The Mayans
By Anastasia, Kat, Ziggy, and Jared
Government ● ● ● ● ● ● ●
Each Mayan City had a ruling family. The Mayans believed that the king of their city was a descendant of the gods. In order to become king, you must sacrifice blood. In 1949, in Palenque the biggest tomb in all of Mesoamerica was discovered. The tomb held a king that they called Lord Pakal. When the king wished to speak, he would climb to the top of a pyramid so that all could hear. The government was always run by priests. The Mayan government was based on religion.
Social Organization
p m e T
les
Most of the Mayans had similar jobs. Some of the main jobs that they had were... Statu
Houses
Jew
elry
es
Clothing Most of the Mayans clothings were made of cotton. Men Mayans wore loincloths. Loincloths are long strips that go around the waist. Women wore dresses called huipils. Huipils are a long piece of cloth with a hole for the neck. On special days the Mayans wore feathers and decorations.
Architecture
Mayan buildings were based on pyramids and take up large areas of land. Mayans built temples for religious purposes. Their cities were built in plazas and the temples were built with layers. If the mayans wanted a new temple they would build one on top of an old one. the mayans had lots of forgotten cities! one of them, Tikal, was so big and modern it’s sometimes called the NYC of the mayans!
365 steps for the days in the year
Food The Mayans ate a variety of foods, but most were based on corn, cornmeal, or corn tortillas. Corn might be the main ingredient most of the time, but they also hunted animals. They would roast birds and put them in corn tortillas. They often ate corn stew. Corn wasn't the only vegetable they ate, though. Squash and beans were also eaten often. The Mayans planted these crops in fields called Miplas. Since corn was so popular back then, they dug little wells called Cinsters to catch the water for the corn. On special occasions, they added corn meal to water to make a special drink called Pozole.
Corn was ground up and made into tortillas
Religion Religion was a huge part of the Mayans daily life and the king’s role was important. The king was the religious leader. People believed that they should sacrifice humans and animals to the gods to help with the crops and their fortune. Religion was so important to the Mayans almost every decision was based on religion.
THIS Ancient drawing SHOWS THE MAYAN sacrafice RITUAL
Language To read and write, they used glyphs. Glyphs are pictures that represent words. The Mayans had about 500 different glyphs. Normally, priests and nobles taught people To read and write.
art
The 700 years of the Mayan classical saw a great flowering of Mayan art.
The Mayans started carving throughout the Mayan region. They created thousands of stones stelae, great slabs of limestone were carved into images of kings. Much of their art was made from stone, shell, bone, wood, obsidian, jade, silver, clay, stucco, textiles, and precious metals.
Education The Mayans learned to read and write normally by priests and nobles. Sometimes, they even learned to read the calendar and the stars, though most did not.
Recreation The Mayans played a very sacred ball game on holidays. The game was believed to pick out who shall be sacrificed to the gods. The Mayans would force criminals and captured war enemies to play the game. The loser of the game wasn't just the loser of the game, but also the loser of their heads in most cases. The court was in the shape of a capital “I� with the baskets in the middle of the court. The Mayan game was played with a very heavy rubber ball. You can not use your hands in this ancient game, you can only use your hips and chest. The hoop was a stone ring tilted sideways at 27 feet high. The players would wear cloth over some of their body and pads on their legs. Palktopalk was the name of the game. The rubber used for the balls was invented by the Mayans. The Mayans believed that the more that they played this game, the more good fortune they would receive.
Economics Many people worked as farmers, hunters, and fishers who provided food. Others made jewlery and sewed clothing, as well as building temples and houses. The upper classes consisted of priests, teachers, doctors, and nobles. The Mayans used cocoa beans as money. (Back then, money really did grow on trees!)
Technology and Achievements The Mayans made many helpful tools and did many impressive things. Without their technology they would have died off.. The Mayans made things such as: Spears, shields, war materials Altars, houses, temples, other buildings Number system, art, paints Games, courts, 25 pound rubber ball The mayans made amazing things
What Happened to the Mayans The Mayans never died off, they just naturally abandoned their cities, due to the fact that the cities were collapsing. There are still about 4 million Mayans out in the world, today. They still perform most of the old rituals of the ancient Mayans (except for the sacrificing and ball game). Spanish invaders took over the remaining cities around the sixteenth century. Most cities were sealed away and a few are still hidden.
Abandoned Mayan city.
Credits ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●
Britannica Image Quest Tami Deedrick, author of The Mayans ancient civilizations book Schlessinger Media Library Video.com ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS FOR CHILDREN Google slideS Wikimedia commons Encyclopedia Britannica DK Find out