Misplaced Pages

#528471

110-696: In pre-Columbian times, the area was occupied by the Olmecs , who built an extensive tunnel network through the mountains, and left the cave paintings in the caverns of Juxtlahuaca . The city of Chilpancingo was founded on 1 November 1591 by the Spanish conquistadores , its name meaning "Place of Wasps" in Nahuatl. During the War of Independence , Chilpancingo was crucial to the insurgent cause as its population participated actively and decisively in their favor, and it became

220-673: A closed-in platform—this is where Blom and La Farge discovered Altars 2 and 3, thereby discovering La Venta and the Olmec civilization. A carbon sample from a burned area of the Structure C-1's surface resulted in the date of 394 ± 30 BCE. One of the earliest pyramids known in Mesoamerica, the Great Pyramid is 110 ft (34 m) high and contains an estimated 100,000 cubic meters of earth fill. The current conical shape of

330-588: A colossal head required the efforts of 1,500 people for three to four months. Some of the heads, and many other monuments, have been variously mutilated, buried and disinterred, reset in new locations and/or reburied. Some monuments, and at least two heads, were recycled or recarved, but it is not known whether this was simply due to the scarcity of stone or whether these actions had ritual or other connotations. Scholars believe that some mutilation had significance beyond mere destruction, but some scholars still do not rule out internal conflicts or, less likely, invasion as

440-528: A factor. The flat-faced, thick-lipped heads have caused some debate due to their resemblance to some African facial characteristics. Based on this comparison, some writers have said that the Olmecs were Africans who had emigrated to the New World. But the vast majority of archaeologists and other Mesoamerican scholars reject claims of pre-Columbian contacts with Africa. Explanations for the facial features of

550-646: A mark of rank among the Olmec, as stelae and other monuments display leaders and priests wearing them on their chest and on their foreheads. "Throughout the layer [uncovered by Stirling in 1942] were copious unrestorable traces of organic material. The red cinnabar lay in a fashion which gave the impression that it had been inside of wrapped bundles. Probably the bodies had been thus wrapped before interment." Rust (2008) discovered "urn burials" in Complex E (residential area) where fragments of bone and teeth were buried in clay pots. "The fill immediately around this large urn

660-567: A new excavation, funded again by the National Geographic Society, concentrating on Complex A and finally reaching the subsoil at the site, established stratigraphy to discover the constructional history. They discovered more jade artifacts, which were interpreted as ritual offerings, as well as pottery shards. The findings were published by Drucker, Robert Heizer and Robert Squier, (who were also assisted by Eduardo Contreras and Pierre Agrinier) in 1959. At this point most of

770-470: A series of photos of Olmec artwork and of the faces of modern Mexican Indians with very similar facial characteristics. The African origin hypothesis assumes that Olmec carving was intended to be a representation of the inhabitants, an assumption that is hard to justify given the full corpus of representation in Olmec carving. Ivan Van Sertima claimed that the seven braids on the Tres Zapotes head

880-669: A strategic point for military action in the south. Chilpancingo was very important to Mexican history because it was here where the National Congress met under José María Morelos y Pavón in 1813 during the War of Independence. General Nicolás Catalán , husband of the independence war heroine Antonia Nava de Catalán , was made commander of the state of Guerrero on 24 January 1828. The family settled in Chilpancingo, where both Nicolás and Antonia later died. In 1853, Chilpancingo

990-486: A two-volume monograph by Drucker. Stirling is sometimes credited with identifying the Olmec civilization; although some Olmec sites and monuments had been known earlier, it was Stirling's work that put the Olmec culture into context. This first excavation was funded by the National Geographic Society and the Smithsonian Institution and focused on collecting samples using stratipits. In 1955, Drucker led

1100-455: A variety of small animals, as well as many wild plants. The only animals domesticated by the Olmec were dogs and, therefore, La Venta and surrounding areas largely depended on wild game. However, the rich, alluvial soil along the river banks allowed for multiple harvests every year and the land, in general, was quite bountiful. "Evidence has been found for corn ( Zea mais ) of teosinte size associated with ceramic material dated to 1750 BCE." Maize

1210-517: Is a pre-Columbian archaeological site of the Olmec civilization located in the present-day Mexican state of Tabasco . Some of the artifacts have been moved to the museum "Parque - Museo de La Venta" , which is in nearby Villahermosa , the capital of Tabasco. The Olmec were one of the first civilizations to develop in the Americas . Chronologically, the history of the Olmecs can be divided into

SECTION 10

#1732765063529

1320-515: Is a few dozen meters south of the Great Pyramid. The La Venta heads are thought to have been carved by 700 BCE, but possibly as early as 850 BCE, while the San Lorenzo heads are credited to an earlier period. The colossal heads can measure up to 9 feet 4 inches (2.84 m) in height and weigh several tons. The sheer size of the stones causes a great deal of speculation on how the Olmec were able to move them. The major basalt quarry for

1430-475: Is difficult to tell if they were worn or placed in the grave as burial goods. Structure A-2 (Mound A) is an earthen platform thought to be a burial site (a "funerary chamber"). Inside the platform, researchers discovered badly preserved bones covered in a red pigment, cinnabar, a substance used in similar Mesoamerican cultures to denote status. Also found were jade artifacts, figurines and masks, as well as polished obsidian mirrors. Mirrors are also suspected to be

1540-417: Is difficult to tell which important figures remaining on the stone monuments and artifacts are gods and which are human leaders. In fact, there might have been little difference between the divine and the Olmec king, in their ideology. Structures at La Venta show that "various architectural-sculptural canons were firmly established—canons that were, in essence, used in civic-ceremonial constructions throughout

