Prehistoric Mesoamerica

An up-to-date overview of Mesoamerican cultures from early prehistoric times through the fall of the Aztec Empire, Prehistoric Mesoamerica, Third Edition will be useful and appealing to readers interested in Mesoamerican art, society, politics, and intellectual achievement.

William Ferguson's classic photographic portrayal of the major pre-Columbian ruins of Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, and Honduras is now available from UNM Press in a completely revised edition. Magnificent aerial and ground photographs give both armchair and actual visitors unparalleled views of fifty-one ancient cities. The restored areas of each site and their interesting and exotic features are shown within each group of ruins. The authors have thoroughly revised the text for this new edition, and they have added over 30 new photographs and illustrations as well as a completely new chapter by Richard E. W. Adams on regional states and empires in ancient Mesoamerica. Over a span of three thousand years between 1500 B.C. and A.D. 1500 great civilizations, including the Olmec, Teotihuacan, Maya, Toltec, Zapotec, and Aztec, flourished, waned, and died in Mesoamerica. These indigenous cultures of Mexico and Central America are brought to life in Mesoamerica's Ancient Cities through stunning color photographs. The authors include the most recent research and most widely accepted theoretical perspectives on Mesoamerican civilizations. Ideal for the general reader as well as scholars of Mesoamerica, this volume makes a significant contribution to our knowledge of the Americas.

Regional approaches to the study of prehistoric exchange have generated much new knowledge about intergroup and regional interaction. The American South west and Mesoamerica: Systems of Prehistoric Exchange is the first of two volumes that seek to provide current information regarding regional exchange on a conti nental basis. From a theoretical perspective, these volumes provide important data for the comparative analysis of regional systems relative to sociopolitical organization from simple hunter-gatherers to those of complex sociopolitical entities like the state. Although individual regional exchange systems are unique for each region and time period, general patterns emerge relative to sOciopolitical organization. Of significant interest to us are the dynamic processes of change, stability, rate of growth, and collapse of regional exchange systems relative to sociopolitical complexity. These volumes provide basic data to further our under standing of prehistoric exchange systems. The volume presents our current state of knowledge about regional exchange systems in the American Southwest and Mesoamerica. Each chapter synthesizes the research findings of a number of other researchers in order to provide a synchronic view of regional interaction for a specific chronological period. A diachronic view is also prOvided for regional interaction in the context of the developments in regional SOciopolitical organization. Most authors go beyond description by proposing alternative models within which to understand regional interaction. The book is organized by geographical and chronological divisions to pro vide units of the broader mosaic of prehistoric exchange systems.

"This historical dictionary covers some of the major discoveries of the diverse investigations that have taken place throughout ancient Mesoamerican over the last 100 years."--Preface.

In this revised and updated 1993 edition the authors synthesize recent research to provide a comprehensive survey of Mesoamerica.

This fascinating narrative introduces young readers to the ancient civilizations of Mesoamerica. Evolving from their primitive ways to complex societies, these ancient peoples left records for archaeologists to piece together to glean what these peoples were really like more than 3,000 years ago. Among the civilizations examined are the Olmec, Zapotec, Aztec, and Maya. Lands, cultures, religions, and daily life activities are considered, as well as the colossal rock heads of the Olmec that still exist, the maguey plant that the Zapotec grew and used for making houses, and the temple at Chichén Itzá, among other remarkable facts and achievements.

Collection of articles providing new research on warfare in ancient Maya and other Mesoamerican societies based on archaeological, ethnohistorical, and linguistic evidence

The Central Andes, Mexico, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Peru, and Bolivia all have deep roots in their pre-Columbian civilizations. The first chapters of Latin America's history correspond to those who inhabited it before encountering Europeans. This is especially true in Mesoamerica. The objectives are to show the development of the peoples and high civilizations of Mesoamerica before the arrival of the Mexica (Aztecs) in the Valley of Mexico (1325); second, to examine the key features of the political and socioeconomic organization, as well as the artistic and intellectual achievements achieved during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries under Mexica (Aztec) rule. Finally, present a vision of Mesoamerican life on the eve of the European invasion (1519), between North and South America's solid continental masses; the area of Mesoamerica (that is, the region where it developed with great cultural difficulties, which reached an area of about 900,000 km2 when the Spaniards arrived), with its varied isthmic characteristics and geographical features, such as Tehuantepec and Fonseca Gulfs, the Yucatan Peninsula, and the Gulf of Honduras Gulf. German specialists, such as Eduard Seler, introduced Mittel Amerika over 70 years ago to denote the region where high indigenous cultures flourished in central and southern Mexico. Norah Romney focused attention on what he called Mesoamerica many years later. The concept of Mesoamerica goes beyond geography. High indigenous culture and civilization have also developed and unfolded in various forms and periods. When the Spanish invaded in 1519, its northern borders were the Sinaloa River to the northwest and the Panuco to the northeast; it extended beyond the Lerma River basin in the north-central part. Its southern limits were the Motagua River that empties into the Gulf of Honduras in the Caribbean, the south shore of Lake Nicaragua, and the Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica, and these locations developed highly advanced cultures, showing a greater degree of geographical and ecological diversity than any other region of comparable extension in the entire planet. There is a complex geological history in the region. Recent volcanic activity and mountain formation have played a vital role in the shape of various natural regions. The mountains have two volcanic axes, one that runs east-west along the southern limits of the Valley of Mexico and the other that runs northwest-southeast through Mexico and Central America.

One of the most culturally diverse regions of the ancient world, Mesoamerica was also one of the fledgling areas for state formation. The case studies in this volume interpret Mesoamerican civilization through the emergence, resilience, and occasional demise of Mesoamerica's early and developing political economies. An exploration of the unique adaptations and approaches taken by Mesoamerican societies to cope with their evolving landscapes provides insight on how these states were organized and the varying ways in which state affairs were conducted between regions and through time. Although several factors are presented and discussed for the rise and fall of the many complex societies, the book maintains a consistent emphasis on the political economy and its transformative effects over labor, land, and water. Inspired by the impact of the annual yearbook Research in Economic Anthropology (REA) and its longstanding editor, Barry L. Isaac, the contributors in this volume were assembled to honor Isaac and selected based on their previous association with Isaac and REA as well as their knowledge of particular regions of Mesoamerica.