Mayan, Aztec and the Incas.

mayan-culture, the Incas, aztecs

2 Responses to Mayan, Aztec and the Incas.

  1. javier burgos says:
    February 2, 2009 at 2:22 pm

    Maya Civilization

    Maya Civilization

    The Maya civilization encompassed all of the Yucatán Peninsula in present-day Mexico and parts of present-day Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. Ruins of Maya cities, which serve as an indication of the skill and artistry of their architects, have been discovered throughout this region. For reasons still unknown, the Maya civilization collapsed in about ad 900.

    Maya Ruins, El Salvador

    The Maya occupied a large part of Central America, and their civilization reached its height between ad 300 and 900. Many ruins of the ancient civilization have been excavated in El Salvador, including huge limestone pyramids.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Maya City

    The ancient Maya people of southern Mexico and Central America built an advanced civilization more than 1,000 years ago. This reconstruction shows the city of Palenque around 900 ad.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Maya Warriors in Bonampak Murals

    Fierce Maya warriors are depicted in one of a series of murals decorating the interior walls of a Maya temple-palace at Bonampak, an ancient Maya city in present-day southeastern Mexico. Archaeologists discovered the murals, preserved under a layer of calcification, in 1946 and dated the paintings to about ad 790. The murals depict the military conquests and other achievements of Maya king Chan Muwan. The Maya warriors shown in this segment are presenting the king with war captives. Distinguished warriors wore masks and animal pelts, including the highly prized jaguar, to signify their status and skill. The Maya believed warriors drew strength from animal spirits.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Governor’s Palace, Uxmal

    The Governor’s Palace at Uxmal is part of a monumental Mayan complex on the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico. Built in the 8th or 9th century ad, this long, horizontal building shows a characteristic feature of the region’s architectural style—a simple lower wall and a richly decorated upper one. The Uxmal complex was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Tulum, Mexico

    Located at the northeastern end of the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico, the Maya city of Tulum was once one of the great cities of Maya civilization. The city was built during the 13th century, 1000 years after the zenith of the culture. Anthropologists still do not know what caused the decline of the civilization. Ruins of cities like Tulum reveal fascinating aspects of the culture that once thrived in southern Mexico and Central America. Temples such as the one in the background were used by the Maya in religious ceremonies honoring their many gods and goddesses

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Madrid Codex

    The Madrid Codex is one of the four preserved codices (manuscript volumes) of Maya hieroglyphs. It dates from shortly before the arrival of Spanish conquerors in the 16th century, several centuries after the decline of the vast Maya civilization around 900. This codex reads as a kind of prophetic almanac, predicting successful times for such activities as hunting and idol-making.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Chichén Itzá, Mexico

    Archaeologists believe that the Formative period of Maya civilization began as early as 1500 bc, but the peak of Maya cultural achievement came during the Classic period, ad 300 to 900. During this time, the Maya created unique art and architectural styles, made astronomical observations, and developed a system of hieroglyphs for recording significant events. Chichén Itzá, shown here, was founded early in the 6th century and was one of the most important Maya cities.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aztec Empire

    Aztec Empire

    The Aztec created an empire in the 1400s in the region that is now Mexico. Their capital, Tenochtitlán, stood on the site of present-day Mexico City. The empire was destroyed by the Spaniards in 1521.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Plaza of the Three Cultures

    After the conquest of the Aztec Empire, a new civilization was created in Mesoamerica, combining native traditions with European influences. The Plaza of the Three Cultures in Mexico City symbolizes this blend: the ruins of an Aztec temple exist beside a Spanish colonial church, with a modern housing project in the background.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Pyramids of Tenochtitlán

    This museum model shows the pyramids and religious buildings at the heart of Tenochtitlán, the capital of the Aztec Empire. The Aztec founded the city in 1325, and it was built on an island in Lake Texcoco, the site of present-day Mexico City.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aztec Chinampas

