Mesoamerica: Late Postclassic Sites;ANTH 325; Fall 2013

A map of the layout of the archaeological site of Tula, Hidalgo

Tula Panorama

Tula Panorama

Columns in the form of Toltec warriors in Tula

• Tarascan or Purépecha state rivaled Aztec

empire in territory.

• Tzintzuntzan was capital with 35,000

people.

• Aztec attempts to conquer Tarascans were

met with stiff resistance, well-trained

military and forts along their borders.

• Produced copper, bronze, and gold objects.

Oaxaca had the Post Classic town of Mitla.

Intricate mosaic veneer on facades of buildings and murals.

A Zapotec religious center.

Yucatan Peninsula

Chichén Itza: dominant Maya center during early Postclassic - A.D.1000

Toltec period of Chichén Itza: A.D.1000 - 1250.

Chichén Itzá, 900 – 1100ADYucatán Peninsula, Mexico

Chichén Itzá, Panorama

Chichén Itzá: El Castillo/Templo de Kukulkán

Red Jaguar Throne Inside El Castillo

Chichén Itzá: Serpent Columns at Temple of 1000 Warriors

Chichén Itzá: Chac Mool and Serpent Columns at Temple of 1000 Warriors

Chichén Itza:

The Observatory

Mayan calendars and astronomy

Solar calendar:

• 356 days: 18 months by 20 days each with five additional unlucky days

• Agriculture and marketing

Lunar calendar:

• 260 days: 13 months by 20 days each, • astrology, fate of individuals and the

empire.

Causes of the Rise of Mayan Civilization

• Trade Networks: Trade in obsidian, salt, stone; Cobá

• Hydraulic Theory: Irrigation; Campeche

• Social-environmental circumscription:• limited water resources• forced to population to congregate around cenotes• administrators that controlled water became the elite• works for Chichén Itzá

Chichén Itzá’s Cenote

Chichén Itzá Sacbe

1) Aztec City States, Ethnic Groups, and Polities2) “Aztec” refers to Nahuatl-speaking peoples of highland Central Mexico. Aztec-people from Aztlan, “White Land”, a mythical place to the NW.3) Mexica, an ethnic group-people from Metzliapán, “Moon Lake” their name for Lake Texcoco.

4) Mexica, Acolhua, Tepanec, and Tlahuica are ethnic groups, all of who speak Nahuatl5) In 1428, Aztecs established alliance of three polities;

a) Tenochtitlán (Mexica), b) Texcoco (Acolhua), and c) Tlacopan (dissident Tepanec polity).

6) Tenochtitlán’s site where eagle seated on a cactus eating a snake was spotted.7) Population of around 200,000 people.8) Great marketplace of Tlatelolco was attended by over 60,000 people daily.9) Chinampas produced 7 crops per year and provided over half of the basic food needs of Tenochtitlán.