of Tenochtitlans rule, in 1520, 38 conquered tributary provinces had been made, who had to make payments. However, some of the tribes at the borders stayed strongly independent. This made it easy for the Spanish captain, Cortez to defeat them. In 1521, in what is probably the most widely known episode in the Spanish colonization of the Americas, Hernan Cortes, along with a large number of Nahuatl speaking indigenous allies, conquered Tenochtitlan and defeated the Aztec Triple Alliance under the leadership of Hueyi Tlatoani Moctezuma II in the series of events often referred to as "The Fall of the Aztec Empire". Subsequently the Spanish founded the new settlement of Mexico City on the site of the ruined Aztec capital.

The city of Tenochtitlan was built according to a fixed plan and centered on the ritual precinct, where the Great Pyramid of Tenochtitlan rose 50 m above the city. Houses were made of wood and loam, roofs were made of reed, although pyramids, temples and palaces were generally made of stone.

Around the island, chinampa beds were used to grow foodstuffs as well as, over time, to increase the size of the island. Chinampas, misnamed "floating gardens", were long raised plant beds set upon the shallow lake bottom. They were a very efficient agricultural system and could provide up to seven crops a year. On the basis of current chinampa yields, it has been estimated that 1 hectare of chinampa would feed 20 individuals and 9,000 hectares of chinampas could feed 180,000.

Since the land was not a great place to grow crops, the Aztecs were forced to work around this fact, which they did very well. Most of the citizens who lived in Tenochtitlan held jobs which were not associated with food. The residents of the metropolis made crafts, preached their religion, traded with other civilizations, or became part of the government. The Spaniards and other nations were amazed with the sheer quality of the city and its residents, so therefore traded much with them. The Aztecs received nearly all of their food from foreign trade.

The principal food of the Aztec was a thin cornmeal pancake called a tlaxcalli. (In Spanish, it is called a tortilla.) They used the tlaxcallis to scoop up foods while they ate or they wrapped the foods in the tlaxcalli to form tacos. They hunted for most of the meat in their diet and the chief game animals were deer, rabbits, ducks and geese. The only animals they raised for meat were turkeys and dogs.

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The Aztecs have been credited with the discovery of chocolate. The Aztecs made chocolate from the fruit of the cacao tree and used it as a flavoring and as an ingredient in various beverages and kinds of confectionery.

Song and poetry were highly regarded; there were presentations and poetry contests at most of the Aztec festivals. There were also dramatic presentations that included players, musicians and acrobats.

Anthropologist Eduardo Noguera estimates the population at 200,000 based in the house count and merging the population of Tlatelolco (once an independent city, but later became a suburb of Tenochtitlan). If one includes the surrounding islets and shores surrounding Lake Texcoco, estimates range from 300,000 to 700,000 inhabitants.

There were four huge dikes all going out from the center of the city to separate docks and small islands. These four dikes made up four quadrants in the city. Each of the quadrants contains housing developments, and what were known as "floating gardens". The houses were painted white with adobe roofs. The reason the houses were painted white was so the light would reflect of them and keep the inhabitants living in the house cool.The houses were also packed tightly together to make the only time when the sun would beam down on them high noon.

The center of Tenochtitlan was made up of many temples, the most important one being the Main Temple, palaces, pyramids, and a great plaza. The center was roughly five-hundred and fifty square yards, but seemed much bigger because everything was packed so tightly together. There were close to a dozen temples in the center, but the most important one, the Main Temple was dedicated to rain god Tlaloc and sun god Huitzilopochtli, whom the Aztecs considered their protector. There were also many palaces and pyramids. The palaces were dedicated to the kings and nobles, and the pyramids were made for sacrifices.

In this famous city, the government controlled and were responsible to deal with taxes, punishment, famine, and market trading. Punishment in the city of Tenochtitlan was enforced for breaking any of the code of government laws. Offenders were enslaved into tedious work conditions for a specific amount of time. If the offense happened to be minor, the law-breaker was charged with a string of fees or fines. This type of governing system is only one of the many things that affected aspects of everyday life for the Aztecs. The crime rate was extremely low, and it was almost impossible to find waste in the city. The city's inhabitants were smart, and loyal to the city. The structures were amazing, including the Main Temple, the Great Pyramid, and many famous palaces. The Aztecs worked around things that were hard to come by, like food. Instead they maintained other jobs and traded with foreign countries. Everything about Tenochtitlan was wonderful, and the city stands out as one of the greatest empire of all time.

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The Aztecs of Tenochtitlan though it necessary to nourish the deities with human hearts, because if not, then the sun would not come up daily, or there would be an enormous drought. The people mostly used prisoners of war for their sacrifices. The main place of sacrifice was the Great Pyramid. It had one-hundred and fourteen steps, and added to the magnificent beauty of the city. The Plaza was in the dead center of the city, and was whitewashed. It had no litter whatsoever, and great walls surrounding it. The Plaza and all of these structures make the center look like a thing of beauty.