    To produce enough food to support their population, the Aztec constructed chinampas, or raised garden beds, in swampland and shallow water. The Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán was built on an island in the middle of Lake Texcoco (which later dried up and is now the site of Mexico City), limiting the amount of available dry farmland. This 16th-century painting depicts farmers making a chinampa by laying cut sod on top of a frame of wood and reeds.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Market of Tenochtitlán

    A model of the ancient market, or tianquiztli, of Tenochtitlán appears at the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City, Mexico. The model represents what was the most famous market in the Aztec empire when the Spaniards arrived in 1519. Conquistador Hernán Cortés’s chroniclers marveled at the variety of products available, which included food staples such as corn, beans, chilies, squash, and cacti, in addition to baskets, ceramics, and cloth.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Tlaloc

    The Aztec rain god Tlaloc appears in all his splendour, wearing a crown of heron feathers while sowing maize and bean seeds that will germinate after he produces rain. This fresco is in the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City, Mexico.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Coatlicue
    The Aztec earth goddess Coatlicue, who wore a skirt of snakes from which she derives her name, was the mother of the god of war and the sun, Huitzilopochtli. Here she appears with a necklace of human hearts, hands, and skulls of the victims offered to her in sacrifice. The statue stands 2.4 m (7 ft 9 in) high and is preserved in the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aztec Calendar Stone

    The ancient civilizations of Mesoamerica developed complex calendar systems based on overlapping cycles of time. The Aztec calendar stone, carved from a piece of basalt weighing over 22 metric tons, depicts sun gods at its center, which represent present and past eras. The suns are encircled by several segmented rings, some with heiroglyphs, which show the divisions of Aztec cycles of time.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Codex Borbonicus

    The state archives of the Aztec Empire (like those of the Maya and other Mesoamerican civilizations) included pictorial codices, or illustrated books, that recorded religious legends and historical events. Few codices survived the Spanish conquest. This page of the Codex Borbonicus, an early colonial-period reconstruction of an Aztec codex, illustrates an important legend involving the plumed-serpent god Quetzalcoatl. The border of the central picture shows the 260-day almanac year of the Aztec calendar, in which 20 named days (represented by figurative pictures) intermesh with the numbers 1 to 13 (represented by connected dots).

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Hernán Cortés
    A Spanish explorer of the 16th century, Hernán Cortés conquered the great Aztec Empire in 1521 and built Mexico City on the site of the Aztec capital, Tenochtitlán.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Cortés and Montezuma II
    An engraving by the 19th-century artist Gallo Gallina depicts the Spanish adventurer Hernán Cortés with the ruler of the Aztec Empire, Montezuma II

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    The Incas Empire

    Inca Empire of the Early 1500s
    The Inca, a South American people, built one of the largest and wealthiest empires in the western hemisphere beginning in the mid-1400s. Located on the western coast of South America, the empire extended more than 4000 km (more than 2500 mi) and included regions of present-day Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Bolivia, and Argentina. The city of Cuzco, situated in southern Peru, served as the Inca capital.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Atahualpa

    Atahualpa was the last fully independent Incan emperor of Peru. In 1532 he was taken hostage by the Spaniards, who wanted control of the empire. He was executed in 1533 for allegedly plotting against Spanish explorer Francisco Pizarro

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Machu Picchu, Peru
    The ruins of Machu Picchu, near Cuzco, are the remains of an ancient city of the Inca Empire. The civilization, based in southern Peru, dates to 1200. The Inca mastered architecture, road building, and astronomy and were noted for their code of laws and advanced system of government.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Inca Emperors
    The Inca Empire began with Manco Capac of the Quecha people and his conquest of the Valley of Cuzco in the Andes Mountains. The empire prospered until it was conquered for its wealth by the Spanish in 1572.