1650-518: Is entirely possible that more goods were exported than imported. This local exchange, and the resulting relationship system, is important, though, because it increased and consolidated the power of the elites with luxury goods and feasting foods like cacao and maize beer. "Participation in regional and long-distance exchange networks provided the La Venta ruling elite with a significant source of legitimizing power." Frans Blom and Oliver La Farge made

1760-837: Is known about Olmec religion is speculative, but certain patterns do emerge at La Venta that are certainly symbolic and might have ritual meaning. For example, the crossed bands symbol, an X in a rectangular box, is often repeated in stone at La Venta, other Olmec sites, and continued to have significance to the cultures inspired by the Olmec. It often appears in conjunction with the maize deity and so might have connection with subsistence. The artifacts discovered at La Venta have been crucial to starting to understand Olmec religion and ideology. For example, hematite and iron-ore mirror fragments have been discovered in abundance at La Venta. Mirrors were an incredibly important part of Olmec society, used in both rituals and daily life. Celts, or "pseudo-axes," are extremely common in both burials and offerings. It

1870-417: Is known about the political or social structure of the Olmec, though new dating techniques might, at some point, reveal more information about this elusive culture. It is possible that the signs of status exist in the artifacts recovered at the site such as depictions of feathered headdresses or of individuals wearing a mirror on their chest or forehead. "High-status objects were a significant source of power in

1980-438: Is much smaller; hardstone carvings in jade of a face in a mask form. Jade is a particularly precious material, and it was used as a mark of rank by the ruling classes. By 1500 BCE early Olmec sculptors mastered the human form. This can be determined by wooden Olmec sculptures discovered in the swampy bogs of El Manati. Before radiocarbon dating could tell the exact age of Olmec pieces, archaeologists and art historians noticed

2090-444: Is naturalistic. Other art expresses fantastic anthropomorphic creatures, often highly stylized, using an iconography reflective of a religious meaning. Common motifs include downturned mouths and a cleft head, both of which are seen in representations of werejaguars . In addition to making human and human-like subjects, Olmec artisans were adept at animal portrayals. While Olmec figurines are found abundantly in sites throughout

2200-406: Is now generally accepted that these heads are portraits of rulers, perhaps dressed as ballplayers. Infused with individuality, no two heads are alike and the helmet-like headdresses are adorned with distinctive elements, suggesting personal or group symbols. Some have also speculated that Mesoamerican people believed that the soul, along with all of one's experiences and emotions, was contained inside

2310-477: Is represented in Olmec "art" and those with elite status would have worn elaborate headdresses of feathers and other animal forms. Ocean creatures were also sacred to the Olmec—Pohl (2005) found shark teeth and sting ray remains at feasting sites at San Andres and it is clear that those at La Venta shared in the same ideology. "Zoomorphic forms reference sharks and birds, and both collections contain representations of

SECTION 20

#1732765063529

2420-406: Is unclear whether these artifacts were actually used in any practical way or if their meaning is ritual or symbolic. Most are smooth, but quite a few are decorated with what has been interpreted as representing religious symbolism. Such celts and other jade artifacts were offered to deities during ceremonies at La Venta and the belief in supernatural beings is evidenced in Olmec artifacts. However, it

2530-453: Is when the final Olmec occupation occurred. This site is particularly fascinating because of its layout—not only does Complex A face within 8 degrees of true North, but the east and west sides of the site are almost identical, showing bilateral symmetry. This is perhaps related to religion (it’s fairly speculative, at this point) but it certainly shows a high level of sophistication and city-planning. Unlike later Maya or Aztec cities, La Venta

2640-546: The Aztecs buried it, suggesting such masks were valued and collected as were Roman antiquities in Europe. The 'Olmec-style' refers to the combination of deep-set eyes, nostrils, and strong, slightly asymmetrical mouth. The "Olmec-style" also very distinctly combines facial features of both humans and jaguars. Olmec arts are strongly tied to the Olmec religion, which prominently featured jaguars. The Olmec people believed that in

2750-537: The Coatzalcoalcos River system running through the middle, the heartland is home to the major Olmec sites of La Venta, San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán , Laguna de los Cerros , and Tres Zapotes . By no later than 1200 BCE, San Lorenzo had emerged as the most prominent Olmec center. While a layer of occupation at La Venta dates to 1200 BCE, La Venta did not reach its apogee until the decline of San Lorenzo, after 900 BCE. After 500 years of pre-eminence, La Venta

2860-482: The Formative Period , the stone monuments such as the colossal heads are the most recognizable feature of Olmec culture. These monuments can be divided into four classes: The most recognized aspect of the Olmec civilization are the enormous helmeted heads. As no known pre-Columbian text explains them, these impressive monuments have been the subject of much speculation. Once theorized to be ballplayers, it

2970-616: The Isthmian script , and while there are some who believe that the Isthmian may represent a transitional script between an earlier Olmec writing system and the Maya script, the matter remains unsettled. The Long Count calendar used by many subsequent Mesoamerican civilizations, as well as the concept of zero , may have been devised by the Olmecs. Because the six artifacts with the earliest Long Count calendar dates were all discovered outside

