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Quest for the Ancient Origins of the Olmecs and Lost Civilizations of Mesoamerica · Matrix Wisdom, A Hidden History Podcast

0:00
Quest for the ancient origins of the Olmecs and lost
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civilizations of Mesoamerica. As the Olmec culture developed
0:07
in the early pre Classic period, we observed the phenomenon of
0:09
the Olmec heads and their mysterious origins.
0:13
Through ideological management and coercion mechanisms, the
0:16
dominant ruler appears and alludes to forms of government
0:21
exercised by individuals. Massive sculptures and large
0:25
scale architecture represent the first representations of
0:28
political power. The sociopolitical complex that
0:32
developed thus encouraged the emergence of similar forms in
0:36
other areas of Mesoamerica, resulting in the first
0:39
stratified societies comprising actual states, as seen in
0:43
Teotihuacan in the Mexican Highlands, Monte Alban in
0:47
Oaxaca, and the Maya city states during the classical period.
0:52
A corollary of this process was the rise of some post classical
0:56
societies that reached super state levels, such as the Mexico
1:00
who settled in the Mexican Highlands and established a true
1:03
pan Mesoamerican empire. Following this brief
1:06
introduction, it is time to examine each ancient Mexican
1:09
society considered the most significant in Mesoamerica's
1:12
political development, the Olmecs.
1:15
The social hierarchy must be maintained for development to
1:18
continue. According to archaeologist Ryan
1:21
Moorhen, Olmec society has been subjected to multiple
1:25
interpretations. Many have identified it as an
1:28
art style that stimulated cultural development in other
1:32
regions. In contrast, others have
1:35
described it as an organization of missionaries that promoted
1:39
the exchange of ideas and the development of religious
1:42
institutions in distant parts of the world.
1:45
It has also been considered a classist and military empire
1:48
that demanded tribute from neighboring communities and
1:50
extended its commercial networks through the conquest of
1:53
territories or a hierarchical society that conducted long
1:58
distance exchanges with other communities of the same level.
2:01
Despite these interpretations, Olmec society constituted
2:05
Mesoamerica's first prominent expression of political power.
2:09
Classical Prehistory. 2000 BC to 200 AD witnessed the emergence,
2:15
peak, and decline of this culture, which continues to
2:18
influence modern cultures. Olmec sculptures, such as the
2:22
Colossal Heads, are considered portraits of the rulers and
2:26
precise representations of their political aspects, serving as
2:30
another representation of political power in the minor
2:33
arts. As in Olmec's art, power is also
2:37
symbolized by certain distinctive features that
2:39
combine elements of nature and humanity, particularly in the
2:43
figure of the Jaguar, which likely represented the power of
2:47
rulers. When the Olmecs expanded their
2:50
hegemony throughout Mesoamerica. How did they do it?
2:54
This question requires consideration of the origins of
2:57
this society, which according to specialists should not have been
3:01
in the so-called Olmec nuclear zone in Tabasco and Veracruz
3:06
where the vital Olmecs centers of San Lorenzo and La Venta were
3:09
located, but rather outside of it.
3:12
Socially, the chiefdom is considered the dominant form as
3:16
agricultural societies reach their full potential.
3:19
In the early pre Classic period, Mesoamerican societies
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established long distance exchange mechanisms which
3:26
facilitated the acquisition of resources and raw materials
3:31
essential for economic, social and political development.
3:36
As evidenced by archaeological evidence in the central Mexican
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Highlands, Oaxaca and the western part of the Mayan area,
3:42
specifically Chiapas, this system brought thousands of
3:45
individuals together in the major population centers.
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Among the most notable specialists in Olmec culture and
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archaeology of the Chiapas region, Nora Romney believes
3:57
that the first state of Mesoamerica may have originated
4:01
in this vast region. Romney states that a society
4:05
called Mukaya inhabited the Pacific Coast of Chiapas, which
4:10
began to differentiate itself from the other groups that
4:13
occupied the same area early on. This difference is because they
4:17
merged a political organization higher than their neighbors,
4:22
corresponding to chieftoms. Even though the Olmecs
4:26
originated from a multiplicity of routes during the Early
4:29
Formative period, he believes that the primary influence
4:33
probably came from the Makayas of Chiapas.
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During the Lacuna phase 1650 to 1500 BC, the Makayas of the
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Sokonusko, particularly those of the Mazatan area, developed
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Mesoamerica's first simple chiefdoms, which other early
4:53
forms subsequently imitated. Gulf Coast groups later expanded
4:57
their territory and developed pyramidal chiefdom systems,
5:00
ultimately giving rise to the Olmec civilization, which had a
5:04
profound influence on much of Mesoamerica, including the
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Sokonosko region. According to Romney, the
5:11
Mixesoquian languages were spoken by the Makais in Chiapas
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and the Olmecs on the Gulf Coast.
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The author, however, emphasizes the importance of attending to
5:20
this society's many roots and interactions with other
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linguistically, ethnically, and culturally diverse cultures to
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understand its later development.
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Additionally, it indicates that there must have been intense
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competition among the simple chieftains and that the Olmec
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ideological system spread rapidly due to the
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characteristics of these simple policies, which were based on
5:44
solid competencies and primitive legitimacy systems.
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Romney believes that the Olmec system of the Gulf Coast was an
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aggressive political entity that was the first state to emerge in
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Mesoamerica and the first multi ethnic political organization.
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Neither this ideology nor its government concepts appeared
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attractive to local caciques who saw this model as a means to
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solve persistent political problems.
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The Olmundation for civilization with their much more advanced
6:15
system. It was this process that, by
6:19
turning again toward the Olmec nuclear zone, prompted profound
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changes that led to the emergence of the first complex
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civilization in Mesoamerica, with San Lorenzo as its first
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significant capital. Many colossal heads have been
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found at this site, which developed rapidly in the early
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formative period, early pre Classic and was the first
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important city of the Olmecs. San Lorenzo has had 10 colossal
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heads so far, Atres, Zapotez and La Venta.
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Seven more have been discovered. The size, weight and specific
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features of each of these heads differ from the others.
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Their general features, however, include massive sculptures of
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heads with helmets and large volumes.
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The sculptures represent the rulers, symbolizing centralized
7:10
power. Their facial features include
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thick lips, high cheekbones, flabby cheeks, a frown, and
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highly marked corners of the lips.
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Research conducted by Henry Romano in San Lorenzo reveals
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that the colossal heads range in height from 1.47 to 3.40 meters
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and weigh between 6 and 50 tons. They always wear earmuffs of
7:35
various shapes and materials in their ears, with their enormous
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eyes slightly sunken. Regarding the sculptural
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features of the heads, this author points out that the
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helmet present in all of them appears to be a leather garment
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and carries exclusive status Insignia for actual figures or
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governors, in addition to beads and greenstone ornaments,
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feathers, tassels, ropes, and anthropomorphic and zoomorphic
8:02
elements that identify the individual.
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According to the author, numerous motifs and elements are
8:08
associated with birds, indicating family dynasties
8:13
identified with a totemic animal as tools essential for
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subsistence in the tropical forests.
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The strings on San Lorenzo's 7 headed helmets should also be
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interpreted as symbols of power. The commonly found ritual axes
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each ruler represented corresponds to a specific
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lineage and a sequence of commands during a particular
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period. This figure may represent a
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chief in a society, considered a chieftom or a community's big
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man. Alternatively, it may have been
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a central ruler or king, particularly in an early stage.
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In the early stages of Mesoamerican development.
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There are no other sites either in sculpture or painting that
9:00
depict rulers, indicating that the Olmecs were the first
9:04
society to merge and develop a complex political power, which
9:08
also exerted influence throughout the Mesoamerican
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territory. La Venter emerged as a
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significant regional center on Mexico's Gulf Coast during the
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Middle Pre Classic period. A well defined concept of
9:20
urbanism is evident in the center's architectural features
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and layout, which have been described as the first in
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Mesoamerica. There are also colossal heads
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representing rulers from different eras in the center.
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As a result, the Olmec political system was consolidated.
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A beautiful collection of figurines called Ofrenda in the
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extensive material culture recovered at La Venta,
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represents a council meeting or assembly of actual figures.
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There is a steel surrounding the figurines of this offering,
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which stand in a circle. Olmec art is characterized by
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cranial deformation and distinguishing facial
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characteristics. These figurines are often made
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from jade, a material obtained through exchange outside the
10:07
region. To purchase products and
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materials unavailable in their environment, the Olmecs
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developed a long distance exchange system that spanned
10:16
across Mesoamerica. Beads for necklaces, earmuffs,
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bracelets, pectorals, and votive axes.
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There were already social differences in other parts of
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Mesoamerica, particularly in Mortuary offerings, but these
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differences were particularly relevant to Olmec politicians
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across the entire Mesoamerican region.
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These ornamental pieces along with many finely carved
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figurines, small sculptures and delicate ceramic objects
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demonstrate that this was a society with artisan
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specialization designed to satisfy the needs of the main
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characters. A well established hierarchy is
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evident in the quantity and quality of the objects.
11:01
Despite their high socio political complexity, political
11:04
power, and economic wealth, the most significant development is.
11:09
It is crucial to consider the integration of religious and
11:12
political aspects when studying the political history of the
11:15
Olmecs territorial expansion and cultural influence in
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Mesoamerica. As you can see, the features of
11:23
the Jaguar cult are widely spread throughout the Olmec
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nuclear zone, which includes San Lorenzo, Tres Zapotes, La Venta,
11:32
and Laguna de Los Cerros. Paintings, sculptures, ceramics,
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jade ornaments, and Obsidian are all repeated representations of
11:40
this motif. Olmec features have also been
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discovered beyond this nuclear zone, sometimes more strongly
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and sometimes weakly, in the central Mexican Highlands,
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western Mexico, Oaxaca, and of course in areas of the Mayan
11:55
region. Some of the places where they
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can be found include Izapa, Teo, Pantequanitlan, Diablo Rojo,
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Chalkatsingo, Takalik, Abaj, Platilco, Clapacoya, La Blanca,
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Camino, Juyu, Amatitlan, and San Bartolo at 10 Guatemala.
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Most sculpture samples feature zoomorphic or anthropomorphic
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shapes characterized by features such as flaming eyebrows, Oval
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or oblique eyes, crossed bands, geometric motifs, thick lips,
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Brindle mouths, and other distinctive traits.
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A similar form of representation is represented by altars.
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Additionally, murals and pictograms on rocks with Olmec
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motifs are shown. Stacey Dalton and Windsor Lopez
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argue that Olmec society had enough elements of a political
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order to qualify as a state. Alfonso Caso, Ignacio Banal, and
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Michael Koh have even suggested that the Olmecs constituted a
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Mesoamerican empire. However, they lack the evidence
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to support their claims. According to their quality and
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quantity of works. San Lorenzo and La Venta were
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considered to have dominated due to their incredible
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sophistication and power in comparison with other Gulf
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chieftoms. During San Lorenzo's heyday, the
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site possessed incredible power, according to Lo, which provides
13:16
additional evidence for the notion of an early Olmec state.
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The author shares the same sentiment about the Loventa site
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as it meets the requirements for a middle formative state.
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In addition, Lo points out that the pre classical and formative
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periods are no longer viewed as merely the formative stages of
13:34
high classical cultures as their names suggest.
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Mayan and Teotihuacan lordships dominated the complex which
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pushed the state's probable origin back 1500 years.
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There has been considerable debate about whether the Olmec
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influence, diffusion, Militaristic expansion,
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religious expansion, commercial expansion or ideological
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dominance in the Gulf affected the Olmec presence in other
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areas of Mesoamerica, particularly in sculptural art
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during the pre Classic period. Their remarkable political
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development enabled them to maintain hegemony in their
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region and form close relationships with other
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societies, some of which would play a crucial role in
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Mesoamerica. Towards the end of the Olmec
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period, the Mayans faced a similar situation.
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Zapotecans Mesoamerican culture consider Mesoamerica as a
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society with a long standing historical continuity.
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Undoubtedly, the Wahakens, represented by the Zapotecs,
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established their political hegemony in Wahaca and
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throughout the world. Monte Alban, the first urban
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center in Mesoamerica, is a characteristic example of the
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complexity of Wahacas politics. The city's architecture is based
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on a NS axis, where buildings and stepped pyramids form a
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rectangle on a plateau that dominates the entire Wahaka
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Valley. Several buildings were aligned
15:04
in the center of the rectangle, including one used as an
15:09
astronomical observatory. There are also courtyards in the
15:13
city where ball games were played featuring freezes and
15:17
tombstones depicting individuals dancing, which is why they have
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been called Monte Alban Dancers. The question to be asked is when
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and where did inequality arise in Oaxaca and how did Monte
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Alban emerge as the significant regional capital of the Zapatec
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people? The minor pre classic sites of
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the Oaxaca Valley provide the answer.
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As a result of the site's first extension, the large number and
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complexity of its platforms, and the magnitude of its pyramid, a
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diverse range of buildings were constructed on the site,
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including temples, palaces, sculptural enclosures, and
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various elite and typical residences in La Venta.
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The author argues that the elegance and differences between
16:03
the five critical tombs reflect social differences.
16:08
According to Henry Romano, during the Middle Formative
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period, the Olmecs of the Gulf developed a hierarchy to
16:15
establish a state like organization.
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La Blanca, a site on the Pacific Ocean coast of Guatemala,
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achieved a preponderance of political power in the region,
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including the Sokonusko region on the Pacific Ocean coast of
16:28
Guatemala. The archaeological evidence
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places Olmec as the most politically developed Society of
16:34
its time, whether as an advanced chieftom, an early stage or a
16:39
full-fledged state. Social, economic, political and
16:43
artistic elements can be observed since the rise of San
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Lorenzo in the early pre Classic period.
16:49
The Lorenzo phases, between 1350 and 900 BC and merged during
16:55
Leventa's heyday, cast basin and replacement phases 900 to 300
17:00
BC, according to archaeologist Tony Disanza.
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According to the research she conducted in the San Lorenzo
17:07
region of Veracruz, Mexico, colossal Olmec heads made of
17:12
basalt imported from the Tuxtless region of Veracruz to
17:16
the nuclear zone illustrate the institutionalization of
17:20
political rank and its legitimacy among the Olmecs.
17:25
The emphasis on rulers portraits at San Lorenzo illustrates a
17:29
society in which dynastic families exerted significant
17:33
influence over the government. According to ciphers, the elites
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at the top of the social stratification used monumental
17:40
sculpture to legitimize and reinforce their power.
17:44
The dead rulers were regarded as mediators between the
17:47
mythological past and the present, which conferred social
17:50
prestige and strengthened their power.
17:53
Over the course of 1000 years, the Olmecs developed a distinct
17:56
style reflected in their material culture, which has been
18:00
acknowledged by all researchers. They agree that the Olmecs were
18:04
the first society to achieve the highest levels of hierarchy.
18:09
Investigations have demonstrated that it achieved an appreciable
18:12
amount of authority over the rest of San Jose Mogate in
18:17
Mesoamerica. Socio political issues were
18:19
unknown. The Ettler Valley, one of the
18:23
three that comprised the region of the central valleys of
18:25
Oaxaca, began its development around 1500 BC, when signs of
18:31
social complexity characterized sedentary communities, including
18:34
indications of craft, specialty activities, public architecture,
18:39
and long distance commerce. According to Mesoamerican
18:42
researchers, the oldest remains of occupation in the San Jose
18:45
Mogote area date back to 1500 to 1400 BC, when small groups built
18:52
simple houses of perishable material to ensure that their
18:55
subsistence through hunting and gathering.
18:59
Agricultural incipients based on corn cultivation complemented
19:02
the system. Ceramic objects of very crude
19:06
elaboration are included in the material culture, such as pots
19:11
and bowls. In the phase known as longlands,
19:15
1400 to 1150 BC, population density increased as did the
19:20
number of constructions. Characteristics of this phase
19:24
are one room constructions with an interior altar and staggered
19:27
access, which were the first public buildings in this area.
19:31
The diverse shapes of the houses suggest social class
19:34
differentiation in the community.
19:37
Also evident in the ceramic forms is a significant increase
19:40
in population accompanied by a corresponding rise in
19:44
agricultural production. Water based agriculture
19:48
significantly increased production and demography during
19:51
the San Jose phase 1150 to 850 BC.
19:57
While villas in other communities in the valley
19:59
occupied only two hectares, those in San Jose, Mogothe
20:04
occupied 30 hectares. A significant characteristic of
20:08
this phase was the construction of platforms made of river stone
20:11
and sandstone. Which served as bases for
20:14
buildings more substantial than a few bodies, as well as the
20:18
first bass reliefs featuring abstract representations of
20:21
birds and cats. San Jose Magote was the largest
20:24
settlement in the central valleys of Oaxaca and
20:27
participated in long distance exchange networks that connected
20:30
with binding sites in Veracruz where ceramics were imported.
20:35
Ceramics from the Chiapas coast and the Olmec nuclear zone show
20:40
the interaction with other areas of Mesoamerica.
20:44
Additionally, minerals and precious stones are raw
20:47
materials. Windsor Lopez, relying on
20:51
Geoffrey Flannery's opinions, believes the social
20:54
organizations forms during this phase can be compared to tribal
20:58
type communities organized in larger villages.
21:02
A similar aspect can be inferred from the discovery of burials
21:05
located beneath the floors of houses and patios, which exhibit
21:09
characteristics indicating they belong to individuals of high
21:12
rank, probably leaders, because the buried ones appear
21:16
accompanied by rich offerings different from those of the rest
21:20
of the population, and they appear to have the shape of
21:23
elongated pits with architectural details.
21:27
In some individuals, cranial deformation is also observed.
21:32
San Jose Mogate is contemporaneous with important
21:35
sites in other regions such as Chiapa de Corzo in Chiapas, Teo
21:39
Pantequanitlan in Guerrero, Platilco in the Altiplano of
21:44
Mexico, Chalcatzingo in Morelos, and San Lorenzo and Manat in
21:50
Veracruz, with the latter 2 linked in the past with the
21:55
Olmec Societies of the Gulf. During the Guadalupe and Rosario
22:01
phases 800 to 500 BC, corresponding to the Middle Pre
22:07
Classic period, San Jose Mogate expanded to 70 hectares and
22:12
featured Adobe buildings for administrative or religious
22:15
purposes, with settlements located on platform paths of one
22:19
or two bodies. Building 1, built around 650 BC,
22:24
is the best example of this type of construction.
22:27
On a large platform, 13 structures of various kinds and
22:31
a sculptural monument have also been located, comprising a
22:35
tombstone in low relief representing an individual,
22:39
probably a captive, alongside the Glyph 1 earthquake, the
22:44
earliest example of Mesoamerican calendar writing.
22:47
In Stefano Crocop's estimation, several sites in the Ettler
22:51
Valley may have evolved into chiefdoms during the phases
22:54
mentioned above, with San Jose Mogate, possibly Kozobe, being
22:59
the primary one. There is no doubt that the
23:02
evolutionary development of San Jose Mogate significantly
23:06
contributed to the emergence of the great urban center of
23:09
Oaxaca, known as Monte Alban, which, at the convergence of the
23:13
state's major valleys, became a pivotal center in Mesoamerica.
23:19
It was governed by an autonomous political entity comprising 20
23:22
villages, with the governing center located in one of them.
23:27
Toward the end of the Monte Alban fraud and the second
23:30
phases, 500 BC and 200 AD, groups of settlers from the
23:36
Ettler Valley appear to have migrated to the Oaxaca Valley to
23:40
establish Monte Alban. On this site, ceramics and
23:45
architectural types related to San Jose Mogate have been found.
23:50
The ceramic sculpture in Monte Alban measures 47 centimeters in
23:53
height. Mount Alban.
23:57
It was founded around 500 BC in the valley of Oaxaca during the
24:01
heyday of San Jose Mogate, and eventually became the capital
24:05
and Cultural Center of the Zapotec people known as Monte
24:08
Alban. The founding of Monte Alban,
24:12
which in the opinion of Marcus Winter represents the first city
24:15
in the New World, marked a phase that was characterized by
24:19
communities with several thousand inhabitants.