    Reign
    Name

    The Kingdom of Cuzco

    c. 1200-1400 1
    Manco Capac

    Sinchi Roca

    Lloque Yupanqui

    Mayta Capac

    Capac Yupanqui

    Inca Roca

    Yahuar Huacac
    until 1438
    Viracocha Inca
    The Empire

    1438-71
    Pachacuti
    1471-93
    Topa Inca
    1493-1525
    Huayna Capac
    1525-32
    Huáscar 2
    1525-33
    Atahualpa 2
    The Vilcabamba State

    1533
    Topa Hualpa
    1533-45
    Manco Capac II
    1545-60
    Sayri Tupac
    1560-71
    Titu Cusi Yupanqui
    1571-72
    Tupac Amarú
    1) The specific dates of individual reigns for this period are unknown.

    2) Huáscar ruled in the south and Atahualpa ruled in the north until Atahualpa gained control of the entire empire in 1532.

    Inca Ruins at Ingapirca

    The circular stone walls of a fortresslike structure mark the site of Ecuador’s only significant Inca ruins, which are found northeast of Cuenca. Some archaeologists believe that the site, known as Ingapirca (meaning “wall of the Inca”), had a religious function and that the oval-shaped structure served as a temple for rituals. The Inca ruled the indigenous peoples of Ecuador for about a century before the arrival of the Spanish in the early 1500s.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Inca Sun Mask

    In the Inca Empire, artifacts of gold and other precious metals were associated with nobility, wealth, and political power. This gold Inca Sun Mask is held in the Central Bank Museum in Quito, Ecuador.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Francisco Pizarro
    Spanish explorer and military officer Francisco Pizarro was known for both his courage and cruelty. Pizarro gained fame for conquering the Inca Empire in Peru during the mid-1530s, opening the way for Spanish colonization of South America.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Maya Civilization

    Maya Civilization

    The Maya civilization encompassed all of the Yucatán Peninsula in present-day Mexico and parts of present-day Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. Ruins of Maya cities, which serve as an indication of the skill and artistry of their architects, have been discovered throughout this region. For reasons still unknown, the Maya civilization collapsed in about ad 900.

    Maya Ruins, El Salvador

    The Maya occupied a large part of Central America, and their civilization reached its height between ad 300 and 900. Many ruins of the ancient civilization have been excavated in El Salvador, including huge limestone pyramids.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Maya City

    The ancient Maya people of southern Mexico and Central America built an advanced civilization more than 1,000 years ago. This reconstruction shows the city of Palenque around 900 ad.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Maya Warriors in Bonampak Murals

    Fierce Maya warriors are depicted in one of a series of murals decorating the interior walls of a Maya temple-palace at Bonampak, an ancient Maya city in present-day southeastern Mexico. Archaeologists discovered the murals, preserved under a layer of calcification, in 1946 and dated the paintings to about ad 790. The murals depict the military conquests and other achievements of Maya king Chan Muwan. The Maya warriors shown in this segment are presenting the king with war captives. Distinguished warriors wore masks and animal pelts, including the highly prized jaguar, to signify their status and skill. The Maya believed warriors drew strength from animal spirits.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Governor’s Palace, Uxmal

    The Governor’s Palace at Uxmal is part of a monumental Mayan complex on the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico. Built in the 8th or 9th century ad, this long, horizontal building shows a characteristic feature of the region’s architectural style—a simple lower wall and a richly decorated upper one. The Uxmal complex was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Tulum, Mexico

    Located at the northeastern end of the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico, the Maya city of Tulum was once one of the great cities of Maya civilization. The city was built during the 13th century, 1000 years after the zenith of the culture. Anthropologists still do not know what caused the decline of the civilization. Ruins of cities like Tulum reveal fascinating aspects of the culture that once thrived in southern Mexico and Central America. Temples such as the one in the background were used by the Maya in religious ceremonies honoring their many gods and goddesses

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Madrid Codex

    The Madrid Codex is one of the four preserved codices (manuscript volumes) of Maya hieroglyphs. It dates from shortly before the arrival of Spanish conquerors in the 16th century, several centuries after the decline of the vast Maya civilization around 900. This codex reads as a kind of prophetic almanac, predicting successful times for such activities as hunting and idol-making.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Chichén Itzá, Mexico