3080-719: The Juxtlahuaca and Oxtotitlán cave paintings feature Olmec designs and motifs. Olmec influence is also seen at several sites in the Southern Maya area . In Guatemala, sites showing probable Olmec influence include San Bartolo , Takalik Abaj and La Democracia . Many theories have been advanced to account for the occurrence of Olmec influence far outside the heartland, including long-range trade by Olmec merchants, Olmec colonization of other regions, Olmec artisans travelling to other cities, conscious imitation of Olmec artistic styles by developing towns – some even suggest

3190-943: The Tlatilco culture in the Valley of Mexico , where artifacts include hollow baby-face motif figurines and Olmec designs on ceramics. Chalcatzingo , in Valley of Morelos , central Mexico, which features Olmec-style monumental art and rock art with Olmec-style figures. Also, in 2007, archaeologists unearthed Zazacatla , an Olmec-influenced city in Morelos. Located about 40 kilometres (25 mi) south of Mexico City, Zazacatla covered about 2.5 square kilometres (1 sq mi) between 800 and 500 BCE. Teopantecuanitlan , in Guerrero , which features Olmec-style monumental art as well as city plans with distinctive Olmec features. Also,

3300-409: The 1960s, funded by generous grants from the National Geographic Society. On their return in 1967, Drucker and Heizer saw that, as others had already claimed, the vegetation previously covering the mound, as well as their own assumptions, had led to them previously publishing a completely wrong account of its shape. It was in fact a round fluted cone with ten ridges and depressions around it, rather than

3410-407: The 1980s. Her team focused on mapping the site and "ended and reversed the urban encroachment on the archaeological site of La Venta and created a program of protection, restoration, and research." Their efforts have opened the site to a new generation of graduate students and other anthropologists, who continue to uncover new evidence about the mysterious Olmec. A ceramic cylinder was recovered from

Chilpancingo - Misplaced Pages Continue

3520-502: The 2006 find from a site near San Lorenzo shows a set of 62 symbols, 28 of which are unique, carved on a serpentine block. A large number of prominent archaeologists have hailed this find as the "earliest pre-Columbian writing". Others are skeptical because of the stone's singularity, the fact that it had been removed from any archaeological context, and because it bears no apparent resemblance to any other Mesoamerican writing system. There are also well-documented later hieroglyphs known as

3630-473: The Complex B platforms, and west of the huge raised platform referred to as the Stirling Acropolis. This plaza is nearly 400 metres (440 yards) long and over 100 metres (110 yards) wide. A small platform is situated in the center of the plaza. This layout has led researchers to propose that the platforms surrounding the plaza functioned as stages where ritual drama was enacted for viewers within

3740-483: The Early Formative (1800-900 BCE), Middle Formative (900-400 BCE) and Late Formative (400 BCE-200AD). The Olmecs are known as the "mother culture" of Mesoamerica, meaning that the Olmec civilization was the first culture that spread and influenced Mesoamerica. The spread of Olmec culture eventually led to cultural features found throughout all Mesoamerican societies. Rising from the sedentary agriculturalists of

3850-599: The Gulf Lowlands as early as 1600 BCE in the Early Formative period, the Olmecs held sway in the Olmec heartland , an area on the southern Gulf of Mexico coastal plain, in Veracruz and Tabasco . Prior to the site of La Venta, the first Olmec site of San Lorenzo dominated the modern day state of Veracruz (1200-900 BCE). Roughly 200 kilometres (124 mi) long and 80 kilometres (50 mi) wide, with

3960-483: The La Venta polity political power, economic power, and ideological power. They were tools used by the elite to enhance and maintain rights to rulership." It has been estimated that La Venta would need to be supported by a population of at least 18,000 people during its principal occupation. To add to the mystique of La Venta, the alluvial soil did not preserve skeletal remains, so it is difficult to observe differences in burials. However, colossal heads provide proof that

4070-514: The Olmec Dragon, a very abstract jaguar mask, a cosmogram, or a symbolic map of La Venta and environs. Not intended for display, soon after completion these pavements were covered over with colored clay and then many feet of earth. Five formal tombs were discovered within Complex A, one with a sandstone sarcophagus carved with what seemed to be an crocodilian earth monster. Diehl states that these tombs "are so elaborate and so integrated to

4180-712: The Olmec culture is tenocelome , meaning "mouth of the jaguar ". The Olmec heartland is the area in the Gulf lowlands where it expanded after early development in Soconusco , Veracruz. This area is characterized by swampy lowlands punctuated by low hills, ridges, and volcanoes. The Sierra de los Tuxtlas rises sharply in the north, along the Gulf of Mexico's Bay of Campeche . Here, the Olmec constructed permanent city-temple complexes at San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán , La Venta , Tres Zapotes , and Laguna de los Cerros . In this region,

4290-566: The Olmec heartland, continued to be occupied well past 400 BCE , but without the hallmarks of the Olmec culture. This post-Olmec culture, often labeled the Epi-Olmec , has features similar to those found at Izapa , some 550 kilometres (340 mi) to the southeast. The Olmec culture was first defined as an art style, and this continues to be the hallmark of the culture. Wrought in a large number of media – jade, clay, basalt, and greenstone among others – much Olmec art, such as The Wrestler ,

4400-435: The Olmec instituted human sacrifice is significantly more speculative. No Olmec or Olmec-influenced sacrificial artifacts have yet been discovered; no Olmec or Olmec-influenced artwork unambiguously shows sacrificial victims (as do the danzante figures of Monte Albán ) or scenes of human sacrifice (such as can be seen in the famous ballcourt mural from El Tajín ). At El Manatí, disarticulated skulls and femurs, as well as

