Olmec & Teotihuacan

THE OLMECS Pre-Classic 1200 BC-400BC

INTRO TO OLMECSFirst known Mesoamerican civilizationThey are referred to as the “mother culture” because they are the earliest civilizationOlmec sites are located in the Southern states of Mexican in Veracruz and Tabasco The Nahuatl (Aztec) name for these people, Olmecatl, or Olmec in the modern corruption, means “rubber people” or “people of the rubber country.” That term was chosen because the Olmecs extracted latex from Panama rubber trees growing in the region and mixed it with the juice of a local vine to create rubber.

INTRO TO OLMECS Olmec Characteristics

Precious blue-green translucent jade “howling baby” faces “were-jaguar” ½ human and ½ jaguar Caiman, harpy eagle, toad, jaguar and snake all

appear in the Olmec supernatural repertoire Sharp cleft indicates emergence from the earth,

especially as seen in the head of the Maize god from whose cleft emerges the tender maize plant

Olmec art very realistic and personal.

Use of rubber

Earliest ballcourts have been discovered at Olmec sites.

Chocolate drinking

Pyramid building

The major centers of the Olmec heartland.

SAN LORENZO TENOCHTITLÁN,

VERACRUZPreClassic: 1200-900 BC

• 10 colossal heads found here made from basalt

• Basalt boulders came from the Tuxtla Mountains- 50 miles away!

• Mesoamerican people believed that all experience and emotions, along with the soul, resided in the head alone

• Heads are different sizes from 6 tons to 50 tons

• May have been posthumous records of the great kings who led them

• They are wearing ceremonial ball game helmets

• Jaguar paws on helmets probably emblematic of family lineage, feline pelt as a lineage title or symbol of office.

Colossal Head #5, Olmec, Basalt, San Lorenzo, 1200-900BC

Colossal Head #10, Olmec, Basalt, San LorenzoPreClassic 1200-900BC

LA VENTA, TABASCO 900-400 BC

Site of La Venta

Complex C “Great Pyramid” in La Venta, Tabasco 394 B.C.The First pyramid in Mesoamerica!

Colossal Head #1, La Venta, 1000BC-600BC

ALTAR #4, LA VENTA, 1000 BC• Note the rope that winds along the

ground, held by the figure.• Note also the eyes and the fangs on

the cornice above the figure, implying that the figure is seated in that creature's mouth.

• Lord’s power is emphasized by his action

• Served as a throne• Surface carved in a jaguar pelt- would

have been decorated in brilliant colors

Stela #2 representing a ballgame player. La Venta,1000BC-200BC

Monument #19, La Venta, Pre-Classic The earliest images of the feathered serpent are attributed to the Olmec.

TEOTIHUACÁN The City of the GodsClassic Period: 100BC-650AD

WHO WERE THE TEOTIHUACANOS• The world Teotihuacan is a Nahuatl word for

“the city of the gods” • The Aztecs believed that the gods created

the universe at this site. • It was founded around the year 100 AD with

its height in 450 AD and its decline around 550 AD

• Teotihuacan is speculated to have had around 150,000-250,000 residents.

• At its existence, it was one of the 6th most populated metropolis in the world!

• The rise and fall of Teotihuacan are still a mystery. Ooooh! 0_0

• Mutli-ethnic city Mictlantecuhtli, the Aztec “Lord of the Dead” was worshipped in this form by the people of Teotihuacan in 100BC

PRIMARY GODS AND RELIGION Due to the arid climate of Teotihuacan, in the Valley of Mexico, there was a lot of worship to deities that could bring produce rain. The main gods of the Teotihuacanos:Tlaloc: fangs, bifurcated tongue. Great Water GoddessChalchiuhtlicue: god of running waterFeathered Serpent: Creator of manWar Serpent

ARCHITECTURAL COMPONENTSThe vertical Tablero sits on the sloping talud. This schematic drawing shows the sort of workmanship typical of many Teotihuacan structures. The exterior is finished with fine plaster and polished. This architectural style would have been used only for sacred architecture. This style is so particular to Teotihuacan that it’s style spread and is even located at a site called Kaminaljuyu (Guatemala)- 700 miles away!!

Teotiahucan’s pyramids were colored deep red with molded plaster decorations of gods in blue, green and white.

Avenue of the Dead as seen from the Pyramid of the Moon.

Pyramid of the Moon

Pyramid of the Sun

CIUDADELA (CITADEL) & TEMPLE OF THE FEATHERED SERPENT Temple: 3rd largest pyramid at Teotihuacan • more than 100 sacrificial victims

found underneath the pyramid • The Ciudadela is a structure with high

walls and a large courtyard surrounding the temple. The Ciudadela’s courtyard is massive enough that it could house the entire adult population of Teotihuacán within its walls.