    Archaeologists believe that the Formative period of Maya civilization began as early as 1500 bc, but the peak of Maya cultural achievement came during the Classic period, ad 300 to 900. During this time, the Maya created unique art and architectural styles, made astronomical observations, and developed a system of hieroglyphs for recording significant events. Chichén Itzá, shown here, was founded early in the 6th century and was one of the most important Maya cities.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aztec Empire

    Aztec Empire

    The Aztec created an empire in the 1400s in the region that is now Mexico. Their capital, Tenochtitlán, stood on the site of present-day Mexico City. The empire was destroyed by the Spaniards in 1521.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Plaza of the Three Cultures

    After the conquest of the Aztec Empire, a new civilization was created in Mesoamerica, combining native traditions with European influences. The Plaza of the Three Cultures in Mexico City symbolizes this blend: the ruins of an Aztec temple exist beside a Spanish colonial church, with a modern housing project in the background.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Pyramids of Tenochtitlán

    This museum model shows the pyramids and religious buildings at the heart of Tenochtitlán, the capital of the Aztec Empire. The Aztec founded the city in 1325, and it was built on an island in Lake Texcoco, the site of present-day Mexico City.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aztec Chinampas

    To produce enough food to support their population, the Aztec constructed chinampas, or raised garden beds, in swampland and shallow water. The Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán was built on an island in the middle of Lake Texcoco (which later dried up and is now the site of Mexico City), limiting the amount of available dry farmland. This 16th-century painting depicts farmers making a chinampa by laying cut sod on top of a frame of wood and reeds.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Market of Tenochtitlán

    A model of the ancient market, or tianquiztli, of Tenochtitlán appears at the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City, Mexico. The model represents what was the most famous market in the Aztec empire when the Spaniards arrived in 1519. Conquistador Hernán Cortés’s chroniclers marveled at the variety of products available, which included food staples such as corn, beans, chilies, squash, and cacti, in addition to baskets, ceramics, and cloth.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Tlaloc

    The Aztec rain god Tlaloc appears in all his splendour, wearing a crown of heron feathers while sowing maize and bean seeds that will germinate after he produces rain. This fresco is in the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City, Mexico.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Coatlicue
    The Aztec earth goddess Coatlicue, who wore a skirt of snakes from which she derives her name, was the mother of the god of war and the sun, Huitzilopochtli. Here she appears with a necklace of human hearts, hands, and skulls of the victims offered to her in sacrifice. The statue stands 2.4 m (7 ft 9 in) high and is preserved in the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aztec Calendar Stone

    The ancient civilizations of Mesoamerica developed complex calendar systems based on overlapping cycles of time. The Aztec calendar stone, carved from a piece of basalt weighing over 22 metric tons, depicts sun gods at its center, which represent present and past eras. The suns are encircled by several segmented rings, some with heiroglyphs, which show the divisions of Aztec cycles of time.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Codex Borbonicus

    The state archives of the Aztec Empire (like those of the Maya and other Mesoamerican civilizations) included pictorial codices, or illustrated books, that recorded religious legends and historical events. Few codices survived the Spanish conquest. This page of the Codex Borbonicus, an early colonial-period reconstruction of an Aztec codex, illustrates an important legend involving the plumed-serpent god Quetzalcoatl. The border of the central picture shows the 260-day almanac year of the Aztec calendar, in which 20 named days (represented by figurative pictures) intermesh with the numbers 1 to 13 (represented by connected dots).

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Hernán Cortés
    A Spanish explorer of the 16th century, Hernán Cortés conquered the great Aztec Empire in 1521 and built Mexico City on the site of the Aztec capital, Tenochtitlán.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Cortés and Montezuma II
    An engraving by the 19th-century artist Gallo Gallina depicts the Spanish adventurer Hernán Cortés with the ruler of the Aztec Empire, Montezuma II

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    The Incas Empire

    Inca Empire of the Early 1500s
    The Inca, a South American people, built one of the largest and wealthiest empires in the western hemisphere beginning in the mid-1400s. Located on the western coast of South America, the empire extended more than 4000 km (more than 2500 mi) and included regions of present-day Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Bolivia, and Argentina. The city of Cuzco, situated in southern Peru, served as the Inca capital.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Atahualpa

