THE MAYANS

Geography and the Early Maya

Maya were located in Mesoamerica-central Mexico to N. Central America

-Started around 1000 B.C.

Picture from flickr.com by user Urban Sea Star

Geography and the Early Maya

-Lived in the rain forest they farmed and Hunted

-Beans, Squash, Avocados, and Maize-Hunted deer, rabbits, and monkeys-Lived in small villages and traded with others

This picture is from flickr.com by user IITA Image Library.

The Classic Age

From AD 250-900-40 Large cities with own governments

and kings Cities were linked through trade

-Lowlands grew crops and traded cotton and cacao

-Highlands traded jade and obsidianobsidian picture from flickr.com from user elevenamx

Cacao picture from flickr.com from user Christine4nier

The Classic Age

Maya cities in Classic Age-Large stone temples and pyramids-Built large palaces-Plaza’s for gathering and meetings

around main temple

The Classic Age

-Stone ball court-ball through ring no hands or feet could be used

-winners received jewels and clothing- losers were killed

Picture from flickr.com from user exfordy

Maya Culture

2 main forces drove Maya culture- social structure and religion

2 classes in Maya society-were not divided equally

 Upper class had the King, priests, merchants, and warriors

Maya Culture

The main gathering place for Maya society was around the largest temple, where priests would perform religious ceremonies. This picture is of El Castillo at Chichen Itza.

This picture from flickr.com from user f-l-e-x.

Maya Culture

Maya King-had religious and political authority

-related to the gods  Priests, merchants, and warriors

-rest of the power with the king-priests led all religious ceremonies

Maya Culture

The Kings House at Tulum.

Maya Culture

Lower class- most of the Maya-Completed all of the labor and provided

food-women cared for children, cooked,

and made clothes-men would farm, hunt, and make

tools-Lower class had to pay for upper class

-food, clothing, salt-build buildings-serve in Army

Maya Culture

Religion of the Maya-worshipped many gods

-all for different purposes-Gods could help or hurt you-give blood to Gods (everyone did this)

Maya Culture

Achievements of the Maya-Accurate calendars

-365 day calendar for farming-260 day calendar for religious

events-Great at Math

-Used the number 0-Writing system to record history

-Art work with jade and gold

Maya Culture

This is the Maya observatory at Tulum, where the priests study the night sky and made calendars.

The Decline of the Maya

Collapse around 900 AD-Maya left their cities

4 reasons why they may have left-To much work for the lower class

-rebel against the king-Warfare between cities

-killed to many people-could not produce enough crops

-weakened the soil-climate change

-droughts (not enough rain)

The Decline of the Maya

There are people of Maya descendancy alive today in Mexico and the northern part of Central America.

This picture from flickr.com from user mystuart.

References

All information comes from: Salter, Christopher. The Americas. Austin,

Texas: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2009. Print

All pictures are cited from flickr.com and the ones not cited were from when I visited a Maya ruin.