Late Formative, 400BC-200AD
Mighty Teotihaucan came to dominate Central Mexico. The giant pyramids and platforms are particular to the late formative era.
As Chalcatzingo, La Venta and other Middle Formative polities collapsed during the last two centuries BC, the vast metropolises of Cuicuilco and Teotihuacán – both located in Central Mexico – emerged as dominant centres of Mesoamerican power. Both had huge temple complexes and buildings of truly monumental proportions. In the first century AD, Cuicuilco was destroyed under a volcanic eruption, leaving its enormous circular pyramid visible under 20 feet of rock. Teotihuacán became the prevailing regional force.
Further south, a confederation of Oaxaca valley chiefdoms constructed the mountain-top city of Monte Albán (Blanton). Its population grew and a successful market system developed. Soon Monte Albán became the capital of the Zapotec state and a major urban centre. It would dominate the region, often violently, for several hundred years more.
The Mayan lowlands also saw significant developments during the close of the formative era. In construction projects reminiscent of mighty Teotihuacán, the Maya built giant civic-ceremonial architecture, including the enormous platforms and pyramids of El Mirador in Guatemala. They practised intensive agriculture, allowing their populations to flourish, and reclaimed land from the marshes. Labour for these projects was believed to have been centrally directed, that is, under orders from a well-established elite.
From a scattering of simple agricultural settlements, Mesoamerica had evolved a burgeoning network of city-states. Village shamans were now priests, belonging to an elite social order who guarded the secrets of time. Complex and often bloody rituals were the staple diet of the gods, who dwelled among mortals as princes and kings. Slaves, artisans and warriors toiled beneath them. Giant stone pyramids, symbols of earthly and spiritual power, had risen across the continent. The stage was set for Mesoamerica’s golden age…
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Tags: ancient mesoamerica, formative, teotihuacan
Sat, Aug 15, 2009
History & Politics, Mexican History