- Characteristics of the territory
- Main aspects of the Olmec culture
- Periods of history and location of the Olmecs
- 1- Culture of San Lorenzo de Tenochtitlán
- 2- Culture of La Venta
- 3- Culture of Tres Zapotes
- References
The temporary location of the Olmecs was in the lowlands of south-central Mexico. This ancient pre-Columbian civilization inhabited there during the Middle Pre-Classic Mesoamerican period.
They were located in the states of Veracruz and Tabasco, on the isthmus of Tehuantepec. They were developed between 1200 BC until approximately 400 BC
Olmec head
Many historians consider it the Mesoamerican mother culture given its great influence. Works of art of great archaeological value have even been found in what is now El Salvador.
Characteristics of the territory
Location of the Olmec culture
The territory occupied by the Olmecs is characterized by rich plains and low hill ridges with volcanoes. They built complex temples along the Bay of Campeche.
In the center of their settlement there were three ceremonial centers: San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán, La Venta and Tres Zapotes.
They also performed some ceremonies in Laguna de los Cerros and Las Mojarras.
Main aspects of the Olmec culture
It is believed that it was the first Mesoamerican culture to develop a hieroglyphic script for its language.
In 2002 archaeological evidence was found dating from 650 BC. C. In 2006, other evidence dates from 900 BC. C., surpassing in antiquity to the Zapotec writing.
It is known that the Olmecs would be the initiators of the ball game, very popular in other cultures of the region.
The Olmec word means in the Nahuatl language “people of the rubber country”. This name is related to the existence in the area of trees from which the latex was extracted.
Periods of history and location of the Olmecs
1- Culture of San Lorenzo de Tenochtitlán
It covers from the year 1200 a. Until approximately 900 a. This area gave them great development. In their plains they produced important quantities of corn.
2- Culture of La Venta
It covers from the year 900 a. C., which is when they left San Lorenzo, until 400 BC. C. The cause of the migration to La Venta is believed to have been for environmental reasons. Even for this reason several river courses were diverted.
Around the year 950 a. C. took place the destruction of the monuments of San Lorenzo. It is not known whether it was an internal rebellion or an external attack.
Until the year 400 a. C., La Venta was the most important Olmec center. The Great Pyramid and other monuments were built as well.
3- Culture of Tres Zapotes
It covers from the year 400 a. Until the year 200 a. It was called Tres Zapotes, because it was the third capital of the Olmecs.
Its occupation was parallel to La Venta, but it had some inhabitants even after the Olmecs.
Its political organization was based on kingdoms of strongly hierarchical city-states. This type of organization was imitated by practically all later cultures on Mexican soil.
Today Olmec sculptures survive, such as the Colossal Heads, in which 17 heads can be seen.
At first it was thought that they were representations of the players of the ball game, a very important sport for them. They are currently believed to be portraits of the various Olmec rulers.
References
- «Temporal and spatial location» in the Olmec Culture. Recovered in September 2017 from The Olmec Culture in: culturaolmeca17.blogspot.com.ar
- «Olmec» in Wikipedia. Retrieved in September 2017 from Wikipedia at: es.wikipedia.org
- "Geographic location of the Olmecs" in Scribd. Recovered in September 2017 from Scribd at: es.scribd.com
- «Location» in Olmec Culture. Recovered in September 2017 from Olmec Culture at: sites.google.com
- "Olmec Culture" in Universal History. Recovered in September 2017 from Olmec Culture in: historiacultural.com