Abstract ancient civilizations of pre-Columbian America. Mayan. Abstract: Civilizations of Pre-Columbian America The difficulty of studying the pre-Columbian civilizations of America is associated with

Pre-Columbian America is the history of the ancient civilizations of the Indians, the indigenous peoples of America, before the discovery of the American continent by the European Christopher Columbus in the 15th century (hence the name “Pre-Columbian America”, i.e. America before Columbus).

The civilizations of Pre-Columbian America gave much to modern civilization. The American Indians were the first to grow corn, potatoes, tomatoes, pumpkins, sunflowers, and beans. They introduced cocoa, tobacco and rubber to the world.

The American Indian tribes were almost completely isolated from the rest of the world for several millennia. In this regard, the culture of these peoples developed much more slowly than the civilizations of the rest of the world, which overtook the American Indians in development. The discovery of America by Europeans practically led to the destruction of the civilizations of local cultures.

In modern science, it is generally accepted that the ancestors of the American Indians came to America 25-30 thousand years ago from Asia through the Bering Strait, but this is not known for certain. Be that as it may, already in the 6th century AD, Indians inhabited most of the territories of North and South America.

Among the civilizations of pre-Columbian America, the most famous are the Olmec, Aztec, Incan and Mayan civilizations.

The Olmec civilization is one of the most ancient American civilizations, and at the same time one of the most mysterious (there are pseudo-scientific theories linking the Olmecs with aliens). The Olmecs became famous for their art of monumental sculpture, represented by giant stone heads of people, steles and altars. The Olmecs also wrote the oldest written dates in America (they denoted them with dashes and dots). The Olmec writing system has not yet been deciphered. The Olmec civilization arose at the end of the 2nd millennium BC. and existed until the 6th century BC. The center of civilization was on the Gulf Coast of central Mexico. The Olmecs were the first to build large cities - ritual centers and are rightfully considered the creators of the first empire in America.

Another ancient Indian civilization that the first conquiscadors managed to find was founded by the Mayan tribes. The Mayan civilization is one of the most famous civilizations of pre-Columbian America due to the development of its writing, art and architecture. The Mayans built entire stone cities and ritual pyramids in the jungles of the Yucatan Peninsula (modern Mexico and Belize), they developed their own calendar, and had significant knowledge of astronomy. The dawn of the Mayan civilization occurs in 250-900 AD, although this civilization began to form much earlier (1-2 thousand BC).

On the territory of modern Mexico (in its central part) another well-known civilization of pre-Columbian America was formed - the Aztec civilization. It existed in the 14th-16th centuries AD. e. and was destroyed by Europeans. The Aztec capital, Tenochtitlan, is where Mexico City later emerged.

In South America, the most famous pre-Columbian civilization is the Inca civilization. Incas in the 11th-16th centuries AD. e. created the largest empire in America by area and population. It covered the territories of modern Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador, as well as parts of Chile, Argentina and Colombia. The Inca civilization, like the Aztec civilization, was destroyed by Europeans.

03.05.2011

Pre-Columbian America is one of the most important stages and most interesting examples in the development of world civilization, but it is rather poorly covered in the domestic information space, and in the scientific field it still remains the lot of a relatively small group of enthusiastic researchers. According to the most common point of view, America in ancient times was inhabited by numerous Indian tribes, among which the Aztecs, Mayans, and Incas reached the greatest heights in cultural development, building pyramids, creating giant stone sculptures and, ultimately, being conquered by the Spanish conquistadors. Moreover, the lack of a sufficient amount of competent, primarily popular scientific, Russian-language literature leads to the appearance of a significant number of mediocre and outright pseudoscientific works, which not only do not shed light on the history of Ancient America, but also further confuse a wide audience, trying to bet on the first plan is the search for some secret meaning and mystical knowledge in ancient American cultures. Of course, such works cannot reflect all the features and diversity of the civilizations of Ancient America. This brief review is intended to partially fill this gap and introduce all those interested in the main stages and characteristic features of the history of the civilizations of Ancient America.