4510-414: The Olmec remains unknown, various hypotheses have been put forward. For example, in 1968 Michael D. Coe speculated that the Olmec were Maya predecessors. In 1976, linguists Lyle Campbell and Terrence Kaufman published a paper in which they argued a core number of loanwords had apparently spread from a Mixe–Zoquean language into many other Mesoamerican languages . Campbell and Kaufman proposed that

Chilpancingo - Misplaced Pages Continue

4620-404: The Olmec rulers were seated during important rituals or ceremonies. This leads many researchers to interpret the figure at the front of Altar 4 as a ruler, who is contacting or being helped by his ancestors, the figures on either side of the altar. Alternatively, some believe the side figures to be bound captives. Altar 5 faces Altar 4 across Structure D-8 (one of the dozens of mounds at La Venta,

4730-457: The Olmecs formulated the forerunners of many of the later Mesoamerican deities . Although the archaeological record does not include explicit representation of Olmec bloodletting , researchers have found other evidence that the Olmec ritually practiced it. For example, numerous natural and ceramic stingray spikes and maguey thorns have been found at Olmec sites, and certain artifacts have been identified as bloodletters. The argument that

4840-510: The Olmecs most familiar now is their artwork, particularly the colossal heads . The Olmec civilization was first defined through artifacts which collectors purchased on the pre-Columbian art market in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Olmec artworks are considered among ancient America's most striking. The name "Olmec" means "rubber people" in Nahuatl , the language of the Nahuas , and

4950-404: The Olmecs was Ōlmēcatl [oːlˈmeːkat͡ɬ] (singular) or Ōlmēcah [oːlˈmeːkaʔ] (plural). This word is composed of the two words ōlli [ˈoːlːi] , meaning " natural rubber ", and mēcatl [ˈmeːkat͡ɬ] , meaning "people". Early modern explorers and archaeologists, however, mistakenly applied the name "Olmec" to the rediscovered ruins and artifacts in

5060-491: The San Andres Tuxtla volcano. "Little more than half of the ancient city survived modern disturbances enough to map accurately." Today, the entire southern end of the site is covered by a petroleum refinery and has been largely demolished, making excavations difficult or impossible. Many of the site's monuments are now on display in the archaeological museum and park in the city of Villahermosa, Tabasco. La Venta

5170-567: The Sierra de los Tuxtlas. The Tres Zapotes heads, for example, were sculpted from basalt found at the summit of Cerro el Vigía, at the western end of the Tuxtlas. The San Lorenzo and La Venta heads, on the other hand, were probably carved from the basalt of Cerro Cintepec, on the southeastern side, perhaps at the nearby Llano del Jicaro workshop, and dragged or floated to their final destination dozens of miles away. It has been estimated that moving

5280-537: The Zapatistas took the town until after the 1917 Constitutional Convention . In 1960, the city entered a severe social crisis with the start of a student popular movement at the Autonomous University of Guerrero , protests which led to a general strike at the institution and later swarmed to various forces and social sectors of the city and the state. The main objective was to diminish the power of

5390-421: The architecture that it seems clear that Complex A really was a mortuary complex dedicated to the spirits of deceased rulers". Other notable artifacts within Complex A include: South of the Great Pyramid lies Complex B. Whereas Complex A was apparently restricted to the elite, the plaza of Complex B seems to be built specifically for large public gatherings. This plaza is just south of the Great Pyramid, east of

5500-431: The cause of the eventual extinction of the Olmec culture. Between 400 and 350 BCE , the population in the eastern half of the Olmec heartland dropped precipitously, and the area was sparsely inhabited until the 19th century. According to archaeologists, this depopulation was probably the result of "very serious environmental changes that rendered the region unsuited for large groups of farmers", in particular changes to

5610-426: The center front. The figure on Altar 4 is sitting inside what appears to be a cave or the mouth of a fantastic creature, holding a rope which wraps around the base of the altar to his right and left. On the left side, the rope is connected to a seated bas-relief figure. The right side is eroded away but is thought to be similar to the scene on the left. The consensus today is that these "altars" are thrones on which

SECTION 50

#1732765063529

5720-567: The colossal heads at La Venta was found at Cerro Cintepec in the Tuxtla Mountains, over 80 km away. Each of the heads wears headgear reminiscent of 1920s-style American football helmets, although each is unique in its decoration. The consensus is that the heads likely represent mighty Olmec rulers. Seven basalt "altars" were found at La Venta, including Altar 4 and Altar 5. These altars, roughly 2 meters high and twice as wide, feature an elaborately dressed and sculpted figure on

5830-431: The colossal heads include the possibility that the heads were carved in this manner due to the shallow space allowed on the basalt boulders. Others note that in addition to the broad noses and thick lips, the eyes of the heads often show the epicanthic fold , and that all these characteristics can still be found in modern Mesoamerican Indians. For instance, in the 1940s, the artist/art historian Miguel Covarrubias published

5940-463: The complete skeletons of newborns or fetuses, have been discovered amidst the other offerings, leading to speculation concerning infant sacrifice. Scholars have not determined how the infants met their deaths. Some authors have associated infant sacrifice with Olmec ritual art showing limp werejaguar babies, most famously in La Venta's Altar 5 (on the right) or Las Limas figure . Any definitive answer requires further findings. The Olmec may have been

6050-465: The cultural history of ancient Middle America." In other words, most of what we know about the Olmec, from La Venta, comes from the architecture and artifacts left behind and from these clues it can be discerned that Maya and Aztec culture and ideology was heavily influenced by the Olmec "mother culture." There is a definite connection between animals and spirituality among the Olmec, especially with animal characteristics combined with human features. This