24:22
The construction of monumental stone buildings, the use of
24:25
writing and calendars, as well as an increasing divide between
24:29
social classes. The Late Formative Period, also
24:33
known as the Early Cities Period, occurred between 500 BC
24:37
and 250D. The settlement of Monteal Ban
24:42
flourished and became the center of all the communities in the
24:45
Oaxaca Valley as well as the central city of the Zapotex for
24:50
over 1000 years. Other Buildings, markets,
24:54
temples, palaces, storage systems and drainage systems
24:59
were also present in that city. The most important building is
25:03
the Dancers, A pyramidal platform with 300 gravestones
25:08
depicting individuals in a movement oriented posture.
25:12
Archaeologist Joyce Marcus interprets these scenes as
25:16
representations of captive sacrificed by mutilating their
25:19
genitalia. A regular army is likely to have
25:23
captured them during military activities.
25:26
As winter indicates, Montalban's dominance over the central
25:30
valleys of Oaxaca and at the regional level seems to have
25:33
been due to innovations such as astronomy, calendars, writing,
25:37
and religion. During this formative period,
25:40
the great city's population was dominated by priests, political
25:44
leaders, administrators, artisans and merchants.
25:49
The elite possessed a wide range of specialized knowledge that
25:52
enabled them to. The same author states that the
25:55
city grew during the classical period 250 to 800, reaching a
26:00
population of about 30,000 inhabitants spread over 6 square
26:04
kilometers. A hierarchy of settlements and
26:06
political power emerged in the Valley of Wahaca as monumental
26:10
buildings were constructed and other second and 3rd order
26:14
centers developed. Status relationships were also
26:18
formalized during this period through the formation of at
26:21
least three distinct social classes, as evident in the
26:25
varying sizes and luxuries of the homes at Monte Alban.
26:30
To reaffirm power, ball courts and temples were integrated into
26:35
palaces as noted in Winter 103. As a manifestation of power and
26:41
wealth, the Zapotecs regarded their funeral customs as
26:45
necessary, symbolizing the institutionalization of elite
26:49
rule. They painted and sculptured
26:52
images of rulers and close relatives in their elegant
26:55
tombs. One of the most exciting pieces
26:58
of information regarding the political development of the
27:00
Zapotex of Monte Alban is provided by a group of 40
27:04
tombstones in Building J, which was believed to have been an
27:08
observatory. According to some
27:11
interpretations, the tombstone inscriptions were recorded even
27:14
outside the valley in an expansionist spirit.
27:18
Winter reveals that at the end of the classical period, the
27:20
urban centers of Oaxaca ceased to function and were abandoned
27:24
due to socio political changes caused by the inability of high
27:27
status families and rulers to maintain their political
27:30
systems, which were based on the exploitation of subordinate
27:33
groups. Monte Alban and its state
27:36
apparatus originated as a confederation of previously
27:39
autonomous political entities seeking to neutralize conflict.
27:43
Accordingly, Monteal Ban, situated in a neutral and
27:46
defensive location, is primarily related to political and
27:50
military factors and thus serves as a decision making Center for
27:54
a larger political entity. Despite the reasons for the
27:57
birth of Monteal Ban, it is undeniable that through this
28:01
city the Zapotex established a solid political system capable
28:06
of ensuring relative socio economic and political stability
28:09
which was maintained for over 1000 years, as well as a state
28:14
organization equipped with coercive mechanisms.
28:18
Teotihuacan As the first of the great urban centers of the Basin
28:22
of Mexico, Teotihuacan was the center where the most complex
28:26
forms of socio political organization had been developed.
28:30
Several factors contribute to this, including the city size
28:34
and complexity, its dominance over neighboring regions, and
28:38
its influence on Mesoamerica. Among the reasons for choosing
28:42
the location for the city were the proximity to Obsidian
28:45
deposits in places like Otumba and Sierra de Las Novajas, as
28:49
well as the springs in the area, and its proximity to the Lake
28:52
Texaco lake system, which provides access to the Gulf of
28:57
Mexico for its development. The site could control and
29:01
exploit specific critical resources.
29:04
In addition to the pyroclastic minerals found in the subsoil
29:07
through tunnels, Manzanilla stated that Tizontla basalt and
29:12
other materials used for construction played a
29:15
significant role in the city's location.
29:18
Numerous studies have revealed the exploitation of Obsidian
29:21
deposits in Teotihuacan to produce artifacts that were
29:24
traded beyond the Mexican basin. For instance, the green Obsidian
29:29
from Cerro de Las Novajas came from regions as far away as the
29:33
Mayan area and has been found in small quantities and in regional
29:38
contexts. We observe it in Camino Juyu and
29:42
Mexicanos Amatitlan in the Valley of Mexico.
29:47
Teotihuacan emerged as a center of unusual size and population
29:50
between 100 BC and 100 AD, resulting in the most
29:55
revolutionary and dramatic changes in settlement patterns.
29:59
In addition to emphasizing the exceptional nature of Taoti
30:02
Wakhan's monuments and public architecture, such as the
30:06
pyramids of the Sun and Moon, they propose that specific
30:09
population rearrangements must have occurred due to coercive
30:13
pressures. The economic specialization
30:17
activities on the Khalzada de Lost Dead, where part time and
30:21
full time artisans made artifacts for exchange.
30:24
They show that people who lived primarily in Taoti Wakhan
30:28
sometimes used small rural sites as temporary residences, even
30:32
though population nucleation was observed in the big city.
30:36
Furthermore, in the area surrounding the site,
30:39
agriculture intensified enormously during this time.
30:43
Manzanilla warns that the Mica Otley phase 100 to 200 began
30:49
with the Calzada de Los Muertos line, which displaced the
30:53
population towards its margins. During this phase, the rest of
30:58
the city was constructed using parallel and perpendicular lines
31:02
as reference lines. As part of that period, the
31:06
Pyramid of Quetzalcoatl was built, which became an
31:09
alternative ritual focus to the Pyramid of the Moon.
31:13
Additionally, the Viking Group's Temple of Agriculture was
31:16
constructed, serving both residential and structural
31:20
purposes and also covering the Temple of Quetzalcoatl.
31:25
According to Renee Milan, the Mikaotli phase of Teotihuacan
31:30
occurred when the city reached its maximum extension and
31:33
largest population, covering an area of 22.5 square kilometers
31:38
and having a population of approximately 45,000 people.
31:42
Manzanilla writes that many public works were completed
31:45
during the Tlamimi Lolpa phase 200 to 400 of the project,
31:51
including St. Layout, drainage and water
31:55
supply systems, and the lifting of administrative buildings.
31:59
Compared to the Citadel itself, it occupies a larger area.
32:04
The Calzada de Los Muertos is located on the opposite side.
32:08
Even other neighborhoods from the same period have their own
32:11
sanctuaries. A wall surrounds each of them on
32:15
the outside. During that time, the
32:18
neighborhoods called Guacqueno and Los Comaciantes were also
32:21
considered foreign. The site was the headquarters of
32:25
an entirely state-run social organization.
32:28
Based on what had just been revealed and the additional
32:31
information available, archaeological evidence is
32:34
categorical and overwhelming. In this sense, this level of
32:38
complexity is the best example in Mesoamerica, particularly in
32:42
the later Mexico state and Teotihuacan, not only because of
32:46
their volume and layout, but also because they concentrated
32:50
population, their diffusion throughout the Basin of Mexico
32:54
and beyond, their religious rituals, and their artisanal
32:58
expertise. In addition, Teotihuacan
33:02
controlled and exploited specific resources in the area,
33:05
including Obsidian. Teotihuacan elements demonstrate
33:11
this interaction with remote regions throughout the Maya
33:14
area, the Pacific Coast, and the Highlands of Guatemala.
33:19
Based on the evidence from Teotihuacan and Kamin al Juhi,
33:23
it can be concluded that certain classes of goods, especially
33:26
luxury goods, were traded at the central exchange.
33:31
Vessels made from Obsidian and containers with aesthetic value
33:34
fit perfectly into this category.
33:37
By controlling this activity, local elites could reinforce
33:40
their hegemony by importing luxury goods from Teotihuacan.
33:45
Manzanilla asserts that despite abundant archaeological
33:48
evidence, the paradoxical nature of Taoti Wakhan's political
33:51
organization remains unclear. It is worth noting that religion
33:56
played a fundamental role in Taoti Wakhan, as the pyramids of
34:00
the Moon and the sun are the city's most significant
34:02
structures. A priestly group was responsible
34:06
for managing Taoti Wakhan's government.
34:09
The priest of the collective government likely represented
34:11
districts. Priests had the highest social
34:14
standing at Tayote Wakhan, as evidenced by their copal bags
34:18
displayed in the Tepantitla neighborhood As an expansionist
34:22
state. Without sufficient material
34:24
evidence, there is no way to speak of Tayote Wakhan conquests
34:28
or invasions. It is challenging to maintain
34:31
the concept of an expansionist priestly state without direct
34:35
representations of kings, rulers, and a military
34:39
apparatus. Many Mesoamerican sites date
34:43
back to the classical period or even earlier, depicting
34:46
individuals who hold power as rulers.
34:50
Teotihuacanos also worshipped the feathered serpent and the
34:54
rain God Tlaloc in the Tlalocan mural, another example of their
34:58
cult. The Pyramids of the Moon and the
35:01
Sun, which represent the importance of religion in
35:04
Teotihuacan, are the city's most significant structures.
35:09
The government of Taoti Wakhan was governed by priestly groups.
35:13
The priests of the collective government likely represented
35:16
the different groups living in the city, since they were likely
35:19
the heads of conical clans in Taoti Wakhan's Tepantitla
35:23
neighborhood. Couple bags indicate the social
35:26
status of priests. The Empire of Taoti Wakhan was
35:31
viewed as an expansionist entity by Mesoamerica.
35:35
Without sufficient evidence, the conquests or invasions of
35:39
Teotihuacan cannot be confirmed without direct representations
35:44
of kings, rulers, and military apparatus.
35:48
Numerous Mesoamerican sites depict rulers dating back to the
35:51
classical period or earlier. In the Tlalocan mural, another
35:56
example of the Teotihuacan cult, the feathered Serpent and the
36:00
rain God Tlaloc are depicted as such.
36:04
Unlike the main archaeological centers of Mesoamerica, which
36:07
have discovered the burials of important figures, Teotihuacan
36:10
lacks a tomb for its ruler. In the temple of Quetzalcoatl, A
36:15
collective burial of 200 people points in a different direction.
36:20
In the 1990s, however, an excavation of the Pyramid of the
36:23
Moon revealed a tomb of a character whose political and
36:26
social position was of great importance.
36:29
Priests or rulers may be depicted.
36:32
Several factors contributed to the decline of Teo Tiwa Khan,
36:36
including economic and political mismanagement, government
36:39
rigidity, and excessive bureaucracy.
36:43
When Teo Tiwa Khan fell around 650, the central part of the
36:47
city was destroyed by fire and looting.
36:50
While Teo Tiwa Khan disappeared as a political and religious
36:53
center of immense importance, it remained a significant
36:56
historical and Cultural Center for later societies, especially
37:01
the Toltecs and Mexico's, which legitimized their power in this
37:05
location. In the decades following
37:08
Teotihuacan's disappearance, Teotihuacan cultural elements
37:12
continued to flourish. After Teotihuacan fell, Oaxaca
37:18
and Veracruz gained importance. Altiplano is characterized by
37:22
elaborate architecture, significant political and
37:25
religious developments, and Zochicalco, a city in Morelos.
37:31
In Puebla Tlacscala. There are also the sites of
37:33
Cholula and Kakaxtla, the former with impressive architecture and
37:38
the latter featuring mural paintings that depict characters
37:41
from other parts of Mesoamerica. Cantona was also a center of
37:45
high political authority and elaborate architecture in the
37:49
Highlands outside of the Altiplano, a center of great
37:54
significance developed on the Gulf Coast.
37:56
Unique Mesoamerican architecture, characterized by a
37:59
diverse and vibrant style, can be found there.
38:03
With 365 Nietzsche's spanning its various bodies, the
38:07
Nietzsche's pyramid stands out among its buildings. 1 of
38:12
Mesoamerica's most significant ball games took place at this
38:15
site, underscoring its importance.
38:19
The sites listed above, 600 to 900, influenced Mesoamerican
38:24
politics. Their competitors, however, were
38:26
not subject to their authority. It wasn't until the Tula and
38:30
Toltecs that these groups developed a robust political
38:33
system to achieve a single center's hegemony.
38:37
Teotihuacan's experience was used as a guide in the
38:42
development of Mesoamerican societies.
38:44
Their economic and political ties extended beyond central
38:47
Mexico. Many aspects of material culture
38:51
and ideology are evident in the distribution and repetition of
38:54
artifacts from Mesoamerica. Toltecs, a distinctive group,
39:00
emerged in central Mexico during the 9th century that, unlike its
39:04
predecessors or contemporary groups, gained hegemony over
39:07
other political entities in Mesoamerica and beyond.
39:11
Mesoamerican politics during the post Classic period were
39:14
dominated by Toltec militarism, making them unique and different
39:19
in the Colfacan area. The Toltecs settled in the
39:21
Valley of Mexico for the first time, led and guided by
39:24
Mixcotal. In ancient Mexico, a series of
39:28
conquests began leading to the control and domination of the
39:31
entire valley. Indigenous chronicles claim that
39:35
Mixcotal was the father of Quetzicotl.
39:38
Mixcotl took on the name Quetzicotl after his mother was
39:41
a priest of this deity. As the undisputed leader of the
39:45
Toltecs, Ketzukoatl defeated the usurper of his father's throne
39:49
and founded Tula, the capital of the Toltecs.
39:54
Ketzukoatl imported artists and artisans from places with
39:57
superior cultures to the Toltecs to build a large city in
40:01
Mesoamerica. He built and designed one of the
40:04
most important cities, which successive rulers enriched until
40:08
the Toltecs style evolved. Columns and panels of the
40:12
buildings featured Jaguars and Pumas devouring hearts.
40:16
As well as snakes and eagles devouring hearts, there were
40:20
also magnificent sculptures called Atlanteans, featuring
40:24
warriors with weapons in hand, butterflies on their chests, A
40:29
turquoise crown adorned with feather tassels, and a skirt
40:33
featuring a circular ornament. Tula's faces are expressionless,
40:37
as are those of the others. A sculpture of Chacmaul, the
40:43
reclining God of Tula, stood in the center of the staircase of
40:46
the Great Pyramid. The site was home to
40:50
Mesoamerica's largest ball court in its heyday.
40:54
Due to his careful emphasis on worshipping the God
40:57
Quetzalcoatl, the ruler of Tula came into conflict with the
41:01
followers of the God Tescat Lipoka and was forced to abandon
41:05
his Toltec throne, beginning an exile that eventually led him to
41:09
settle on the distant Yucatan Peninsula.
41:12
According to indigenous accounts, the site architecture
41:16
at Chichen Itza reflects many of the characteristics of the
41:19
Toltec culture, as well as the cult of Ketzukoatl he installed.
41:25
The city of Tula was ruled by minor rulers after Ketzukoatl
41:28
left. Bernal thinks the most notable
41:32
were Tekpan, Kaltzin and Huemac, 2 rulers who brought innovations
41:36
to Tula and maintained its hegemony over other societies,
41:40
which they subjugated through war and demanded as tributes in
41:44
the form of luxury objects. What was the power structure?
41:49
The last ruler of Tula was Weymac, who reigned for a
41:52
considerable time. According to Indigenous
41:54
Chronicles, the increasing presence of foreigners,
41:57
primarily Wastecos, who were imposing new religious cults,
42:02
led to the decline of the UA Mac reign and the subsequent fall of
42:06
Tula around 12:24. In addition, prolonged droughts
42:10
and northern invasions caused a series of calamities.
42:15
Tula's political debacle was caused by the absence of in kind
42:19
tributes, especially if the city's rulers had forgotten to
42:23
invest in its own production. The definitive fall of Tula was
42:28
the result of both internal upheavals and external
42:31
pressures. Nevertheless, the importance of
42:34
this city endured for a long time mainly because it shaped
42:38
the socio political pattern that would characterize later
42:41
militarized states, reaching its maximum expression in the Aztec
42:45
Empire in the late post Classic period.
42:49
Around the 13th century, fresh waves of nomadic people from the
42:53
north moved into central Mexico. In Nahuatl, these nomadic groups
42:59
are called Chichimecas, meaning lineage of dogs.
43:05
As Banal explains, the Chichimecs were semi nomadic
43:08
populations who settled in places like La Quemada in
43:11
Zacatecas, which lacked refinement since its buildings
43:14
were constructed from uncut stone.
43:17
There is no stucco on the walls and no murals or sculptures are
43:20
featured. It was not an obstacle to
43:23
developing an economy based on trade, but rather one that was
43:26
dependent on taxes during the Chichimecca stage, according to
43:29
Reyes and Odaner. Long distance communication
43:34
Nicaragua in the South and the southwestern United States in
43:37
the north benefited from this trade.
43:40
Several factors contributed to ethnic miscegenation, including
43:44
alliances, rearrangements, wars, migrations, conquests, and long
43:50
distance trade. Tlomenalco, Amakuermekan, Sochi,
43:55
Milko, Chimalhuakan and Tenango Teppopola are the four
43:59
headwaters of the Chichi Mecca groups that migrated from the
44:02
north. Although they played a minor
44:05
role in Tula's fall, the Mexico would ultimately establish the
44:08
most notable empire. Despite their minor importance.
44:12
Mexico Aztecas Aslan, from which the name Aztecs originates, is
44:18
the mythical origin of the Mexico.
44:21
Their migration would take them to the Mexican basin.
44:23
From there, while on their journey, they were commanded by
44:26
Huitzilopochli, a warrior God identified with the sun.
44:32
Spiritual leaders guided them, while skilled military leaders
44:36
forged an image of a warrior group with courage, ambition and
44:41
skill for a short time. Tenochtitlan is the name of the
44:45
capital of the Mexico, which was founded on an island in Lake
44:49
Texcoco during the 14th century. Initially, the Mexico were
44:53
employed as mercenaries by groups already settling in this
44:56
part of Mexico, such as the Azka Pottsalco lordship, to which
45:01
they were required to pay tribute.
45:03
From then on, their fame grew, making them one of the Basin's
45:07
most skilled and formidable warrior groups.
45:10
Several city states controlled the surrounding territory within
45:13
the basin, which was densely populated and politically
45:16
fragmented. The relationships between these
45:19
cities were characterized by a certain balance resulting from
45:23
constant competition for new tributaries within their
45:26
respective areas of influence. It happens, however, that when a
45:30
state or capital shapes its leadership in any territory, it
45:34
ends up imposing its dominion, as was the case, for example,
45:39
with the Toltec lordships of Kulhuakan, Chichimeka of
45:44
Tenayuka, Ottomi of Zaltokan and Akolhua of Koat.
45:48
Lynchon Tezozomoch merged the Teppernak state of Ascapotsalco
45:53
under his leadership in 1371, breaking the relative balance
45:57
that had kept all these forces in competition.
46:00
The Akolua of Texaco expanded its dominion over several
46:03
agricultural centers in the basin S despite Ascapatzalco
46:07
being the leading power in the basin by the end of the 14th
46:10
century. Due to its hegemonic position,
46:14
this center was able to form alliances with other essential
46:16
groups in the region. Nezu Alcoytl, whose 41 year
46:21
government represented a unique model in the Mexican Highlands,
46:25
was one of Texaco's most outstanding rulers.
46:28
In 1440, after the Tabernacus of Azkaputsalko were defeated, an
46:33
alliance was formed by the kings Iskwatl and Nezagwalkoyotl,
46:38
which included, besides Tenochtitlan and Texcoco,
46:41
Placopan, also known as Takuba under Totokuiwatsin.
46:46
In Obregon's view, Texcoco became the most formidable rival
46:49
to Askaputsalko, a rivalry that would later lead to an
46:53
aggressive confrontation between the two kingdoms.
46:57
Invasion by military forces. This triple alliance, initially
47:02
confined to the lake region of the Central Highlands, embarked
47:05
on a robust expansionist development through military
47:08
conquests or voluntary adhesions, achieving a brief
47:11
period of political military dominance in central and
47:15
southern Mexico. Their outposts reached even to
47:18
the soccer Newsko region West of the Tejwantepec Isthmos.
47:22
As a result of such a situation, the residents of the Guatemalan
47:26
Highlands were concerned, fearing that the expansion of a
47:30
militaristic state as powerful as the Mexico, which commanded
47:34
the Triple Alliance, would eventually subjugate them and
47:37
force them to pay taxes forever. In the 14th century, the Mexico
47:42
founded Tenochtitlan on an island in Lake Texaco, which
47:46
became the capital of the Triple Alliance.
