CONTENTS INTRODUCTION CHAPTER 1 THE ORIGINS OF EARLY AMERICAN CIVILIZATIONS 10 CHAPTE 2 CVILIZATIONS OF MIDDLE AMERICA CHAPTER 3 CVILIZATIONS OF SouTH AMERICA 47 60 CHAPTER 4 PREHISTORIC FARMING CULTURES OF NORTHERN AMERICA 18 79 CONCLUSION GoSSARY For MORE INFORMATION BIBLIOGRAPHY 85 INDEX 86
t Mexico City's heart is the Plaza de la Constitucion a square popu larly known as the Zócalo Around the Zocalo are splendid public buildings the Metropolitan Cathedral the National Palace and the Municipal Palace built by Spanish colonists who arrived in Mexico in the 1500s But just off the square is a remnant of an even earlier era in the country's history The Templo Mayor Main Temple ruins are a monument to the great empire of the Aztec people who dominated central Mexico when the Spanish arrived The Spanish conquerors methodically destroyed the Aztec capital Tenochtitlan and constructed Mexico Cityover the rubble of its temples and palaces They could not however erase the memory of the civilization they dis placed This book examines the Aztec Empire and advanced Indian civilizations of the other ancient Americas Among them are the Maya and the Inca which rank alongside the Aztec as the best known ancient civilizations But also here are many lesser known cultures that are remarkable for their own achievements whether in agriculture social organization architecture the arts or other
INTRODUCTION The earliest Americans were the Paleo Indians who migrated from Asia during the last ice age Nomadic hunters and gath erers they relied on big game like mammoths as well as wild plant foods Eventually environmental changes such as dramatically increasing temperatures caused the largest animals to die off so Indians turned to alternatives like elk and MDE fish They also remained in one area for longer periods and began farming These changes are characteristic of the Archaic Indian cultures The greatest agricul tural advancements of the Archaic period occurred in Middle and South America Having domesticated crops like corn and squash as early as 8000 BC Middle American Indians could a The ruins of the Incan city of Machu Picchu still stand in south central Peru Shutterstock com