6160-424: The distant past a race of werejaguars was made between the union of a jaguar and a woman. One werejaguar quality that can be found is the sharp cleft in the forehead of many supernatural beings in Olmec art. This sharp cleft is associated with the natural indented head of jaguars. The Kunz axes (also known as "votive axes") are figures that represent werejaguars and were apparently used for rituals. In most cases,

6270-610: The early history of Olmec culture. Olmec-style artifacts tend to appear earlier in some parts of Guerrero than in the Veracruz-Tabasco area. In particular, the relevant objects from the Amuco-Abelino site in Guerrero reveal dates as early as 1530 BCE . The city of Teopantecuanitlan in Guerrero is also relevant in this regard. The first Olmec center, San Lorenzo, was all but abandoned around 900 BCE at about

6380-609: The elite had some control over the lower classes, as their construction would have been extremely labor-intensive. "Other features similarly indicate that many laborers were involved." In addition, excavations over the years have discovered that different parts of the site were likely reserved for elites and other parts for non-elites. This segregation of the city indicates that there must have been social classes and therefore social inequality. Several burials have been found at La Venta, especially in Mound A, but none have skeletal remains as

6490-817: The elite, it was erected in a period of four construction phases that span over four centuries (1000 – 600 BCE). Beneath the mounds and plazas were found a vast array of offerings and other buried objects, more than 50 separate caches by one count, including buried jade, polished mirrors made of iron-ores, and five large "Massive Offerings" of serpentine blocks. It is estimated that Massive Offering 3 contains 50 tons of carefully finished serpentine blocks, covered by 4,000 tons of clay fill. Also unearthed in Complex A were three rectangular mosaics (also known as "Pavements") each roughly 4.5 by 6 metres (15 by 20 feet) and each consisting of up to 485 blocks of serpentine. These blocks were arranged horizontally to form what has been variously interpreted as an ornate Olmec bar-and-four-dots motif,

6600-644: The environment is too humid for organic preservation. "Organic materials do not preserve well in the acidic soils of La Venta. The only organics recovered at the site include traces of long bones, a burned skullcap, a few milk teeth, a shark's tooth, and stingray spines—all found in the basalt tomb [Structure A-2]." Offerings of jade celts and figures seem to be commonplace and were likely concentrated in burials (though this cannot be confirmed because there are no human remains still present). Artifacts, such as jade earspools, beads, pendants, spangles, plaques, and other jewelry, were found in plenty at burial sites; however it

6710-460: The first Mesoamerican civilization emerged and reigned from c.  1400–400  BCE. Pre-Olmec cultures had flourished since about 2500 BCE, and it has been speculated that the Olmecs derived in part from the neighboring Mokaya or Mixe–Zoque cultures which developed during this time. The beginnings of Olmec civilization have traditionally been placed between 1400 BCE and 1200 BCE . Past finds of Olmec remains ritually deposited at

SECTION 60

#1732765063529

6820-492: The first civilization in Mesoamerica, the Olmecs are credited, or speculatively credited, with many "firsts", including the bloodletting and perhaps human sacrifice , writing and epigraphy , and the invention of popcorn , zero and the Mesoamerican calendar , and the Mesoamerican ballgame , as well as perhaps the compass . Some researchers, including artist and art historian Miguel Covarrubias , even postulate that

6930-646: The first civilization in the Western Hemisphere to develop a writing system. Symbols found in 2002 and 2006 date from 650 BCE and 900 BCE respectively, preceding the oldest Zapotec writing found so far, which dates from about 500 BCE. The 2002 find at the San Andrés site shows a bird, speech scrolls, and glyphs that are similar to the later Maya script . Known as the Cascajal Block , and dated between 1100 and 900 BCE,

7040-539: The first detailed descriptions of La Venta during their 1925 expedition, sponsored by Tulane University. Originally La Venta was thought to be a Mayan site. It wasn't until more sophisticated radiocarbon techniques were developed in the 1950s that Olmec sites were irrefutably dated as preceding the Maya. La Venta was first excavated by Matthew Stirling and Philip Drucker (assisted by Waldo Wedel in 1943, due to Drucker's military service during WWII) between 1940 and 1943, resulting in several articles by Stirling and in 1952

7150-457: The head is half the total volume of the figure. All Kunz axes have flat noses and an open mouth. The name "Kunz" comes from George Frederick Kunz , an American mineralogist , who described a figure in 1890. Olmec-style artifacts, designs, figurines, monuments and iconography have been found in the archaeological records of sites hundreds of kilometres outside the Olmec heartland. These sites include: Tlatilco and Tlapacoya , major centers of

7260-478: The head. Seventeen colossal heads have been unearthed to date. The heads range in size from the Rancho La Cobata head, at 3.4 m (11 ft) high, to the pair at Tres Zapotes, at 1.47 m (4 ft 10 in). Scholars calculate that the largest heads weigh between 25 and 55 tonnes (28 and 61 short tons). The heads were carved from single blocks or boulders of volcanic basalt , found in

7370-466: The heartland decades before it was understood that these were not created by the people the Aztecs knew as the "Olmec" but rather a culture that was 2000 years older. Despite the mistaken identity, the name has stuck. It is not known what name the ancient Olmec used for themselves; some later Mesoamerican accounts seem to refer to the ancient Olmec as " Tamoanchan ". A contemporary term sometimes used for