Ancient American civilizations provide us with an amazing example of high achievements in the field of technical and economic skills, art, and social development, achieved without the use of our usual means. Before the arrival of Europeans, the Indians never made iron tools, they did not use draft animals, and they did not use wheels. They did not cultivate a single agricultural crop known in the Old World. Complex materials were not used to build magnificent pyramids and palaces. technical equipment. But, nevertheless, their achievements evoke surprise and admiration among their contemporaries. And many are trying to find an answer to the question, how did this become possible?

In the light of the study of the ancient history of mankind, the civilizations of Ancient America are of particular interest to researchers also because, in terms of their level of development, they were at the same level as the outstanding civilizations of the Ancient East - Egypt, Mesopotamia, India, China. But in time they were much closer to us. The first Europeans who arrived on the American continent became acquainted with local civilizations at the peak of their development, leaving a wide variety of information about them that is available to our contemporaries. Unfortunately, the conquistadors erased these original corners of ancient civilization, but their study becomes all the more interesting for us.

1. History of the discovery and study of ancient American cultures

Most people associate ancient, or pre-Columbian, America with two important regions - Mesoamerica and the Andean civilization, known for their rich history, numerous architectural monuments, monumental sculpture, objects of art, and reflected in numerous testimonies of European chroniclers of the colonial era of the 16th century. Only within these regions in America have cultures developed that, by their characteristics and characteristics, fully fit the definition of highly developed civilizations. However, the cultural area of ​​Ancient America is much wider, and in fact it includes the entire American continent. Even in its most remote corners there are traces of human activity.

The turning point in the history of Ancient America was 1492, when three Spanish caravels under the command of the Genoese Christopher Columbus (Cristobal Colon), after many months of sailing across the Atlantic Ocean, reached the group of Bahamas on the periphery of the Caribbean and thereby marked the beginning of the era of European exploration of something new, hitherto unknown , continent. In the New World, Europeans came into contact with the local population, and, contrary to expectations, the Indians (as they were dubbed by European colonialists) turned out to be far from savage and primitive. Europeans, convinced that Europe was the advanced center of world civilization, encountered ancient highly developed cultures that made an indelible impression on the “enlightened” representatives of the Old World. In this regard, one of the most important questions that the most prominent thinkers of medieval Europe asked themselves was where did man come from in America, and how was he able to create a highly developed civilization there?

After numerous, but not very successful attempts to give intelligible answers to these questions on the part of church leaders and European philosophers, in the 19th century. The discussion gradually moved to a scientific level. The scientific world of that time was divided into two camps: diffusionists and isolationists. The first explained the origin of ancient American civilizations: Mayans, Aztecs, Incas, by the direct influence of the most ancient civilizations of the Old World. First of all, those who had navigation skills and were theoretically able to cross the Atlantic Ocean and reach the shores of America: the Egyptians, Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Celts, Chinese, Polynesians. Absolutely fantastic theories also appeared that called the Indians the descendants of the legendary Atlanteans who inhabited the disappeared continent of Atlantis, which was once located in the center of the Atlantic Ocean. However, the most reliable information is contained only in the Icelandic Sagas, a medieval source dedicated to the history of the development of the northern lands of Europe. It has been established that the Scandinavian sailors who founded at the beginning of the 10th century. several settlements in Greenland were made at the turn of the 10th–11th centuries. a series of voyages to a country they called Vinland - “Land of the Grapes”, where they came into contact with the local inhabitants. Modern researchers identify Vinland with the east coast of North America, and believe that the Scandinavians could have sailed to the area of ​​​​the modern city of Boston. However, these episodic contacts did not have any significant impact on the cultural development of the American Indians.

Isolationists, on the contrary, denied any possibility of such contacts and pointed to the autochthonous origin of pre-Columbian civilizations. Later, the famous Norwegian traveler-enthusiast Thor Heyerdahl added fuel to the fire of controversy, who in 1970, with a group of like-minded people, made a successful voyage on the reconstructed ancient Egyptian papyrus boat "Ra" from the coast of Africa to the islands of the Caribbean, thereby showing the possibility of such voyages in ancient times. time. Of course, even such a bold experiment is in no way proof of the theory, and only reliable archaeological finds can be a powerful argument.

