Misplaced Pages

#66933

173-521: A chacmool (also spelled chac-mool or Chac Mool ) is a form of pre-Columbian Mesoamerican sculpture depicting a reclining figure with its head facing 90 degrees from the front, supporting itself on its elbows and supporting a bowl or a disk upon its stomach. These figures possibly symbolised slain warriors carrying offerings to the gods; the bowl upon the chest was used to hold sacrificial offerings, including pulque , tamales , tortillas , tobacco , turkeys, feathers, and incense. In Aztec examples,

346-526: A cuauhxicalli bowl in place of the usual disc-altar. These bowls may have accepted these blood offerings directly or may have been holders for portable cuauhxicalli bowls that were placed within them. A chacmool from Tlaxcala has a bloodied heart sculpted on the underside, supporting this interpretation. It has also been suggested that chacmools were used as a techcatl , or sacrificial stone over which victims were stretched so their hearts could be cut from their chests. The Crónica Mexicayotl describes such

519-555: A shootout in 2015 as well as a massacre and clashes in 2019 . The state is located in the center west of the Mexican Republic, on the extreme southwest of the central highlands. It borders the states of Mexico, Querétaro, Guerrero, Guanajuato, Jalisco and Colima, with a 217 km (135 mi) coastline on the Pacific Ocean. The state has a territory of 58,836.95 km (22,717.07 sq mi), making it

692-521: A Maya site in western El Salvador . A chacmool was excavated at Las Mercedes in Guácimo , Costa Rica. The oldest chacmool ever discovered was the Terminal Classic. The form was unknown in such important Mesoamerican cities as Teotihuacan and Tikal . After the first appearance of the form, it was rapidly disseminated throughout Mesoamerica, spreading as far south as Costa Rica . Although

865-540: A central Mexican origin is generally assumed, there are no antecedents pre-dating the Toltecs and the form is not present in central Mexican codices . The positioning and context of the chacmool form do have antecedents in Classic Maya art and art historian Mary Ellen Miller has argued that the chacmool developed out of Classic period Maya imagery. No central Mexican chacmool has been found that clearly predates

1038-511: A chacmool" and that "its subject is probably the enthroned, resurrected Maize God ." This association between chacmools and maize deities is rooted in Maya examples (from which the Aztecs were clearly drawing inspiration, as this example's headdress and shell necklace demonstrate), but does not necessarily mean that the Aztecs would have associated their chacmools with maize deities. In all likelihood,

1211-485: A crime for which he was tried and exiled to Spain where he would die in prison. During the first years of the Conquest, Michoacán was part of the "kingdom of Mexico" which included the current states of Mexico, Querétaro, Hidalgo , Tlaxcala , Oaxaca , Morelos , Guerrero, Veracruz , Tabasco , Michoacán, Guanajuato and parts of San Luis Potosí , Jalisco and Colima. These lands were divided into encomiendas among

1384-607: A different social structure. Until the accurate dating of Watson Brake and similar sites, the oldest mound complex was thought to be Poverty Point , also located in the Lower Mississippi Valley . Built about 1500 BCE, it is the centerpiece of a culture extending over 100 sites on both sides of the Mississippi . The Poverty Point site has earthworks in the form of six concentric half-circles, divided by radial aisles, together with some mounds. The entire complex

1557-578: A few blocks away from the Templo Mayor. This chacmool has overt iconographic associations with Tlaloc, wearing his mask and holding a cuauhxicalli vessel whose top is carved with the face of Tlaloc (rather than being concave and able to hold something). He is wearing several strands of beaded necklaces, with the outer most ring containing oliva shells, which were a characteristic of Maya costuming . Another Maya influence can be seen in his headdress, which scholars Mary Miller and Marco Samayoa compare to

1730-404: A headdress worn by Maya king Shield Jaguar (also known as Itzamnaaj Bahlam III ) of Yaxchilan . Perhaps the most interesting iconographic feature of this chacmool, however, is the large necklace pendant he wears, which Miller and Samayoa argue is a representation of an actual heirloom pendant. They suggest that the pendant was looted from a Maya site, probably "from a stone vessel interred behind

1903-638: A much later date, probably no more than 2,000 years ago, moving across the ice from Siberia into Alaska. The North American climate was unstable as the ice age receded during the Lithic stage . It finally stabilized about 10,000 years ago; climatic conditions were then very similar to today's. Within this time frame, roughly about the Archaic Period , numerous archaeological cultures have been identified. The unstable climate led to widespread migration, with early Paleo-Indians soon spreading throughout

SECTION 10

#1732773379067

2076-762: A population of over 20,000. Other chiefdoms were constructed throughout the Southeast, and its trade networks reached to the Great Lakes and the Gulf of Mexico. At its peak, between the 12th and 13th centuries, Cahokia was the most populous city in North America. (Larger cities did exist in Mesoamerica and the Andes.) Monks Mound , the major ceremonial center of Cahokia, remains the largest earthen construction of

2249-462: A sacrificial stone as sculpted in the form of a person with a twisted head. Techcatl were not just used for human sacrifice, they were also used in the yacaxapotlaliztli ceremony, where the nose of a future ruler was pierced. Such rituals may also have been executed upon chacmools, and the presence of small nose jewels sculpted onto various chacmools at Chichen Itza and one at Tula has been used to support this idea. The backward reclining figure of

2422-560: A similar context at the Templo Mayor. Whereas Tlaloc's eyes are generally represented with a round goggle-like frame, the later chacmool, the vessels, and the bench relief feature a rectangular eye frame within which almond eyes are engraved. All three sculptures also include large fangs at the corners of the god's mouth. The ornaments worn by the later chacmool and included in the vessels and the bench relief also differ from other representations of Tlaloc. The later chacmool, vessels, and bench relief sport oversized circular earspools , rather than

2595-526: A single unified empire. The Mixtecs would eventually be conquered by the Aztecs until the Spanish conquest. The Mixtecs saw the Spanish conquest as an opportunity for liberation and established agreements with the conquistadors that allowed them to preserve their cultural traditions, though relatively few sections resisted Spanish rule. The Totonac civilization was concentrated in the present-day states of Veracruz and Puebla . The Totonacs were responsible for

2768-587: A unified interpretation. Besides these sites, the sculpture was also found in Michoacán , where it is called Uaxanoti (The Seated One) in the Purépecha language . Examples of chacmool sculptures have been found widely across Mesoamerica from Michoacán in Mexico down to El Salvador . The earliest examples date from the Terminal Classic period of Mesoamerican chronology (c. AD 800–900). Examples are known from

2941-463: A variety of tools, including distinctive projectile points and knives, as well as less distinctive butchering and hide-scraping implements. The vastness of the North American continent, and the variety of its climates, ecology , vegetation , fauna , and landforms, led ancient peoples to coalesce into many distinct linguistic and cultural groups. This is reflected in the oral histories of

3114-491: Is San Juan Nuevo Parangaricutiro , which was founded due to the destruction of its original namesake by the eruption of the Paricutín volcano. The pre-Hispanic sites of Tingambato and Taretan are in this zone as well, which were important Purépecha cities. The town of Paracho is well known throughout both Mexico and elsewhere in the world as a hub of lutherie . This is because the town's craftsmen are reputed to making

3287-631: Is Y-chromosome haplogroup Q1a3a . Researchers have found genetic evidence that the Q1a3a haplogroup has been in South America since at least 18,000 BCE. Y-chromosome DNA , like mtDNA , differs from other nuclear chromosomes in that the majority of the Y-chromosome is unique and does not recombine during meiosis . This has the effect that the historical pattern of mutations can easily be studied. The pattern indicates Indigenous peoples of

3460-464: Is an important symbol in Purépecha culture. Numerous bird species can be found including water fowl such as ducks, storks and seabirds along the coast. Eagles , parrots, and hawks are found in the tropical and mountainous regions. Both owls and hummingbirds are important cultural symbols to the Purépecha. It is also one of three Mexican states where the tarantula species Brachypelma hamorii

3633-536: Is fed by streams such as Manzanilla and Zinamba. These two lakes are considered to be the main tourist attraction of the state. Most of the state's rivers and streams are located in the south region of the state, with the Balsas River being the most important. The most important tributaries of this river include the Cutzamala, Carácuaro and Tepalcatepec rivers. Within this region is the coastal watershed, which