47:50
It served as the political and religious center of the dominant
47:52
group, evolving into a splendid and extensive city that featured
47:56
beautiful palaces, warehouses, and a large ceremonial center
48:00
which housed the Templo Mare dedicated to 2 Aztec gods,
48:05
Whitsilopoctli and Tlaloc. Mexico culture was considered
48:10
bloody by Europeans because of the large scale human sacrifices
48:14
required for the cult of Whitsilopoctli.
48:16
Structures known as sompantli were used to house the skulls of
48:20
sacrificed victims, which was repugnant to conquerors.
48:25
Monumental works of Mexican art are characterized by
48:28
representations of religion and stories of power that are
48:31
inherited from previous cultures such as the Toltec and
48:34
Teotihuacan. Tenochtitlan's magnificent
48:38
artistic corpus includes monuments such as the Piedra del
48:41
Sol, Quat Lique, Coyol, Saoqui, and Piedra de Tizoc.
48:48
The city, Solis suggests, brought together some of our
48:52
era's most influential artists between the 15th and 16th
48:56
centuries. They, working for the Mexican
48:59
rulers, were responsible for the city's remarkable architecture
49:03
and monumental sculptures in rock such as basalt and
49:07
Andesite. Unquestionably, the form of
49:10
political organization achieved by the Mexicans and their allies
49:14
was that of an actual state, in which aspects such as a high
49:18
demographic density, a relatively complex state
49:22
religion, a special military apparatus, and an expansionist
49:27
character stood out, including orders like the Eagle and Tiger
49:31
Knights and a high volume of long distance trade.
49:34
Among the institutions of this society were education and
49:37
public service, which had not previously existed in
49:41
Mesoamerica. Regarding the hierarchical level
49:44
of the Mexico sociopolitical structure, it is worth noting
49:48
that the sovereign ruler was known as Huey Klatawani and the
49:52
kings were referred to as Klatoques.
49:55
In descending order of the scale, there were pills or
49:58
nobles, priests, warriors, merchants, makahulis or ordinary
50:03
people. It is believed that the
50:05
essential sovereigns who ruled the Mexico throughout its
50:08
history are Iskoatl, Moctezuma, Ilhuikamina, Aksayakatil, Tizoc,
50:14
Ahwit Sotel and Moctezuma Zakoyatsin, although all of them
50:20
brought glory and fame to Mexico.
50:21
Tenochtitlan as stated in the society and the end of
50:25
Mesoamerica's pre Hispanic era, the Mexico Tlatoani conquered
50:31
and killed Kwoutamok, thereby ending the great ancient Aztec
50:36
Empire in the ancient world The Mesoamerican continent from a
50:41
territorial perspective. It is also worth noting that the
50:44
basic political unit that emerged from the conquests of
50:47
Tenochtitlan and the Triple Alliance was the Alta petal or
50:51
town. According to Obregon, Kalpatan
50:55
refers to a territory with a sovereign or independent
50:57
government to which families of a community pay tribute.
51:00
The organization was characterized by excellent
51:03
stability and respect for traditional organizational
51:06
forms, cultures, and common customs.
51:09
This author also stated that when one of these people
51:12
succeeded in militarily subduing others and imposing taxes on
51:16
them, it reached the next level of political organization.
51:20
Lordship. Referred to in the Nawatu
51:24
language as Plateau Kyoto, they were incorporated into a group
51:29
of towns ruled by a Plateau Ani who was recognized as the
51:33
superior political authority of the Manor as a point of
51:37
commercial exchange or market. Each of these manners or
51:41
kingdoms served as a Cultural Center for the independent
51:44
regions. The Mexico and the Triple
51:47
Alliance achieved the highest degree of political development
51:50
in Mexico by the end of the post classic period.
51:55
However, this development resulted from the constant
51:58
evolution of the various socio political groups that
52:01
constituted the Mesoamerican Subarias over approximately 3000
52:05
years. Throughout this document we have
52:08
seen how social and political complexity crystallized for the
52:11
first time in Olmec society during the pre Classic period,
52:15
also known as the period of Cacicale societies in the early
52:18
states. During the Classic period, when
52:21
full States and stratified societies emerged, social and
52:25
political complexity developed into more elaborate forms.
52:27
In Teotihuacan, the first state society in Mesoamerica.
52:32
Its cultural influence was evident throughout the
52:34
Mesoamerican area, just as that of the Olmecs.
52:38
Still, Teotihuacan, the most significant urban center of this
52:41
period, could be united, allowing for the presence of
52:44
over 200,000 inhabitants, including immigrants from other
52:49
Mesoamerican regions. Approximately 20,000 years ago,
52:53
the first inhabitants of Central America arrived.
52:57
They haunted extinct large mammals and supplemented their
53:00
diet with wild fruits, seeds, tubers, fish, crabs, and
53:04
shellfish. In caves, they lit bonfires and
53:08
engraved one's name in graphite onto the walls to protect
53:12
themselves from rain storms and inclement weather.
53:16
In El Salvador and Guatemala, the caves of San Sebastian
53:19
Gracias and Corinto Gracias are notable examples of this
53:23
phenomenon. Approximately 3500 years ago,
53:29
nomadic hunters underwent a significant change in their way
53:31
of life due to the decline of large mammals.
53:35
Then they had to collect fruits, tubers, legumes, and crustaceans
53:40
and hunt birds, as well as smaller mammals and reptiles.
53:44
These changes led to the development of permanent
53:47
settlements, the abandonment of wandering life, the discovery of
53:51
agriculture and pottery, and the institutionalization of
53:56
religious activities. The South Coast of Guatemala was
54:00
centered around La Victoria, Ocos, and San Marcos around 1200
54:04
BC. Bar type ceramics were decorated
54:07
with cylinder seals and clay figurines of naked women with
54:10
bulging genitalia made in the Altiplano Child Chuapa.
54:15
El Salvador settlers used ceramics and figurines of the
54:18
Ocars type during the same period.
54:21
The Olmecs discovered sculptures shaped like colossal human heads
54:24
during the 1930s near Veracruz, Mexico, A study of such
54:29
monuments by archaeologists and anthropologists dubbed the
54:32
architects of these monuments the Olmecs because the area
54:36
where they were found was rich in rubber plants ULI, A
54:40
characteristic that Olmecs used to describe their inhabitants.
54:44
Researchers found that the Olmec Acropolis of La Venta, San
54:47
Lorenzo and Tres Zapotes were built along ANS axis by a
54:53
culture that had invented writing and mathematics and
54:56
understood the cyclical behavior of some sidereal bodies in
55:01
petroglyphs and sculptural representations.
55:04
The priests praised the image of the Jaguar, an animal revered by
55:08
the population because it protected the milpa from
55:10
rodents, Gophers, rabbits, and mice.
55:15
It's face was filled with astronomical symbolism in every
55:17
aspect. A significant amount of power
55:20
was consolidated by theocratic military groups in the South.
55:23
S Olmec culture and geography, however, did not confine
55:28
themselves to the Veracruz region in the Gulf of Mexico but
55:32
spread to other parts of Mesoamerica for Inchal, Chuapa,
55:37
Cuellipa, El Salvador and Costa Rica.
55:41
Many Olmec remains have been discovered in the estuaries of
55:44
the Naranjo, Ocosito and Achiguate rivers in Guatemala
55:49
where the first coastal cities were established during the
55:52
Middle Pre Classic period 800 to 400 BC.
55:57
In the first, the estuaries of Salinas, La Blanca, San Marcos
56:01
were merged, in the second those of Takali, Cabaje, Asintal,
56:08
Retal, Hulo, and in the third those of El Balsamo and
56:13
Montealto Esquintla. These cities were orientated and
56:18
featured squares where mounds were used for both religious and
56:21
astronomical purposes. Although the rulers of these
56:25
urban settlements shared the astronomical, religious and
56:28
artistic knowledge of the priestly political group settled
56:30
in La Venta in the Gulf of Mexico, there is no evidence
56:35
that this latter site exercise political or religious authority
56:38
over them. He controlled the theocratic
56:41
military leaders of Takaliq, Abaj El Balsamo and Monte Alto.
56:49
The main cultural elements that characterize the inhabitants of
56:52
the South Coast during the Middle and late pre classic
56:55
periods 800 BC 250AD were monumental sculptures, pot
57:01
bellies and colossal heads, bass relief carvings, human figures
57:06
in niches inside animal jaws, carved jade ceramics with
57:11
abstract in size decorations and petroglyphs in Monte Alto, La
57:16
Democraccia Esquintla. Pot bellied figures with
57:20
childish expressions and flattened noses depict powerful
57:23
rulers glorifying themselves and attempting to perpetuate their
57:27
image through apotheosis sculptures.
57:31
The monuments represent at the same time the changes that
57:34
occurred due to agriculture on a social, political, and religious
57:37
level. As a result, we find that the
57:40
ancient fertility cults, which were conducted through rituals
57:43
involving female figurines, have been replaced by the worship of
57:48
rulers who have become idolized and revered as gods by community
57:52
members. Between 900 and 300 BC, the
57:57
Olmec culture flourished on the South Coast of Guatemala.
58:01
Salinas, La Blanca and Takali Kabaj were ruled economically,
58:05
socially, politically, and religiously.
58:09
Their political, religious, and economic activities, which
58:13
exerted influence over village communities on the periphery of
58:16
their power centers, resulted in a robust commercial exchange
58:20
with the inhabitants of the urban centers of the Altiplano,
58:25
especially Caminal, Juyu and Chalchuapa, El Salvador.
58:31
Chalchuapa's rulers controlled trade with Altiplano and South
58:34
Coast Guatemalan peoples for hematite, cocoa, and Obsidian.
58:38
Monument 12 depicts 4 characters wearing helmets, earrings,
58:42
petrels, and clothing similar to that one by the Olmecs in
58:45
Chalchuapa between 900 and 400 BC.
58:50
Two other Olmec characteristics are an altar with stylized faces
58:53
of Jaguars discovered in Cuilepa, El Salvador, and three
58:57
gigantic monoliths of a beast. Characters in Apaneka are
59:01
Watchapan. During the 4th century BC,
59:04
popular revolts broke out against the priests and rulers
59:07
of the major Olmec centers on the South Coast, possibly
59:10
because the priests could no longer accurately predict the
59:13
onset of the rainy season. In the department of Eskuintla,
59:17
there are many headless sculptures.
59:20
Traders and artists were no longer supported by the rulers
59:22
after the villagers rebelled and stopped paying tribute.
59:26
As a result, Olmec's splendor declined, political hegemony
59:31
ceased, and writing disappeared, paving the way for a new
59:35
priestly group to emerge, which eventually developed into the
59:38
Mayan culture, the Mayas. As the populations abandoned
59:44
Olmec theocratic military leaders, most Olmec cities
59:47
gradually relied on the emerging Mayan theocratic group.
59:52
New sculptures, pottery and inscriptions illustrate this
59:55
change. The first Mayan settlements
59:58
included El Hobo, Takalika, Barge, Chocola, El Baul, and
1:00:02
Chechwapa. IN200AD Balberta Esquintla, a
1:00:08
well fortified Acropolis, emerged as the center of
1:00:11
economic and political power. Its rulers exercised political
1:00:15
and economic control over the inhabitants of the village.
1:00:18
Communities settled between the Coyote and Achiguate rivers,
1:00:23
with a particular focus on cocoa farmers.
1:00:26
To increase their military power, they bought weapons in
1:00:29
Pachuca, Mexico, from the Teotihuacan people, who, besides
1:00:35
controlling the Obsidian deposits near their great city,
1:00:38
monopolized the production and trade of war material in much of
1:00:41
Mesoamerica. Several Teotihuacan cultural
1:00:45
manifestations were adopted by the Balberta leaders, including
1:00:49
talud boards used in pyramid construction, sensors decorated
1:00:54
with effigies during religious ceremonies, and tripod
1:00:57
cylindrical vessels ornamented with iconographic patterns.
1:01:02
Among their closer regional ties, they encouraged better
1:01:05
trade between the South Coast, the Altiplano, western El
1:01:09
Salvador, and primarily the valley of Guatemala, supplying
1:01:15
them with Obsidian weapons. Between 400 and 600 AD, the
1:01:20
Montana Los Chatos Esquintla displaced Balbert's rulers and
1:01:26
established their Acropolis as the South Coast's principal
1:01:29
political, religious, and commercial center.
1:01:32
South Coast Politico religious leaders employed a distinct form
1:01:36
of writing dating between 400 BC and 250AD.
1:01:41
Unlike the Mayans, at Elbaal Esquintla Stayla 1 is inscribed
1:01:46
with the year 36 of our era. At Takalik Abarge Stella 5 has
1:01:52
AD 103 and 126 and at Monument 11 and Alta 12 there are non
1:01:58
calendar inscriptions. During the late Pre Classic, the
1:02:03
Mayans displaced the Olmecs from Chalchuwapa, Kuskatlan,
1:02:07
Atiquizaya and Akajutla, as well as Takali, Cabaj and Salinas la
1:02:12
Blanca. The Usulutan ceramics, greatly
1:02:15
influenced by Teotihuacan, were commercialized on the central
1:02:19
Acropolis in the South Coast of Guatemala, displaying
1:02:22
significant Teotihuacan influence.
1:02:25
Pyramidal temples and stellae, of which Monument One is an
1:02:29
important example, demonstrate that the Olmec calendar system
1:02:33
had been replaced by a new one during this apogee.
1:02:37
However, the Ilopango volcano erupted around 260 AD,
1:02:42
destroying cities and crops and forcing the population of the
1:02:44
major cities to relocate. Between 600 and 900, ADA,
1:02:49
powerful theocratic military state merged in the Santa Luca
1:02:53
Kotsumalgwapa region, controlling the region's
1:02:56
agricultural wealth and the trade between the Pacific Coast
1:03:00
and Altiplano cities. The center of power, the Bilbao,
1:03:05
El Castillo and Elbao urban complex occupied over 6
1:03:10
kilometers of land. Acropolis activities included
1:03:15
artisan work, elaborating weapons with Obsidian from El
1:03:18
Chayal and San Martin Gilot, Tepeque artistic works, jade
1:03:24
figurines and religious activities there in the place.
1:03:30
The new manner also had a writing and numbering system
1:03:33
which enabled it to achieve extraordinary political and
1:03:36
economic power as seen in the Staler Sculptures and other
1:03:40
monuments found it disseminated artistic pieces characterized by
1:03:45
the Kotsumalgwapa style. This style is characterized by
1:03:49
the portrayal of plants and vines.
1:03:52
This type of sculpture is an example of a sculpted panel, A
1:03:55
colossal head, a receptacle, A stealer, an altar, or a
1:04:01
representation of a human, animal, or godhead.
1:04:06
Katsumalguapa sculptures depict rulers making offerings to a
1:04:10
deity or interacting with other characters who wear yokes and
1:04:13
axes associated with the ball game.
1:04:15
There are examples of this style in the Antigua Valley
1:04:18
Sakatepequez, as well as in Sushi Tepequez and Jutiyapa.
1:04:26
Most sculptures in this style have been found in Palo Gordo
1:04:30
Sushi Tepeques outside the Acropolis.
1:04:34
The Volkokunda Museum Ethnographic Museum in Berlin,
1:04:37
Germany, collected 31 sculptures from the Bilbao site between
1:04:42
1876 and 1886. A2 century economic and
1:04:48
political revival occurred in Cuellipa and Tazumal following
1:04:52
the eruption of the Ilopango volcano, when Mayan rulers
1:04:55
established trade relations with Quirigua, Guatemala, Copan,
1:04:59
Honduras and Nikoya, Costa Rica, as well as with the Acropolis of
1:05:05
the Mayan lowlands. Numerous Mayan cultural elements
1:05:09
have been discovered in the area, including jade figurines,
1:05:12
stalai, fine orange and goblet ceramics, closed ball courts,
1:05:18
shell necklaces, and inlaid snails and teeth.
1:05:22
The investigations carried out in Joya de Seren in San
1:05:25
Juanopico, El Salvador, a settlement that had been buried
1:05:28
during the eruption of the caldera volcano around 600 AD,
1:05:32
have allowed us to determine what the houses were like, as
1:05:36
well as what household and work items were used by the majority
1:05:39
of the population. Members of the Pipilaise Group,
1:05:43
One of the last Acropolis of the flourishing Teotihuacan
1:05:46
dominion, Cholula, Mexico, underwent violent political
1:05:50
changes in the mid to late 8th century, and its rulers,
1:05:54
priests, military elite artists and artisans relocated first to
1:05:59
Veracruz, then to Tehwantepek and Soconusko.
1:06:04
However, they were also expelled from their new settlements at
1:06:07
the beginning of the 9th century, so they didn't stay
1:06:10
long. For several centuries,
1:06:14
Teotihuacan remained an active commercial hub, exerting
1:06:19
significant artistic and religious influence South of the
1:06:22
Isthmus of Tehwantepek. As a result of declarations made
1:06:26
by caciques in Nicaragua to Frey, Francisco, Bobadilla in
1:06:30
1528, as well as the names of many places, we can assume that
1:06:34
some settled in Guatemala, Tiwatan, El Salvador and
1:06:39
Tazumal, while others settled in the Gulf of Fonseca and the
1:06:43
island of Ometape, Nicaragua. Babadia's informants remembered
1:06:48
their origins this way. Ticoman and Miajuatlan, 2 towns
1:06:52
near Cholula, Mexico's Acropolis, may have been the
1:06:56
places mentioned in the text. In Sonsonate, El Salvador.
1:07:01
Members of this migration gradually took over cocoa
1:07:03
plantations in Esquintla and Izalco, monopolizing the trade
1:07:07
in these products, as well as dyes, indigo and scarlet
1:07:11
medicinal plants, balsam and sarsaparilla, Obsidian weapons,
1:07:15
and jade ornaments. Then they made the villagers
1:07:19
into tributaries, who provided them with salt, cotton,
1:07:22
blankets, mats, dyes, cocoa, gourds, maquettes, teammates,
1:07:27
pom chili, rubber, herbs, medicinal roots, honey, dried
1:07:33
fish, and shrimp. Twice a year, porters or tlamims
1:07:38
were also provided by the communities to transport goods.
1:07:41
Tula Hidalgo, Mexico The Toltecs primary center of theocratic
1:07:46
military power in Anawak, fell in 1550, and the defeated rulers
1:07:51
and a large part of their armies began a new migration Costa
1:07:55
Rica's Nekoya Peninsula and the Guatemalan Highlands.
1:08:00
During this new stage, the main papillion centers of political
1:08:03
religious power were Esquintepeque, San Miguel,
1:08:06
Tejuan, Tepeque, Chipilapa, Santa Ana, Mixtan, Texquaco and
1:08:12
Massagua between the Coyolate and Michitoya rivers.
1:08:17
In addition, Kuscatlan, Guatean, Tekpan, Izalco, Nonwalco,
1:08:23
Mazahuat and Mitla or Miktlan 3. Leagues from lake Guija
1:08:30
Toppeltsen, Axitl, Quetzalcoatl 2.
1:08:33
The last sovereign of Tula founded 153 Kuscatlan City of
1:08:38
Medals in the early 16th century.
1:08:41
Since these migrants spoke now attle as children, that Lacs
1:08:44
Callans who accompanied Pedro de Alvarado in 1524 referred to
1:08:48
them as Pipil. As the Spanish conquered the
1:08:51
Pipils, they found several independent lordships, each
1:08:55
governed by a Lord Tlatoani and assisted by 4 captains and an
1:09:00
elder council. Antonio de Herrera Ito de Sillas
1:09:04
noted in his chronicle that the Tlatoani in each town was at the
1:09:08
same time the most excellent judge, assisted by 4 left
1:09:12
tenants who ensured that their homes and the affairs of the
1:09:15
Republic were taken care of, including matters of war,
1:09:19
governance, sewing and marriages.
1:09:23
Aside from helping him consult the priests on administrative
1:09:26
matters, they also provided their opinions on everything to
1:09:30
the Lord. A visitor to the Izalkos region
1:09:33
in 1576 commented that pepiles had laws punishing those who
1:09:38
ridiculed those they attempted to assassinate.
1:09:40
In addition to boughs and arrows, warriors carried
1:09:44
macaquitals, or blades encrusted with Obsidian Spears, clubs, and
1:09:47
cotton cuirasses that covered their entire bodies.
