- What is the architectural, religious and artistic legacy of the Mesoamerican peoples?
- 1- The colossal pyramidal constructions
- 2- Religion
- 3- Art
- 4- Writing system
- 5- Calendar
- References
The cultural legacy of the Mesoamerican peoples is summarized in their knowledge, traditions, constructions, religion, art, writing system or calendar.
Mesoamerican peoples comprise the indigenous cultures of Central America and central and southern Mexico.
The Olmec civilization inhabited that region, from which different cultures such as the Zapotec, Tolteca, Maya, Totonac and Tehotihuacana later emerged.
These civilizations disappeared before the Spanish conquest arrived and were noted for the great sophistication of their monuments, cities, and their intellectual achievements, comparable to the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Mesopotamia, and China.
The first inhabitants of Mesoamerica were hunters and gatherers, and it is estimated that they lived in the year 11,000 BC.
They made the transition to sedentary and turned to agriculture in approximately 7,000 BC. By 1500 BC, permanent villages had been settled and crops of corn, beans, courgettes, peppers or chilies, and cotton were abundant.
What is the architectural, religious and artistic legacy of the Mesoamerican peoples?
1- The colossal pyramidal constructions
Its shape imitated the mountains of the gods. From an architectural point of view, they possessed a perfect symmetry, which is remarkable in religious centers.
For example, at La Venta, where the first pyramid was built, the buildings are erected symmetrically from north to south, with four stone heads facing key points, as if guarding the complex.
The precise alignment of the buildings is one of the most impressive legacies of the Mesoamerican peoples.
2- Religion
Mesoamerican peoples revered natural places, and the connection of heaven, earth, and the underworld.
For them, the caves led to the underworld and the mountains that have caves and rivers offered access to the three planes.
From this belief arises the importance of mountains and their attempt to reproduce them in pyramid constructions.
Their gods were named after natural phenomena such as rain, earth, corn. And some animals were considered descendants of divine beings, such as jaguars, eagles, alligators, snakes, and even sharks.
3- Art
With the advancement in agriculture civilization began to emerge, what archaeologists call the early formative period (1500 to 900 BC). At this stage they developed the idea of pyramidal constructions and also pottery and sculpture.
They built stone heads in basalt, with unique facial features, which were surely portraits of the kings. They were up to 3 m tall and 8 tons in weight according to the Ancient History Encyclopedia.
Sculptures in jade and ceramic were found, also in wood.
Samples of his paintings were found in ritual caves and the subjects represented were about animals, or mythological animals such as the feathered serpent, or the dragon of the sky (alligator with burning eyebrows).
4- Writing system
Well preserved writings were found on stone monuments, altars, sculptures on pottery pieces.
Books were also found, whole volumes written on sheets of bark paper. Unfortunately, few specimens survived the tropical climate and the inquisition of the Catholic Church.
Mayan writings combined signs that represented syllables (syllabograms) and words (logograms).
5- Calendar
The Mayans had two simultaneous calendars. On the one hand, they had the Haab, or civil, of 365 days, divided into 18 months of 20 days each. And on the other hand, the Tzolkin, or sacred calendar, of 260 days, divided into three groups of 20-day months.
The nature cycle of human existence is reflected in the famous Mayan calendar. All representations of gods and goddesses served the purpose of helping people through the cycles of life.
References
- Coe, MD, and R. Koontz (2002) Mexico From the Olmecs to the Aztecs. Thames and Hudson, New York.
- Hendon and Joyce (2004). Mesoamerican Archeology. Blackwell Studies in Global Archeology.
- The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. (2017). Mesoamerican civilization. 10/06/2017, from Encyclopædia Britannica Website: britannica.com
- Marc Cartwright. (2013). Olmec Civilization. 10/06/2017, from Ancient History Encyclopedia Website: ancient.eu
- Joshua J. Mark. (2012). Maya Civilization. 10/06/2017, from Ancient History Encyclopedia Website: ancient.eu