SECTION 20

#1732773379067

3806-399: Is found in his book Los días enmascarados ( The masked days ), published in 1954. A man named Filiberto buys a chacmool for his art collection, and discovers that the stone is slowly becoming flesh. The idol eventually becomes fully human, dominating his life, causing flooding and other disasters. Filiberto dies by drowning. His story is found in a diary describing the terrors brought on by

3979-399: Is found, the other two being Jalisco and Colima . Tiger sharks , thresher sharks , and porpoises can be found in coastal waters. Reptiles including crocodiles, sea turtles , iguanas , snakes, and caimans can be found in the waterways and along the coastal regions. Michoacán includes critical over-wintering habitat for most of the monarch butterflies from eastern North America. To

4152-463: Is marked by appearance of many volcanoes, active, dormant, and extinct alike. This system is subdivided into regions such as the Sierra de Tancítaro, Sierra de Periban, Sierra de San Angel and others. The best-known volcano in this region is the Paricutín volcano. The state has a large number of lakes, waterfalls , lagoons , hot springs , and a natural system of waterways, including parts of two of

4325-495: Is named after Michoacán's largest port and oceanside city. Here the state stresses the kilometres of beaches and other natural areas in which to practice ecotourism and extreme sports. Beaches include Maruata, Faro de Bucerías, the Pichi Estuary, La Laguna de Mezcala, La Ticla and Nexpa, with the last two popular for surfing , with their regular two-three-meter waves. A number of these beaches are protected areas, due to being

4498-411: Is nearly a mile across. Mound building was continued by succeeding cultures, who built numerous sites in the middle Mississippi and Ohio River valleys as well, adding effigy mounds , conical and ridge mounds, and other shapes. The Woodland period of North American pre-Columbian cultures lasted from roughly 1000 BCE to 1000 CE. The term was coined in the 1930s and refers to prehistoric sites between

4671-413: Is offered in communities which have twenty five or more qualified students. Less formal preschools are operated in smaller communities. As of 1996, there were 5,433 primary schools serving 705,694 students with 25,485 teachers. There is a failure rate from grade to grade of about 9.7% with just under five percent leaving school permanently before finishing primary studies. The most common reason for departure

4844-549: Is one of the 31 states which, together with Mexico City , comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico . The state is divided into 113 municipalities and its capital city is Morelia (formerly called Valladolid). The city was named after José María Morelos , a native of the city and one of the main heroes of the Mexican War of Independence . Michoacán is located in western Mexico, and has a stretch of coastline on

5017-489: Is poverty. At the secondary level there are 174,354 students, which represent 22% of these eligible to attend. High school level studies are mostly geared to vocational studies and many attend via distance education. There are 24 public and private institutions of higher learning offering 49 different majors. Eight are technical colleges, four for teachers, the Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo,

5190-404: Is symbolic continuity between the early and late Mexica [Aztec] chacmool," due to early Aztec chacmools containing iconographic nods to Tlaloc. A second chacmool discovery from the Templo Mayor, dating to a later period, displays iconographic features which are distinct from the larger corpus of chacmool figures but consistent with other sculptures (Tlaloc ritual vessels and bench reliefs) found in

5363-593: Is the Olmec. This civilization established the cultural blueprint by which all succeeding indigenous civilizations would follow in Mexico. Pre-Olmec civilization began with the production of pottery in abundance, around 2300 BCE in the Grijalva River delta. Between 1600 and 1500 BCE, the Olmec civilization had begun, with the consolidation of power at their capital, a site today known as San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán near

Chacmool - Misplaced Pages Continue

5536-600: Is the area between the Sierra Madre del Sur and the coastline. This area includes small rivers such as the Coahuayana, Aquila, Ostula, Motín del Oro, Coire, Cachán and Nexpa which flow directly into the Pacific. Much of the climate of the state is determined by altitude and other geographical features. Average temperatures vary from 13 °C (55 °F) to 29 °C (84 °F). Lower temperatures correspond with

5709-461: Is the city of Lázaro Cárdenas which contains 2,926 m (9,600 ft) of dock space. The dock is used mostly for the shipping of minerals and grains. There are two major international airports, Morelia International Airport and Uruapan International Airport . Smaller facilities exist in Zamora and Lázaro Cárdenas. The state has abundant hydroelectrical production due to dams on the Balsas River,

5882-528: Is the second-largest producer of coke and third-largest producer of iron, which are essential to the steel industry, in Mexico. While there remains significant metallic deposits, their mining only contributes 1.64% to the economy. Most industrial activity is concentrated in the central region of the state, near the capital, where a number of industrial parks are located, such as Ciudad Industrial Morelia. However. there are other areas with industry, such as Apatzingán, Zamora, Jiquilpan and Sahuayo , as well as in

6055-508: Is unknown. The term chacmool is derived from the name "Chaacmol," which Augustus Le Plongeon in 1875 gave to a sculpture that he and his wife Alice Dixon Le Plongeon excavated within the Temple of the Eagles and Jaguars at Chichén Itzá in 1875; he translated Chaacmol from Yucatecan Mayan as the "paw swift like thunder." Le Plongeon believed the statue, which he had found buried beneath

6228-669: The Apatzingán Valley , the Bajío area of Michoacán, the Zamora Valley and some others. Principal crops include corn, sorghum , avocados , strawberries , peaches, wheat, limes, sugar cane and mangos. While corn accounts for 43% of the crops harvested, Michoacán is the largest producer of avocados in Mexico and in the world. Forty three percent of farmland in the territory is dedicated to the raising of livestock, including cattle, domestic fowl, sheep, goats and pigs. In 2007,

6401-670: The Archaic period and the Mississippian cultures . The Adena culture and the ensuing Hopewell tradition during this period built monumental earthwork architecture and established continent-spanning trade and exchange networks. This period is considered a developmental stage without any massive changes in a short period but instead has a continuous development in stone and bone tools, leatherworking, textile manufacture, tool production, cultivation, and shelter construction. Some Woodland people continued to use spears and atlatls until

6574-702: The Cliff Palace of Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado and the Great Houses in Chaco Canyon , New Mexico . The Puebloans also constructed a road system that stretched from Chaco Canyon to Kutz Canyon in the San Juan Basin . The Ancestral Puebloans are also known as "Anasazi", though the term is controversial, as the present-day Pueblo peoples consider the term to be derogatory, due to

6747-483: The Lázaro Cárdenas area. Major production areas are iron and steel (34.27%), bottling (10.43%) and paper products (8.36%). Most people in the state are employed in service and commerce, and this sector contributes 19.07% to the overall economy. Most sales are in foodstuffs, drinks and tobacco. The state contains more than 12,804 km (7,956 mi) of federal, state and local roads. Major highways in

6920-697: The Maya script . Other accounts also suggest that the Huastecs migrated as a result of the Classic Maya collapse around the year 900 CE. The Zapotecs were a civilization that thrived in the Oaxaca Valley from the late 6th century BCE until their downfall at the hands of the Spanish conquistadors. The city of Monte Albán was an important religious center for the Zapotecs and served as the capital of

7093-628: The Mexican War of Independence in the early 18th century. This war was foreshadowed by the 1809 conspiracy in Valladolid. One of the early and main protagonists of the war, Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla , was educated as a priest in the state and began to disseminate Enlightenment ideas here. Soon after Hidalgo performed the Grito de Dolores in Dolores (now Dolores Hidalgo ), Guanajuato, a number of people influenced by his thought took up arms against

Chacmool - Misplaced Pages Continue

7266-664: The Olmec , Teotihuacan , Mayas , Zapotecs , Mixtecs , Huastecs , Purepecha , Toltecs , and Mexica / Aztecs . The Mexica civilization is also known as the Aztec Triple Alliance since they were three smaller kingdoms loosely united together. These Indigenous civilizations are credited with many inventions: building pyramid temples, mathematics , astronomy , medicine, writing, highly accurate calendars , fine arts , intensive agriculture, engineering , an abacus calculator, and complex theology . They also invented

7439-573: The Pacific Ocean to the southwest. It is bordered by the states of Colima and Jalisco to the west and northwest, Guanajuato to the north, Querétaro to the northeast, the State of México to the east, and Guerrero to the southeast. The name Michoacán is from Nahuatl : Michhuahcān [mit͡ʃˈwaʔkaːn] from michhuah [ˈmit͡ʃwaʔ] ' possessor of fish ' and -cān [kaːn] ' place of ' and means "place of