1:09:51
Those arrows had Flint tips. Pedro de Alvarado, the Conqueror
1:09:55
of Guatemala and Cuscatlan, wrote to Hernan Cortez that the
1:09:59
pipilace wore corsets with three cotton fingers even on their
1:10:03
feet, arrows and long Spears, and he would kill people who
1:10:07
fell to scare them, since all the men carried 30 palms in
1:10:10
their bags. The weapons of these Indians are
1:10:14
described by Herrera and Tordesillas as follows.
1:10:18
In some cases, they fought with bows and arrows featuring very
1:10:21
sharp Flint points and wore read rounds covered with the skins of
1:10:25
tigers, lions, and deer. Others wore the skins of eagles
1:10:30
as well as those of tigers and lions.
1:10:33
For courage and gallantry, they carried poisonous wood swords
1:10:37
called makanas, which they called makanas on Spanish
1:10:41
islands. To reinforce the community's
1:10:43
submission to their political power, the priestly group relied
1:10:48
on the tlatoani, who supported ritual actions, human
1:10:53
sacrifices. Interpretation of ritual
1:10:56
calendars. Chief priests were called
1:10:58
techti, while tejuamatlini, who interpret the ton a la Martel or
1:11:04
ritual calendar, were called tejuamatlini.
1:11:08
The Kakchi kills initiated a war against the Pipples around 1485
1:11:13
and subsequently took control of their territory on the slopes of
1:11:16
the Fuego Y Agua volcanoes a few decades before the Spanish
1:11:20
conquest. Nicarous and Chorotegas groups
1:11:26
from Socanusko and Tehuantepek migrated to the Teotihuacan area
1:11:30
in Central America at the beginning of the 9th century to
1:11:33
escape tributes, jobs and the dangers of death.
1:11:37
Such population movements led to the establishment of settlements
1:11:40
in Choluteca, Honduras, Kwahi, Nikilapa, Gulf of Fonseca and
1:11:45
the Rivas region in front of the island of Ometape in Lake
1:11:48
Cotabolca, Nicaragua. The latter groups mentioned were
1:11:53
the Mangues, Corotagas and troll altegas.
1:11:58
Frijuan de Torquemada referred to this migration in the
1:12:01
following terms, based on testimonies from indigenous
1:12:04
chiefs to Frey Toribio de Benavente.
1:12:08
According to what is said among the natives of this land, mostly
1:12:11
older people, they claim that the Indians of Nicaragua and
1:12:15
those of Nicoya, who refer to themselves as mangas by another
1:12:18
name, once lived in Zocconochco, a depopulated area in Mexico's
1:12:24
governorate. The Corotegas conquered them
1:12:27
from South America and the Caribbean.
1:12:30
They had created petroglyphs that contained a wealth of
1:12:32
information about their religious beliefs and way of
1:12:35
life. Although they did not subdue the
1:12:37
Corotegas, they did take part of their territory, evicting them
1:12:41
from what is now Rivas. The overthrown rulers and their
1:12:45
armies began an armed migration to the Guatemalan Highlands and
1:12:49
the coastal region between Soccer Newsko and the Nakoya
1:12:52
Peninsula, Costa Rica. After the fall of Tula Hidalgo,
1:12:57
Mexico, the main center of Toltec theocracy and military
1:13:01
power. They arrived in Nicaragua around
1:13:04
1200. The subject of population
1:13:08
movement is the focus of numerous written testimonies.
1:13:11
The Guatemalan Highlands are mentioned in indigenous
1:13:14
chronicles such as Popol Vu, Anales de Los Cacciquel and Tito
1:13:20
de Los Senores de Totonicapan. Mottolinea 158 collected
1:13:26
information about the person who went to the Great Lakes of
1:13:29
Charlotte LAN and Kosibolka. By the South Sea was a massive
1:13:33
fleet of akales or boats which were brought and landed in
1:13:35
Nicaragua, which is over 350 leagues from Mexico and fought
1:13:41
natives who lived there, dismantling them, forcing them
1:13:45
out and leaving them to the lands of the natural descendants
1:13:48
of that old is Takmexcoatl. Chorotegas were divided into
1:13:53
Dirianis, Nagrandanos and Nikoyas as a result of this
1:13:57
armed Toltec penetration. The first populated areas were
1:14:01
Jalteva, Diriomo, Diria, Diriamba, Nikki no Homo,
1:14:06
Messiah, Ninderi and Managua, Nagrandanos, Imabite and
1:14:12
Subtiava, where a language similar to the Clapineco of
1:14:15
Guerrero, Mexico was spoken, Pasoltega, Ques al Guake,
1:14:19
Talika, Yakoyagua and Mabiti, and Nikoyas.
1:14:23
Guanacaste, Costa Rica's Central Valley and the Guanacaste region
1:14:27
was subdued by the Nikoyas, a people of South American origin.
1:14:32
In this way, Guayabo to Rialba, probably Costa Rica's largest
1:14:37
Acropolis, contains Andean and Mesoamerican architectural
1:14:41
elements, as it was ruled in first by the Chipchas and then
1:14:45
by the Corotegas. Nikoyas were assimilating
1:14:49
elements of Chipcha culture, especially metallurgy, which
1:14:53
produced pieces with distinctly Mesoamerican motifs.
1:14:57
Despite being politically and religiously dominated by peoples
1:15:00
of Guanacaste and Central Valley, Nikoya pottery, jade
1:15:05
figurines, and ornaments have been discovered in Mesoamerica's
1:15:08
Central Acropolis. In contrast to other conquest
1:15:12
processes in Mesoamerica, the victors assimilated not only the
1:15:15
language but also forms of economic and social
1:15:18
organization, as well as specific religious
1:15:21
manifestations. The Teotihuacan and Toltec
1:15:25
migrations along the Pacific Coast imposed Najuatl and its
1:15:30
associated religious organizations.
1:15:33
New settlers often named their settlements after their places
1:15:36
of origin. Mexico's Kwajiniwilapa, China
1:15:41
maker and ometipic, correspond to kwajini, kilapa, Chinamaka
1:15:46
and ometepe. A theocratic military system was
1:15:50
used to govern chorotegas and Nicaraguans, in which the teita,
1:15:55
or central ruler, was viewed as a God and was above the priestly
1:15:59
group. During administrative tasks, he
1:16:03
received advice and support from the Taita's office, was
1:16:08
hereditary and patrilineal. In the latter, the Monexico,
1:16:13
chaired by the Tete, governed community interests,
1:16:16
administered justice, administered the tiangas,
1:16:19
defended territories and crops, and prepared military campaigns
1:16:24
to resolve military matters. The Tete had an elite group of
1:16:27
tapaligui. Their weapons were boughs,
1:16:30
arrows, palm tree, darts, axes, Spears, and stone.
1:16:35
Maces, Tamagasques, and Gueghuis were the priestly groups.
1:16:40
Dances, especially the flying stick game, and ritual songs
1:16:44
were arranged. Human sacrifices were performed,
1:16:47
and religious teachings were transmitted to drive away
1:16:51
certain evil spirits and forces. Guigues wore a Teco mate with
1:16:57
tobacco around their necks. He imposed labor penances in the
1:17:01
temples on those who came to confess their faults to the gods
1:17:05
for forgiveness, to frighten insubordinate communities and
1:17:09
get prisoners to sacrifice and skin.
1:17:11
During the main festivities, Corotegas and Nicaraguans waged
1:17:15
flowery wars against them. These ritual sacrifices involved
1:17:20
sprinkling the blood of the victims on the temple altars,
1:17:22
walls and steps, smearing their faces, burning the hearts in
1:17:28
senses, dressing in their skin, eating meat together with those
1:17:33
attending the ritual, and placing the heads on stakes in
1:17:37
front of the temples. During religious celebrations,
1:17:41
songs reminisced about the main historical events and dances
1:17:44
performed. Lost cities of the Mayan Empire.
1:17:48
Secrets and symbolism of the jungle pyramids.
1:17:53
Chichen Itza. Although many ancient
1:17:56
civilizations have influenced and inspired people in the 21st
1:17:59
century, such as the Greeks and the Romans, none have intrigued
1:18:03
people as much as the Mayans, whose culture, astronomy,
1:18:06
language, and mysterious disappearance continue to
1:18:10
captivate people today. Chichen Itzhar, the most visited
1:18:14
and most spectacular of the late Classic Maya cities, is at the
1:18:17
center of the fascination. In the later years of the Maya
1:18:20
civilization, Chichen Itzhar had been inhabited for hundreds of
1:18:23
years in developing columns and exterior relief decoration.
1:18:28
Chichen Itza likely had over 30,000 residents at its peak,
1:18:32
boasting A spectacular pyramid, an enormous ball court, an
1:18:36
observatory and several temples. The sacred cenote at Chichen
1:18:40
Itza, a sinkhole used for Maya rituals surrounding water, is of
1:18:44
particular interest. The Maya regarded it as a
1:18:47
primary concern because adequate water was rarely found on the
1:18:51
limestone based Yucatan surface. The underwater archaeology
1:18:55
conducted in the Sonot at Chichen Itzhar found that
1:18:58
offerings, including people possibly were thrown into the
1:19:02
sinkhole in honor of the Maya rain deity Chak.
1:19:06
Despite its long history, Chichen Itzhar had a relatively
1:19:10
short period of dominance in the region, lasting from
1:19:13
approximately 800 to 950 CE. Nowadays, guides take tourists
1:19:20
to one of the temples called the Nunnery, for no apparent reason
1:19:23
that the small rooms remind them of a nunnery back home.
1:19:26
As with the Great Pyramid at Chishen Itzhar, it is called El
1:19:29
Castillo the Castle, although it may not have been for its spiral
1:19:35
staircase. The observatory is named El
1:19:37
Caracol the Snail. As the Maya cities gradually
1:19:42
lost their populations, the names of these places became
1:19:45
lost. As a result of Chichen Itzhar's
1:19:49
partial abandonment in 948, Maya culture remained disorganized
1:19:53
until its revival around 1200. At Maya Pan.
1:19:57
People around the globe are intrigued by why Maya cities
1:20:01
were abandoned and left to be overgrown by the jungle,
1:20:05
especially those who like to speculate about lost
1:20:07
civilizations. Maya Pan.
1:20:12
During Myopan's early days, the city was closely tied to the
1:20:15
mighty trading city of Chechen Itzhar, which dominated the
1:20:19
region at that time. As a minor settlement in the
1:20:23
orbit of Chechen, Myopan gradually replaced it after its
1:20:28
trade relations with the Toltecs of Tula crumbled and it suffered
1:20:32
A stunning defeat by Myopan's armies.
1:20:36
Myopan displays admiration for Chechen Itzhar and an attempt to
1:20:40
position itself as a reincarnation of Maya tradition.
1:20:45
Nonetheless, they emulated several Cheechen characteristics
1:20:49
and couldn't escape its tremendous influences,
1:20:52
particularly in religion. Many buildings in the new city
1:20:55
seem to be miniature replicas of those in Cheechen.
1:20:59
Due in part to Cheechen Itsar's prominence and long standing
1:21:02
overshadowing of the site, much excavation and scholarly
1:21:06
research has only recently taken place.
1:21:10
While there is still plenty left to discover, a great deal of
1:21:13
information about life in Mayapan has been unearthed.
1:21:17
Several thousand buildings are believed to have been discovered
1:21:20
and restored both within and outside Mayapan's walls, which
1:21:24
may have had a population of over 15,000 at its peak.
1:21:29
Tikal. Tikal was one of the power
1:21:32
centers of the Mayan Empire during its classical era, 3rd to
1:21:37
9th centuries CE. Although reportedly conquered by
1:21:41
Teotihuacan in the 4th century CE, archaeologists believe Tikal
1:21:46
was built in the 5th or 4th centuries BC and eventually
1:21:48
served as a political, economic, and military center of
1:21:51
Mesoamerica as the foreign rulers assimilated Mayan
1:21:55
culture. Tikal remained a mighty city and
1:21:58
did not abandon it until the 10th century.
1:22:01
As one of the most important ancient Maya cities, Tikal was
1:22:04
impressively built, and despite its apparent conquest, its
1:22:08
records were exceptionally well preserved.
1:22:11
You will also find a list of the city's dynastic rulers, along
1:22:15
with their tombs and monuments. Due to this preservation, Tikal
1:22:20
provides researchers with an unparalleled view of ancient
1:22:23
Maya culture and has made significant contributions to our
1:22:27
understanding of Mayan history. Uxmal One of the most notable
1:22:31
Maya cities was Uxmal during the Classical era.
1:22:36
Although it wasn't as powerful as cities like Tikal, Oxmail was
1:22:39
at the forefront of Maya culture in terms of architecture.
1:22:44
While Oxmail remains a popular tourist destination in the
1:22:46
region, the site is shrouded in mystery despite its prominent
1:22:50
location and impressive ruins. Despite the existence of Mayan
1:22:55
Chronicles and oral legends, scholars continue to work on
1:22:59
Oxmail to better understand its origins, the number of people
1:23:02
who lived there, and when it was abandoned.
1:23:06
It is the skills of Oxmail's artisans that are on display,
1:23:10
whether through the construction of structures such as the Five
1:23:13
Level Pyramid of Magicians and the expansive Governor's Palace,
1:23:17
or the decoration of the designs with exquisitely detailed art
1:23:21
and sculpture. Oxmail is credited with its
1:23:24
preservation due to its exceptional craftsmanship.
1:23:28
Classical In what Mesoamerican scholars refer to as the
1:23:32
Classical period, Mayan culture and influence reached their peak
1:23:36
over nearly 379 years in the North Central Highlands of
1:23:40
Yucatan. The region was dominated by two
1:23:44
great powers, Tikal and Kalakmul.
1:23:50
Teotihuacan, Cholula and Monte Alban dominated the western part
1:23:54
of central Mexico. There was relative stability
1:23:58
during this period, although it didn't seem that way as the
1:24:01
ruling dynasties of Tikal and Kalakmol fought numerous proxy
1:24:06
wars through their many client states.
1:24:10
Athens and Sparta went through this period in Ancient Greece
1:24:13
during the Cold War. Like the Roman Empire, the
1:24:17
transition from the Classic to the Post Classic period did not
1:24:21
take place everywhere at the same time.
1:24:23
Mayan city states formed confederacies arranged in a
1:24:27
state of rivalry and shifting alliances within the classic
1:24:30
Maya world. These cities such as Tikal,
1:24:34
Pelonk, Caracol and Kalakmul were ruled by semi divine kings
1:24:39
who left stone monuments commemorating their majesties.
1:24:42
Yet eventually the great cities of the classical period began to
1:24:46
crumble 1 by 1. Mayan culture never wholly
1:24:50
disappeared, especially in rural areas, and over time several new
1:24:55
cities were built. Classical towns such as Chichen
1:24:59
Nizar and Mayapan were centered in the Highlands of modern
1:25:03
Mexico and Guatemala, whereas post classical towns including
1:25:07
Chichen Nizar emerged on the Yucatan Peninsula.
1:25:12
From approximately the 9 hundreds to about the 1500's,
1:25:16
the post Classic period lasted. Scholars have gained an
1:25:20
understanding of Maya naming practices as they learn to read
1:25:23
the complex writing system the Maya left behind.
1:25:26
Names of kings, Queens, and a few others can generally be
1:25:29
found. It is possible to reconstruct
1:25:33
the actual sounds of names like Siaj Chan K Great, Jaguar PO or
1:25:38
Curl Snout. The functions of titles such as
1:25:41
Siaj Chan Ka a Wheel the Second, Yaks Noon Ayin the 1st, and Chak
1:25:48
T.O.K Ichak the first can still be reconstructed today, but they
1:25:51
are long and contain repetitive elements.
1:25:54
Just as George and Edward continue to be used in English
1:25:57
by several kings, it may quickly confuse readers.
1:26:02
So the Mayan pronunciation will appear before the English glyph
1:26:05
names whenever this book refers to a king.
1:26:09
Despite this, there are some exceptions, notably the growing
1:26:14
prominence of Mayan names for these individuals, such as the
1:26:17
great king Jasaw Chan Kawiil the Fern.
1:26:20
The terms of the kings will be described in English glyphs in
1:26:23
subsequent references. There is a jade statue depicting
1:26:27
Jasaw Chan Kawiil the Fern. Despite a lack of definitive
1:26:31
information about their lives and deeds, the names of the
1:26:34
early kings after Yaks EB Zhuk are mainly unimportant to
1:26:38
history. As a result, usurpers of various
1:26:42
shades would look to their own matrilineal ancestors as
1:26:46
justification for their claim to the throne in the future.
1:26:50
A break in the mail line occurred in 317 AD when Lady
1:26:54
Una's Balam Baby Jaguar became the city's first recorded Queen
1:27:00
Tikal's layout. Since the city of Tikal is so
1:27:04
ancient, it is not surprising that its original origins and
1:27:07
the date of its first settlement are lost to time.
1:27:11
The town likely predates the invention of writing by the
1:27:14
Mayans, and soon after it was forgotten by later generations
1:27:20
who were more concerned with the establishment of the first
1:27:22
dynasty. Only the archaeological
1:27:25
excavations of the North Acropolis tomb temple complex
1:27:28
can provide historians with information regarding dates in
1:27:33
Athens. The North Acropolis is ancient,
1:27:36
like Westminster Abbey or the Acropolis in ancient Athens, but
1:27:40
it was also sacred and a focal point of political, social, and
1:27:43
religious life for centuries. The ancient Mayans viewed the
1:27:47
North Acropolis as a symbol of their national identity and a
1:27:51
reflection of their sense of self.
1:27:53
Until now, archaeologists have dated the first building on the
1:27:56
North Acropolis to 350 BC, although traces of a settlement
1:28:01
probably date back centuries earlier.
1:28:03
The city was described as a labyrinth of elevated platforms
1:28:06
and walls when it fell over a Millennium later.
1:28:10
North Ruins The city of Tikal was founded in a favorable
1:28:13
location on the southern edge of a north-south mountain range
1:28:16
that splits the P10 region in two.
1:28:19
Various ecosystems surrounded the city.
1:28:23
Swampy bottomlands called lows were used to collect crocodiles,
1:28:27
frogs, water lilies, and logwood trees.
1:28:32
They cultivated corn and other crops on the hills and used the
1:28:34
valleys as trade routes, bringing back valuable items
1:28:38
such as shells, seaweed and Stingray spines.
1:28:41
From the coast of what is now Belize, they built a city that
1:28:44
would become the longest inhabited classical center with
1:28:48
an estimated 39 rulers. Early inhabitants of Tikal
1:28:52
worshipped spirit forces personified by massive bird like
1:28:55
sculptures. These stupas have been found in
1:28:58
the temples of the North Acropolis and similar statues
1:29:02
have been found in other contemporary lowland pre classic
1:29:05
cities such as El Mirador, Nakbe Cheros and Wak Shaktun.
1:29:12
The masks represent 2 potential gods or goddesses but no one
1:29:16
agrees on which one they represent.
1:29:19
Documents were handed down by the Spanish and they kept
1:29:22
records. Vukub Kakix is described in
1:29:26
Highland mythology as the God of Twilight who dominated the world
1:29:30
before being displaced by the twin heroes Hunapu and Xbalange.
1:29:36
Itzamna was the creator God of the Maya on the Yukatec
1:29:41
Peninsula, according to Diego de Landa.
1:29:45
It's also possible N Acropolis monuments and surrounding
1:29:49
temples can be interpreted in many different ways, depending
1:29:53
on whether the character is a dark Lord from before time or a
1:29:56
beloved creator During great antiquity.
1:30:00
This God may have been replaced by later gods such as Tlaloc or
1:30:03
Ketzalcoatl. No writings have been found on
1:30:07
this deity. Early Tikal was dominated by two
1:30:11
sister cities roughly 20 miles to the northwest.
1:30:14
Once it emerged as a political unit, El Mirador and Nakbe were
1:30:19
cities that adopted A Mesoamerican urban tradition
1:30:22
from groups to the north, such as the Olmecs.
1:30:26
Stone buildings, temples atop pyramids, the ball game, and
1:30:29
stone monuments were all part of this.