7480-425: The immediate Maya homeland, it is likely that this calendar predated the Maya and was possibly the invention of the Olmecs. Indeed, three of these six artifacts were found within the Olmec heartland. But an argument against an Olmec origin is the fact that the Olmec civilization had ended by the 4th century BCE, several centuries before the earliest known Long Count date artifact. The Long Count calendar required

7590-624: The largest alluvial plane in Mexico. The humid tropical climate of La Venta has an average annual temperature of 26 degrees Celsius and an average annual rainfall of 2,000 millimeters. La Venta is located at the nexus of four different ecosystems: marshes, mangrove swamps, tropical forest, and the Gulf of Mexico. "There was a large resident population at the site, a number of specialists not dedicated to food production, and political, religious, economic, and/or military relations with other sites within its area of influence." Unfortunately, few, if any, of

7700-474: The most famous of the La Venta monumental artifacts are the four colossal heads . Seventeen colossal heads have been unearthed in the Olmec area, four of them at La Venta, officially named Monuments 1 through 4. Three of the heads—Monuments 2, 3, and 4—were found roughly 150 meters north of Complex A, which is itself just north of the Great Pyramid. These heads were in a slightly irregular row, facing north. The other colossal head—Monument 1 (shown at left) –

7810-672: The most prominent Olmec center, lasting from 900 BCE until its abandonment around 400 BCE. La Venta sustained the Olmec cultural traditions with spectacular displays of power and wealth. The Great Pyramid was the largest Mesoamerican structure of its time. Even today, after 2500 years of erosion, it rises 34 m (112 ft) above the naturally flat landscape. Buried deep within La Venta lay opulent, labor-intensive "offerings" – 1000 tons of smooth serpentine blocks, large mosaic pavements, and at least 48 separate votive offerings of polished jade celts , pottery, figurines, and hematite mirrors . Scholars have yet to determine

7920-580: The most valued jade was the Motagua River valley in eastern Guatemala , and Olmec obsidian has been traced to sources in the Guatemala highlands, such as El Chayal and San Martín Jilotepeque , or in Puebla , distances ranging from 200 to 400 km (120–250 miles) away, respectively. The state of Guerrero , and in particular its early Mezcala culture , seem to have played an important role in

8030-404: The mounds and platforms. The mounds and platforms were built largely from local sands and clays. It is assumed that many of these platforms were once topped with wooden structures, which have long since disappeared. Complex C, "The Great Pyramid," is the central building in the city layout, is constructed almost entirely out of clay, and is visible from a distance . The structure is built on top of

8140-443: The nearby San Andrés La Venta site that dates to around 650 BCE that brings evidence to the argument that a writing system existed at this site. A bird image is connected to two glyphs on speech scrolls that represent the date 3 Ajaw on the 260-day Mesoamerican calendar. The seal increases the likelihood that a writing system existed as well as a 260-day calendar during this time period. “Because of extremely poor viewing conditions in

8250-419: The plaza. These rituals were likely related to the "altars", monuments, and the stelae surrounding and within the plaza. These monuments, including Colossal Head 1 (Monument 1), were of such a large size and were placed in such a position that they could convey their messages to many viewers at once. Though there are not any actual houses remaining in this area (or anywhere at La Venta) "a chemical evaluation of

8360-414: The presence of these core loanwords indicated that the Olmec – generally regarded as the first "highly civilized" Mesoamerican society – spoke a language ancestral to Mixe–Zoquean. The spread of this vocabulary particular to their culture accompanied the diffusion of other Olmec cultural and artistic traits that appears in the archaeological record of other Mesoamerican societies. La Venta La Venta

8470-510: The prospect of Olmec military domination or that the Olmec iconography was actually developed outside the heartland. The generally accepted, but by no means unanimous, interpretation is that the Olmec-style artifacts, in all sizes, became associated with elite status and were adopted by non-Olmec Formative Period chieftains in an effort to bolster their status. In addition to their influence with contemporaneous Mesoamerican cultures , as

8580-403: The pyramid was once thought to represent nearby volcanoes or mountains, but recent work by Rebecca Gonzalez Lauck has shown that the pyramid was in fact a rectangular pyramid with stepped sides and inset corners, and the current shape is most likely due to 2,500 years of erosion. The pyramid itself has never been excavated, but a magnetometer survey in 1967 found an anomaly high on the south side of

8690-410: The pyramid. Speculation ranges from a section of burned clay to a cache of buried offerings to a tomb. Complex A is a mound and plaza group located just to the north of the Great Pyramid (Complex C). The centerline of Complex A originally oriented to Polaris (true north) which indicates the Olmec had some knowledge of astronomy. Surrounded by a series of basalt columns, which likely restricted access to

8800-654: The quincunx symbol, a conceptualization of the cosmos in Mesoamerican thought." "Given the lack of written documents in Formative Mesoamerica, there is no foolproof strategy for interpreting Olmec visual culture." However, it is almost certain that the Olmec had some form of a writing system that utilized symbols, as evidenced in the cylinder seal and other forms of writing found at nearby elite-center, San Andres. The wild flora and fauna greatly varied at La Venta and mostly consisted of seafood, deer, and

8910-489: The region and used for recreational and religious purposes. A dozen rubber balls dating to 1600 BCE or earlier have been found in El Manatí , a bog 10 km (6 mi) east of San Lorenzo Tenochtitlan. These balls predate the earliest ballcourt yet discovered at Paso de la Amada , c. 1400 BCE, although there is no certainty that they were used in the ballgame. While the actual ethno-linguistic affiliation of