7612-527: The Spanish conquest of El Salvador , Cuzcatlan was forced to surrender to conquistador Pedro de Alvarado in 1528. Michoac%C3%A1n Michoacán , formally Michoacán de Ocampo ( Spanish pronunciation: [mitʃoaˈkan de oˈkampo] ; Purépecha : P'uɽempo ), officially the Estado Libre y Soberano de Michoacán de Ocampo ' Free and Sovereign State of Michoacán de Ocampo ' ,

7785-463: The Tlingit , Haida , Chumash , Mandan , Hidatsa , and others, and some established large settlements, even cities, such as Cahokia , in what is now Illinois . Mesoamerica is the region extending from central Mexico south to the northwestern border of Costa Rica that gave rise to a group of stratified, culturally related agrarian civilizations spanning an approximately 3,000-year period before

7958-407: The conquistadors . The provinces with the largest populations were called Alcaldias Mayores, with Michoacán being one of these, with its capital initially at Tzintzuntzan . Soon after, it was moved to Patzcuaro and eventually settled in what is now Morelia. The provincial and later state capital was founded by viceroy Antonio de Mendoza in 1541. It became the political and ecclesiastical center of

8131-506: The founding population . The microsatellite diversity and distributions of the Y lineage specific to South America indicate that certain Amerindian populations have been isolated since the initial colonization of the region. The Na-Dené , Inuit , and Indigenous Alaskan populations exhibit haplogroup Q-M242 (Y-DNA) mutations, however, and are distinct from other Indigenous peoples with various mtDNA mutations. This suggests that

8304-472: The "Free and Sovereign State of Michoacán on January 31, 1824. This state was initially divided into 4 departments and 22 portions (partidos) under the Ley Territorial of 1825, with the first constitution ratified in the same year. The name of the capital was changed from Valladolid to Morelia at the same time. In 1831, the state was reorganized into 61 municipals and 207 locales (tenencias). Due to

8477-491: The 16th to the 18th centuries, Augustinian, Franciscan and Carmelite missions were constructed in the territory as well as civil constructions, especially in the city now known as Morelia. Mining in areas such as Angangueo , Tlalpujahua and Inguaran had begun, as well as the establishment of agricultural and livestock haciendas . The first school of higher education, called the Primera Casa de Altos Estudios en América,

8650-569: The Americas experienced two very distinctive genetic episodes: first with the initial peopling of the Americas and second with European colonization of the Americas . The former is the determinant factor for the number of gene lineages and founding haplotypes present in today's Indigenous populations . Human settlement of the Americas occurred in stages from the Bering Sea coastline , with an initial 20,000-year layover on Beringia for

8823-604: The Americas, diversifying into many hundreds of culturally distinct tribes. The Paleo-Indians were hunter-gatherers , likely characterized by small, mobile bands consisting of approximately 20 to 50 members of an extended family. These groups moved from place to place as preferred resources were depleted and new supplies were sought. During much of the Paleo-Indian period, bands are thought to have subsisted primarily through hunting now-extinct giant land animals such as mastodon and ancient bison . Paleo-Indian groups carried

SECTION 50

#1732773379067

8996-422: The Aztecs conceived of chacmools as being connected to Tlaloc, as it is his image and associated iconographic characteristics that cover the majority of discovered Aztec chacmools. This chacmool, for instance, features a carving of Tlaloc on its underside, the symbolic meaning of which Miller explores: "With their undersides carved with aquatic symbols, these sculptures seem to float on water. This suspension suggests

9169-521: The Chichen Itza examples. However, Tula and Chichen Itza may have developed simultaneously with rapid communication of the chacmool form from one city to the other. The wider variety of chacmool forms at Chichen Itza has also been used to support the development of the form there; no two possess identical form, dress and proportions. At Tula the chacmools have a standardised form with little variation in position or proportions. Miller has proposed that

9342-621: The Day of the Dead celebrations), ice cream, churros , and ate, a kind of Mexican jelly made of many typical fruits. The state ministry of tourism has divided the state into regions, mostly based on the major cities of Morelia, Uruapan, Lázaro Cárdenas, Patzcuaro, Zamora and Zitácuaro. The state contains a large number of potential attractions, most of which are classified as suitable for ecotourism. However, only 6.2% of these sites are visited by international tourists. Most visitors to sites are from within

9515-552: The Dead celebrations in some parts of Michoacán, such as the towns of Janitzio and Pátzcuaro , are often considered to be the most elaborate and famous in all of Mexico. The famous Parícutin volcano, which is one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World , is located near the city of Uruapan . The state is known as "the soul of Mexico". According to archaeological evidence, there has been human habitation within

9688-477: The Europeans arrived, Indigenous peoples of North America had a wide range of lifeways from sedentary, agrarian societies to semi-nomadic hunter-gatherer societies. Many formed new tribes or confederations in response to European colonization. These are often classified by cultural regions , loosely based on geography. These can include the following: Numerous pre-Columbian societies were sedentary, such as

9861-732: The French in places like Zitácuaro , where much of the city was burned. One of the first victories against the French during the Intervention occurred in Zamora. In 1907, Michoacán's boundaries changed again with the addition of the communities of Pungarabato and Zirandaro added from Guerrero state to make the Balsas River a natural border. The Mexican Revolution came to Michoacán in 1911, when those loyal to Francisco I. Madero proclaimed Santa Clara del Cobre as their territory, then went on to take towns around Lake Patzcuaro under

10034-613: The Grande de Morelia and Queréndaro. The Central region is represented by lakes Pátzcuaro and Zirahuén . Lake Pátzcuaro has a surface area of 1,525 km . This lake is fed by a number of surface and subterranean water flows with the principal rivers leading here including the San Gregorio and Chapultepec. This lake has five islands within it called Janitzio , Yunuén, La Pacanda, Tecuén, Jarácuaro, Urandén and Carián. Lake Zirahuén has an area of 615 km (237 sq mi) and

10207-668: The Hohokam, they constructed kivas and great houses as well as ballcourts . Several of the Sinagua ruins include Montezuma Castle , Wupatki , and Tuzigoot . The Salado resided in the Tonto Basin in southeastern Arizona from 1150 CE to the 15th century. Archaeological evidence suggests that they traded with far-away cultures, as evidenced by the presence of seashells from the Gulf of California and macaw feathers from Mexico. Most of

10380-665: The Instituto Michoacano de Ciencias de la Educación and ten private institutions. The Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo is located in Morelia. Its historical predecessor was founded in 1540, making it one of the oldest institutions of higher education in the Americas. Carnitas are originally from Michoacán. Other traditional foods include cotija cheese , guacamole , morisqueta , tamales , pozole , enchiladas , mole sauce , and various sweets such as pan de muerto and chocolate champurrado (during

10553-958: The Lerma River and the Tepalcatepec River. One notable actress from Santa Elena , Michoacán is Elpidia Carrillo . She is best known for starring in the 1987 science fiction horror film Predator alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger . As of 1995, the state had eight television stations, with seven out of operation. There is a system of educational television with 528 broadcast antennas. Newspapers and news sites of Michoacán de Ocampo include: La Opinión de Apatzingán , a. m. de La Piedad , Diario ABC de Michoacán , El Diario Grande de Michoacán Provincia , El Sol de Morelia , El Sol de Zamora , Frecuencia Informativa Escrita , La Jornada Michoacán , La Opinión de Michoacán , La Voz de Michoacán. The state provides public education from preschool level to high school. "Formal preschool"

SECTION 60

#1732773379067

10726-577: The Liberty of the Mexican America) and "Sentimentos de la Nacion", both of which would shape constitutions and governments in the years to come. The first Mexican Supreme Court was also founded here. The Mexican War of Independence was culminated by the army of Agustín de Iturbide , also a Michoacán native, who took Morelia in May 1821. After the war ended in 1821, the territory of Michoacán became

10899-446: The Maya city of Chichen Itza . The Toltecs established vast trading relations with other Mesoamerican civilizations in Central America and the Puebloans in present-day New Mexico . During the Post-Classic era, the Toltecs suffered a subsequent collapse in the early 12th century, due to famine and civil war. The Toltec civilization was so influential to the point where many groups such as the Aztecs claimed to be descended from. With

11072-401: The Maya civilization cannot be overstated: it transformed political power, artistic depictions, and the nature of economics. Within the city of Teotihuacan was a diverse and cosmopolitan population. Most of the regional ethnicities of Mexico were represented in the city, such as Zapotecs from the Oaxaca region. They lived in apartment communities where they worked their trades and contributed to