Poetry was the only occupation worthy of an Aztec warrior in times of peace. A remarkable amount of this poetry survives, having been collected during the era of the conquest. In some cases poetry is attributed to individual authors, such as Nezahualcoyotl, tlatoani of Texcoco, and Cuacuauhtzin, Lord of Tepechpan, but whether these attributions reflect actual authorship is a matter of opinion. Miguel Leon-Portilla, a well-respected Aztec scholar of Mexico, has stated that it is in this poetry where we can find the real thought of the Aztecs, independent of "official" Aztec ideology.

The Aztec people also enjoyed a type of dramatic presentation, a kind of theatre. Some plays were comical with music and acrobats, others were staged dramas of their gods. After the conquest, the first Christian churches had open chapels reserved for these kinds of representations.

Plays in Nahuatl, written by converted Indians, were an important instrument for the conversion to Christianity, and are still found today in the form of traditional pastorelas, which are played during Christmas to show the Adoration of Baby Jesus, and other Biblical passages.Music and dance formed an essential part of the indigenous rites and ceremonies.

The Aztec sculptures which adorned their temples and other buildings were among the most elaborate in all of the Americas. Their purpose was to please the gods and they attempted to do that in everything they did. Many of the sculptures reflected their perception of their gods and how they interacted in their lives. The most famous surviving Aztec sculpture is the large circular Calendar Stone, which represents the Aztec universe.

There are few extant Aztec codices created before the conquest and these are largely ritual texts. Post-conquest codices, like Codex Mendoza or Codex Rios, were painted by Aztec tlacuilos (codex creators), but under the control of Spanish authorities.

The Aztec economy can be divided into a political sector, under the control of nobles and kings, and a commercial sector that operated independently of the political sector.

The political sector of the economy centered on the control of land and labor by kings and nobles. Nobles owned all land, and commoners got access to farmland and other fields through a variety of arrangements, from rental through sharecropping to serf-like labor and slavery. These payments from commoners to nobles supported both the lavish

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lifestyles of the high nobility and the finances of city-states. Many luxury goods were produced for consumption by nobles. The producers of featherwork, sculptures, jewelry, and other luxury items were full-time commoner specialists who worked for noble patrons.

In the commercial sector of the economy several types of money were in regular use. Small purchases were made with cacao beans, which had to be imported from lowland areas. In Aztec marketplaces, a small rabbit was worth 30 beans, a turkey egg cost 3 beans, and a tamal cost a single bean. For larger purchases, standardized lengths of cotton cloth called quachtli were used. There were different grades of quachtli, ranging in value from 65 to 300 cacao beans. One source stated that 20 quachtli could support a commoner for one year in Tenochtitlan. A man could also sell his own daughter as a sexual slave or future religious sacrifice, generally for around 500 to 700 beans.

A small gold statue (approximately 0.62 kg / 1.37 lb) cost 250 beans. Money was used primarily in the many periodic markets that were held in each town. A typical town would have a weekly market (every 5 days), while larger cities held markets every day. Cortes reported that the central market of Tlatelolco, Tenochtitlan's sister city, was visited by 60,000 people daily. Some sellers in the markets were petty vendors; farmers might sell some of their produce, potters sold their vessels, and so on. Other vendors were professional merchants who traveled from market to market seeking profits. The pochteca were specialized merchants organized into exclusive guilds. They made lengthy expeditions to all parts of Mesoamerica, and they served as the judges and supervisors of the Tlatelolco market. Although the economy of Aztec Mexico was commercialized (in its use of money, markets, and merchants), it was not "a capitalist economy because land and labor were not commodities for sale."

The Mexicas were especially interested in education. Boys and girls were carefully educated from birth. During the first years of life, fathers educated boys, while mothers took care of girls. Once family education was over, the children of the nobles and priests went to the calmecac, and all others went to the tepochcalli. The Aztecs believed that education was extremely valuable and insisted that boys, girls and young people attend school. There were two main types of school, the so-called tepochcalli and the calm-cac. Boys and girls went to both, but were kept separate from each other.

Precolumbian Aztec society was the highly complex and stratified society that developed among the Aztecs of central Mexico in the centuries prior to the Spanish conquest of Mexico, and which were built on the cultural foundations of the larger region of Mesoamerica.

Politically the society was based around the independent citystate, called an "Altepetl", composed of smaller divisions called Calpulli, which were again normally composed of one or more extended kinship groups. Socially the society depended on a rather strict

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division between nobles and free commoners both groups which were divided into elaborate hierarchies of social status, responsibilities and power. Economically the society was dependent on agriculture and also to a large extent warfare, other economically important factors was commerce, long distance and local, and a high degree of trade specialization. Recreation was important.