    Atahualpa was the last fully independent Incan emperor of Peru. In 1532 he was taken hostage by the Spaniards, who wanted control of the empire. He was executed in 1533 for allegedly plotting against Spanish explorer Francisco Pizarro

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Machu Picchu, Peru
    The ruins of Machu Picchu, near Cuzco, are the remains of an ancient city of the Inca Empire. The civilization, based in southern Peru, dates to 1200. The Inca mastered architecture, road building, and astronomy and were noted for their code of laws and advanced system of government.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Inca Emperors
    The Inca Empire began with Manco Capac of the Quecha people and his conquest of the Valley of Cuzco in the Andes Mountains. The empire prospered until it was conquered for its wealth by the Spanish in 1572.

    Reign
    Name

    The Kingdom of Cuzco

    c. 1200-1400 1
    Manco Capac

    Sinchi Roca

    Lloque Yupanqui

    Mayta Capac

    Capac Yupanqui

    Inca Roca

    Yahuar Huacac
    until 1438
    Viracocha Inca
    The Empire

    1438-71
    Pachacuti
    1471-93
    Topa Inca
    1493-1525
    Huayna Capac
    1525-32
    Huáscar 2
    1525-33
    Atahualpa 2
    The Vilcabamba State

    1533
    Topa Hualpa
    1533-45
    Manco Capac II
    1545-60
    Sayri Tupac
    1560-71
    Titu Cusi Yupanqui
    1571-72
    Tupac Amarú
    1) The specific dates of individual reigns for this period are unknown.

    2) Huáscar ruled in the south and Atahualpa ruled in the north until Atahualpa gained control of the entire empire in 1532.

    Inca Ruins at Ingapirca

    The circular stone walls of a fortresslike structure mark the site of Ecuador’s only significant Inca ruins, which are found northeast of Cuenca. Some archaeologists believe that the site, known as Ingapirca (meaning “wall of the Inca”), had a religious function and that the oval-shaped structure served as a temple for rituals. The Inca ruled the indigenous peoples of Ecuador for about a century before the arrival of the Spanish in the early 1500s.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Inca Sun Mask

    In the Inca Empire, artifacts of gold and other precious metals were associated with nobility, wealth, and political power. This gold Inca Sun Mask is held in the Central Bank Museum in Quito, Ecuador.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Francisco Pizarro
    Spanish explorer and military officer Francisco Pizarro was known for both his courage and cruelty. Pizarro gained fame for conquering the Inca Empire in Peru during the mid-1530s, opening the way for Spanish colonization of South America.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Maya Civilization

    Maya Civilization

    The Maya civilization encompassed all of the Yucatán Peninsula in present-day Mexico and parts of present-day Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. Ruins of Maya cities, which serve as an indication of the skill and artistry of their architects, have been discovered throughout this region. For reasons still unknown, the Maya civilization collapsed in about ad 900.

    Maya Ruins, El Salvador

    The Maya occupied a large part of Central America, and their civilization reached its height between ad 300 and 900. Many ruins of the ancient civilization have been excavated in El Salvador, including huge limestone pyramids.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Maya City

    The ancient Maya people of southern Mexico and Central America built an advanced civilization more than 1,000 years ago. This reconstruction shows the city of Palenque around 900 ad.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Maya Warriors in Bonampak Murals

    Fierce Maya warriors are depicted in one of a series of murals decorating the interior walls of a Maya temple-palace at Bonampak, an ancient Maya city in present-day southeastern Mexico. Archaeologists discovered the murals, preserved under a layer of calcification, in 1946 and dated the paintings to about ad 790. The murals depict the military conquests and other achievements of Maya king Chan Muwan. The Maya warriors shown in this segment are presenting the king with war captives. Distinguished warriors wore masks and animal pelts, including the highly prized jaguar, to signify their status and skill. The Maya believed warriors drew strength from animal spirits.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Governor’s Palace, Uxmal