11245-413: The Mexican War of Independence, such as Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, José María Morelos and others were associated with this school. By the mid-19th century, the school had been secularized and renamed the Primitivo y Nacional Colegio de San Nicolás de Hidalgo adding studies such as chemistry, physics and other sciences. The current name and organization was adopted after the Mexican Revolution in 1917. From

11418-508: The Mississippian groups had vanished, and vast swaths of their territory were virtually uninhabited. The Ancestral Puebloans thrived in what is now the Four Corners region in the United States. It is commonly suggested that the culture of the Ancestral Puebloans emerged during the Early Basketmaker II Era during the 12th century BCE. The Ancestral Puebloans were a complex Oasisamerican society that constructed kivas , multi-story houses, and apartment blocks made from stone and adobe, such as

11591-409: The Nahua, Otomi , Matlatzinca , Pirinda and Teco peoples as well as the Purépecha. The main pre-Hispanic civilization of the state is that of the Purépecha, which was centered in the Lake Pátzcuaro area. Before the 13th century, both Nahua and Purépecha peoples were here, sustaining themselves by agriculture and fishing. The Purépecha are descendants of a late arrival of Chichimeca who came from

11764-483: The Olmec resulted in a power vacuum in Mexico. Emerging from that vacuum was Teotihuacan, first settled in 300 BCE. By 150 CE, Teotihuacan had risen to become the first true metropolis of what is now called North America. Teotihuacan established a new economic and political order never before seen in Mexico. Its influence stretched across Mexico into Central America, founding new dynasties in the Maya cities of Tikal , Copan , and Kaminaljuyú . Teotihuacan's influence over

11937-586: The Olmecs, Teotihuacan, the Toltecs, the Mexica, and the Mayas. These civilizations (except for the politically fragmented Maya) extended their reach across Mesoamerica—and beyond—like no others. They consolidated power and distributed influence in matters of trade, art, politics, technology, and theology. Other regional power players made economic and political alliances with these civilizations over 4,000 years. Many made war with them, but almost all peoples found themselves within one of their spheres of influence. Regional communications in ancient Mesoamerica have been

12110-399: The Platform of the Eagles and the Jaguars, depicted a former ruler of Chichen Itza. Le Plongeon's sponsor, Stephen Salisbury of Worcester, Massachusetts , published Le Plongeon's find, but revised the spelling to "Chac-Mool." Le Plongeon sought permission from Mexico's president to display the statue at the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia in 1876, a request that was denied. In 1877

12283-445: The Postclassic Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan , from the central Mexican city of Tula and from the Maya city of Chichen Itza in the Yucatán Peninsula . Fourteen chacmools are known from Chichen Itza and twelve from Tula. The chacmool from the palace at Tula is dated to the Early Postclassic (c. AD 900–1200). Further examples are known from Acolman , Cempoala , Michoacán , Querétaro and Tlaxcala . In Chichen Itza, only five of

12456-662: The Purépechas, the monarch butterfly symbolizes the spirits of the dead as they journey from the afterlife . Protected areas in Michoacán include Barranca del Cupatitzio , Bosencheve , Cerro de Garnica , Insurgente José María Morelos , Lago de Camécuaro , and Rayón national parks , Monarch Butterfly and Zicuirán-Infiernillo biosphere reserves , and Pico de Tancítaro Flora and Fauna Protection Area . Lake Pátzcuaro and Zacapu Lagoon are Ramsar Sites , designated wetlands of international importance. The economy of

12629-550: The Sierra del Centro located near the border with the State of Mexico. Except for the Tierra Caliente, most of the state can experience freezing temperatures in the winter. Rainfall is also dependent on altitude with the lowlands receiving less rain than the mountain areas. There is a well-defined rainy season which extends from June to October over the entire state. Ecosystems vary by altitude. Between 2,600 and 3,500 m (8,500 and 11,500 ft) above sea level, most of

12802-458: The Spanish and the Tlaxcala. The Purépechas are noted by historians to be one of the few rare instances in the Americas were the indigenous people had some experience with metallurgy prior to the arrival of the Europeans, especially coppersmithing and other metal ores located in their empire. Their descendants are still widely regarded for this today. Prior to the arrival of any Spaniard in

12975-459: The Spanish colonists. The Wichita people were a loose confederation that consisted of sedentary agriculturalists and hunter-gatherers who resided in the eastern Great Plains . They lived in permanent settlements and even established a city called Etzanoa , which had a population of 20,000 people. The city was eventually abandoned around the 18th century after it was encountered by Spanish conquistadors Jusepe Gutierrez and Juan de Oñate . When

13148-562: The Temple of San Francisco and the Eduardo Ruiz Municipal Museum. One other attraction is the narrowest house in the world as documented by the Guinness Book of World Records . Other important cities in the region are Apatzingán and Caracha. Uruapan is surrounded by hundreds of hectares of forests and by fertile fields growing fruits and flowers, many of which only grow here. Some of the natural attractions of

13321-619: The Tlaxcalans for preserving their culture and for their assistance in defeating the Aztecs. The Tlaxcalans would once again assist to the Spaniards during the Mixtón War and the conquest of Guatemala . Cuzcatlan was a Pipil confederacy of kingdoms and city-states located in present-day El Salvador . According to legend, Cuzcatlan was established by Toltec migrants during the Classic Maya collapse in approximately 1200 CE. During

13494-521: The Yucatecan government seized the statue and brought it to Mérida. Weeks later Yucatán turned over the statue to the federal government, which brought it to Mexico City to the National Museum of Anthropology . Museum worker Jesús Sanchez realised that the Chichen Itza sculpture was stylistically similar to two sculptures from central Mexico and the wide occurrence of the form within Mesoamerica

13667-411: The annual Festival Internacional de Música de Morelia . The festival consists of more than forty concerts with over 500 artists from Michoacán and from around the world. Other festivals include the popular SalsaMich that features a 3-day Salsa dance competition. The Festival Internacional de Cine de Morelia is celebrated annually that is dedicated to Mexican cinema . The Plaza Monumental de Morelia

13840-572: The area. Vasco de Quiroga succeeded Guzman, bringing Franciscan and Augustinian friars to both evangelize and repair the area's broken economy and social institutions. Quiroga founded the Spanish city of Patzcuaro in 1538, calling it the Ciudad de Mechuacán. For his efforts, Quiroga is still referred to in the Patzcuaro area as "Tata (grandfather) Vasco". The diocese of Michoacán was established in 1536 by Pope Paul III , and its boundaries coincide with

14013-426: The best sounding guitars and vihuelas in all of Mexico. The town is full of music shops that sell ten-string mandolins , armadillo -backed guitars ( concheras ), acoustic bass guitars; as well as regular classical guitars and mandolins, bajo sextos , vihuelas, guitarrones and many others. Many of the stores and workshops allow visitors to watch the guitar-making process directly. The Lázaro Cárdenas region

14186-612: The calendar, were bequest from the former inhabitants of Tula, the Toltecs. The Mexica-Aztecs were the rulers of much of central Mexico by about 1400 (while Yaquis , Coras, and Apaches commanded sizable regions of northern desert), having subjugated most of the other regional states by the 1470s. At their peak, the Valley of Mexico where the Aztec Empire presided, saw a population growth that included nearly one million people during

14359-650: The cast of a chacmool sculpture he saw in Paris. Commenting on the major impact chacmool sculpted figures had on his early career, Moore stated that "Its stillness and alertness, a sense of readiness - and the whole presence of it, and the legs coming down like columns" were characteristics that inspired his creations. Pre-Columbian During the pre-Columbian era, many civilizations developed permanent settlements, cities, agricultural practices, civic and monumental architecture, major earthworks , and complex societal hierarchies. Some of these civilizations had declined by

14532-466: The central and eastern portions of the state. Rainforest areas are estimated at 460,500 hectares. One problem facing the forested areas of the state is unsustainable logging. In addition to exploitable forest, there are also ecological reserves with tourist importance, especially the various monarch butterfly sanctuaries in the extreme east of the state. Michoacán's lakes, rivers and coastline make it an important producer of fish and seafood, both caught in

14705-423: The chacmool developed out of Classic Maya iconography and underwent a transition into three dimensional sculpture at Chichen Itza, perhaps spurred by the influence of central Mexican sculptural forms. A chacmool from Costa Rica was dated by the excavators to approximately AD 1000. During the 1930 excavation of Templo Mayor , the only fully polychrome chacmool to be found at that site was in its original context on