In Aztec society, warriors, priests, and the nobility were considered to be among the most respected in the Aztecan social hierarchy Because of the Aztecs' emphasis on warfare, the warrior class was highly valued, and often warriors would volunteer for the most important Aztec sacrificial rituals.

The long distance traders also enjoyed considerable privileges and often served the government as ambassadors and spies. The most outstanding artisans, physicians and truly wise teachers were also highly respected.

The Aztec society was divided into 3 classes: slaves, commoners, and nobility.

The highest class were the pipiltin or nobility. Originally this status was not hereditary, although the sons of pillis had access to better resources and education, so it was easier for them to become pillis. Later the class system took on hereditary aspects.

The nobilities were the people who were nobles by birth, priests, and those who earned their rank. The very highest social sphere was occupied by a minority of families known as the pipiltin. These people were members of the hereditary nobility and occupied the top positions in the government, the army and the priesthood. The nobles chose a supreme leader known as the tlatoani from within their own group; in Nahuatl this name means he that speaks. This leader was greatly revered and ruled until his death.

The second class were the 'macehualtin', originally peasants. Eduardo Noguera estimates that in later stages only 20% of the population was dedicated to agriculture and food production. The other 80% of society were warriors, artisans and traders. Eventually, most of the macehuallis were dedicated to arts and crafts. Their works were an important source of income for the city.

The most numerous social group was known as the macehualtin; these people were engaged in agriculture and the common trades. Although they worked the land in family units and were allowed to kept their produce, the land itself was collectively owned by the inhabitants of the neighborhood or calpulli. Commoners were given lifetime ownership of an area of land. The lowest group of commoners were not allowed to own property. They were tenant farmers, they just got to use the land and never be owners.

The lower social orders were made up by peasants, who like the European serfs, were attached to the lands owned by the nobility and were obliged to cultivate them in exchange for part of the harvest.

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Slaves or tlacotin also constituted an important class. Aztecs could become slaves because of debts, as a criminal punishment or as war captives. A slave could have possessions and even own other slaves. However, upon becoming a slave, all of the slave's animals and excess money would go to his purchaser. Slaves could buy their liberty, and slaves could be set free if they had children with or were married to their masters. Typically, upon the death of the master, slaves who had performed outstanding services were freed. The rest of the slaves were passed on as part of an inheritance.

Traveling merchants called pochtecah were a small, but important class as they not only facilitated commerce, but also communicated vital information across the empire and beyond its borders. They were often employed as spies.

This slavery was very different from what Europeans of the same period were to establish in their colonies, although it had much in common with the slaves of classical antiquity. (Sahagun doubts the appropriateness even of the term "slavery" for this Aztec institution.) First, slavery was personal, not hereditary: a slave's children were free. A slave could have possessions and even own other slaves. Slaves could buy their liberty, and slaves could be set free if they were able to show they had been mistreated or if they had children with or were married to their masters.

Several pages from the Codex Mendoza list tributary towns along with the goods they supplied, which included not only luxuries such as feathers, adorned suits, and greenstone beads, but more practical goods such as cloth, firewood, and food. Tribute was usually paid twice or four times a year at differing times.

Archaeological excavations in the Aztec-ruled provinces show that incorporation into the empire had both costs and benefits for provincial peoples. On the positive side, the empire promoted commerce and trade, and exotic goods from obsidian to bronze managed to reach the houses of both commoners and nobles. Trade partners included the enemy Tarascan, a source of bronze tools and jewelry. On the negative side, imperial tribute imposed a burden on commoner households, who had to increase their work to pay their share of tribute. Nobles, on the other hand, often made out well under imperial rule because of the indirect nature of imperial organization. The empire had to rely on local kings and nobles and offered them privileges for their help in maintaining order and keeping the tribute flowing. The Aztecs had 3 basic crafts: metal work, feather work, and music. The metal workers had no iron so they used copper, gold, and silver.

The main contribution of the Aztec rule was a system of communications between the conquered cities. In Mesoamerica, without draft animals for transport (nor, as a result, wheeled vehicles), the roads were designed for travel on foot. Usually these roads were maintained through tribute, and travelers had places to rest and eat and even latrines to use at regular intervals, roughly every 10 or 15 km. Couriers (paynani) were constantly travelling along those ways, keeping the Aztecs informed of events, and helping to

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monitor the integrity of the roads. Due to the steady surveillance, even women could travel alone, a fact that amazed the Spaniards, as that was not at all possible in Europe since the time of the Romans. After the conquest those roads were no longer subject to maintenance and were lost.

