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Coach Smith

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... war and conquest Conquered less than 30 years after Columbus first voyage by a small army of Spaniards led by Hernando Cortez. – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Coach Smith


1
Early Civilizations of the Americas
  • Coach Smith
  • North Shore HS
  • 11-22-10

2
Early Civilizations of the Americas
3
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4
MAYAN Empire
  • 1000 B.C. 900 A.D.
  • Lived mainly in Central America
  • Agricultural people
  • Major food crops Maize and beans
  • Built the great city of Tikal
  • Built flattopped pyramids that housed the tombs
    of rulers, observatories, and ball courts
    (architectural wonders)
  • Believed that bright, celestial objects in the
    sky were gods

5
MAYAN CIVILIZATION
  • Devised a complex and accurate calendar
  • Included the concept of ZERO
  • Observation of the night sky enabled them to
    predict eclipses
  • Developed a written language based upon glyphs
    (symbolic figures or characters)
  • Began abandoning cities between 800-900 A.D.
  • Descendants of Mayans still live in southern
    Mexico (Chiapas) and Guatemala

6
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7
Aztec Empire
  • Early 1200 1521 AD
  • Warlike people
  • Borrowing from earlier civilizations, the Aztecs
    became skilled builders
  • Capital was the lake city Tenochtitlan
  • Worshipped many gods, especially the sun god
  • Built stone pyramid temples to honor their gods
  • Believed the sun was a god and would grow weak
    and die unless it was fed a daily diet of blood
    extracted from human hearts.

8
Ancient map of Tenochtitlan
9
Aztec Empire
  • Aztecs were feared and hated by other peoples in
    Mexico
  • Expanded the empire through war and conquest
  • Conquered less than 30 years after Columbus
    first voyage by a small army of Spaniards led by
    Hernando Cortez.
  • Intermixed with the Spanish to make modern
    Mexicans.

10
The Inca
11
Inca Empire
  • (1200 1532 A.D.)
  •   Found in Peru and Ecuador, throughout the
    Andes Mountains Capital City Cuzco (high in the
    Andes)
  •       Terraced slopes of the mountains to grow
    potatoes
  •       Excelled in bridge and aqueduct
    construction
  •       Built earthquake proof buildings

12
Inca Empire
  • Ruled by an absolute monarch Lord Inca
    believed he was a descendant of the sun
  • Very organized government took a census of the
    Incas entire population
  • Kept record by tying knots in a rope device
    called a QUIPU - A pattern of
    knots stood for a certain number
  • Built 10,000 miles of roads to connect the empire
  • Conquered by Pizarro and the Spanish
    conquistadors
  • Descendents of the Inca live in Peru
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