14878-496: The chacmool presents a defenceless, passive appearance and has been likened by Miller to the positioning of captives in Classic period Maya sculpture and painting. Bent elbows and knees are common in depictions of Maya captives; the full-frontal view of the face is rare in Maya art except among representations of captives. The form of the Chichen Itza chacmools lacks the typical traits of Maya deities and most scholars have assumed that

15051-569: The chacmool within the Castillo at Chichen Itza, which bears small images of the Maya rain god Chaac on its ear ornaments. The chacmools at Tula, with contextual similarity to those at Chichen Itza, probably also represent war captives. The lack of the representation of chacmools in Central Mexican codices has led to them being associated with a great variety of deities by scholars, including Cinteotl , Tezcatzoncatl and Tlaloc. Both of

15224-549: The chacmool. The fully polychrome chacmool found in situ in the Great Temple was associated with Tlaloc by its placement on the Tlaloc half of the double pyramid. A further Aztec chacmool was described in the 19th century; it is of uncertain origin but stylistically it is typical of Tenochtitlan. It is sculpted on the underside with aquatic imagery and the figure wears a goggle-and-fangs Tlaloc mask. Spanish observers reported

15397-400: The chacmools from the Great Temple of Tenochtitlan were clearly associated with Tlaloc. The chacmool found two blocks south of the temple was sculpted with three images of the deity. These included an elaborate relief image of Tlaloc amongst aquatic symbols on the underside, one on the bowl that the figure grips and the last is the Tlaloc mask with characteristic goggles and fangs that is worn by

15570-509: The chacmools of Michoacán depict elderly men with wrinkled faces and erect penises. A chacmool from Guácimo , Costa Rica, combines human and jaguar features and grips a bowl. The face of the figure looks upwards and the bowl was apparently used to grind foodstuffs. A wide variety of materials were used to sculpt chacmools, including limestone and hard metamorphic and igneous rock types. Other materials employed include ceramic and cement. The ancient name for these type of sculptures

15743-424: The characteristic earspools with a square plug and central dangal; they are also adorned with a multistrand, beaded collar in which one strand has larger beads that have been interpreted to be hanging bells. The chacmool holds onto a cuauhxicalli vessel that is engraved with the face of Tlaloc, including the same rectangular eye and mouth features. In 1942, archaeologists recovered another chacmool example located

15916-512: The city's economic and cultural prowess. Teotihuacan's economic pull impacted areas in northern Mexico as well. It was a city whose monumental architecture reflected a monumental new era in Mexican civilization, declining in political power about 650 CE—but lasting in cultural influence for the better part of a millennium, to around 950 CE. Contemporary to Teotihuacan's greatness was that of the Maya civilization. The period between 250 CE and 650 CE

16089-528: The civilizations in its area, the Tarascan Empire was the most prominent in metallurgy, harnessing copper, silver, and gold to create items such as tools, decorations, and even weapons and armor. Bronze was also used. The great victories over the Aztecs by the Tarascans cannot be understated. Nearly every war they fought in resulted in a Tarascan victory. Because the Tarascan Empire had little links to

16262-747: The cliff dwellings constructed by the Salado are primarily located in Tonto National Monument . The Iroquois League of Nations or "People of the Long House" was a politically advanced, democratic society, which is thought by some historians to have influenced the United States Constitution , with the Senate passing a resolution to this effect in 1988. Other historians have contested this interpretation and believe

16435-404: The coast in southeast Veracruz . The Olmec influence extended across Mexico, into Central America , and along the Gulf of Mexico . They transformed many peoples' thinking toward a new way of government, pyramid temples, writing, astronomy, art, mathematics, economics, and religion. Their achievements paved the way for the Maya civilization and the civilizations in central Mexico. The decline of

16608-516: The colonial government. These included Manuel de la Torre Lloreda , Gertrudis Bocanegra , José María Garcia Obeso and Ignacio López Rayón . During his campaign, Hidalgo returned to Valladolid, issuing a decree eliminating slavery. After Hidalgo's death, much of the insurgency and spies against the Spanish viceroy were located in Michoacán, with documents such as the "Primera Constitución o Decreto Constitucional para la Libertad de la América Mexicana" (First Constitution or Constitutional Decree for

16781-494: The colonization of the Americas dates from between 40,000 and 13,000 years ago. The chronology of migration models is currently divided into two general approaches. The first is the short chronology theory with the first movement beyond Alaska into the Americas occurring no earlier than 14,000–17,000 years ago, followed by successive waves of immigrants. The second belief is the long chronology theory , which proposes that

16954-917: The country's largest rivers, the Lerma and the Balsas. These waterways are divided into three regions, called the North, Central and South. The North region includes the Lerma Basin. On the Lerma River is the Tepuxtepec Dam which has a capacity of 371 million m . Rivers that empty into the Lerma in Michoacán include the Tlalpuhahua, Cachivi and Duero. Another river basin here is that of Lake Cuitzeo , which extends over an area of 3,618 m (38,940 sq ft). The two main rivers that feed this lake are

17127-415: The course of their duties. Three uses have generally been attributed to chacmools. The first interpretation is that the chacmool is an offering table (or tlamanalco ) to receive gifts such as pulque , tamales , tortillas , tobacco, turkeys, feathers and incense. The second is that the chacmool was a cuauhxicalli to receive blood and human hearts; this use is particularly relevant to the Aztecs, who used

17300-501: The de Soto expedition wandered the American Southeast for four years, becoming more bedraggled, losing more men and equipment, and eventually arriving in Mexico as a fraction of its original size. The local people fared much worse though, as the fatalities of diseases introduced by the expedition devastated the populations and produced much social disruption. By the time Europeans returned a hundred years later, nearly all of

17473-672: The decline of the Toltec civilization came political fragmentation in the Valley of Mexico . Into this new political game of contenders to the Toltec throne stepped outsiders: the Mexica . They were also a desert people, one of seven groups who formerly called themselves "Azteca", in memory of Aztlán , but they changed their name after years of migrating. Since they were not from the Valley of Mexico , they were initially seen as crude and unrefined in

17646-479: The destruction, a few original documents have survived, and others were transcribed or translated into Spanish, providing modern historians with valuable insights into ancient cultures and knowledge. Before the development of archaeology in the 19th century, historians of the pre-Columbian period mainly interpreted the records of the European conquerors and the accounts of early European travelers and antiquaries. It

17819-659: The earliest migrants into the northern extremes of North America and Greenland derived from later populations. Asian nomadic Paleo-Indians are thought to have entered the Americas via the Bering Land Bridge (Beringia), now the Bering Strait , and possibly along the coast. Genetic evidence found in Indigenous peoples ' maternally inherited mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) supports the theory of multiple genetic populations migrating from Asia. After crossing

17992-548: The empire from 700 BCE to 700 CE. The Zapotecs resisted the expansion of the Aztecs until they were subjugated in 1502 under Aztec emperor Ahuitzotl . After the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire , the Zapotecs resisted Spanish rule until King Cosijopii I surrendered in 1563. Like the Zapotecs, the Mixtecs thrived in the Oaxaca Valley. The Mixtecs consisted of separate independent kingdoms and city-states, rather than

18165-407: The empire. By the late 15th century, this state rivaled that of the Aztecs, having expanded their territory over much of what is now Michoacán and into part of Colima , Nayarit , Querétaro , Guanajuato , Guerrero and Jalisco . The Aztecs attempted to invade the Purépecha but were repelled. Because of this attack, the Purépecha later denied the Aztecs aid in their defense of Tenochtitlan against

18338-658: The end of the period when they were replaced by bows and arrows . The Mississippian culture was spread across the Southeast and Midwest of what is today the United States, from the Atlantic coast to the edge of the plains, from the Gulf of Mexico to the Upper Midwest, although most intensively in the area along the Mississippi River and Ohio River . One of the distinguishing features of this culture

18511-462: The establishment of cities, such as El Tajín as important commercial trading centers. The Totonacs would later assist in the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire as an opportunity to liberate themselves from Aztec military imperialism. The Toltec civilization was established in the 8th century CE. The Toltec Empire expanded its political borders to as far south as the Yucatán peninsula , including

18684-468: The first Cazonci, Tariacuri, united these communities and built them into one of the most advanced civilizations in Mesoamerica. Their capital at Tzintzuntzan was just one of the many cities—there were ninety more under its control. The Tarascan Empire was among the largest in Central America, so it is no surprise that they routinely came into conflict with the neighboring Aztec Empire . Out of all