    The Governor’s Palace at Uxmal is part of a monumental Mayan complex on the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico. Built in the 8th or 9th century ad, this long, horizontal building shows a characteristic feature of the region’s architectural style—a simple lower wall and a richly decorated upper one. The Uxmal complex was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Tulum, Mexico

    Located at the northeastern end of the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico, the Maya city of Tulum was once one of the great cities of Maya civilization. The city was built during the 13th century, 1000 years after the zenith of the culture. Anthropologists still do not know what caused the decline of the civilization. Ruins of cities like Tulum reveal fascinating aspects of the culture that once thrived in southern Mexico and Central America. Temples such as the one in the background were used by the Maya in religious ceremonies honoring their many gods and goddesses

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Madrid Codex

    The Madrid Codex is one of the four preserved codices (manuscript volumes) of Maya hieroglyphs. It dates from shortly before the arrival of Spanish conquerors in the 16th century, several centuries after the decline of the vast Maya civilization around 900. This codex reads as a kind of prophetic almanac, predicting successful times for such activities as hunting and idol-making.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Chichén Itzá, Mexico

    Archaeologists believe that the Formative period of Maya civilization began as early as 1500 bc, but the peak of Maya cultural achievement came during the Classic period, ad 300 to 900. During this time, the Maya created unique art and architectural styles, made astronomical observations, and developed a system of hieroglyphs for recording significant events. Chichén Itzá, shown here, was founded early in the 6th century and was one of the most important Maya cities.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aztec Empire

    Aztec Empire

    The Aztec created an empire in the 1400s in the region that is now Mexico. Their capital, Tenochtitlán, stood on the site of present-day Mexico City. The empire was destroyed by the Spaniards in 1521.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Plaza of the Three Cultures

    After the conquest of the Aztec Empire, a new civilization was created in Mesoamerica, combining native traditions with European influences. The Plaza of the Three Cultures in Mexico City symbolizes this blend: the ruins of an Aztec temple exist beside a Spanish colonial church, with a modern housing project in the background.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Pyramids of Tenochtitlán

    This museum model shows the pyramids and religious buildings at the heart of Tenochtitlán, the capital of the Aztec Empire. The Aztec founded the city in 1325, and it was built on an island in Lake Texcoco, the site of present-day Mexico City.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aztec Chinampas

    To produce enough food to support their population, the Aztec constructed chinampas, or raised garden beds, in swampland and shallow water. The Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán was built on an island in the middle of Lake Texcoco (which later dried up and is now the site of Mexico City), limiting the amount of available dry farmland. This 16th-century painting depicts farmers making a chinampa by laying cut sod on top of a frame of wood and reeds.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Market of Tenochtitlán

    A model of the ancient market, or tianquiztli, of Tenochtitlán appears at the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City, Mexico. The model represents what was the most famous market in the Aztec empire when the Spaniards arrived in 1519. Conquistador Hernán Cortés’s chroniclers marveled at the variety of products available, which included food staples such as corn, beans, chilies, squash, and cacti, in addition to baskets, ceramics, and cloth.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Tlaloc

    The Aztec rain god Tlaloc appears in all his splendour, wearing a crown of heron feathers while sowing maize and bean seeds that will germinate after he produces rain. This fresco is in the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City, Mexico.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Coatlicue
    The Aztec earth goddess Coatlicue, who wore a skirt of snakes from which she derives her name, was the mother of the god of war and the sun, Huitzilopochtli. Here she appears with a necklace of human hearts, hands, and skulls of the victims offered to her in sacrifice. The statue stands 2.4 m (7 ft 9 in) high and is preserved in the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aztec Calendar Stone

    The ancient civilizations of Mesoamerica developed complex calendar systems based on overlapping cycles of time. The Aztec calendar stone, carved from a piece of basalt weighing over 22 metric tons, depicts sun gods at its center, which represent present and past eras. The suns are encircled by several segmented rings, some with heiroglyphs, which show the divisions of Aztec cycles of time.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Codex Borbonicus

    The state archives of the Aztec Empire (like those of the Maya and other Mesoamerican civilizations) included pictorial codices, or illustrated books, that recorded religious legends and historical events. Few codices survived the Spanish conquest. This page of the Codex Borbonicus, an early colonial-period reconstruction of an Aztec codex, illustrates an important legend involving the plumed-serpent god Quetzalcoatl. The border of the central picture shows the 260-day almanac year of the Aztec calendar, in which 20 named days (represented by figurative pictures) intermesh with the numbers 1 to 13 (represented by connected dots).

