ANTH 235 Lecture Notes - Lecture 11: Cerro De Las Mesas, Teotihuacan, Quetzalcoatl
Document Summary
Pyramid of sun, pyramid of moon, temple of quetzalcoatl, palace and apartment compounds. Cholula (valley of puebla), huge pyramid center of mixteca-puebla art style. Cerro de las mesas (veracruz, former olmec rea) center of classic veracruz civilization. Monte alban (oaxaca) large hilltop site established in preeclamptic, elaborate tombs and incense burners. Classic period: 150 - 900 ce, depending on locations, here 150-600 ce. Thought of as a golden age" including widespread literacy, with maya and zapotec hieroglyphic scripts, monumental architecture, art styles, peak of mesoamerican civilization. Calendar across mesoamerica in this period tied to rituals and gods. Many ruins date to the classic period. Molds for pottery possibly introduced during this period, also maybe obsidian. Once thought to be a theocracy but the bureaucracy now appears to have been more complex. Clear military aspect to governance, with warrior cults at the city.
