History 2501E Lecture Notes - Mesoamerican Chronology, Huaca, Feathered Serpent
31 Jan 2013
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Document Summary
The climate is that of extremes and so the cultures are all very different as well as their economies. Very few rivers can be used for transport because they are too strong or they disappear in the heat. Have mountains, huge rivers, many extremes, and some areas were so steep terraces were used for cultivation. Some areas are better for preservation than other and what survives in one area will disintegrate in another. Most of these cultures did not have writing so we don"t have documents but there were exceptions and the writings describing life in these cultures are from the spanish and thus are through the eyes of the conqueror. Spaniards wanted to understand writing so they would have an easier time converting them and collecting taxes. Mayans lived on the peninsula in mexico and were very culturally diverse with many small groups speaking different languages and all their writings are on stone so many survived.
