PUT YOUR PENS DOWN.STOP TAKING NOTES.BREATHE.&JUST LISTEN.
WHAT’S UP? WHAT’S HAPPENING?
CLOSE YOUR EYES.NO…REALLY CLOSE YOUR EYES.
IMAGINE.
HEIRS OF THE OLMECS: THE MAYADun. Dun. Dun.Presented byPatricia Rodriguez
WHY THE MAYANS WERE SO COOL.
If I were a Maya…my people were cool
because…They were heirs of the Olmecs
WHY THE MAYANS WERE SO COOL.
They were geographically & agriculturally lucky!
If I were a Maya…my people were cool because…
WHY THE MAYANS WERE SO COOL.
INDEPTH: Highlands of Guatemala
• offered fertile soil
• excellent conditions for
agriculture
WHY THE MAYANS WERE SO COOL
INDEPTH: Highlands of Guatemala Permanent villages appear in 3rd century
B.C.E. Most prominent village, Kaminaljuyú
WHY THE MAYANS WERE SO COOL.
Maya society flourished after the 4th century. mostly in poorly drained Mesoamerican
lowlands Thin soils quickly lost fertility
To enhance the agricultural potential of the region Mayans build terraces harvested maize cultivated cotton raised cacao
WHY THE MAYANS WERE SO COOL.
They built more than 80 ceremonial centers!
• All with pyramids, palaces, & temples
• TIKAL, most important Maya political center between the 4th & 9th centuries C.E.
(as shown on left picture)
If I were a Maya…my people were cool because…
WHY THE MAYANS WERE SO COOL.
Mayan kings bore menacing names!
Prominent Maya kings included
Great Jaguar PawShield JaguarBird JaguarJaguar Penis
Curl ScoutSmoking FrogStormy Sky
If I were a Maya…my people were cool because…
WE ARE THE MAYANS! WE LIKE TO FIGHT!
WE ARE THE MAYANS! WE LIKE TO FIGHT! Mayan kingdoms fought constantly Take over ceremonial centers
Purpose of Mayan Warfare Not kill enemies but capture them in hand-to-
hand combat on the battlefield
WHERE? OH WHERE DID THE MAYANS GO? By 800 C.E. most of the Maya population had begun to desert their cities
Historians suggest the following causes of decline: invasion by foreigners Internal dissension & civil war failure of the system of water control destruction of the forests =‘s ecological problems spread of epidemic diseases Natural catastrophe such as earthquakes
WHERE? OH WHERE DID THE MAYANS GO? In any case this is what happened….
population declined people abandoned their cities long-distance trade came to a halt tropical jungles of the lowlands took over
human settlements gradually smothered the cities, temples,
pyramids
“ A great civilization is not conquered from without until it is destroyed from
within. ”
—W. Durant