Modern research, in particular the finds of the most ancient Paleolithic sites in North America, found that the most likely place for human penetration into the American continent was the so-called Beringia - a piece of land between the Chukotka Peninsula and Alaska, which appeared as a result of lowering the level of the world's oceans during the Ice Ages. Thus, groups of Paleolithic hunters could move from the Asian continent to the American continent, and subsequently, over the course of several millennia, their descendants populated the entire American continent right up to its southern tip - Tierra del Fuego. This is also confirmed by the fact that American Indians belong to the Mongoloid race, that is, their ancestors should be sought in Asia. The question of the time of human penetration into America remains debatable; according to one point of view, this happened quite early in the period of about 50,000 BC. e., according to another - in a later period - about 20,000 BC. e. At least most of the early ones archaeological finds in North America dates back to no earlier than 18,000 BC. e.

Groups of primitive hunters and gatherers mastered territories that were completely different in their natural and geographical conditions: the tundra, taiga, arid deserts and plains of North America, the islands of the Caribbean Sea, the endless tropical forests of the Amazon, the mountain valleys of the Andes and the prairies of Patagonia, which, of course, affected the level of their cultural development, but only in certain areas did conditions arise for the emergence of highly developed civilizations. Traditionally, the history of pre-Columbian America is associated with two highly developed civilizations: Mesoamerican and Andean.

2. Mesoamerica

Mesoamerica is a cultural-geographical region in the northern part of the isthmus between North and South America - the area of ​​land between Pacific Ocean in the southwest, the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea in the northeast, which includes on the modern political map a significant part of Mexico, Guatemala, Belize (formerly British Honduras), the western regions of Honduras and El Salvador. The northern border of Mesoamerica runs approximately along the latitude of the northern subtropics, the southern border along the border between Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. Mesoamerica includes several different natural geographic regions. The northern and central regions are occupied by the southern spurs of the Cordillera - the Sierra Madre highlands, located at an average altitude of 2000 m above sea level (the highest point, Mount Orizaba - 5747 m), which gradually decreases in the southeast to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec (220 m above sea level). mind.). Mountainous regions have a moderate, but sometimes arid climate. The eastern part of Mesoamerica includes the lowlands of the Yucatan Peninsula and the Central Mayan Lowlands - an area with a tropical climate, densely covered with rain forests - the selva. In terms of climatic conditions, the regions of the Gulf Coast, cut by numerous swampy river valleys, are similar to them. The climatic year is divided into two periods: the dry season (from early November to mid-May) and the rainy season (from May to late October).

In Mesoamerica, several of the most significant areas can be identified that became areas of formation cultural traditions and occupied an important place in the history of civilization: the “Basin of Mexico” - a vast valley in Central Mexico around Lake Texcoco, which became one of the epicenters of agriculture, a place of settlement of the Nahua tribes; “Oaxaca” is a mountainous state in Southern Mexico, the region where the Zapotec and Mixtec cultures formed; “Gulf Coast” - low-lying areas in central Mexico, formed by numerous rivers flowing into the gulf, where the Olmec, Totonac and Huastec cultures developed at different times; “Maya region” is the eastern part of Mesoamerica, including lowland areas in the north and center, as well as mountainous areas in the south, the area of ​​settlement of the Mayan tribes and the formation of their culture, “Western Mexico” is the territory of a group of western states of Mexico on the coast of the Pacific Ocean and California bay, the site of the development of a number of distinctive cultures, such as the Tarascans.