18857-462: The first group of people entered the hemisphere at a much earlier date, possibly 50,000–40,000 years ago or earlier. Artifacts have been found in both North and South America which have been dated to 14,000 years ago, and accordingly humans have been proposed to have reached Cape Horn at the southern tip of South America by this time. In that case, the Inuit would have arrived separately and at

19030-540: The fishermen", referring to those who fish on Lake Pátzcuaro . In pre-Hispanic times, the area was the home of the Purépecha Empire , which rivaled the Aztec Empire at the time of Spanish encounter. After the Spanish conquest , the empire became a separate province which became smaller over the colonial period. The state and its residents played a major role in the Mexican War of Independence . Today,

19203-400: The former Toltec Empire , they were also quite independent in culture from their neighbors. The Aztecs, Tlaxcaltec , Olmec, Mixtec, Maya, and others were very similar to each other, however. This is because they were all directly preceded by the Toltecs, and they therefore shared almost identical cultures. The Tarascans, however, possessed a unique religion, as well as other things. Tlaxcala

19376-854: The fourteen chacmools were securely confirmed in architectural contexts, those in the Castillo , the Chacmool Temple, the North Colonnade, the Temple of the Little Tables and the Temple of the Warriors. The rest were found interred in or near important structures. The five that were found in secure architectural contexts were all placed within entrance areas near a ritual seat or throne. The chacmools in Tula also had an association with thrones or raised seating platforms, either in front of

19549-445: The frontier between the physical and supernatural realms, as intermediaries with the gods. The chacmool is a distinctive form of Mesoamerican sculpture representing a reclining figure with its head facing 90 degrees from the front, leaning on its elbows and supporting a bowl or a disk upon its chest. There is great variation among individual chacmools, with some possessing heads that are right-facing and others left-facing, and some with

19722-542: The god, a divine messenger," in the same way the sacrificial stone on the Huitzilopochtli side does. The pigment that remained on this chacmool sculpture was crucial to its identification, as it does not contain any sculpted iconography or symbols associated with the rain god Tlaloc. Archaeologists were able to create a reconstruction of the sculpture's original colors, which they then compared to pictographic representations of Tlaloc. This comparison confirmed that

19895-419: The great quantity of human sacrifices during important ceremonies at the Great Temple and the chacmool was probably used during these rituals to symbolise the sacrificed captives as well as receive their blood. The discs gripped by some chacmools may represent a mirror . Chacmools were placed in entrances in order to receive sacrificial offerings, including human blood and hearts. The aquatic imagery carved onto

20068-412: The heads facing upwards; some examples have movable heads. The figure may be lying on its back or on its side and the abdomen can be sunken below the level of the chest and knees or at the same level. Some chacmools were raised upon rectangular bases. Some of the figures are richly attired whilst others are almost naked. The chacmools of Chichen Itza and Tula depict young men with warrior attributes, while

20241-412: The highland areas in the north and east while the lower south and west, called La Costa (the coast) or Tierra Caliente (hot land) register higher temperatures. In the hotter lowlands, high temperatures regularly exceed 30 °C (86 °F) and have been known to reach over 40 °C (104 °F) in the summer. The lowest temperatures are registered in highland areas such as the Sierra de Coalcomán and

20414-429: The iconography of Maya chacmools is equivalent to that of the central Mexican examples. Eduard Seler commented in the early 1960s that chacmools in Chichen Itza tended to be located in temple antechambers, where the bowl or disc gripped by the figure served to receive pulque as an offering. The chacmools at Chichen Itza were found in a combination of chacmool, throne and serpent column; this chacmool-throne-serpent complex

20587-469: The idol, and his plans to escape. According to the author, this short story was inspired by news reports from 1952 when the lending of a representation of the Maya rain deity to a Mexican exhibition in Europe had coincided with wet weather there. The short story was included in the 2008 anthology Sun, Stone, and Shadows . In Henry Moore 's early examples of monumental reclining figures, the artist relied on

20760-596: The impact was minimal or did not exist, pointing to numerous differences between the two systems and the ample precedents for the constitution in European political thought. The Calusa were a complex paramountcy/kingdom that resided in southern Florida . Instead of agriculture, the Calusa economy relied on abundant fishing. According to Spanish sources, the "king's house" at Mound Key was large enough to house 2,000 people. The Calusa ultimately collapsed into extinction at around 1750 after succumbing to diseases introduced by

20933-484: The indigenous peoples, described by a wide range of traditional creation stories which often say that a given people have been living in a certain territory since the creation of the world. Throughout thousands of years, paleo-Indian people domesticated, bred, and cultivated many plant species, including crops that now constitute 50–60% of worldwide agriculture. In general, Arctic, Subarctic, and coastal peoples continued to live as hunters and gatherers, while agriculture

21106-687: The influence that astronomical activities had upon Mesoamerican people before the arrival of Europeans. Many of the later Mesoamerican civilizations carefully built their cities and ceremonial centers according to specific astronomical events. The biggest Mesoamerican cities, such as Teotihuacan , Tenochtitlan , and Cholula , were among the largest in the world. These cities grew as centers of commerce, ideas, ceremonies, and theology, and they radiated influence outwards onto neighboring cultures in central Mexico. While many city-states, kingdoms, and empires competed with one another for power and prestige, Mesoamerica can be said to have had five major civilizations:

21279-561: The land bridge, they moved southward along the Pacific coast and through an interior ice-free corridor. Throughout millennia, Paleo-Indians spread throughout the rest of North and South America. Exactly when the first people migrated into the Americas is the subject of much debate. One of the earliest identifiable cultures was the Clovis culture , with sites dating from some 13,000 years ago. However, older sites dating back to 20,000 years ago have been claimed. Some genetic studies estimate

21452-472: The late Aztec period (1350–1519). Their capital, Tenochtitlan , is the site of modern-day Mexico City . At its peak, it was one of the largest cities in the world with population estimates of 200,000–300,000. The market established there was the largest ever seen by the conquistadores on arrival. Initially, the lands that would someday comprise the lands of the powerful Tarascan Empire were inhabited by several independent communities. Around 1300, however,

21625-607: The late twentieth century, archeologists have studied, analyzed, and dated these sites, realizing that the earliest complexes were built by hunter-gatherer societies, whose people occupied the sites on a seasonal basis. Watson Brake , a large complex of eleven platform mounds, was constructed beginning in 3400 BCE and added to over 500 years. This has changed earlier assumptions that complex construction arose only after societies had adopted agriculture, and become sedentary, with stratified hierarchy and usually ceramics. These ancient people had organized to build complex mound projects under

21798-682: The leadership of Salvador Escalante . The governor of the state, Aristeo Mendoza, resigned. Fighting among various factions would continue in parts of the state for the rest of the war. The state's current constitution was ratified in 1918. In 1920, the Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo was founded. Soon after the end of the Revolution, the Cristero War would affect the state, which affected agricultural production and distribution. In 1926, hostilities closed

21971-408: The liminal qualities of the messenger, the link between earth and supernaturals." The meaning of the chacmool figures varied across time depending upon the geographical and cultural context. Chacmools do not appear to have been worshipped, since they are never found within inner sanctuary of temples or shrines; it appears to have rather been a piece of religious paraphernalia used by the priesthood in

22144-573: The north. At Lake Patzcuaro, they came upon people with similar cultures to their own but who were more technological and socially advanced. The formation of the Purépechan state in the 13th century, when these people started their own dominion at Uayameo, today Santa Fé de la Laguna , and becoming dominant over the entire Lake Patzcuaro area by the 15th century. Conquest of neighboring tribes and territories occurred between 1401 and 1450, as they absorbed peoples with different cultures and languages into

22317-527: The old Purépecha kingdom . Its first bishop was Vasco de Quiroga. The Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo began as the Colegio de San Nicolas Obispo, founded by Vasco de Quiroga in Patzcuaro in 1540. It was originally a seminary for the training of evangelists. It was granted a royal seal in 1543 to become the Real Colegio de San Nicolás Obispo. The school was moved to Morelia in 1580 and

22490-516: The only true writing system native to the Americas using pictographs and syllabic elements in the form of texts and codices inscribed on stone, pottery, wood, or perishable books made from bark paper. The Huastecs were a Maya ethnic group that migrated northwards to the Gulf Coast of Mexico. The Huastecs are considered to be distinct from the Maya civilization, as they separated from the main Maya branch at around 2000 BCE and did not possess

