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The
Indians of Pre-Aztec Mexico
A
First Comers Indigenous Webquest
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| Introduction
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They had really big heads! Well, not really,
but they did carve really big heads out of
stone. Who were they? They
were the Mother Culture, the Olmecs,
the oldest of the Mesoamerican
civilizations.
But, the Olmecs weren't the
only great civilizations living in
present-day Mexico before the time of the
Aztecs. There were also the Toltecs,
the Zapotecs, the Mixtecs, and the
mysterious builders of the great city of
Teotihuacán. Together they forged a
culture and establish traditions which
helped make the more-famous Aztecs who
they were.
They were the first to
build pyramids in the Americas, to use
rubber, and to invent the world's first
team sport! They created massive
buildings held up by columns shaped like
people. They wrote books, called
codices, telling stories of their
exploits. And they practiced human
sacrifice!
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| Olmec
Stone Head |
Mixtec
Ball Court
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Teotihuacán
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So, what was the purpose of
the large stone heads? Why did they
construct the first pyramids? Why did
they disappear? These questions, as
well as many others, can only be answered
by a closer look at what we do know about
the civilizations of pre-Aztec Mexico.
That is where your expedition
begins! You have been accepted as an
Archaeologist Intern for the summer, and
you are traveling to Mexico to help
unravel the great mysteries of the
indigenous people who lived before the
Aztecs!
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So, put on your hat, climb
in your jeep, and head South of the
border!
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Go
to Step 1
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