TEMPLE OF THE FEATHERED SERPENT The burials, like the structure, are dated to some time between 150 and 200 AD. The pyramid takes its name from representations of the Mesoamerican "feathered serpent" deity which covered its sides. These are some of the earliest-known representations of the feathered serpent, often identified with the much-later Aztec god Quetzalcoatl.There would have been 260 feathered serpent reliefs around the pyramid suggesting that it worked on the calendar system! 200 skeleton remains are found surrounding the structure are of war victims: dressed as warriors with their hands tied behind their backs.

Detail from the Temple of the Feathered Serpent

THE GREAT EARTH-WATER GODDESS OF TEOTIHUACÁN 100-700 ADParadise of Tlaloc, a fresco from Tepantitla

complex. The Great Earth-Water Goddess presides over waters that pour down upon earth, and rain springs from her hands. Priests make offerings at his sides. Here, in eternal happiness, live those who have died by water or who were killed by storms and lightning.

At Tepantitla the half-body of the Great Earth Goddess rises from a talud-tablero platform ornamented with flowers and feathers. This central symbol emerges from a wavy body of water in which shell fish swim. Its top is an imaginary ground line on which plants such as maize and fruit trees grow. This Great Goddess is an Earth Mother Goddess.

TEOTIHUACAN FRESCOES SHOWING TLALOCAN PARADISE OF RAIN GOD100-700ADTlalocan means place of the god Tlaloc. In this mural we see the representation of a subterranean river. All sorts of animals swim in the river. In some way, the city of Teotihuacan is represented as a river emanating from the mountain of substance (Tonacatepetl), in this case the Cerro Gordo. All the people are represented enjoying daily life activities: playing ball, singing, jumping and talking in a context of abundance and fertility.

TEOTIHUACAN FRESCOSDetail of mural shows us a figure playing the Mesoamerican ballgame.

FRESCOED TRIPOD VESSEL WITH SYMBOLS OF TLALOCEARLY CLASSIC Tripod feet characterize Teotihuacan ceramicsTripod vessel usually would have fitted lids on top with handles. On this vessel a goggled warriors approach mountains or bear weapons.

URN WITH OWLS100-650 ADCLASSIC PERIODOther clay objects include polychromed incense burners, built up of mold-made details.

The urns show human and animal faces peering out from almost architectural constructions of mass-produced, stamped elements. They may have ben taken apart and reconfigured for different deities. It is believed that a barrio north of the Citadel would have been the place of manufacture.

ONYX OCELOTCUAUHXICALLI100-700ADOcelot= jaguar This bowl is in the shape of a jaguar. It served as a receptacle for the hearts of human sacrifices which were common in Teotihuacan. These kinds of sacrificial receptacles are called cuauhxicallis.

TLALOC100-700 AD

Found in the town of Coatlinchan near Tlaloc Mountain in the State of Mexico and weighing 168 tons, this is the largest existing monolith in the Americas.

Tlaloc, the provider, had attributes of the rain. He created and brought down the rain and the hail. He caused the trees, the grasses, the maize to blossom, to sprout, and to grow. Also attributed to Tlaloc was the thunderbolts and the drowning of people.

CHALCHIUHTLICUE100-700 ADThis colossal statue represents Chalchiuhtlicue, "Her Skirt Is of Jade“She was the goddess of running water. She is Tlaloc's elder sister and sometimes regarded as his wife. She was esteemed and feared. represented the water in both its calm and wild states. Teotihuacan's sculptures are massive and minimal. They matched the geometrically shaped massive architecture of their great city of Teotihuacan.

She is sometimes referred to as the Great Goddess

MASK100-700 ADCLASSIC PERIOD There was no tradition of portraiture at the great central Mexico city of Teotihuacan, but masks depicting the human face are abundant in the style associated with the site. With its geometrically rendered horizontal brow, triangular nose, and oval mouth and eyes, this mask depicts the idealized facial type that seems to function as a symbol, similar to other standardized motifs present in the art of Teotihuacan. The depressions of the eyes and the mouth suggest that this mask, like many of its counterparts, might have originally possessed inlaid shell or stone for the depiction of eyes and teeth.

MASK 450 ADThis mask is acknowledged as one of the great treasures of pre-Hispanic art in Mesoamerica. Masks were commonly placed over mummy bundles to protect the deceased from the dangers of the afterlife. Made of stone, its surface is covered in bits of turquoise, obsidian, and shell. The tiny glyph on the forehead may record a name. Most of these masks have been found in burials. This mask exemplifies the mastery of the mosaic techniques by the Teotihuacanos.