22663-657: The people abandoned their settlements, likely due to drought. The Mogollon resided in the present-day states of Arizona , New Mexico, and Texas as well as Sonora and Chihuahua . Like most other cultures in Oasisamerica, the Mogollon constructed sophisticated kivas and cliff dwellings. In the village of Paquimé , the Mogollon are revealed to have housed pens for scarlet macaws , which were introduced from Mesoamerica through trade. The Sinagua were hunter-gatherers and agriculturalists who lived in central Arizona. Like

22836-486: The polychrome chacmool discovered at Tlaloc's side of the Templo Mayor was a representation of the deity itself. Characteristics such as the " chia circles on the cheeks, the circular gold pectoral medallion, and the color combination of the petticoat, as well as the black skin, the red hands and feet, and the white headdress and bangles" echo the iconography of other depictions of Tlaloc. Art historians Leonardo Lopez Lujan and Giacomo Chiari argue that this "confirms that there

23009-416: The prehistoric Americas . The culture reached its peak in about 1200–1400 CE, and in most places, it seems to have been in decline before the arrival of Europeans. Many Mississippian peoples were encountered by the expedition of Hernando de Soto in the 1540s, mostly with disastrous results for both sides. Unlike the Spanish expeditions in Mesoamerica, which conquered vast empires with relatively few men,

23182-581: The province after the death of Vasco de Quiroga in 1565. Soon after the Spanish Conquest, evangelists from the Franciscan , Augustinian , Carmelite and other orders established monasteries all over the territory. Some of the best-known are Juan de Moya , Martín de la Coruña and Jacob the Dacian . As first governor, Nuño de Guzmán disrupted and devastated the social and economic order of

23355-409: The receptacle is a cuauhxicalli (a stone bowl to receive sacrificed human hearts ). Chacmools were often associated with sacrificial stones or thrones. The chacmool form of sculpture first appeared around the 9th century AD in the Valley of Mexico and the northern Yucatán Peninsula . Aztec chacmools bore water imagery and were associated with Tlaloc , the rain god. Their symbolism placed them on

23528-509: The seminaries in Morelia and Zamora. Near the end of the war, Lázaro Cárdenas was elected governor of the state and served until 1932; he became president of Mexico in 1934. Michoacán has been badly affected by the Mexican Drug War , due to its methamphetamine and marijuana production. That resulted in the start of an anti-drug trafficking campaign in 2006 , an anti-narcotics operation since 2006 , grenade attacks in 2008 ,

23701-637: The sixteenth-largest in Mexico (exactly at the midpoint among Mexican states in area). It also has 1,490 km (580 sq mi) of marine territory off its Pacific coast. The state is crossed by the Sierra Madre del Sur , the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt and the Inter-mountain Valleys region. The Sierra Madre del Sur crosses the state northwest to southeast for approximately 200 km (120 mi) in

23874-686: The southwest between the municipalities of Chinicuila and Arteaga along the Pacific Coast. It is considered to be a continuation of the Sierra Madre Occidental . Peaks in this range average about 2,900 m (9,500 ft) above sea level, with the largest being the Cerro de las Canoas. The Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt crosses the state from west to east toward the Toluca Valley and Valley of Mexico . This mountain range

24047-518: The state became a department again, regaining state status in 1856. In 1857, Contepec was separated from the state of Guanajuato and attached to Michoacán. In 1863, the diocese of Michoacán was reduced in size, but its status was also elevated to archdiocese. During the French Intervention in Mexico , Morelia was taken by French forces in 1863. Since resistance to the French was particularly strong here, punitive acts were undertaken by

24220-481: The state include Federal Highway 15 and the Morelia-Patzcuaro highway. Intercity and interstate buses provide connections to places within the state and the rest of Mexico. About 91% of these bus lines are second class while just under nine percent are first class. Most rail lines are limited to the north and center of the state, providing freight service to Mexico City and Guadalajara. The state's main port

24393-421: The state is based on agriculture, ranching, forest products, fishing and crafts. Most of the population is employed in three sectors: agriculture (34%), mining and manufacturing (23%), and commerce (37%). Agriculture occupies over a million hectares of land in the state or 20% of the land area. Three-fifths of this agriculture occurs only during the rainy season. Irrigation farming is restricted to areas such as

24566-566: The state is still home to a sizable population of Purépecha people as well as minor populations of Otomi and Nahua . The economy is based on agriculture, ranching, fishing, mining, and the arts. The major tourism draw for the state is the Lake Pátzcuaro –Tzintzuntzan–Quiroga area, which was the center of the Purépecha Empire ; as well as the location of the Tzintzuntzan yácata pyramids. The national and state parks which include

24739-411: The state's production of meat, dairy and eggs was valued at over four billion pesos. Sixty percent of the state is covered in forest, with the most economically important of these located in the higher elevations at the eastern side. These forests mostly produce lumber and resin. These areas are estimated at 2,160,000 hectares, over half of which is pine forest. The most productive forests are located in

24912-778: The state. The Morelia region stresses its cultural and artistic heritage, especially its colonial architecture . The most important colonial structures are in Morelia and built in the 18th century. These include the cathedral, finished in 1744 and the main aqueduct finished at the end of the century. This architecture has made the city a World Heritage Site. In addition to the state capital, the region includes towns such as Charo, Capula, Tiripetio, Cuitzeo and Huandacareo , which contain archaeological sites, water parks and traditional cuisine. The rural areas of this zone contain more than 400 thermal springs, many of which have been turned into recreational areas and parks. These include Reino de Atzimba, Cointzio, Huandacareo and El Ejido. Morelia holds

25085-410: The struggle between centralists and federalists in Mexico in the 19th century, Michoacán's rights as an entity would change depending on who was in control. The state was declared a department in 1836 but became a more independent state again in 1846. Colima broke off from Michoacán to form its own state in this year. In 1849, the municipality of Coyuca was separated to form the state of Guerrero. In 1853,

25258-564: The subject of considerable research. There is evidence of trade routes starting as far north as the Mexico Central Plateau , and going down to the Pacific coast. These trade routes and cultural contacts then went on as far as Central America . These networks operated with various interruptions from pre-Olmec times and up to the Late Classical Period (600–900 CE). The earliest known civilization in Mesoamerica

25431-632: The temple of Tlaloc , the Aztec rain god; its sculpted bowl probably received heart and blood sacrifices. This latter sculpture is by far the older of the two. Chacmools have been reported as far south as the Maya city of Quiriguá , near the Guatemalan border with Honduras. The Quiriguá chacmool most likely dated to the Postclassic period and is stylistically similar to those of Tula rather than Chichen Itza. Two chacmools were reported from Tazumal ,

25604-540: The territory it has today. During the entire colonial period, the economy was concentrated in the hands of the Spanish-born, who held vast lands and haciendas. They also held the rights over minerals mined in places such as Tlalpujahua, Angangueo and Huetamo . Indigenous peoples were exploited for their work, and slavery was not uncommon. Education was restricted for only those born in Spain and their descendants and

25777-567: The territory of the Mexican state of Michoacán for at least 10,000 years. In the pre-Hispanic period, there were waves of migration into the area, including the Pirinda, Nahua , Huetamo, Colima, Purépecha and other peoples. There are sites of formal settlements from all Mesoamerican periods. Important sites include El Opeño and those in Curutarán , Tepalcatepec , Apatzingán , Zinapécuaro and Coalcomán . The territory has been inhabited by

25950-440: The territory, then-ruler Zuanga died of smallpox , presumably carried by one of the Aztec delegations seeking military aid. He was succeeded by Tanganxoan II . The first Spaniard to the area was Cristóbal de Olid . The Spanish destruction of Tenochtitlan and their promise to allow him to remain ruler convinced Tanganxoan II to submit to Spanish rule. But, Nuño de Guzmán reneged on this agreement and killed Tanganxoan II in 1530,

26123-511: The throne or at the entrance to a chamber containing a throne. Two chacmools have been recovered that were associated with the Great Temple of Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital. The first was discovered in 1943, on the junction of Venustiano Carranza and Pino Suarez, about two blocks south of the temple itself. The second chacmool was excavated in the sacred precinct. This is the only fully polychrome chacmool that has been recovered anywhere; it had an open mouth and exposed teeth and stood in front of

26296-543: The time of the establishment of the first permanent European colonies, around the late 16th to early 17th centuries, and are known primarily through archaeological research of the Americas and oral histories. Other civilizations, contemporaneous with the colonial period, were documented in European accounts of the time. For instance, the Maya civilization maintained written records, which were often destroyed by Christian Europeans such as Diego de Landa , who viewed them as pagan but sought to preserve native histories. Despite

