The Olmecs

Christina, Danielle, and Stephen

Ruled by powerful priest chieftains who had alliances with other regional priest chiefs; they came to dominate the government with respect and fear instead of force.

The Olmec civilization existed from 2500 BC to 400 BC. Rulers were the most important religious figures and also

had important secular roles. They had city-temple complexes, public buildings, and

drainage canals all of which were provided by the government.

The three major cities of the Olmecs were La Venta in Tabasco, Laguna de los Cerros in Veracruz, and San Lorenzo in Tenochtitlan.

The Olmecs had very little military advancements and many cities such as San Lorenzo were invaded in 900 BC

The Olmec economy was based on commerce and agriculture.

They farmed, fished, and hunted. People that lived near the rivers had two crops while the

people in the mountains had only one; their crops included guords, beans, squash, maize, cotton, and possibly the coco tree.

Irrigation and raised fields were used to farm more intensely.

The Olmecs had long distance trade in which only the elites had access to.

Merchants traded jade and helped city-states connect and communicate with each other.

Polytheistic Relgion Olmecs had shamanism- believing that each person had an

animal spirit that could be controlled by the Shaman. The Shaman was responsible for conducting rituals and

healing the sick. The Olmecs had a full time priest class. Most important figures in Olmec religion were animals. EX:

The jaguar is seen as an ancestor and a god to the Olmecs. They had extremely powerful ceremonies that revolved

around animals The Olmecs also linked many man-made things with the

environment. EX: They believed that smoke was what produced rain, so they created a fire for their rain ceremony.

Religion inspired most of Olmec art including stone heads and jewelry for ceremonies.

Religion also was the inspiration for the Olmec calendar. Buried the dead in special burial mounds with all of his jade

jewelry. When a person died the Olmecs believed that the body

divided into three. One part went to heaven, one stayed on earth, and one went to the underworld.

The Olmecs were dominated by an elite class of ruler priests able to command labor of population.

The elite class lived in the center of the city-states while the commoners lived in rural areas.

The merchant and warrior class fell underneath the elite, and then the farmers, artisans, sculptors followed.

Artisans created pottery and feather design as well practiced weaving. Merchants spread culture and influence throughout all of the city-states. The elite class contributed to religion, art, and government and economic affairs.

Olmec art was inspired largely by religion. Jade was commonly used in Olmec art. They had religious statues and icons that

blended animal and human figures. The Olmecs are famous for their religious stone

heads. They produced very accurate calendars. The Olmecs were engineering geniuses. They produced monumental architecture

including many temples and the Great Pyramid. They created the mathematical system of 0. Studied astronomy to orient the city with the

stars. There is controversy over if it was the Olmecs

that developed a very important hieroglyphic alphabet.

The Olmec society is centered in five different geographical areas. Oaxaca region of western Mexico Inland Valley of Mexico The border between Mexico and Guatemala Southern highlands and lowlands of Yucatan, Honduras, and

Guatemala 125 miles of the eastern Mexican coast

The geography ranged from swampy lowlands and hinterlands to volcanoes and mountainous regions.

Well watered soil allowed high maize production. Olmec farmers were able to harvest two times a year, but much

of the land was not fertile. It could only produce food every few years.

Hooker, Richard. "The Olmecs." Civilizations in America. 1996. 28 Aug. 2008      <http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/CIVAMRCA/OLMECS.HTM>.

Lavin, Kimberly. The Olmecs: A Mesoamerican Wonder. 1 Dec. 1999. 27 Aug. 2008      <http://facweb.stvincent.edu/Academics/ReligiousStu/writings/lavin1.htm>.

"Olmec." Wikipedia. 1 Sept. 2008. 1 Sept. 2008 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/      Olmec>.