The Classic Period of Mexico
I. Subsistence
A. Economic Activity
1. Teotihuacan
a. small-cobbed maize, common and runner beans,
squashes, pumpkins, husk tomatoes, prickly
pear cactus, avocados, amaranth, deer, dogs,
cottontail rabbits, turkeys, jackrabbits,
wild ducks and geese, and small fish
2. Veracruz
a. maize, cacao, tobacco, vanilla
B. Technology
1. Neolithic
a. metals unknown until 900 AD
2. Teotihuacan
a. cylindrical pottery
1) fitted lids
2) bird-form handles
3) 3 slab feet
4) plano-relief decoration
b. clay pellets used for blowgun missiles
c. used obsidian for spear and dart points
d. bone needles for clothing and basketry
e. may have irrigated
3. Veracruz
a. Remojadas pottery
1) hollow clay figurines
a) standing or seated humans, laughing
infants, friends or lovers in swings,
and warriors
C. Trade
1. Traded jade and pottery
a. jade-major commodity
2. wide spread trade fell with the downfall of the
Teotihuacan
D. Environmental Impact
1. little environmental impact ignoring the building
of the great pyramids
II. Social Organization
A. How Organized
1. Teotihuacan
a. very complex society
b. theocratic government
2. all were civilizations and therefore very complex
B. Economic Classes
1. elites-consolidated
2. priests-held much power
3. stratified social classes
4. Monte Alban
a. mostly farmers
C. Relate to Subsistence
1. Coe relays little information on this
III. Population and Settlement Pattern
A. Population Growth
1. height of Teotihuacan
a. reaching 200,000 persons
2. Monte Alban
a. no major population shift
b. about 24,000 persons
3. population density localized and depended on
subsistence
B. Settlement Pattern
1. Teotihuacan
a. Sun and Moon Pyramids
b. located in the Valley of Mexico
c. 190 sq. miles, surrounded by hills
d. laid out on a grid plan
e. laid out in quarters
1) Avenue of the Dead-North/South
2) bisected by another East/West road
f. palace compounds
1) residences of lords of cities
2) rectangular complex
3) 45 rooms and 7 forecourts
4) depressed centralized court
5) one-story complexes
g. Ciudadela
1) over 1300 foot long sides
2) Temple of Quetzalcoatl
a) 6 tiered pyramid
b) sculptures of possible creation
c) third largest temple in city
d) built in single episode with 200
people getting sacrificed
2. Cacaxtla
a. influenced by Maya
b. 15.5 miles North-northeast of Cholula
c. a conglomeration of many surrounding cultures
3. Xochicalco
a. top of hill in western Morelos
b. Temple of the Feathered Serpent
1) many stone carvings
2) serpents
c. used local caves for storage
d. influenced by Maya
4. Cerro de las Mesas
a. middle of old Olmec territory
b. 15 miles from Bay of Alvarado
5. Veracruz
a. Gulf Coast Plain
b. El Tajin
1) 146 acres
2) Pyramid of Niches
a) 4 sided
b) 6 tiers with temple on top
c) carved stone blocks
3) Building of Columns
a) narrative scene carved columns
6. Monte Alban
a. Valley of Oaxaca
b. large ball courts
IV. Ideology
A. Religious and Ritual Beliefs
1. Pyramid of the Sun
a. East of the Avenue of the Dead
b. 700 feet long, 200 feet high
c. built in phases
d. filled with 1,175,000 cubic meters of brick
and rubble
e. stone stairs led to wood-and-thatch temple
on top of pyramid
f. built on top of ancient cave
2. Pyramid of the Moon
a. very similar to Pyramid of the Sun
3. Teotihuacan pantheon
a. AKA- Spider Woman
b. worshiped Rain God, Feathered Serpent, Sun God
c. Mood Goddess and Xipe Totec
d. tended to cremate the dead
1) placed with offerings
4. Veracruz
a. ball courts
b. at least 9 existed
c. El Tajin
1) obsessed with ball games, human
sacrifice, and death
5. Monte Alban
a. deceased placed in tombs with murals
offerings
b. honored the Rain God, Maize God, the
Feathered Serpent, a Bat God, the Old Fire
God, and Water Goddess
B. Art
1. Teotihuacan
a. magnificent murals
1) most religious
2) some warlike
3) Teotihuacan Spider Woman
a) responsible for creation of universe
b) mythical background
b. frescoes, sculptures, and pottery
1) very elegant
2) stone masks
a) greenstone, basalt, jade, and andesite
b) inlaid eyes
2. Cacaxtla
a. jaguar murals
b. people wearing eagle costumes
c. supernatural murals
3. Veracruz
a. stone objects
1) yokes, palmas, and hachas
4. Monte Alban
a. elaborate stone carvings
b. many murals
1) some painted over older murals
C. Language
1. Teotihuacan
a. books
1) used for rituals and administrative
2) isolated glyphs
3) bar-and-dot numeration
4) 260-day count
2. many were Maya-speaking
3. may have spoken Zapotec
4. Monte Alban
a. 52 year cycle
b. undeciphered writing system
D. Warfare
1. Teotihuacan
a. murals show evidence of warfare
b. downfall about 700 AD
1) deliberate destruction and burning