The Mayan Civilization
The ancient Mayan lived in the Yucatan around 2600 BC. Today this area is southern Mexico, Guatemala, northern Brazil and western Honduras. By 250 AD, the ancient Maya were at their peak of power. The history of Mayan civilization is divided into 3 principal periods: The Preclassic (2000 BC-250 AD), Classic (250 AD – 950 AD) and Postclassic (950 AD – 1539 AD) periods.
The preclassic period of Mayans extend from 2000 BC till 250 AD. In this era Mayans switched from their state as hunter gatherers which is a human early society in which in contrast to agriculture societies, which rely mainly on domesticated species, their most or all food is obtained from wild plants and animals to organized agriculture and large cities. …show more content…
Here the Mayans expended their territory and population. But this was a complexity for them regarding to their social life and political procedures. However the commerce increased with the Olmec who were the first major civilization in Mexico, who also influenced Mayan’s early culture. Regarding to the Mayan’s politic, it was related to the social status of the chief. They used to major the power of their Chief on their kinship (blood relationship), social status and control of the economy. Such political unit was called chiefdom. Chiefs of Maya called themselves also as descendent of gods. The trade between the Mayans and Olmec was not only basic needs such as food but also included luxury goods such as jade items which is typically green stone used for ornaments and implements and consisting of the minerals jadeite or nephrite, and obsidian mirror which is a distinctive stone formed as lava from volcanic eruptions cools within the …show more content…
The Mayan version of building a pyramid is cut so that a temple can be constructed on the top. The Mayan constructed two kinds of pyramids, the first type was meant to be climbed, and was used for holding the sacrificial rituals, and the second type was not meant for climbing, it was not meant to be touched and was sacred. The structures had many times doorways that were leading to nowhere. During the ceremonies, the priests would climb the pyramid by going up on the stairs, because they believed that this will brought them closer to the gods. Their pyramids not only had religious functions, but also they had other purposes. The Mayan pyramids were built so high so that they can use as landmarks, and the main reason was reminding them that gods were ever
The ancient Mayan lived in the Yucatan around 2600 BC. Today this area is southern Mexico, Guatemala, northern Brazil and western Honduras. By 250 AD, the ancient Maya were at their peak of power. The history of Mayan civilization is divided into 3 principal periods: The Preclassic (2000 BC-250 AD), Classic (250 AD – 950 AD) and Postclassic (950 AD – 1539 AD) periods.
The preclassic period of Mayans extend from 2000 BC till 250 AD. In this era Mayans switched from their state as hunter gatherers which is a human early society in which in contrast to agriculture societies, which rely mainly on domesticated species, their most or all food is obtained from wild plants and animals to organized agriculture and large cities. …show more content…
Here the Mayans expended their territory and population. But this was a complexity for them regarding to their social life and political procedures. However the commerce increased with the Olmec who were the first major civilization in Mexico, who also influenced Mayan’s early culture. Regarding to the Mayan’s politic, it was related to the social status of the chief. They used to major the power of their Chief on their kinship (blood relationship), social status and control of the economy. Such political unit was called chiefdom. Chiefs of Maya called themselves also as descendent of gods. The trade between the Mayans and Olmec was not only basic needs such as food but also included luxury goods such as jade items which is typically green stone used for ornaments and implements and consisting of the minerals jadeite or nephrite, and obsidian mirror which is a distinctive stone formed as lava from volcanic eruptions cools within the …show more content…
The Mayan version of building a pyramid is cut so that a temple can be constructed on the top. The Mayan constructed two kinds of pyramids, the first type was meant to be climbed, and was used for holding the sacrificial rituals, and the second type was not meant for climbing, it was not meant to be touched and was sacred. The structures had many times doorways that were leading to nowhere. During the ceremonies, the priests would climb the pyramid by going up on the stairs, because they believed that this will brought them closer to the gods. Their pyramids not only had religious functions, but also they had other purposes. The Mayan pyramids were built so high so that they can use as landmarks, and the main reason was reminding them that gods were ever