1:30:32
In the El Mirador Nakbe tradition, the most significant
1:30:36
monuments were stellae, plural of Stella, monumental stone
1:30:41
slabs carved with extensive carvings that commemorated
1:30:45
important events. Like their Egyptian
1:30:47
counterparts, the Tikal kings erected these stellae to
1:30:51
celebrate victories, important calendar events equivalent to
1:30:56
decades and centuries, investments of power, and
1:31:01
deaths. Due to the ravages of time and
1:31:04
the Spanish conquest, little of the Mayan writing of the early
1:31:07
centuries has survived. This makes the essential steely
1:31:11
a primary source of information about the King's intentions.
1:31:16
During the First Dynasty, El Mirador Nakbe was crumbling by
1:31:21
300 AD, allowing its various vassal states, including Tikal
1:31:25
and significant players of later history such as Waqshaktun and
1:31:29
Kalakmal, to operate independently.
1:31:31
Anthropologists call these relatively simple units
1:31:34
chiefdoms because they are led by a single leader, the chief,
1:31:38
who collects tribute from nearby farmers.
1:31:40
To pay homage to a more prominent and paramount chief
1:31:43
who controlled several smaller chiefdoms, managers can send
1:31:46
tribute down the line. Tickle's rulers began
1:31:49
consolidating local power out of this chaotic and sometimes
1:31:52
brutal environment and eventually established a system
1:31:56
for transferring power from one generation to the next.
1:31:59
Further continuity and regularity were provided to the
1:32:03
government by setting up primary bureaucratic institutions such
1:32:07
as a priesthood. They undoubtedly drew
1:32:10
inspiration from El Mirador and Nakbe, as well as other nearby
1:32:14
cities. During the development process,
1:32:16
a new dynasty was eventually established.
1:32:20
Due to the destruction of the city's early monuments in 378
1:32:24
AD, much of the early information about the First
1:32:27
Dynasty has been lost. Even if the records had been
1:32:31
preserved, they would have been sporadic because Mayan writing
1:32:36
was not yet sophisticated at that time.
1:32:40
Historically, it would not be until a few centuries after the
1:32:43
First Dynasty that the people of Tikal began learning to write.
1:32:47
In fact, contemporary records date back to around 292 AD.
1:32:54
So everything we know about the first Dynasty comes from what
1:32:57
was documented by later generations of Tikal's
1:32:59
residence. The dates of the early monarchs
1:33:02
reigns are estimated by scholars using a procedure called average
1:33:06
rain length estimates. He calculated the average power
1:33:11
of Mayan kings and Queens by summing all of their start and
1:33:14
end dates. The King's names were then put
1:33:18
on undated lists, such as those available for early Tikal.
1:33:23
This system can't provide the correct date, but it is the best
1:33:27
method for determining the date of events like the founding of
1:33:30
the first dynasty. While historians have uncovered
1:33:33
new information about the first dynasty over the past few
1:33:35
decades, knowledge of those early days has improved.
1:33:39
Scholars thought that Great Jaguar Poor was the 9th king in
1:33:43
his lineage, but recent discoveries have revealed the
1:33:46
names of four more early kings. As this information is added to
1:33:51
the average rain length technique, Yaks Ebb Zook's reign
1:33:55
is pushed back to roughly 90AD, suggesting that his remains may
1:33:59
be found in a beautiful sumptuous tomb in the North
1:34:02
Acropolis called Burial. Royal life in early Takal was
1:34:06
centered around the Great Plaza, a paved area that connected the
1:34:10
North and Central Acropolis temples, a complex structure
1:34:14
that included administrative facilities, courts of law, and
1:34:18
administrative regions. The First Dynasty marked the
1:34:22
beginning of the empire's splendor.
1:34:26
Many elite families owned farms and hills in the neighborhood,
1:34:30
enabling them to influence the local population.
1:34:33
Conflicts with its primary political rival, Huakshaktun,
1:34:37
were a hallmark of the First Dynasty's political life.
1:34:41
Huakshaktun represents a ghostly twin in many ways, primarily
1:34:45
because the conquest by Tikal erased its early history,
1:34:48
leaving it to remain in Tikal's shadow afterward.
1:34:52
However, the early Washaktun was a powerful rival to Shuan,
1:34:55
making it a legitimate contender.
1:34:58
Tikal emerged from the chaos of the Nakbe and El Mirador power
1:35:01
struggles, but Waksaktun was eventually conquered by the
1:35:06
Second Dynasty after the Teotihwak Khan Intrada,
1:35:10
solidifying Tikal as the dominant city in the region.
1:35:15
It was one of the most important kings of the First Dynasty.
1:35:19
During the reign of Chak Talkie Chak the Mai, sometimes known as
1:35:23
Great Jaguar Paw or Great Burning Paw, the city began to
1:35:28
look outward in a much more excellent way than it had
1:35:31
before. Trade had been ongoing for some
1:35:35
time but reached new levels of sophistication during this
1:35:38
period, especially in the realm of high quality ceramics.
1:35:43
Imports from central Mexico, specifically those from
1:35:46
Teotihuacan, played a significant role in this outward
1:35:50
looking perspective. We shall discuss Great Jaguar
1:35:53
Paws own death warrant in the following paragraphs because it
1:35:57
appears the Teotihuacan army traveled these same routes to
1:36:00
kill him. Additionally, the Lost World
1:36:03
complex was created as a result of this encounter.
1:36:07
The First Dynasty's most important construction was the
1:36:09
complex of temples and supporting buildings known as
1:36:12
Mundo Perdido or the Lost World. The largest temple complex in
1:36:17
the center of the Pre Classical city featured a large pyramid
1:36:20
topped with three temples, some of which were used as solar
1:36:24
observatories to chart solstices and equinoxes in 250AD.
1:36:30
The Mexicans architectural traces of the Lost World complex
1:36:34
established trade relations long before the arrival of the great
1:36:37
Jaguar pour. Unlike Egyptian pyramids, which
1:36:41
have smooth sides, Mesoamerican pyramids were built like layer
1:36:45
cakes with ever smaller square blocks stacked on top of one
1:36:48
another. This style is called talud
1:36:52
tablero. The talud Tablero style is also
1:36:56
known as the sloping and panelling style.
1:36:59
It is distinguished by pairs of eludes, sloped layers and framed
1:37:04
boards, horizontal layers that pass completely around a
1:37:07
platform, and the staircases are flanked by balustrades that end
1:37:12
in remates capitals. This is significant since the
1:37:15
style does not originate among the Maya, but instead in
1:37:18
Teotihuacan, a city of ruins that was an imperial capital in
1:37:23
Mexico. Far away, however, The Lost
1:37:25
World highlights the significance of Mexican style
1:37:28
Tikal during its early days. A second dynasty through the
1:37:32
entrance Teotihuacan and Teotihuacan.
1:37:37
Teotihuacan, the Entrada and the second dynasty of Aztecs.
1:37:41
A massive army arrived at Tikal on January 31st, 378 AD, forever
1:37:47
changing the city's fate. The Spanish name for this event
1:37:50
is Entrada, which means entry, as in Teotihuacan's entry.
1:37:57
Even though no definite records of these events have survived
1:38:00
due to the destruction that took place, it is clear neither Tikal
1:38:04
nor the Maya as a whole had ever experienced such destruction
1:38:08
before, since foreign soldiers not only conquered but later
1:38:12
ruled Tikal, although they came from Teotihuacan in central
1:38:16
Mexico, about 630 miles away. After the Teotihuacanos
1:38:21
dispatched Tikal's rulers and installed their own, Tikal
1:38:24
became the largest and most important city in Mayan lands.
1:38:29
As a result, not only did the Teotihuacanos change Tikal, but
1:38:32
also the direction of Mayan civilization for centuries to
1:38:35
come. The result of trade contacts
1:38:39
between the Mayan regions and what is now central Mexico led
1:38:43
to this conquest. In addition to goods, these
1:38:47
contacts also involved exchanging ideas and
1:38:50
information. The Tallu tableau architecture
1:38:53
was an early example of such exchanges in the Lost World
1:38:55
complex of Tical, while green hued Obsidian which appears in
1:38:59
early Tical is clearly an import from Mexico.
1:39:03
In the West, Mayan city of Camanal Juyu, which became
1:39:05
wealthy as a go between for the two peoples, the Teotihuacanos
1:39:09
and Maya of Tical and other cities formed early contacts.
1:39:14
Trade between Tikal and Teotihuacan, a town near today's
1:39:17
Mexico City in the Valley of Mexico, was primarily conducted.
1:39:22
The city attracted at least 200,000 people between 107150AD,
1:39:29
making it one of the largest in the ancient world.
1:39:33
In comparison, Tikal had a population of around 60,000 in
1:39:37
the 8th century. At its height of power, Teo Tiwa
1:39:42
Khan was an extremely sophisticated city that could
1:39:44
field massive armies, expand its influence far beyond its home
1:39:48
base, and create a unified empire, which was not possible
1:39:54
in less fertile Mayan lands. Ruins of Teo Tiwa Khan, Teo Tiwa
1:40:00
Khan, and central Mexico in general, has long been debated
1:40:03
over how much influence it had over the Mayan heartland.
1:40:07
Historically, Mayanists have emphasized Mayan creativity.
1:40:11
And downplayed the impact of Mexico on Mayan culture.
1:40:16
They claimed that Mayan leaders emulated Teotihuacan, yet had no
1:40:20
direct relationship or rule with Teotihuacan before deciphering
1:40:24
their script. According to this
1:40:27
interpretation, the events of 378 were the death of Great
1:40:31
Jaguar Poor, who had initiated trade with Teotihuacan, and the
1:40:35
replacement of his son by Lord Curl Snout, who established the
1:40:38
trade relationship and began an era of stylistic imitation of
1:40:42
their trading partners. Although it may have been
1:40:45
inspired by previous trade contacts, archaeologists and
1:40:49
historians have found evidence that the power transfer from the
1:40:52
Great Jaguar Poor to Curl Snout in 378 was anything but
1:40:56
peaceful. According to a general
1:40:59
consensus, a mighty army conquered Tikal today and rumors
1:41:03
of its March must have preceded the invasion, as such a force
1:41:07
could not have moved quickly without horses, which the
1:41:10
Europeans had brought after travelling up the San Pedro
1:41:15
Marta River. The armies arrived at Tikal 8
1:41:18
days after El Peru fell on January 23rd.
1:41:22
Their movement is first documented by a smaller city
1:41:24
called El Peru, about 49 miles 78 kilometers West of Tikal.
1:41:32
Siaj Kark fire Borne, A figure who appears to have commanded
1:41:36
this army, LED it. The surviving writing depicts
1:41:40
Siaj Kaak being sent at the head of the military at the command
1:41:43
of a mysterious figure named Spear Thrower Owl.
1:41:49
This name is not written in Mayan script, but instead
1:41:51
depicts an owl clutching an AT Lattle, a throwing spear.
1:41:56
Spear Thrower Owl may have been a title rather than the person's
1:41:59
actual name. However, the owl may have
1:42:02
represented a warrior, God or caste in the city, according to
1:42:06
some monuments that appear to place the date of his ascension
1:42:10
to a throne. Which throne it may be, but it
1:42:14
is not to Cahl's on May 4th, 374 and his death on June 10th, 439.
1:42:22
Spear thrower Owl Tiwa Khan, who sponsored the expedition.
1:42:27
Spear Thrower Owl is equated with Witzelopochtli, who was an
1:42:31
Aztec warrior God. Additionally, there is evidence
1:42:35
that he married a Mayan woman. However, a recent debate has
1:42:39
arisen regarding whether the title actually refers to a God,
1:42:43
as some murals at Teotihuacan depict a place called Spear
1:42:47
Thrower Owl Hill, which is approximately 300 years old
1:42:53
before a more definitive statement can be made on the
1:42:55
subject. Archaeologists and historians.
1:42:58
The arrival of Mexican warriors and ambassadors on January 31st
1:43:02
378 is depicted on pottery, and the death of the great Jaguar
1:43:07
poor is recorded. Regardless, the Mayans probably
1:43:12
resisted when this army arrived, but Tikal had no walls, a
1:43:17
defensive feature not commonly found in Mayan cities until
1:43:20
centuries later. There is also no evidence that
1:43:24
the resistance of Teotihuacan hindered the army's conquest of
1:43:27
other cities. Waxaktun provides direct
1:43:32
evidence of mastery in a mural that depicts A submissive Maya
1:43:35
being controlled by a powerful Teotihuacan figure.
1:43:39
Comparing this image with Chichen Itzhar imagery some 600
1:43:42
years later is instructive. Similarly, there were debates
1:43:46
about a possible invasion by a central Mexican power, this time
1:43:50
the Toltec Empire, but there is no record of conquest at
1:43:54
Chichen, nor are there any images of Mexicans occupying
1:43:58
Mayan territory. The nature of the Mexican Mayan
1:44:02
contact is also known to have undergone a change at this
1:44:05
point, as evidenced by archaeological findings.
1:44:09
Tikal, for instance, became the home to considerably more
1:44:13
Teotihuacano objects after 378, including painted stucco lidded
1:44:17
tripods. There was also a systematic
1:44:21
destruction of monuments before 378 and the use of the broken
1:44:25
stone to fill new construction projects or export them to other
1:44:29
lesser known cities. The collapse of the North
1:44:32
Acropolis tombs, which stand as a testament to the legitimacy of
1:44:35
the royal system, especially the North Acropolis connection to
1:44:38
the past, represents a major political rift during that year.
1:44:45
Also during the same year, Work Sactun was finally defeated and
1:44:49
it's ruling line was eliminated by an army from Tikal.
1:44:53
It was replaced by the brother of the Lord of Tikal, a man
1:44:56
named Lord Smoking Frog, who established a dynasty that ruled
1:45:01
in the shadow of Tikal. The last city to fall was
1:45:05
discovered in 381. The Teotihua Khan dynasties
1:45:09
occupied these sites, but it's unclear if there was effective
1:45:13
central coordination between Tikal and these other conquests.
1:45:18
There would inevitably be war a few generations from now if such
1:45:22
a system were to exist. Although Spear Thrower Owl may
1:45:26
have been a man or a God, his reign as ruler of Tikal was
1:45:29
short. As the record indicates, it was
1:45:31
taken by his son, Yaksnun Ayen Farsen Batu Curl Snout on
1:45:37
September 12th, 379. As a young boy, Curl Snout was
1:45:43
ruled by the General Seyage, who appears to have held control of
1:45:46
the city as a Regent during his youth.
1:45:49
On June 17th, 404, the Second Dynasty began when Curl Snout
1:45:55
would reign for 25 years. The reign of Curl Snout was
1:45:59
notable as being the pinnacle of Teotihuacan imperialism in the
1:46:02
region. If Spear Thrower Owl was a man,
1:46:06
he apparently outlived his son by 35 years.
1:46:09
To recreate the royal imagery of central Mexico in its monuments
1:46:12
and murals, the regime destroyed the monuments dating before 378.
1:46:19
Curl Snout was a distant patron of Spear thrower Owl, but he
1:46:24
married a Mayan Princess, suggesting that he at least
1:46:27
attempted to associate the Second Dynasty with the previous
1:46:30
power structure. The magnificent burial ground in
1:46:33
Temple 34 where Curl Snout's remains were interred was the
1:46:37
first building to breakthrough the traditional front face of
1:46:39
the North Acropolis, though other facilities were to follow
1:46:42
in later generations. Following Curl Snout's death,
1:46:46
his heir was still a minor. So just as Siaj Kaak governed
1:46:50
during Curl Snout's youth, a non royal named Siaj Chan Keenage
1:46:55
Sky, born Sun God headed the Kingdom from 4 O six to four O
1:47:00
11. Tikal's new king Siaj Chan
1:47:04
Kawil, the second Lord Stormy Sky, ascended to the throne on
1:47:08
November 26th, 411 after five years under the thumb of Regent
1:47:12
Siaj Chan Kinich. He had an exceptionally long and
1:47:16
productive reign before his death on February 3rd. 400 and
1:47:20
5645 years, double the average. Under Lord Stormy Sky, Mayan
1:47:27
imagery became a significant focus of royal propaganda,
1:47:30
emphasizing the continuity of the Second Dynasty's royalty
1:47:34
with that of the First Dynasty. Stormy Sky, who ascended to the
1:47:38
throne around three O 7 AD, was even referenced in the King's
1:47:42
name. His image contrasted with his
1:47:45
father's, who portrayed the Maya as subordinate to Mexican
1:47:48
symbols and dominated them as a result of intentionally reusing
1:47:53
archaic elements. Artisans essentially reproduced
1:47:56
a stealer that was 150 years old with only a few slight changes
1:48:01
on other monuments. Lady Unibalem, a 4th century
1:48:05
queen, is depicted as an example of royal blood passing down
1:48:11
through female lineages. In addition, the emphasis was
1:48:15
shifted back to the purely Mayan N Acropolis from the consciously
1:48:20
Mexican Lost World complex. In addition, the regalia
1:48:24
depicted on the city's Staley returned to the traditional Maya
1:48:27
form created in the 3rd century, which remained essentially
1:48:32
unchanged until the city's collapse.
1:48:35
The triumphant Teotihuacanos, who had previously scorned Mayan
1:48:39
culture and dynastic tradition, nativized it and emphasized it.
1:48:45
There is little evidence of this in written or archaeological
1:48:48
records, but it's possible to draw comparisons to similar
1:48:51
cases where an invading warrior elite conquers a large area in
1:48:57
Britain, the Normans were of French origin, the Greeks were
1:49:00
Hellenic, the Safavid dynasty was of Turkic origin, and the
1:49:05
Chinese were of Manchu origin. These elites not only
1:49:09
established dynasties throughout the new territories, but also
1:49:12
established smaller lines, thereby spreading themselves too
1:49:16
thin over time. Subsequent generations of the
1:49:21
elites who grew up communicating with the locals likely had no
1:49:24
direct experience of or emotional attachment to their
1:49:27
native homeland, as the conquering Teotihuacanos had to
1:49:31
learn the local language to share not only with the
1:49:34
peasantry but with Dical's local administrators and bureaucrats.
1:49:40
Furthermore, they may have resented having to pay tribute
1:49:43
back home, and they may have assimilated further to
1:49:47
legitimize themselves and avoid local uprisings.
1:49:51
During this period of strength, Tikal Teotihuacan exerted
1:49:55
influence throughout the Maya lowlands, creating a permanent
1:49:58
mark that reinforced the dynastic system.
1:50:02
Although Tikal had played a significant role in developing
1:50:04
this form of governance, it was only through the influence of
1:50:08
Teotihuacan's Mexican tradition that it reached its peak.
1:50:12
Tikal's dominance also contributed to the spread of the
1:50:14
cult of the rain God Tlaloc, later known in Maya as Chak, who
1:50:21
replaced the earlier bird headed deity as the primary deity in
1:50:24
the Mayan world. The historical record suggests
1:50:28
that this dynastic and religious tradition fostered opposition
1:50:32
from more conservative Mayan groups and contributed to
1:50:35
Kalakmal's support of Tikal's enemies.
1:50:38
By 557, the 21st king had emerged as a double bird.
1:50:45
Double Bird, The son of Chak T.O.K Ichak the Second, was born
1:50:49
in January 508, seven months before his father died.
1:50:55
He came to power on January 29th, 537, and he returned,
1:51:00
presumably from exile during this period.
1:51:02
According to the monuments, there are records suggesting
1:51:06
that when Chak T.O.K Ichak the Second died, his two young
1:51:10
children were used as pawns in dynastic strife.
1:51:14
However, Tikal's internal divisions meant that the city's
1:51:17
elites were unable to maintain their control over mine politics
1:51:21
in general. Jewel Bird sponsors a ruler in
1:51:24
distant Caracol in 553, but Naranjo, a much closer Kingdom,
1:51:29
becomes a vassal of rival Calakmul in the same year.
1:51:33
The result of this direct conflict was Tikal losing a
1:51:37
vassal to the now rebellious Caracol in 556.
1:51:43
A Star War also occurred in 562. This was a war that coincided
1:51:49
with Venus's movements. Caracol and Calac Mull, together
1:51:54
with their combined forces, overran Tikal during this war,
1:51:58
killing Double Bird ritually. Third Dynasty and the Great
1:52:01
Hiatus During Tikal's reconstruction in the mid 20th
1:52:05
century, archaeologists encountered a confusing problem.
1:52:09
Between 562 and 692, a period of 130 years, no dated monuments or
1:52:17
large scale construction projects were built in the city.
1:52:21
Over a century had passed since the city's leaders had left.
1:52:26
The destruction or vandalism of many early classic monuments
1:52:29
predating 550AD further compounded the confusion.