Due to the aspirations of conquest and the religious beliefs of the Mexicas, war was a very important activity. The Mexicas believed that the gods had sacrificed themselves for mankind, that their blood had given man life, and that the Sun was nourished with the blood of human hearts. This belief led them to sacrifice many prisoners at their temples. Some people were able to resist the Aztecs; the most powerful of these were the Tlaxaltecas and the Purepechas.

The people were completely prepared for war and great emphasis was placed on the creation of codexes and on the interpretation of the calendars, since both activities were essential to religion and community life.

The administration of Tenochtitlan and its foreign provinces required a great deal of paperwork. Taxes had to be collected, lawsuits between villages or private individuals had all to be recorded, and the merchants kept accounts of their goods and profits.

Instructions and reports passed to and fro between the capital and the outlying cities, and like any civilized people of today the Mexicans were familiar with both red tape and official correspondence. The clans maintained land registers, and when Cortes reached Tenochtitlan he had no trouble in procuring from the royal archive a map showing all the rivers and bays along a 400-mile stretch of the north coast.

In addition each temple owned a library of religious and astrological works, while a large private household, like that of Moctezuma, employed a full-time steward to look after the accounts which were so many that they filled an entire house. Ixtiuxochiti, a brother of the last native ruler of Texcoco, has left this account in the prologue to his Historia Chichimeca.

They had scribes for each branch of knowledge. Some dealt with the annals, putting down in order the things. which happened each year, giving the day, month, and hour. Others had charge of the genealogies, recording the lineage of rulers, lords and noblemen, registering the newborn and deleting those who had died.

Some painted the frontiers, limits, and boundary markers of the cities, provinces and villages, and also the distribution of fields, whose they were and to whom they belonged. Other scribes kept the law books and those dealing with the rites and ceremonies which they practiced when they were infidels.

The priests recorded all matters to do with the temples and images, with their idolatrous doctrines, the festivals of their false gods, and their calendars.

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And finally, the philosophers and learned men which there were among them were charged with painting all the sciences which they had discovered, and with teaching by memory all the songs in which were embodied their scientific knowledge and historical traditions.

In the law courts, especially those dealing with land and property rights, the disputants supported their claims with genealogies and maps, showing the king's land in purple, the lords' in red, and the clan fields in yellow.

Of this mass of paperwork hardly anything remains, and nearly all the surviving books from the Aztec homeland are of post-Conquest date.

Some are copies of earlier works, while others are written in Aztec script with Spanish or Nahuati commentaries in European letters.

The best collection of preConquest books comes from Oaxaca, the land of the Mixtecs, where more than a dozen examples have been preserved.

Each book, or codex, consists of a strip, anything up to 13 yards in length and some 6-7 inches high, made of paper, maguey cloth, or deer skin, and folded in zigzag or concertina fashion like a modern map, so that wherever the user opened it he was confronted by two pages.

The ends of the strip were glued to thin plaques of wood which served as covers and were some-times decorated with paintings or with discs of turquoise. Both sides of the strip were covered with writing and pictures, and the individual pages were divided into sections by red or black lines.

Each page was normally read from top to bottom, though in some codices the arrangement is zigzag or even goes around the page. The strip was scanned from left to right.

This enormous production of documents was dependent on a steady supply of the raw materials, and each year 24,000 reams of paper, the equivalent of 480,000 sheets, were sent to Tenochtitlan. Aztec paper was made from the inner bark of various species of fig tree. The bark was soaked in a river or in a bath of limey water, and the fibers were separated from the pulp, then laid on a smooth surface, doubled over, and beaten with a mashing stone which had a ridged surface.

A binding material (probably a gum of vegetable origin), was added, and the fibers were beaten out into a thin, homogeneous sheet. After smoothing and drying, the processed bark fibers had recognizably become paper, but the surfaces were still porous and rough, unsuitable for painting until they had been given a coating of white chalky varnish or size. On this background the scribe drew his figures, first sketching the outlines in black, then adding the colors with his brush.

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The Aztec used pictographs to communicate through writing. The principal colors were red, blue, green, and yellow, and the pigments were sometimes mixed with an oil to give added luster.

Color was important. The signs for grass, canes, and rushes look very much the same in black and white, but in color there could be no mistake: in the Codex Mendoza grass is yellow, canes are blue, rushes green. A ruler could be recognized at once from the shape of his diadem and from its color, turquoise, which was reserved for royal use.

A scribe who could keep pace with court proceedings had every reason to be proud of his skill Aztec. Both writing and reading were therefore specialized skills, and it is no wonder that the mass of the population remained illiterate. Writing was not taught in the schools attended by plebeian children, and indeed the ordinary man would have no need for it. In a bureaucratic and centralized society the common man received his instructions from above, from the priests who looked after the religious side of his life, or from the secular officials who were drawn from the nobility and had the benefit of a calmecac education.

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