9020-446: The region. It contained a "concentration of power," as reflected by the sheer scale of the architecture and the extreme value of the artifacts uncovered. La Venta is perhaps the largest Olmec city and it was controlled and expanded by an extremely complex hierarchical system with a king, as the ruler and the elites below him. Priests had power and influence over life and death and likely great political sway as well. Unfortunately, not much

9130-461: The relocation of settlements due to volcanism, instead of extinction. Volcanic eruptions during the Early, Late and Terminal Formative periods would have blanketed the lands and forced the Olmec to move their settlements. Whatever the cause, within a few hundred years of the abandonment of the last Olmec cities, successor cultures became firmly established. The Tres Zapotes site, on the western edge of

9240-484: The remains of platforms). Altar 5 is similar in design and size to Altar 4, except that the central figure holds an inert, perhaps dead, were-jaguar baby. The left side of Altar 5 features bas-reliefs of humans holding quite lively were-jaguar babies . Like the Altar 4, the right side of Altar 5 has been defaced. Some have seen child sacrifice echoed in the limp were-jaguar baby on the front of Altar 5. Others, however, view

9350-409: The residential structures surrounding the large centers of the city have survived. The main part of the site is a complex of clay constructions stretched out for 20 kilometres (12 miles) in a north-south direction, although the site is oriented 8° west of north. The urbanized zone may have covered an area as large of 2 km . This particular site layout is the way the city was from 600 – 400 BCE, which

9460-405: The rise of an elite class. The elite class created the demand for the production of the symbolic and sophisticated luxury artifacts that define Olmec culture. Many of these luxury artifacts were made from materials such as jade , obsidian , and magnetite , which came from distant locations and suggest that early Olmec elites had access to an extensive trading network in Mesoamerica. The source of

9570-481: The riverine environment that the Olmec depended upon for agriculture, hunting and gathering, and transportation. These changes may have been triggered by tectonic upheavals or subsidence, or the siltation of rivers due to agricultural practices. One theory for the considerable population drop during the Terminal Formative period is suggested by Santley and colleagues (Santley et al. 1997), who propose

9680-430: The same time that La Venta rose to prominence. Widespread destruction of many San Lorenzo monuments also occurred around the 950s BCE, which may indicate an internal uprising or, less likely, an invasion. The latest thinking, however, is that environmental changes may have been responsible for this shift in Olmec centers, with certain important rivers changing course. Following the decline of San Lorenzo, La Venta became

9790-625: The shrine El Manatí near the triple archaeological sites known collectively as San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán moved this back to at least 1600–1500 BCE . It seems that the Olmec had their roots in early farming cultures of Tabasco , which began between 5100 BCE and 4600 BCE . These shared the same basic food crops and technologies of the later Olmec civilization. What is today called Olmec first appeared fully within San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán, where distinctive Olmec features occurred around 1400 BCE. The rise of civilization

9900-465: The site cover the total area of 4000 m². The dates are from 650 AD to 1150 AD. Other archaeological sites found in this area of Guerrero are: Olmecs The Olmecs ( / ˈ ɒ l m ɛ k s , ˈ oʊ l -/ ) were the earliest known major Mesoamerican civilization, flourishing in the modern-day Mexican states of Veracruz and Tabasco from roughly 1200 to 400  BCE during Mesoamerica's formative period . They were initially centered at

10010-541: The site of their development in San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán , but moved to La Venta in the 10th century BCE following the decline of San Lorenzo. The Olmecs disappeared mysteriously in the 4th century BCE , leaving the region sparsely populated until the 19th century . Among other "firsts", the Olmec appeared to practice ritual bloodletting and played the Mesoamerican ballgame , hallmarks of nearly all subsequent Mesoamerican societies. The aspect of

10120-508: The site was still unexcavated and in a strongly worded passage Heizer reported that the site was inadequately protected by the Mexican government and a wave of illegal excavations followed the departure of the archaeologists, as well as damage by urban sprawl, the national oil company, Pemex, and the removal of large monuments to museums (without leaving markers as to their original positions). Several subsequent excavations followed through

10230-485: The sloping rectangle, leading to a flat platform that they had assumed. Possibly the shape was intended to match or represent the mountains nearby. They also obtained better carbon samples in order to achieve one of the key goals of the excavation of La Venta—proving that the Olmec were a distinct and separate culture that pre-dates the first Maya settlements. Rebecca Gonzalez-Lauck led an INAH (Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia) team on several digs at La Venta in

10340-451: The soil revealed unusual concentrations of phosphate, indicating the possibility it had been a residential zone." The arrangement of the mounds, platforms, complexes, and monumental artifacts at La Venta created a unique civil and ceremonial center that, in the words of Rebecca Gonzalez-Lauck, constitutes "one of the earliest examples of large-scale ideological communications through the interaction of architecture and sculpture". Certainly

10450-414: The state government and seek autonomy for the college. On 27 April 2009 an earthquake with a magnitude of 5.6 was centered near Chilpancingo. On 6 October 2024, mayor Alejandro Arcos was beheaded just six days after taking office, allegedly by drug cartels. His murder came three days after Francisco Tapia, the city government's secretary, was shot to death. In 1869, the Autonomous University of Guerrero

10560-666: The state legislature agreed to a change of venue, that the capital was moved again from Chilpancingo. During the Mexican Revolution , Chilpancingo was deeply troubled and had political and administrative importance as a strategic place for the sides in the debate. Battles took place in the vicinity in the 1910s, in which Emiliano Zapata defeated federal forces of Porfirio Díaz , Francisco I. Madero , Victoriano Huerta and Venustiano Carranza . A major defeat of Huerta's southern forces took place here in March-April 1914;