1:52:35
As a result of this period, it became known as a hiatus.
1:52:40
However, scholars now understand its significance more deeply.
1:52:45
It is no longer challenging to comprehend the hiatus because
1:52:48
much information has been gleaned from other decorated
1:52:51
ceramics and monuments in different cities between 508 and
1:52:55
562 during a period of troubled times.
1:52:58
The hiatus began know that this period was not one of calm, but
1:53:04
marked by chaos, intrigue and war.
1:53:09
There appears to have been a power vacuum following on July
1:53:12
24th, 508, as demonstrated 13 days later when Yakshilan
1:53:18
conquered 1 of Tikal's vassal cities.
1:53:21
Because most of the Steelys are defaced or incomplete, the
1:53:25
actual events that followed are primarily lost.
1:53:28
However, it appears that Tikal's elite were divided into two
1:53:32
factions. A few minutes later, she
1:53:35
appeared on stage as the Lady of Tikal.
1:53:39
As a child, she was undoubtedly treated as a pawn, especially
1:53:43
after her father's death when she was only four years of age.
1:53:47
In Staler's 500, eleven, 514 and 527, she is depicted with a male
1:53:55
Co ruler. A staler from 527 depicts her
1:54:00
ruling alongside General Calumtez Bialam, who led the 486
1:54:05
attacks on the Masai and was generally considered the 19th
1:54:09
king of Tikal. The 20th king was ruled by Bird
1:54:12
Claw between 527 and 537. It's certainly noteworthy that
1:54:19
early archaeological studies have documented the simultaneous
1:54:21
collapses of Teotihuacan and Tikal, but it's unclear how or
1:54:26
whether the 2 are linked. Are Teotihuacan's soldiers
1:54:30
returning from Tikal? Was Teotihuacan's fall, seen as
1:54:35
the end of the divine mandate, a factor in galvanizing Tikal's
1:54:39
enemies? The collapse could have also
1:54:42
occurred because Tikal's elites were incapable of maintaining
1:54:45
their own trade routes, and as a result, trade came to a halt.
1:54:51
No matter how close the connection between the collapse
1:54:53
of Tikal and Teotihuacan was, 562 AD was a momentous year in
1:54:59
Mesoamerica. It witnessed the destruction of
1:55:03
the region's mightiest city and the conquest and subjugation of
1:55:07
the second. In the debate about the internal
1:55:10
divisions in Tikal and the effects of Teotihuacan's
1:55:13
collapse, it is also often overlooked that the failure of
1:55:16
Tikal's hegemony was partially a result of a geopolitical
1:55:19
strategy that pitted 2 rivals against each other, Caracol and
1:55:25
especially Kalakmul. Like Tikal, Kalakmul emerged as
1:55:30
a vassal of El Mirador and Nakbe, becoming an heir to the
1:55:35
pre Classic era. El Mirador's ancient ruins were
1:55:39
24 miles 39 kilometers north of the kingdom's capital, which
1:55:44
claimed to be the rightful heir to that ancient city.
1:55:47
At this point, Kalakmul had jumped over Tikal and Teotihua
1:55:50
Khan, thereby claiming to be the Mayan civilization's true heirs.
1:55:55
As Tikal reached its zenith, Kalakmul and the Kingdom it
1:55:59
ruled, known as Khan, the Kingdom of the Snake, remained
1:56:03
in the shadow of Tikal, but was never conquered by Tikal or the
1:56:06
Teotihuacanos. As early as 540, Calakmul began
1:56:11
consolidating power and dislodging Tikal.
1:56:15
Stone Hand Jaguar and King Sky Witness work to encircle Tikal
1:56:19
by bringing one small city after another under their control
1:56:23
between the 500 forties and 500 fifties.
1:56:26
Apparently the plan was to starve Tikal politically by
1:56:30
depriving it of tribute from its vassals and prevent it from re
1:56:33
establishing the trade networks to central Mexico that had been
1:56:37
in decline after Teotihuacan collapsed.
1:56:40
At least after Sky Witnesses troops brought Caracol under his
1:56:43
banner in 561, the Tikal elites were aware of this strategy
1:56:48
despite their divisions. Lord Double Bird, the Last King
1:56:53
of Tikal's second dynasty, attacked Caracol in 562,
1:56:59
probably hoping to break Calacmol stranglehold on the
1:57:02
Kingdom. Unfortunately, he underestimated
1:57:05
or overestimated the strength of his enemies.
1:57:09
It was not only he who failed to capture Caracol, but he also
1:57:13
lost everything during the alliance's counter attack.
1:57:16
The 22nd king of Tikal assumed the throne sometime around 593
1:57:22
AD. King Animal Skull 1/3 dynasty
1:57:26
rose to power as a result of this ascension.
1:57:30
The text refers to Double Bird's ritual killing obliquely, and
1:57:34
the pottery of Animal Skull emphasizes his matrilineal
1:57:37
connections to Tikal's elite while omitting mention of his
1:57:41
father. Retrospective ceramics that
1:57:44
traces lineage are what scholars rely on to understand the line
1:57:48
of the earliest kings, a member of a new ruling family installed
1:57:52
after the Mayan conquest by Caracol and Kalakmul.
1:57:56
The victorious powers greatly value control over Tikal and the
1:57:59
cities of Caracol and Kalakmul. Tikal's conquest likely led to
1:58:04
the end of its existence as a political entity in the ordinary
1:58:07
course of events. Waksaktun, which is nowadays
1:58:11
regarded as a minor force since Tikal conquered it, is a typical
1:58:15
example. As his tomb was constructed
1:58:18
immediately after Animal Skull died in 628 AD.
1:58:23
There appears to have been a relatively orderly transition.
1:58:27
Despite this unity, a schism occurred as early as 648.
1:58:31
ADA New City named Dos Pilas lay approximately 70 miles, 112
1:58:37
kilometers southwest of Tikal, whose ruler claimed to be the
1:58:41
legitimate successor to Tikal's ruler Balad Chan Kawil Kalakmul
1:58:47
supported his monarchy, but in Tikal Noon Ujol Chak Shield
1:58:52
Skull, a rival to Balaj Chan car wheel in Dos Pilas, was taking
1:58:57
power. A new Star Wars was launched in
1:58:59
657 by Yuknum the Great of Kalakmul to evict the upstart,
1:59:05
but the outcome of this conflict is unclear.
1:59:08
In contrast to Shield, Skull, Balaj Chan, Car Wheel, and the
1:59:13
Dos Pilas elites failed to return to Tikal triumphantly
1:59:16
following their successful trip to Pelank, another enemy of
1:59:20
Kalakmul. It is not clear why Kalakmul
1:59:24
ruled the city directly. However, some speculate that he
1:59:28
did so because he wanted more control over the city at Pelank
1:59:33
in 659, but he ultimately retook Tikal in 672 and later Dos
1:59:40
Pilas. He was defeated once and for all
1:59:43
in 679 AD when Kalakmul attacked Shield Skull's forces and drove
1:59:49
them from Dos Pilas until around eight O 7 AD.
1:59:54
The Third Dynasty may have lived in exile in Dos Pilas.
1:59:59
Scholars aren't certain, but it seems likely.
2:00:02
China during the 20th Century makes a helpful comparison for
2:00:05
understanding Tikal during the hiatus.
2:00:09
The traditional dynasty, the second dynasty in Tikal or the
2:00:11
Manchus in China was overthrown and puppet rulers were
2:00:15
installed. Tikal's third dynasty and Chiang
2:00:19
Kai Shek's pro Western government.
2:00:21
The nation is internally divided and beset by enemies.
2:00:25
It is surrounded by enemy states.
2:00:27
Naranjo, Caracal and others for Tikal and Japan, Korea and India
2:00:31
for China. Whenever a government is toppled
2:00:35
by revolution, a remnant of the survivor's flees to establish a
2:00:39
petty domain under the protection of the former
2:00:42
masters, to whom it is essential to recognize the Exiles as
2:00:46
legitimate authorities. In this case, Dos Pilas and
2:00:50
Taiwan Shield Skull successfully ignited the embers of Tikal's
2:00:54
independence and power. Despite his overall failure to
2:00:58
restore Tikal to glory, a success his son would continue
2:01:04
throughout Tikal's long history. Jasar Chan Kawilai is likely to
2:01:10
have been the most significant ruler in the Fourth Dynasty.
2:01:15
Jasar Chan Kawilai ruled the Temple of Tikal is one of the
2:01:20
most famous and evocative structures.
2:01:23
Although Temple the One, standing 154 feet 47 meters is
2:01:28
not the tallest building on the site, the presence of its mirror
2:01:32
in Temple Two across the Plaza, as well as its steep sides,
2:01:36
gives it a unique quality that visitors have noted for
2:01:39
centuries. It sits directly in front of the
2:01:43
North Acropolis, but it does not belong to that complex.
2:01:48
In essence, the North Acropolis is framed by temples the Firm
2:01:51
and Two. Jasaw Chan Kawil I's tomb honors
2:01:57
the burial traditions of the North Acropolis while also
2:02:00
breaking them, for no other king will be interred in the ancient
2:02:03
halls of their ancestors after Jasaw Chan Kawil.
2:02:09
The battle for power in May 682 was an uphill one for Jasaw Chan
2:02:13
Kawil. Although he considered himself
2:02:16
the restorer of Tikal, he had little material to work with.
2:02:21
His father's armies had been defeated five years earlier.
2:02:25
His throne in Dos Pilas had been taken by a rival dynasty.
2:02:30
Enemies may have occupied his capital, while his father's
2:02:34
allies in Palanc may have aided him in some ways.
2:02:38
The fact that he defeated the armies of Kalakhmal in open
2:02:41
battle on August 5th, 695 reflects his skill as a
2:02:46
tactician, diplomat, and administrator.
2:02:50
Restorationist Jasaw Chan Kawil resurrected long shuttered
2:02:55
Teotihuacan symbolism to commemorate his city's glorious
2:02:58
past. Use Roman symbolism, especially
2:03:02
its regalia. He also celebrated the 695th
2:03:06
anniversary of the death of his Teotihuacano progenitor Spear
2:03:11
thrower Owl on September 14th, which is also an auspicious
2:03:16
number, as it is also the 13th anniversary of his 695th battle.
2:03:24
The old empire was completely recreated by Jasochan Kawil
2:03:28
after he broke Kalakmul's stranglehold around Tikal.
2:03:32
As a result of his 695 victories, he may have been able
2:03:35
to take Masal and Naranjo, though he had to put down
2:03:39
rebellions in Naranjo later, and he may have been immensely
2:03:42
pleased to sack Dos Pilas in Seven O 5 as well.
2:03:47
The cities of Matul de San Jose, El Peru and Waqshaktun were
2:03:50
recaptured by him in 7-11. In 731 AD, after the noose was
2:03:57
broken and these conquests were complete, Jasar Chan ka Awil
2:04:02
began undertaking several construction projects in the
2:04:05
capital. Jasar Chan Kawil seemed to have
2:04:09
been the founder of the that Teotihuar Khan was legitimate.
2:04:14
Several generations followed him, none of them knowing and
2:04:18
most likely never knowing whether he was the direct
2:04:21
descendant of Double Bird, the last ruler of the Second
2:04:25
Dynasty. Yakin Chan Kawil, the 27th king,
2:04:30
inherited his father's triumphs and built on them to strengthen
2:04:33
the empire, squelching Kalakmul's desire for dominance
2:04:37
through a series of military campaigns, which also helped
2:04:40
reshape Tikal and reflect its return to glory.
2:04:44
Two more kings continued this period of strength until Yaks
2:04:47
Noon. Ayyin the Second took office in
2:04:49
794AD. At the time, this city had a
2:04:54
population of over 60,000, spanning an area of 25 square
2:04:58
kilometers, or 10 square miles. At the city's commercial height.
2:05:03
Local merchants traded salt, cotton, cacao, Obsidian, jade
2:05:08
and feathers, reestablishing trade networks that had
2:05:11
collapsed during the hiatus. There was a collapse.
2:05:16
In fact, Tikal and its sociopolitical order would soon
2:05:19
be a thing of the past. Despite its residents belief
2:05:22
that Tikal had passed its darkest days and would remain in
2:05:24
control for another 6 centuries, Mayan collapse would become
2:05:29
famous during this time. Tikal became silent again once
2:05:33
the Yaks Nguyen elites regained relative prosperity.
2:05:38
No evidence suggests that the city was ruled by a
2:05:41
traditionally powerful dynasty between 8:09 and 869, although
2:05:46
there was some indication of order in the town at that time.
2:05:50
There was a 60 year period known as the 10th Bactoon from 8:30,
2:05:55
when no monuments were erected during the second hiatus.
2:05:59
Astailor was erected in honor of Jasaw Chan Khalil, the Co as
2:06:02
King of Tikal in 869, but he was unable to prevent rulers in
2:06:07
Tikal's small vassal cities from asserting their claims to
2:06:11
Tikal's throne for the first time.
2:06:14
As the last monument to the town was built in 889AD, it was not
2:06:20
immediately abandoned. Archaeological evidence shows
2:06:23
that settlements continued there until the late 10th or early
2:06:26
11th centuries. D and subsequent generations
2:06:32
barely maintained the pretense of dynastic rule.
2:06:36
In fact, residents occupied the palaces and temples and mined
2:06:39
the treasures in the North Acropolis, tombs, roads,
2:06:43
courtyards, and even buildings. Additionally, local groups
2:06:48
raided each other often in this region.
2:06:51
Westerners have been fascinated by the Mayan collapse since
2:06:54
European explorers first discovered and described the
2:06:56
ruins in the 19th century. The modern fascination with
2:07:00
mysterious sights, evident in a flurry of dubious documentaries
2:07:04
and spurious scholarship that attributes the Maya's victories
2:07:07
to everything from aliens to Atlantis, has obscured the fact
2:07:11
that recent scholarship has helped shed light not only on
2:07:14
Maya dynasties but also on the causes of their decline.
2:07:18
History offers several examples of how a whole cultural area can
2:07:22
suffer an irretrievable collapse.
2:07:24
The book Collapse, How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed, is
2:07:29
not just about the Maya, but also about the Easter Islanders,
2:07:33
the Pitcairn Islanders, the Anasazi, the Vikings in
2:07:36
Greenland, and contemporary Chinese, Australian, and
2:07:39
Hispanic communities. The Mayan collapse, according to
2:07:43
Diamond, was the result of a slow decline in the cities of
2:07:45
Tikal and other cities. Although Mayan agriculture
2:07:49
relied mainly on corn, it was a relatively protein poor food
2:07:53
compared to wheat and barley. The Maya soil and humid climate
2:07:57
resulted in lower production compared to Mesoamerica due to
2:07:59
poor soil and humid weather conditions.
2:08:02
Humidity prevented corn from storing for more than a single
2:08:05
season. Food could not be transported
2:08:08
long distances without the use of draft animals.
2:08:11
Agriculture was labor intensive at the height of the late
2:08:16
Classic Period, around 700 AD, when Tikal's second zenith
2:08:20
reached its peak, Mayan farmers were exploiting increasingly
2:08:24
precarious farm lands, resulting in unprecedented deforestation
2:08:27
and erosion. To make the thick layers of
2:08:30
plaster that covered the surfaces of the glorious
2:08:32
buildings in the center of Tikal, immense quantities of
2:08:36
wood would have been needed. Likely, the lack of forests and
2:08:40
the speed of runoff without roots led to human produced
2:08:43
droughts due to the disruption of water cycles.
2:08:46
Furthermore, the worst drought in hundreds of years struck the
2:08:49
region in 760AD, lasting for over 4 decades and aggravating
2:08:54
these problems. As eroded farmland was abandoned
2:08:58
and drought spread, there would have been increasing conflicts
2:09:01
among farmers and growing anger at the ruling class, which
2:09:05
failed to fulfill its role as an intercessor with all gods at
2:09:09
Copan. This anger turned into outright
2:09:13
violence in 850AD when the royal palace was destroyed.
2:09:18
The collapse affected several classical cities, including
2:09:20
Tikal, Kalakmul, Palenque, and Caracol, but not all Maya towns
2:09:25
were affected. The collapse of Uxmal,
2:09:28
Chichenitsa and Maya Pan was especially devastating for those
2:09:31
far north of the Yucatan Peninsula.
2:09:34
Tikal, on the other hand, was not wiped out.
2:09:38
In fact, they still reside in northern Guatemala and the
2:09:41
surrounding Mexican states, where they comprise the majority
2:09:45
of the population. This collapse was actually a
2:09:48
political event brought about by the collapse of the traditional
2:09:51
Mayan dynasty and the ensuing famines.
2:09:56
In what form did the collapse take place?
2:10:00
This slow moving event first struck peripheral areas and then
2:10:04
spread to the heartlands. Drought and famine would have
2:10:08
driven peasants from marginal lands, flooding cities with
2:10:11
beggars and filling armies with recruits.
2:10:16
The Yucatecans founded cities like Uxmal far away in the north
2:10:19
after marching away searching for new lands.
2:10:22
At the same time, rival kings would have sought to strengthen
2:10:25
their own agricultural base at the expense of their enemies by
2:10:29
exploiting their weaker rivals. Due to constant resource
2:10:33
shortages, armies resembled bandits, and their kings
2:10:37
probably acted more like bandit captains.
2:10:41
There is a possibility that people turn to religion and then
2:10:43
turned against it, destroying temples and palaces and killing
2:10:49
kings and priests during desperate and uncertain times
2:10:55
when the world seemed to be falling apart.
2:10:58
They likely had fewer children. Tikal and its rivals were
2:11:02
eventually reduced to ruins, as those who survived abandoned the
2:11:05
cities to escape the Troubles. The Maya collapse is tragic,
2:11:10
fascinating, or inevitable, but not enigmatic or mysterious.
2:11:16
The Maya settlements of Tikal, however, were clearly influenced
2:11:19
by Tikal. In addition to its role in
2:11:22
dominating the Mayan heartland during periods of regional
2:11:25
hegemony, Tikal also held a much broader significance in Mayan
2:11:29
history. As one of the sources of the
2:11:31
most sophisticated aspects of Mayan culture as a whole, it
2:11:37
served as a political role model for a large area far beyond its
2:11:41
control. Tikal's rulers took pains to
2:11:44
demonstrate the city's connection with them, even
2:11:47
emulating the city's ceremonial dress and regalia.
2:11:51
As such, the Teotihuacan Entrada was characterized by the
2:11:55
introduction of the patriarchal system, religious rituals, and
2:12:00
central Mexican symbolism to the dynastic system.
2:12:04
The refugees who came to northern Yucatan after the
2:12:06
collapse of the classical Mayan civilization brought this
2:12:10
dynastic tradition, albeit with many changes, when they founded
2:12:14
new cities such as Uxmal, Chichen, Itzar and Mayapan.
2:12:19
The writers of Tikal also transformed El Mirador's and
2:12:23
Nakbe's incipient writing systems into a complex and fully
2:12:26
formed orthography capable of conveying all the subtleties of
2:12:29
human speech. Mesoamerica, Mesopotamia and
2:12:34
China over 7000 Mayan texts of varying lengths are still
2:12:39
preserved in Tikal and its surrounding cities where the
2:12:42
glyphs reached their peak. Tikal in modern times.
2:12:47
It's mind blowing. The murmur of the Arroyo's
2:12:50
voices, crepitations of tangled vines, flapping wings and the
2:12:55
sounds of the intertwining vines all trickle into the ocean of
2:12:58
silence. In the extinguished city are
2:13:01
reliefs, pyramids and temples in green.
2:13:07
Everything breathes, exhausting itself in the vast roof of
2:13:10
Tikal. Miguel Angel Asturius, 1967,
2:13:14
Nobel laureate in the mirror of Lida Sal.
2:13:18
Tales based on Mayan myths and Guatemalan legends, the city of
2:13:22
Tikal was abandoned, but it was never truly lost.
2:13:26
Itsamaya rulers from the nearby Lake City of Tayasal respected
2:13:30
the ruins and revered its builders.
2:13:32
When the Spanish arrived in the Lake Peternitzar area in the
2:13:35
1620s, knowing that the people of ancient Tikal were their
2:13:40
ancestors, Spanish explorers occasionally visited it during
2:13:44
the colonial period, and local hunters regularly travelled
2:13:48
through it on their treks. Eusebio Lara drew several
2:13:51
stellae on the site in 1848, which attracted considerable
2:13:55
attention after the Guatemalan government conducted its survey
2:13:58
of the ruins. Guatemala declared independence
2:14:02
from the United Provinces of Central America in 1825, but it
2:14:07
wasn't fully independent until 1840.