26469-403: The top level of the Tlaloc side (the rain god) of the temple. The position of this chacmool statue mirrored the position of the sacrificial stone on the Huitzilopochtli (the Aztecs' patron deity, associated with war) side of the temple. Archaeologist Eduardo Matos Moctezuma posits that this mirroring confirms his interpretation that the chacmool acted as an "intermediary between the priest and

26642-459: The underside of some of the figures symbolised that they were floating on water, on the frontier between the physical world and the supernatural realm. This suggests that chacmools acted as messengers between the mortal realm and that of the gods. Costa Rican chacmools gripped sculpted bowls; these chacmools also served ceremonial purposes although the bowl was used to grind foodstuffs. The short story "Chac Mool" by Mexican novelist Carlos Fuentes

26815-501: The vegetation are conifer forests. Between 1,000 and 2,600 m (3,300 and 8,500 ft), there are mixed forests and below this are broadleaf or tropical forests. Tree species include oak, cedar, and pine. Mango trees can be found in the eastern and western regions. Animal types vary from region to region but among mammals these can be found: skunks , raccoons , cacomistle , coyotes , lynxes , rabbits, bats , deer , armadillos , mountain lions , foxes, and jaguars . The latter

26988-498: The visits to the Caribbean by Christopher Columbus. Mesoamerican is the adjective generally used to refer to that group of pre-Columbian cultures. This refers to an environmental area occupied by an assortment of ancient cultures that shared religious beliefs, art, architecture, and technology in the Americas for more than three thousand years. Between 2000 and 300 BCE, complex cultures began to form in Mesoamerica. Some matured into advanced pre-Columbian Mesoamerican civilizations such as

27161-449: The ways of the Nahua civilization. Through political maneuvers and ferocious martial skills, they managed to rule Mexico as the head of the 'Triple Alliance' which included two other Aztec cities, Tetxcoco and Tlacopan . Latecomers to Mexico's central plateau , the Mexica thought of themselves, nevertheless, as heirs of the civilizations that had preceded them. For them, arts, sculpture, architecture, engraving, feather-mosaic work, and

27334-420: The wheel, but it was used solely as a toy. In addition, they used native copper , silver , and gold for metalworking. Archaic inscriptions on rocks and rock walls all over northern Mexico (especially in the state of Nuevo León ) demonstrate an early propensity for counting. Their number system was base 20 and included zero . These early count markings were associated with astronomical events and underscore

27507-710: The wild and farmed. The most important commercial fishing is for tilapia and carp . Mining is an important economic activity in the state, which is mostly concentrated on the eastern side near the Mexico State border. However, iron is mined in the Lázaro Cárdenas area near the coast. Both metallic and non-metallic minerals are mined in the state. These include silver, gold, zinc , cadmium , lead, iron, copper, fill dirt , sand , gravel , lime , limestone , marble , and others. There are thirteen principal mining areas: Tlalpujahua, Angangueo, Los Azufres, Real de Otzumatlán, Tzitzio, Tiámaro, El Bastán, San Diego Curucupacéo, Inguarán, Las Truchas, and La Minita de Coalcomán. Michoacán

27680-413: The winter grounds of the monarch butterflies ( Mariposas Monarca ) are located here. Michoacán is known for its Spanish colonial towns. In 1991, Morelia was declared an UNESCO World Heritage Site for its well-preserved colonial buildings, pink stone cathedral, historic center, and aqueduct. Michoacán has eight Pueblos Mágicos ; such as the towns of Tlalpujahua and Santa Clara del Cobre . Day of

27853-545: The word tracing its origins to a Navajo word meaning "ancestor enemies". The Hohokam thrived in the Sonoran desert in what is now the U.S. state of Arizona and the Mexican state of Sonora . The Hohokam were responsible for the construction of a series of irrigation canals that led to the successful establishment of Phoenix, Arizona via the Salt River Project . The Hohokam also established complex settlements such as Snaketown , which served as an important commercial trading center. After 1375 CE, Hohokam society collapsed and

28026-400: The zone include the Santa Catarina Dam and the La Tzaráacua and La Tzararacuita waterfalls. Smaller towns and villages in this region are known for their religious and popular festivals, many of which occur in the summer. Examples of these are the feasts of Señor del Calvario in Quinceo, of San Mateo Ahuiran in Paracho and the National Guitar Festival in Paracho. The best-known town in the region

28199-434: Was a Nahua republic and confederation in central Mexico. The Tlaxcalans fiercely resisted Aztec expansion during the Flower Wars ever since the Aztecs expelled them from Lake Texcoco . The Tlaxcalans would later ally with the Spanish conquistadors under Hernán Cortés as an opportunity to liberate them from the Aztecs and managed to successfully conquer the Aztecs with the help of the conquistadors. The Spaniards would reward

28372-416: Was a time of intense flourishing of Maya civilized accomplishments. While the many Maya city-states never achieved political unity on the order of the central Mexican civilizations, they exerted tremendous intellectual influence upon Mexico and Central America. The Maya built some of the most elaborate cities on the continent and made innovations in mathematics, astronomy, and calendrics. The Maya also developed

28545-506: Was adopted in more temperate and sheltered regions, permitting a dramatic rise in population. After the migration or migrations, it was several thousand years before the first complex societies arose, the earliest emerging about seven to eight thousand years ago. As early as 5500 BCE, people in the Lower Mississippi Valley at Monte Sano and other sites in present-day Louisiana , Mississippi , and Florida were building complex earthwork mounds , probably for religious purposes. Beginning in

28718-438: Was associated with rulership during the Early Postclassic period. The original chacmool described by Le Plongeon in the 19th century included small images of the central Mexican deity Tlaloc on its ear ornaments . Among the Classic period Maya, such Tlaloc imagery was associated with war and human sacrifice . Associations between the rain god, war and human sacrifice may have continued into the Postclassic period as demonstrated by

28891-487: Was controlled by the Church. The main educational institutions were the Colegio de San Nicolas, founded in the 16th century; and the Seminary of San Pedro and San Pablo, founded in the 18th century. These schools produced a number of distinguished men, but the best-known is Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla . At the end of the 18th century, ideas from Europe began to infiltrate the upper classes of the state, especially in Valladolid (Morelia) and Zamora . These would eventually lead to

29064-435: Was established in 1951, which was destined exclusively for bullfights . Nowadays, the ring also hosts concerts, lucha libre , and weddings. The Uruapan region stresses its cultural and natural heritage. The city is one of the oldest settlements in the state, which was initially settled by the Meseta Purépecha . This city contains a number of attractions such as La Huatápera, colonial era hospital founded by Vasco de Quiroga,

29237-413: Was first recognised. The 19th century discovery of chacmools in both central Mexico and the Yucatán Peninsula helped to promote the idea of a Toltec empire although the chacmool sculptures may have originated in the Maya region. Although the name chacmool was inappropriately applied, it has become a useful label to link stylistically similar sculptures from different regions and periods without imposing

29410-406: Was founded by Alonso de la Veracruz in Tiripetío . Michoacán was made a separate province from "Mexico" in 1602. By the mid-17th century, the indigenous population had declined by half. In 1776, the territory of Michoacán was reduced to the area in which the modern states of Michoacán and Colima are now. Soon after, Colima split to join with the province of Guadalajara, leaving Michoacán roughly with

29583-427: Was fused with the Colegio de San Miguel Guayangareo. In 1590, its name was changed to the Seminario Tridentino, afterwards to Seminario Conciliar in 1601. By the end of the 17th century, the name returned to Colegio de San Nicolás but its structure was profoundly changed, adding studies such as philosophy, civil law, and others. At the end of the 18th and beginning of the 19th centuries, a number of figures associated with

29756-506: Was not until the nineteenth century that the work of people such as John Lloyd Stephens , Eduard Seler , and Alfred Maudslay , and institutions such as the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology of Harvard University , led to the reconsideration and criticism of the early European sources. Now, the scholarly study of pre-Columbian cultures is most often based on scientific and multidisciplinary methodologies. The haplogroup most commonly associated with Indigenous Amerindian genetics

29929-538: Was the construction of complexes of large earthen mounds and grand plazas, continuing the mound-building traditions of earlier cultures. They grew maize and other crops intensively, participated in an extensive trade network, and had a complex stratified society. The Mississippians first appeared around 1000 CE, following and developing out of the less agriculturally intensive and less centralized Woodland period. The largest urban site of these people, Cahokia —located near modern East St. Louis, Illinois —may have reached

#66933