10670-402: The tableau as a myth of human emergence or as story of a spiritual journey. Although less striking and displaying a lesser degree of craftsmanship, Altars 2 and 3 are similar to Altars 4 and 5. They each show a central figure, one with a baby and one without, and they sit facing each other on the southern edge of the Great Pyramid. La Venta was the cultural capital of the Olmec concentration in

10780-437: The tropical rainforest, different parts of La Venta were discovered piecemeal, and it was decades before scholars realized that all the platforms and stone sculptures found in the vicinity were part of a single site, an ancient city that was occupied from 900-400 BCE.” Phases I- IV are dated based on radiocarbon dates from Complex A, with approximately one hundred years between each phase. Unfortunately, excavating Complex A led to

10890-445: The unique "Olmec-style" in a variety of artifacts. Curators and scholars refer to "Olmec-style" face masks but, to date, no example has been recovered in an archaeologically controlled Olmec context. They have been recovered from sites of other cultures, including one deliberately deposited in the ceremonial altepetl (precinct) of Tenochtitlan in what is now Mexico City . The mask would presumably have been about 2000 years old when

11000-447: The use of zero as a place-holder within its vigesimal (base-20) positional numeral system. A shell glyph – [REDACTED] – was used as a zero symbol for these Long Count dates, the second oldest of which, on Stela C at Tres Zapotes , has a date of 32 BCE. This is one of the earliest uses of the zero concept in history. The Olmec are strong candidates for originating the Mesoamerican ballgame so prevalent among later cultures of

11110-565: Was a civic and ceremonial center. While it may have included as-yet-undiscovered regal residences, habitation for the non-regal elite and the commoners were located at outlying sites such as San Andrés . Instead of dwellings, La Venta is dominated by a restricted sacred area (Complex A), the Great Pyramid (Complex C), and the large plaza to their south. As a ceremonial center, La Venta contains an elaborate series of buried offerings and tombs, as well as monumental sculptures. These stone monuments, stelae, and "altars" were carefully distributed amongst

11220-590: Was all but abandoned by the beginning of the fourth century BCE. Located on an island in a coastal swamp overlooking a former river, the Río Palma, or Río Barí, La Venta probably controlled a region between the Mezcalapa and Coatzacoalcos rivers. The site itself is about 16 kilometres (9.9 miles) inland at an elevation of less than 10 meters above sea level with the island consisting of slightly more than 2 square miles (5.2 square kilometres) of dry land, resting on

11330-485: Was an Ethiopian hair style, but he offered no evidence it was a contemporary style. The Egyptologist Frank J. Yurco has said that the Olmec braids do not resemble contemporary Egyptian or Nubian braids. Richard Diehl wrote "There can be no doubt that the heads depict the American Indian physical type still seen on the streets of Soteapan, Acayucan, and other towns in the region." Another type of artifact

11440-514: Was assisted by the local ecology of well-watered alluvial soil, as well as by the transportation network provided by the Coatzacoalcos river basin. This environment may be compared to that of other ancient centers of civilization such as the Nile , Indus , Yellow River and Mesopotamia . This highly productive environment encouraged a densely concentrated population, which in turn triggered

11550-412: Was built from earth and clay—there was little locally abundant stone for the construction. Large basalt stones were brought in from the Tuxtla Mountains, but these were used nearly exclusively for monuments including the colossal heads, the "altars" (actually thrones), and various stelae. For example, the basalt columns that surround Complex A were quarried from Punta Roca Partida, on the Gulf coast north of

11660-497: Was clean, yellow sand, and the urn was covered with an inverted fine-paste orange bowl with flaring walls; the bowl's interior was painted red and incised with the double-line-break pattern on the inside rim." "For decades, certain scholars have used shamanism as an explanatory paradigm for considering the monuments of La Venta... one of the most important ceremonial-civic centers of the Middle Formative era. Most of what

11770-401: Was declared the provisional capital of the state, due to an epidemic that struck the then capital of Tixtla , and regional ecclesiastical organizational changes were made at the same time. In 1870 it was again declared capital by Governor Francisco O. Arce, due to the opposition led by General Jiménez, who was in possession of the official seat of government at Tixtla. It was not until 1871, when

11880-419: Was established in Chilpancingo; it still plays a considerable role in the local economy. The city is a producer of processed foods and alcoholic beverages, and is a market for maize, sugarcane, bananas, livestock, and lumber produced in the region. Pezuapan is an archaeological site located in the city of Chilpancingo. It sits on the eastern slope of the Chilpancingo valley. The archaeological vestiges found at

11990-520: Was the Aztec term for the people who lived in the Gulf Lowlands in the 15th and 16th centuries, some 2,000 years after the Olmec culture died out. The term "Rubber People" refers to the ancient practice, spanning from ancient Olmecs to Aztecs, of extracting latex from Castilla elastica , a rubber tree in the area. The juice of a local vine, Ipomoea alba , was then mixed with this latex to create rubber as early as 1600 BCE. The Nahuatl word for

12100-406: Was the primary domesticated food source and Seinfeld's (2007) study of feasting at the nearby sub-city of San Andres uncovered likely maize use in beverages, as well as cocoa. Basalt rock was brought in from the Tuxtla Mountains to make stone monuments. Whether or not this is an example of trade with another culture is uncertain. La Venta had a strong concentration of specialized craftsmen and so it

#528471