2:14:11
Embracing a glorification of the ancient Mayan past has been an
2:14:15
integral part of Guatemala's national identity almost since
2:14:20
its inception, which is deeply troubling given the lengths its
2:14:24
government went to keep down the Mayan populations actually
2:14:28
living on its territory, even as far as to attempt genocide in
2:14:32
the late 20th century. Nevertheless, much of
2:14:36
Guatemala's symbolism is derived from the Maya, such as a
2:14:40
classical sculpture of a Maya head on the 25 centavo coin and
2:14:46
a photo of Tikal's temple, one on the back of the old 1/2
2:14:49
quetzal note. Tikal became increasingly
2:14:52
popular among Europeans after Austrian Gustav Bernoulli
2:14:55
visited the city in 1877 and brought back a set of wood
2:14:59
carved panels. 57 While it was undoubtedly theft from the
2:15:04
Guatemalan people to plunder and move these precious panels to
2:15:08
Austria, it did allow the wood to be preserved for future
2:15:11
generations. The meetings are from temples
2:15:14
one and four and they are believed to show the life of
2:15:18
Jaso Chan Kawi I'll one. There was another expedition
2:15:23
following Bernoulli's. The proto archaeologist Alfred
2:15:27
Maudsley surveyed the city and drew a map in 1881 and 1882.
2:15:33
Sylvanus Morley of Harvard University and the Carnegie
2:15:36
Institution conducted surveys between 1926 and 1937.
2:15:42
There has been almost continuous archaeological excavation at
2:15:44
Tikal since then, including an elaborate 18 year project by the
2:15:49
Guatemalan government and the University of Pennsylvania.
2:15:54
The World Heritage Site designation was granted to the
2:15:56
site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and
2:16:00
Cultural Organization, UNESCO, in 1979.
2:16:05
Tikal was chosen because it represents a masterpiece of
2:16:08
human creative genius. It bears a unique or exceptional
2:16:13
witness to a culture or civilization that still exists
2:16:16
or that has disappeared. It exemplifies a significant
2:16:20
stage in human development as a result of protecting a wide
2:16:25
swath of forest. The site is also recognized by
2:16:28
UNESCO for its ecological value. Tikal has been chosen in this
2:16:32
respect as examples of the most important and significant
2:16:36
natural habitats for in situ conservation of biological
2:16:39
diversity, including those containing threatened species of
2:16:43
Outstanding Universal Value from the point of view of science and
2:16:47
conservation, and to represent significant ecological and
2:16:51
biological processes in the evolution and development of
2:16:55
terrestrial, freshwater, coastal and marine ecosystems and
2:16:59
communities. Besides being a premier tourist
2:17:03
attraction today, Tikal is also a research site and a site of
2:17:07
international recognition. The ruins of this once mighty
2:17:11
city attract 10s of thousands of tourists every year, ensuring
2:17:16
that the world's fascination with the ancient Maya will not
2:17:18
fade away anytime soon. Uxmal we went another way.
2:17:26
Then suddenly emerging from the woods, I came across a large
2:17:29
field strewn with mounds of ruins.
2:17:33
To my astonishment, the site on which I am now speaking was once
2:17:37
a vast populace and highly civilized city, with terraced
2:17:41
buildings and pyramidal buildings, grand and in good
2:17:44
preservation, richly ornamented and with a dramatic effect much
2:17:47
like that of Thebes. What it was built for, why it
2:17:51
was built there, away from water, or any of those other
2:17:54
natural advantages that determine the sites of cities,
2:17:57
whose histories we know, and how it ended up abandoned and
2:18:00
destroyed, no one can tell. John Lloyd Stevens Incidents of
2:18:07
Travel in Central America, Chiapas and Yucatan, 1843 In the
2:18:13
early 13th century, Oaksmall was the northernmost of the puke
2:18:17
city states that thrived for hundreds of years on the
2:18:19
northern Yucatan Peninsula. Beginning around the year 800,
2:18:24
some 20,000 people lived in its urban core, while 10s of
2:18:28
thousands lived in nearby farms or vassal cities.
2:18:32
From its vantage point atop pugs and overlooking the expansive
2:18:36
Yucatan jungle, Uksmal is a majestic city.
2:18:39
Even in its modern ruins, the ancient rulers of Egypt had a
2:18:44
view of their Kingdom from atop the pyramids.
2:18:47
Despite Chichen Itza and Myopan's economic and political
2:18:51
power overtaking Uksmal, Uksmal retained its religious
2:18:54
prominence and even became venerated as an Empress by
2:18:57
Chichen Itza and Myopan. Despite being abandoned, its
2:19:01
halls were proudly associated with Maya ancestry.
2:19:05
Rituals were still held in its ruins.
2:19:09
In Uxmal, the South to north axis of the ceremonial center
2:19:12
was built along an area that was roughly 100,000 square feet,
2:19:16
30,000 square meters. The cause role in society is
2:19:21
similar to that of Westminster in London.
2:19:24
It features administrative buildings, royal residences,
2:19:27
places of worship, and large public gatherings.
2:19:30
However, Uxmal differs dramatically from its southern
2:19:33
classical predecessors in that the monumental architecture that
2:19:38
dominates its core is not devoted to the Entombment and
2:19:42
veneration of dead monarchs, but rather to facilities that were
2:19:46
meant to serve the living. The grand plazas, such as those
2:19:51
around the tomb pyramids in Tikal, were replaced by great
2:19:55
halls and palaces that surrounded central courtyards in
2:19:58
Uxmal. The most famous structure in the
2:20:01
city is probably the Pyramid of the Magician, which comes from
2:20:05
the Spanish phrase Pyramid del Divino, which is perhaps better
2:20:11
translated as the pyramid of the Diviner or soothsayer.
2:20:16
Despite its impressive height and the presence of a temple at
2:20:19
the top, this pyramid is unique in that its base is elliptical
2:20:23
in shape, with its longest sides measuring 280 feet by 165 feet.
2:20:29
Unlike other Mesoamerican pyramids, archaeologists have
2:20:33
numbered the five chambers of the pyramid using Roman
2:20:36
numerals, a system traditionally associated with temples.
2:20:41
A temple called the House of the Magician rests at the crown and
2:20:45
is known for its impressive latticework panels.
2:20:49
Below the structure is Temple 4, which was far grander in
2:20:52
decoration than Temple 5, which was relatively austere.
2:20:56
The gate to Temple 4 was enormous and decorated with
2:20:59
zoomorphic masks, geometric patterns, and statues.
2:21:04
Temple Fee's entrance was not visible from the ground, but
2:21:08
Temple Falls was, which led to the conclusion that Temple 4 was
2:21:12
the central place of worship. The facade of Temple 4 appears
2:21:17
enormous from a distance, resembling the more of a monster
2:21:21
as the visitor approaches it. It is only when the visitor
2:21:24
reaches the top that the intricate patterns of statuary
2:21:27
and carving begin to emerge as distinct from one another.
2:21:31
Often depicted as a great serpent, its amna has been
2:21:37
argued to be its creator God. Diagram of the Magician's
2:21:42
Pyramid As evidenced by the Pyramid of the Magician, Oxmal
2:21:46
was a city that fused several architectural styles to create a
2:21:50
form unique to itself, the Puke style as explained below.
2:21:55
In contrast, Temple 5 is in an indigenous Puyuk style, while
2:22:01
Temple Phase 4 is in a classical southern style known as Chinese.
2:22:06
The House of the Governor or Governor's Palace is South of
2:22:09
the Pyramid of the Magician. This may have been the most
2:22:13
outstanding Mayan architectural achievement.
2:22:17
Uxmal's palace is the tallest building and was constructed on
2:22:21
a platform situated atop another platform 48 feet or 15 meters
2:22:26
high. It is almost certainly a royal
2:22:30
palace. This palace was designed with a
2:22:34
simple symmetrical plan, a central building flanked by two
2:22:38
smaller buildings with roofed arcades.
2:22:41
A shared roof line and raised dais connect the three
2:22:44
buildings, with the main stairwell serving as the central
2:22:47
point of access. A striking contrast was also
2:22:51
present in the compounds facade decoration On the lower exterior
2:22:56
walls, up to the top of each of the 13 identical doorways, the
2:22:59
stucco was smooth and undecorated.
2:23:03
Above that, however, was the decorative cornice, a carved
2:23:06
surface featuring images of ancestors, deities, especially
2:23:10
Chaak the rain God, and geometrical designs.
2:23:15
The panels were definitely works of art, on par with the famous
2:23:18
freezes of the Parthenon in Athens, now in London.
2:23:22
It is awe inspiring when visitors approach the central
2:23:25
staircase because of a building feature called a negative
2:23:27
batter, which means that the front walls lean forward.
2:23:32
The front staircase is nearer the Crest of the freeze than the
2:23:34
base of the facade. The detailed planning results in
2:23:37
the appearance of the freezes soaring above the structure,
2:23:40
adding an extra layer of drama. The interior of the system
2:23:43
featured high vaulted arches and wide paved rooms.
2:23:47
The main pyramid of the vassal city of Kabar is visible in a
2:23:50
straight line beyond the center of the House of the Governor.
2:23:54
On the far side of the Plaza in front of the House of the
2:23:56
Governor is a worn stone throne carved in the shape of a 2
2:24:01
headed Jaguar. The 2 headed Jaguar Throne was a
2:24:04
symbol of the town as depicted in stone carvings, including one
2:24:09
of the only known kings, Lord Chak.
2:24:13
The Great Pyramids temple is adorned with sculptures.
2:24:16
The Nunnery quadrangle, similar to a Spanish cloister, is the
2:24:20
other large structure within the ceremonial center, which is also
2:24:24
home to several smaller temples, bull courts and elite
2:24:28
residential complexes. This palace is the largest and
2:24:32
grandest of many in the city, and it is thought to have been
2:24:35
the home of one of the city's elite families.
2:24:38
Near the base of the Pyramid of the Magician, the complex
2:24:41
comprises 4 buildings arranged around a central Plaza.
2:24:45
The buildings themselves are also distinctive.
2:24:49
A few of the themes found in the Governor's Palace appear on the
2:24:51
freezes of the north, which are 330 feet long and 23 feet high.
2:24:58
The West building contains elaborate carvings of Kukulcan,
2:25:01
the feathered serpent, and Pawatun, the earth God of
2:25:05
Chichen Itzar in central Mexico. There are two headed serpent
2:25:10
carvings in the east building, while the South building has
2:25:13
miniature houses and mask panels on its freezes.
2:25:17
Scientists have contended that the building in the north is
2:25:19
associated with the heavens, the building in the West with the
2:25:23
earth, and the building in the South with the underworld.
2:25:27
Interpretations of the east building are ongoing.
2:25:31
The West building is engraved with a feathered serpent.
2:25:35
The bulk of Oxmal City lies not in its impressive ceremonial
2:25:39
center, but in its surrounding residential neighborhoods, which
2:25:43
are sometimes overlooked by tourists and even
2:25:46
archaeologists. Like all Maya cities, Uxmal was
2:25:50
divided between a tiny elite and a massive laboring class beneath
2:25:54
it. The vast majority of its
2:25:56
citizens lived and worked in this area.
2:26:00
Residential homes are a reflection of this division.
2:26:03
Housing was and is in many rural areas of Yucatan.
2:26:07
Based on the pole and catch style, a builder builds this
2:26:11
type of house by creating a wooden framework based on 4
2:26:14
corner poles. After this framework is made,
2:26:18
the outer walls are built on it by lashing horizontal bars
2:26:21
between uprights at the top and bottom, creating a wall of thin
2:26:25
branches between them. Although the building is only
2:26:29
partially enclosed, residents can see out and breezes pass
2:26:32
through. To keep the oppressive heat
2:26:34
down, the homes have thatched roofs that can be easily cleaned
2:26:39
by sweeping. A few central structures like
2:26:43
the Pyramid of the Magician or the Governor's Palace, were
2:26:45
undoubtedly designed by architects, but most Myer homes
2:26:49
were built piece meal. In general, Myer houses were
2:26:53
constructed around a central courtyard that included space
2:26:56
for gardens, maybe pens for turkeys, cisterns with water,
2:27:02
and outbuildings like a kitchen separated to prevent losses from
2:27:06
cooking fires and keep the main home cool and washroom.
2:27:11
The Maya are meticulously clean and may bathe several times a
2:27:15
day. New bedrooms for recently
2:27:18
married couples, separate sleeping areas for unmarried
2:27:22
children, and additional storage rooms might be added to the
2:27:25
courtyard as the extended family grows.
2:27:29
If the family had sufficient wealth to build stone walls,
2:27:33
pole and thatch walls would eventually be replaced by stone
2:27:36
ones, so a family compound might feature both wooden and stone
2:27:40
buildings. As expected, the stuccoed
2:27:43
whitestone homes had several advantages over their wooden
2:27:46
predecessors. Among other benefits, they did
2:27:50
not blow away during the periodic hurricanes, were safer
2:27:53
from thieves, remained more remarkable than the outside, and
2:27:57
we're a symbol of the family's status.
2:28:00
That said, even within stone construction, there was a wide
2:28:03
variety of stones of varying qualities and a wide range in
2:28:07
proficiency among the carvers and Masons, meaning that not all
2:28:10
stone construction was equally prestigious.
2:28:14
As a result, very wealthy individuals could demonstrate
2:28:18
their status by constructing stunning buildings made of
2:28:21
exceptional stone, both in size and quality.
2:28:25
Commoners and elites alike shared many similarities in
2:28:28
their homes. The wealthy in Oxmale lived in
2:28:32
residences built around central courtyards with numerous rooms
2:28:35
facing inward, as described above in the Nunnery quadrangle.
2:28:40
However, the nunnery also demonstrated the difference
2:28:43
between standard housing and the finest palaces.
2:28:47
The nunnery's houses and courtyards featured paved
2:28:50
floors, and the entire complex was situated on an elevated
2:28:54
stone platform decorated with elaborate exteriors and
2:28:57
interiors. For their walls, the elites
2:29:00
commissioned stone carvers to create intricate limestone
2:29:03
lattice work, allowing them to enjoy privacy from the outside
2:29:07
while maintaining a view through the loosely woven walls.
2:29:10
There seems to be considerable effort put into these elites
2:29:13
homes which are built not only for comfort but also to host
2:29:17
large numbers of guests while inspiring awe.
2:29:21
The ruling class culture in Oxmal under the council has
2:29:25
become one of courtly intrigue between rival families
2:29:28
accompanied by a great deal of entertainment.
2:29:31
People would have instantly recognized these grand homes as
2:29:34
places where politics and socialization intersected.
2:29:38
A day in the life in Oxmal, visitors are left with many
2:29:42
questions after exploring the ruins of the commoners and
2:29:45
elites homes. Did these people live a simple
2:29:48
life? How did they cope with the
2:29:51
events that marked their lives, big and small?
2:29:53
Visitors to archaeology can learn a great deal about
2:29:56
architecture and economic life, but the field often struggles to
2:30:00
answer intangible questions and to understand some of the more
2:30:03
delicate aspects of material life, such as clothing and food.
2:30:08
Scholars must supplement archaeological data with
2:30:11
information from colonial and other written sources that
2:30:14
documented daily life in Yucatan.
2:30:17
Still, these sources are often centuries older than the peak of
2:30:22
Uxmal's influence in the late 8 hundreds, so they must also be
2:30:27
interpreted with caution, at least for ceremonial occasions.
2:30:32
Maya elites, from the days of the classical cities to the
2:30:34
arrival of the Spanish, took delight in dressing up in
2:30:38
spectacular costumes. This has remarkably remained
2:30:42
unchanged over the centuries. In some ways this isn't
2:30:47
surprising, since European monarchs ceremonial outfits have
2:30:51
also not changed significantly in centuries and are patterned
2:30:55
after Roman models. A good image of a monarch can be
2:30:58
found in Steeler 14. Rather than wearing the suits of
2:31:04
a simple monarch, he's dressed as a traditional classical
2:31:07
monarch with an elaborate feathered headdress and
2:31:10
piercings through his nose and ears.
2:31:14
He wears a jade collar, an embroidered loincloth, and
2:31:17
simple sandals. Despite the drastic changes
2:31:21
Ookmile's leaders made over time to their political system, they
2:31:25
still maintained A symbolic connection to the ritual life of
2:31:28
the classical Maya quartz stellachtenast.
2:31:32
In addition to the costume, the peasant's clothing was likely
2:31:35
relatively simple, and Spanish missionary Diego de Landa
2:31:38
described it as well suited to the region's humid climate.
2:31:43
In Victorian times, men wore bridge clothes made of cotton
2:31:46
strips that went under their legs and were pulled up through
2:31:49
cotton belts to hang low over their groins and cover their
2:31:52
buttocks. Mayan women, both then and now,
2:31:57
wore Hui pill, simple cotton gowns, and square cotton mantels
2:32:01
with holes cut into the center. In ancient times, people of all
2:32:06
social classes, including kings and Queens, wore sandals with
2:32:10
thongs between the toes made of deerskin or hemp.
2:32:13
Although there were numerous variations among clothing types,
2:32:17
there was also considerable variety and styles.
2:32:20
People often embroidered elaborate patterns on cotton
2:32:23
garments such as breech clothes, Hua pills, and mantels, and
2:32:27
adorned the breech clothes with colorful feathers, symbolizing
2:32:30
valuable trade goods. The elite wore jewelry made of
2:32:34
jade, turquoise shell, and metal.
2:32:39
Additionally, the clothing is relatively simple.
2:32:43
Several people engage in body modification for aesthetic
2:32:46
purposes, including tattoos, flossing the teeth, piercing the
2:32:50
ears and nasal septum, and having coiffures as elegant as
2:32:55
those of the most coquettish Spanish women.
2:32:58
Scholars can confirm these details from both Dolander's
2:33:00
extensive descriptions and the fresco paintings on the ruins
2:33:03
walls, as well as the carvings of both lordly individuals and
2:33:08
they're servants on stone, etcetera.
2:33:11
Several painted paper books are also included.
2:33:15
Clothing may have also served another purpose in addition to
2:33:18
demonstrating taste and class or lack thereof.
2:33:22
For example, it may have indicated the person's origin.
2:33:26
Even today, in the surrounding villages of Chichacastenango,
2:33:30
Guatemala's grand Maya market town, women wear a Hui pill
2:33:36
decoration specific to their town, marking their identity
2:33:40
when they mix in the central community as they would in
2:33:43
Nooksmall's markets. Aside from Oxmall's religious
2:33:48
and political functions, these markets were among the main
2:33:51
reasons for its existence. The Maya region had been tied
2:33:55
into a vast trade network for centuries, archaeologists have
2:33:58
discovered. Following the founding of Oxmall
2:34:02
toward the South, it reached the tropical rainforests of modern
2:34:05
day Honduras, while to the north it extended into today's Mexico
2:34:10
as well as Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and even Colorado and
2:34:14
Utah. Cotton, salt, cacao, jade,
2:34:19
turquoise, copper bells, seashells, colorful feathers,
2:34:23
fine stone tools, and unique pottery were long distance trade
2:34:27
goods. Oxmal would have been a Nexus
2:34:31
for a more localized network that brought produce and goods
2:34:34
into town from the surrounding farms and forests.
2:34:37
And Plaza is the Maya word for a marketplace, and Kiwi is the
2:34:41
Maya word for the Plaza. Maya markets were organized
2:34:45
regularly in central plazas by urban elites, but there was no
2:34:49
permanent market system like the bazaars and souks of the Muslim
2:34:52
world. Vendors from across the country
2:34:56
and those from distant communities would have gathered
2:34:59
at the central points and paid a fee to the city administration.
2:35:04
These fees, along with tributes the elites took from their land
2:35:07
holdings in nearby communities, formed the backbone of their
2:35:11
busy lifestyle. The city became increasingly
2:35:14
connected to surrounding communities through raised
2:35:16
highways as it grew in importance.
2:35:19
Markets and streets expanded and became formalized during Uxmal's
2:35:22
dominance over the region, paving the way for Chichen ITA's
2:35:28
continent spanning trade network.
2:35:31
UK Smile's economic life is not as specialized as Chichen ITA,
2:35:35
which was the first to export salt and cotton.