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Hernán Cortés
    A Spanish explorer of the 16th century, Hernán Cortés conquered the great Aztec Empire in 1521 and built Mexico City on the site of the Aztec capital, Tenochtitlán.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Cortés and Montezuma II
    An engraving by the 19th-century artist Gallo Gallina depicts the Spanish adventurer Hernán Cortés with the ruler of the Aztec Empire, Montezuma II

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    The Incas Empire

    Inca Empire of the Early 1500s
    The Inca, a South American people, built one of the largest and wealthiest empires in the western hemisphere beginning in the mid-1400s. Located on the western coast of South America, the empire extended more than 4000 km (more than 2500 mi) and included regions of present-day Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Bolivia, and Argentina. The city of Cuzco, situated in southern Peru, served as the Inca capital.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Atahualpa

    Atahualpa was the last fully independent Incan emperor of Peru. In 1532 he was taken hostage by the Spaniards, who wanted control of the empire. He was executed in 1533 for allegedly plotting against Spanish explorer Francisco Pizarro

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Machu Picchu, Peru
    The ruins of Machu Picchu, near Cuzco, are the remains of an ancient city of the Inca Empire. The civilization, based in southern Peru, dates to 1200. The Inca mastered architecture, road building, and astronomy and were noted for their code of laws and advanced system of government.

    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Inca Emperors
    The Inca Empire began with Manco Capac of the Quecha people and his conquest of the Valley of Cuzco in the Andes Mountains. The empire prospered until it was conquered for its wealth by the Spanish in 1572.

    Reign
    Name

    The Kingdom of Cuzco

    c. 1200-1400 1
    Manco Capac

    Sinchi Roca

    Lloque Yupanqui

    Mayta Capac

    Capac Yupanqui

    Inca Roca

    Yahuar Huacac
    until 1438
    Viracocha Inca
    The Empire

    1438-71
    Pachacuti
    1471-93
    Topa Inca
    1493-1525
    Huayna Capac
    1525-32
    Huáscar 2
    1525-33
    Atahualpa 2
    The Vilcabamba State

    1533
    Topa Hualpa
    1533-45
    Manco Capac II
    1545-60
    Sayri Tupac
    1560-71
    Titu Cusi Yupanqui
    1571-72
    Tupac Amarú
    1) The specific dates of individual reigns for this period are unknown.

    2) Huáscar ruled in the south and Atahualpa ruled in the north until Atahualpa gained control of the entire empire in 1532.

    Inca Ruins at Ingapirca

    The circular stone walls of a fortresslike structure mark the site of Ecuador’s only significant Inca ruins, which are found northeast of Cuenca. Some archaeologists believe that the site, known as Ingapirca (meaning “wall of the Inca”), had a religious function and that the oval-shaped structure served as a temple for rituals. The Inca ruled the indigenous peoples of Ecuador for about a century before the arrival of the Spanish in the early 1500s.

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    Inca Sun Mask

    In the Inca Empire, artifacts of gold and other precious metals were associated with nobility, wealth, and political power. This gold Inca Sun Mask is held in the Central Bank Museum in Quito, Ecuador.

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    Francisco Pizarro
    Spanish explorer and military officer Francisco Pizarro was known for both his courage and cruelty. Pizarro gained fame for conquering the Inca Empire in Peru during the mid-1530s, opening the way for Spanish colonization of South America.

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  2. javier burgos says:
    February 2, 2009 at 2:24 pm

    To San Gabriel 4th Course Students

    Javier Burgos
    E.L.T.

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