2:35:38
Instead, it imported goods mainly for elite consumption and
2:35:42
a few for practical purposes. If Obsidian for tools was
2:35:47
imported as raw stone, it was probably shaped locally to suit
2:35:51
the customers needs. In addition to serving as a
2:35:54
redistribution hub, Uxmal exported materials of a
2:35:58
generalized southern Mesoamerican variety, including
2:36:01
colorful feathers, cotton, and cacao.
2:36:04
There was no Mayan civilization near Uxmal or in the vicinity of
2:36:08
the now venerable city. Instead, the Mayan peoples
2:36:13
originated in the South, in the region known as the Highlands of
2:36:16
Guatemala, Belize, and the Mexican states of Chiapas and
2:36:21
Campeche. Tikal, Caracol, Kalakmul, and
2:36:26
Palenk are examples of complex, large, and perpetually feuding
2:36:31
city states that arose from the wet and mountainous lands.
2:36:36
These cities were inhabited by the Maya, who flourished roughly
2:36:39
between 200 and 800 AD, building mighty temples and establishing
2:36:44
elaborate systems of mythology, astronomy, architecture,
2:36:48
irrigation, and other Arts and Sciences.
2:36:52
In the seven hundreds, the Classic Mayan civilization
2:36:55
declined ecologically, politically, and
2:36:57
demographically. Corn maize is a rich source of
2:37:02
protein compared to other cereals, but it has always been
2:37:06
a relatively precarious crop, mainly due to its protein
2:37:09
content and the fact that it had few domesticated animals.
2:37:14
For animal husbandry, they should supplement their diets.
2:37:19
Furthermore, humidity prevented the easy storage of corn from
2:37:22
one season to the next. When the Mayan populations
2:37:26
peaked in the early 7 hundreds, desperate peasant farmers began
2:37:30
cutting down hillside forests to grow more crops, leading to
2:37:34
widespread erosion and flooding. In 760A, devastating 4 decade
2:37:40
long drought hit the region, wiping out the food supply for
2:37:44
all marginalized populations clinging to the hillsides.
2:37:48
Exactly how this collapse occurred varied from place to
2:37:51
place, but it would have been a gradual affair marked by the
2:37:54
abandonment of eroded farms, the flooding of cities with beggars
2:37:58
and work seekers, and increasingly desperate
2:38:01
monarchies embarking on wars over resources with their
2:38:04
neighbors. Of course, the warfare would
2:38:08
have led to more poor people in the cities in the form of
2:38:10
refugees. Finally, there were urban
2:38:14
revolts, such as those in 850 in Copan, where the royal palace
2:38:20
was burnt. The political order then
2:38:23
crumbled into bandit kings pretending to be monarchs, and
2:38:27
they would have been ruling over crumbling cities that suffered
2:38:30
from widespread starvation, declining birth rates, shortened
2:38:33
life spans, and overall decline. As a result of at least some of
2:38:38
these factors, beginning sometime around the 8th century
2:38:42
AD, groups of farmers fled the crumbling Mayan kingdoms and
2:38:46
slowly migrated N into the Yucatan Peninsula between the
2:38:50
modern cities of Merida and Cancun.
2:38:54
It is unlikely that the mighty dynasties of the great city
2:38:57
states they left behind will remain a language called
2:39:01
Yucatecan. Mayan is still spoken by their
2:39:04
descendants in Yucatan today. Those closest to La Candon are
2:39:09
some of the poorest and most marginalized Maya peasants who
2:39:12
live near the ancient Mayan ruins of Bonampak, Yakchilan and
2:39:16
Palenk in today's state of Chiapas.
2:39:19
Thus, 1 might suspect, in this corner of the Mayan Highlands,
2:39:25
they may have at least felt a level of hope that they might
2:39:27
survive in the new land based on their farming experiences in
2:39:31
similar landscapes of the Lacandon jungle.
2:39:34
These humble migrants, probably moving in groups larger than an
2:39:38
individual family, were the originators of Oxmal and the
2:39:41
whole Yucatecan Mayan cultural tradition.
2:39:45
It is essential to compare groups that span nearly 1000
2:39:48
years. Nevertheless, the Mayans in both
2:39:52
the Yucatan and Lacandon regions demonstrated an extraordinary
2:39:57
sense of communal spirit, including migrating as a village
2:40:01
to escape oppressive governments.
2:40:04
Fighting guerrilla wars in the 19th and 20th centuries and
2:40:08
establishing semi independent autonomous villages that have
2:40:12
remained free of government control to this day.
2:40:15
The fact that villages of peasants left the scarred and
2:40:18
dying landscape around Palong and Yashilan to settle new towns
2:40:24
is probable, but it is not known for sure.
2:40:28
In the 7th and 8th centuries, the inhabitants packed up their
2:40:31
belongings and disappeared from the official Mayan written
2:40:34
histories, at least for a while. They may have sent out scouts to
2:40:40
identify potential sites to settle during this time as they
2:40:44
moved N what obstacles did they face?
2:40:48
To the casual observer, the Yucatan appears to be a lush
2:40:51
jungle covered in a thick green forest.
2:40:55
However, Mayan farmers regarded the terrain as challenging and
2:40:58
intimidating, likening it to a desert.
2:41:02
Due to its low rainfall and lack of surface water, it is commonly
2:41:05
referred to as a green desert. It is frequently referred to as
2:41:11
a green desert. As a result, it is often
2:41:15
referred to as the Green desert. The entire Yucatan Peninsula is
2:41:21
composed of limestone, so any water that falls is absorbed by
2:41:25
the plants or seeps directly into the caves and porous rocks
2:41:29
beneath the thin soils. Scientists refer to this
2:41:32
landscape as cast topography. The trees lock up most
2:41:37
nutrients, leaving the Yucatan soils poor.
2:41:41
The migrants, accustomed to the irrigated and terraced
2:41:44
landscapes of the South would have been just as fascinated by
2:41:48
the green desert as by any other desert of sand and rock.
2:41:53
It would eventually be the descendants of these migrants
2:41:56
who settled the limestone shelf that would be able to build
2:41:58
great cities. But the first migrants settled
2:42:02
these regions in small, scattered groups.
2:42:05
It took several generations to develop new strains of corn and
2:42:07
other crops tolerant to the hostile conditions of their
2:42:10
underground sinkholes called cenotes.
2:42:13
Due to this, the inhabitants migrated to the only area with
2:42:16
notable topographic relief in the entire region, the Puke
2:42:20
Hills. The name Puke comes from the
2:42:24
Mayan term for a mountain Ridge, and the area covers
2:42:27
approximately 7500 square kilometers.
2:42:32
During their investigation, they found grottoes, which were
2:42:34
former sinkholes that partially collapsed, creating open water
2:42:38
holes. Chill tunes or limestone
2:42:41
cisterns were later cut into the limestone to supplement these.
2:42:46
Using this location, the settlers could recreate their
2:42:49
dense southern villages, which would become the foundation for
2:42:53
several new cities, Uxmal being the most important.
2:42:58
Even the Spanish referred to this region as the granary of
2:43:01
their colony since it produced 2 crops of corn each year.
2:43:05
The region's agricultural importance continued for
2:43:08
centuries because southern agriculture was more prosperous
2:43:12
and stable than northern agriculture.
2:43:14
It seems strange to many modern observers and scholars that the
2:43:18
South collapsed without the North.
2:43:21
In areas with the oldest, most secure and most stable urban
2:43:25
life, the collapse occurred at the same time Mayan urban life
2:43:31
continued unabated for centuries in the frontier cities of the
2:43:34
puke region, like Uxmal. In the rich lands there is
2:43:39
famine, but in the poor ones there is survival if not a
2:43:46
feast. In his book Collapse, How
2:43:50
Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed, author Jared Diamond
2:43:54
discusses this issue. Farmers in the South had to
2:43:57
plant crops even on marginal land because the populations of
2:44:00
Old Kingdoms were much denser, making them particularly
2:44:03
susceptible to crop failure. The southern lands also had deep
2:44:07
water levels, unlike the Yucatan, which prevented
2:44:09
drilling for wells. Due to the Highlands isolation,
2:44:13
these cities often lacked access to water and their trade
2:44:17
revolved around importing elite goods to enhance the dynastic
2:44:20
system. Unlike the dynastic system,
2:44:22
however, the Yucatan was close to trade routes, especially
2:44:26
Chichen Itza, and moreover, the people of this region were
2:44:32
willing to export bulk goods during times of crisis and
2:44:35
import food during times of prosperity.
2:44:39
Thanks to these factors, the young Maya cities weathered the
2:44:42
hurricane of the collapse, the puke era.
2:44:47
Uxmal is the pinnacle of the unique puke style, which sets it
2:44:51
apart from other Mayan ruins. While puke architecture is
2:44:55
definitely a Mayan style, it evolved from and altered many
2:44:59
earlier techniques and assumptions.
2:45:03
In the city's classical tradition, the emphasis shifted
2:45:05
from building palaces for the living to the veneration of
2:45:08
royal tombs. The decoration itself also
2:45:12
changed considerably. The northern and southern
2:45:15
traditions involved the construction of elaborate
2:45:19
facades, but while in the South these facades were built by
2:45:23
using stucco on bare rock in Uxmal and its imitations, the
2:45:28
shows were built using thousands of small geometric tiles that
2:45:32
were affixed to the exterior of the buildings, resulting in
2:45:36
elaborate patterns. The Nunnery quadrangle was also
2:45:39
decorated with mosaic like decorations.
2:45:42
Buick structures were distinguished by their lower
2:45:44
portions, smooth surfaces and upper legs with elaborately
2:45:48
decorated freezes. In addition to geometric
2:45:51
designs, these freezes featured masks of deities, particularly
2:45:56
the rain God Chuck. It was also present in nearby
2:46:00
Puk cities such as Kaba, Labner, Seil and Uxmal, where it reached
2:46:06
its pinnacle in the House of the Governor.
2:46:09
Several older areas of Chichen Itzhar are characterized by this
2:46:12
style, including the Nunnery Annex, not related to Uxmal's
2:46:17
Nunnery quadrangle and the early Castillo pyramids.
2:46:21
Uxmal distinguished itself most impressively from the classical
2:46:24
tradition through its rejection of dynasticism.
2:46:29
There is no fantastic temple to a dynasty like the North
2:46:32
Acropolis of Tikal or elaborately carved Staley
2:46:36
detailing royal pedigrees and actions at Duksmal, in contrast
2:46:40
to its southern predecessors, which it imitated so diligently
2:46:44
in other matters. The city of Clams had several
2:46:48
elite compounds that must have been inhabited by rival
2:46:51
families, including the House of the Governor, which was
2:46:54
apparently the seat of government but not a palace.
2:46:58
It is also known as Mul Tepal joint rule, a term that gained
2:47:04
prominence during the League of Mayapan and the early colonial
2:47:07
period. The city records mention a
2:47:10
founder of the city Hoon Witzel Chak, but it is unclear what
2:47:15
else he accomplished besides his name.
2:47:19
It may have been created at a later date by elite families.
2:47:23
A folk tale called Legend of the Dwarf is associated with Oxmal,
2:47:27
describing how an old woman finds a human baby inside a
2:47:30
magical egg, but the child does not grow up to adulthood.
2:47:35
Historically, dwarfs occupied a special place in Mesoamerican
2:47:38
myths, bridging the supernatural world with humans, so his
2:47:43
adoptive mother raised him to be a king.
2:47:46
To gain the King's attention, the dwarf challenged him to a
2:47:49
physical contest. However, after the dwarf won,
2:47:53
the king insisted that the dwarf build the city's most prominent
2:47:57
structure overnight or face death.
2:48:00
The building of the Pyramid of the Magician or Pyramid of the
2:48:03
dwarf, astonished the town the following morning.
2:48:07
He then killed the king and ascended to the throne.
2:48:12
The story may explain the struggles for power in the great
2:48:14
city, even though the Pyramid of the magician was not built
2:48:18
overnight, but rather constructed over some time.
2:48:22
Even though dynastic struggles frequently occurred between
2:48:25
dynastic lines in the Classic Maya city state, they were not
2:48:32
formalized or ritualized, and no one challenged the king for his
2:48:36
throne. Uxmal, however, was a hub of
2:48:39
dynastic warfare. There may have been some
2:48:42
alliance of elite families competing to become rulers.
2:48:46
This did not arise from classical royal tradition, but
2:48:49
rather from the relatively egalitarian practices of Uxmal
2:48:53
and other Puyox settlements from which it may have originated.
2:48:56
Uxmal, however, had lost all meaning of this egalitarianism
2:48:59
by the time it became a city from the 700 and 50s onward.
2:49:04
Oxmail could be seen as a parallel to the Roman Republic
2:49:07
under the early Caesars, a Republic with a nod to the
2:49:11
ordinary people, but an elected monarchy dominated by the
2:49:16
powerful patrician elite. The glory and power of this
2:49:20
period are summed up by one name.
2:49:23
A double headed Jaguar throne was erected at Uxmal in 875 and
2:49:28
Lord Chak reigned there until 910.
2:49:32
This is confirmed by the presence of an image atop the
2:49:35
throne. Only one monarch has ever been
2:49:39
named at Uxmal apart from the founder.
2:49:43
From being one of many rival hill towns of the Puk, the city
2:49:46
became the undisputed political power under Lord Chak.
2:49:52
The Nunnery Quadrangle and the Temple of the Magician were
2:49:55
constructed during this period, along with the main Bull Court
2:49:58
and the House of the Governor. Inscriptions in other
2:50:02
settlements indicate that Lord Chuck led his city's armies to
2:50:07
victory, including the conquest of neighboring Khabar and the
2:50:12
construction of an impressive 11 kilometer highway between the
2:50:16
two. His ancestry is also mentioned
2:50:19
in another inscription. According to that record, there
2:50:23
is no indication as to whether Lord Chak Weenal Khan also held
2:50:27
the double headed Jaguar throne. According to his mother's name,
2:50:32
she may have come from a noble family in Chichen Itza, rapidly
2:50:36
developing during this period. However, the meaning of the name
2:50:41
remains unclear. Accordingly, it was common for
2:50:46
elites to form alliances through marriage, which may have helped
2:50:49
them consolidate power. The reign of Lord Shack was not
2:50:53
only a time of great glory for Oxmal, but for the whole Mayan
2:50:57
world in general. All of the great classical
2:50:59
cities were in ruins by the time he died in 910AD.
2:51:03
Despite Tikal's last monument being destroyed in 889 AD,
2:51:07
Copan's royal palace was burnt in 850 AD Dos Pilas had become a
2:51:12
bandit camp and Palanc had been quiet for almost a century.
2:51:17
His death marks the end of the Classic era, as the Stelai
2:51:21
erected in his honor are the last monuments to a true Classic
2:51:26
Maya king. It is not to suggest that Uxmal
2:51:30
disappeared, but instead that it became subservient when it lived
2:51:35
out of sight of Chichen Itza. As of 925 AD, the last
2:51:41
construction had been completed within Uxmal Ceremonial Center.
2:51:45
Some have speculated the duck smile may have been ruled by
2:51:47
Chak, also spelled Chak, Chak and Chak, the rain God
2:51:52
associated with the city. In fact, it is impossible to
2:51:57
discuss puke style without mentioning Chak masks which
2:52:01
adorn horizontal surfaces with Google like eyes, proboscis like
2:52:06
noses and glistening teeth. Figurine of Chak The Mayan lands
2:52:13
were first invaded by the Teotihacanians near the area
2:52:16
that is today Mexico City. It was a city that worshipped a
2:52:20
similar God, Tlaloc, that Teotihacan conquered in the 4th
2:52:24
century. Talaloc, meanwhile, is believed
2:52:28
to have come from Baby Jaguar, an archaeologist named Rain
2:52:33
deity worshipped by the Olmec people of Veracruz as far back
2:52:37
as 1500 BC. The origins of Chak are
2:52:41
uncertain during the Classic era, but the God was likely
2:52:46
brought to Yucatan with the earliest migrants.
2:52:50
The Maya would have made this deity a God of the rain and in a
2:52:54
region experiencing prolonged drought, which is not surprising
2:52:58
since Chak was an ancient God of the rain by the time Uksmal was
2:53:01
built, The Eclipse of Uksmal and Chichen Itza.
2:53:06
The reign of Uksmal was relatively brief.
2:53:10
The city did not become abandoned after Lord Chak's
2:53:12
death like so many southern cities, but instead experienced
2:53:16
a long period of inactivity. Inscriptions of its neighbors do
2:53:20
not mention the town, nor were any new monumental buildings
2:53:23
constructed, nor were any kings commemorated.
2:53:28
Chichen Itzhar, a lowland city with natural Mineral Wells
2:53:31
called cenotes and a monopoly on salt production, emerged as a
2:53:36
new power in the region. Chichen Itzhar emerged on the
2:53:39
scene after the collapse of the classical Mayan society, when it
2:53:43
was a tiny Mayan statelet that had survived in obscurity for
2:53:47
several centuries. Using its salt production, it
2:53:51
controlled some of the wealthiest trade routes
2:53:53
connecting Mexico to the Toltec Empire.
2:53:57
In contrast to Uxmal, the Itsayas of Chichen dominated the
2:54:01
central interior of the Puk. There is evidence that Chak's
2:54:05
mother was associated with Chichen, and there is no
2:54:07
evidence that Chichen Itzhar's rise occurred simultaneously
2:54:11
with UK Smiles. Additionally, early Chichen
2:54:14
buildings appear to be inspired by UK Smile.
2:54:19
With its venerable buildings and dedication to Chak.
2:54:22
It's not impossible that after 925, UK Smile became a sort of
2:54:26
junior partner. The Toltec state is believed to
2:54:30
have been founded by Chichen Itzhar, who also introduced the
2:54:33
Toltec warrior society and worship of Kukulkan.
2:54:36
Regardless of the circumstances, the situation fundamentally
2:54:39
changed in the late 9th and early 10th centuries when
2:54:43
Chichen Itzhar's elites imported cultural traditions from the non
2:54:47
Mayan Toltec empire in today's central Mexico.
2:54:52
In today's society, its most noticeable change can be seen in
2:54:55
the architecture, as a layer of Toltec design has been applied
2:55:01
to the Puke pyramid. Additionally, there is another
2:55:05
theory that the Toltecs conquered Yucatan.
2:55:09
However, there is no hard evidence to support this
2:55:11
conquest, unlike the evidence for Teo Tiwar Khan's victory
2:55:15
over Tikal, so the idea has been largely abandoned.
2:55:21
The elites of the new sophisticated system turned
2:55:23
their back on Mayan tradition by adopting Toltec elements
2:55:26
associated with exotic goods, wealth, and intriguing new
2:55:30
religious beliefs. European courts far from Paris
2:55:35
adopted the French language and culture to fit in with the
2:55:38
international elite high society during the 18th century.
2:55:43
The cult of the sovereign feathered serpent known as Kukul
2:55:45
Khan among the Maya and Quetzalcoatl lay at the heart of
2:55:50
this new culture in central Mexico.
2:55:53
He was both a creator deity who protected and gave humanity
2:55:57
civilization, and a messianic figure who came to earth but was
2:56:01
driven away by a depraved magician.
2:56:04
His story resonates throughout modern Mexico.
2:56:07
Originally, its center of worship and pilgrimage was in
2:56:10
the Toltec capital of Tula, but as the new religion developed,
2:56:14
Chichen became an alternative Center for prayer and
2:56:17
pilgrimage. A depiction of the deity at
2:56:20
Chichen, Itza's El Castillo Uksmal, is also home to some
2:56:24
evidence of Kukul Khan's cult. During Lord Chak's reign, the
2:56:28
Nunnery quadrangle was built, featuring the feathered serpent
2:56:31
carved upon the freeze. However, the deity never
2:56:35
achieved its significance at Chichen.
2:56:39
Chichen became associated with Kukul Khan, much like Chuck
2:56:43
whose face was adorned on the city and the name of the city's
2:56:47
greatest king derived from his name.
2:56:51
The new religion also appears to have eclipsed the cult of Charak
2:56:54
in the hearts of the Maya, although this does not mean that
2:56:58
Charak's faith has been entirely eradicated.
2:57:02
Several gods can be worshipped in Mayan polytheism, so Charak
2:57:06
may have merely been eclipsed by Kukul Khan.
2:57:10
Furthermore, previously ascendant priests of the Rain
2:57:13
God might have been bitter about their new stand.