The term “Mesoamerica” was first introduced into scientific circulation in 1943 by a Mexican researcher of German origin, Paul Kirchoff, who gave this definition for the region we have designated, all parts of which were connected by common historical and cultural traditions. Although initially Mesoamerica was understood as a collection of individual civilizations: Olmecs, Zapotecs, Mayans, Astecs and others. Later exploration of Mesoamerica showed that it was a single interconnected organism, and no so-called “civilization” was isolated in its development. Moreover, later Mesoamerican cultures gradually absorbed the traditions of their predecessors. Thus, Mesoamerica is currently understood as a single civilization that existed in the period from 2500 BP. BC e. until 1521. The starting point of the history of Mesoamerica is usually determined by the appearance of the first settled settlements and the formation of areas of early agricultural crops in the valleys of the Sierra Madre mountain range, as well as the emergence of ceramic production in this region. The symbolic end of Mesoamerican civilization is considered to be the conquest of the Aztec state by the Spanish conquistador Hernando Cortez in 1519–1521, although, of course, more than two hundred years passed before the cultural traditions of Mesoamerica were finally dissolved in the new Latin American culture.

The history of Mesoamerica is divided into several main stages, the criterion for which is the flourishing of a particular culture. In turn, each of the stages is divided into several phases, identified by researchers based on the dating of archaeological material.

period	phase	time
Archaic period		7000–2500 BC e.
Preclassical period	early	2500–1200 BC.
	average	1200–400 BC e.
	late	400 BC e. – 200 AD e.
Protoclassical subperiod		0–200 n. e.
Classical period	early	200–400
	average	400–600
	late	600–750
	terminal	750–950
Postclassical period	early	950–1250
	late	1250–1521

The Archaic period was the time of the birth of Mesoamerican civilization, when numerous nomadic groups of people began to develop the fertile valleys in the territory of modern Mexico, engage in primitive agriculture and develop fossil resources. The following Preclassic period was marked by the flourishing of two of the most important cultures for the formation of Mesoamerican civilization. In 1100–400 BC e. On the southern coast of the Gulf of Mexico, the Olmec culture arose, to which a stable definition was assigned in the scientific literature - “mother culture”. The first researchers believed that it was the Olmecs who created the basis for all subsequent cultures of Mesoamerica. The Olmecs are known as the creators of giant stone heads, altars and sculptures, and the builders of the first pyramids in America. However, they are erroneously credited with the creation of the state, cities, writing and calendar, which later became an indispensable attribute of the highly developed cultures of Mesoamerica. The Olmecs were perhaps the first and earliest cultures of Mesoamerica to achieve heights in art and socio-political organization, but by no means the only one.

Another culture, the Zapotecs, is no less important for the development of civilization. This is one of the Indian nationalities, whose representatives now live in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca, in the period between the 8th century. BC. and IX century. AD which created an outstanding cultural tradition. In the 5th century BC e. The Zapotecs, for the first time in Mesoamerica, created a state centered in Monte Alban - an artificially built city, on a completely empty and unsuitable place for these purposes, but which was the geographical center of a new political entity. Monte Alban became the religious and political center of the Zapotec state. They were also the first in Mesoamerica to use hieroglyphic writing, which researchers have not yet been able to decipher. The scope of application of the letter is quite wide: from short captions to characters depicted on reliefs to very lengthy texts with records of names, toponyms and calendar dates on massive stone monuments. Researchers agree that this was not a primitive ideographic letter, but a fairly sophisticated system. In addition, the Zapotecs gave Mesoamerica a developed calendar system, which was subsequently adopted by many cultures and was used until the Spanish conquest.

The classical period is the time of the highest flowering of Mesoamerican civilization, when perhaps its most amazing cultural achievements. This time is associated with the rise of Mayan culture and the Teotihuacan state. The ancient Mayans, who in literature are often called “Greeks of pre-Columbian America,” back in the 1st millennium BC. e. inhabited the lowlands of eastern Mesoamerica. And from the 3rd century. n. e. Small but numerous Mayan states began to appear in this territory. This people is known for its amazingly beautiful cities with numerous pyramids discovered in the impenetrable jungle. The Mayans were also the creators of the most developed writing system in Mesoamerica, which in 1952 was deciphered by our outstanding compatriot Yuri Valentinovich Knorozov (1923–1999). They improved the Mesoamerican calendar system and very accurately calculated the solar year, which differs only by a few minutes from the modern Gregorian calendar. In the 9th century. There was a sharp and inexplicable decline in Mayan culture, their magnificent cities were suddenly abandoned by the inhabitants, and the center of political and cultural life of the Mayans shifted north, to the Yucatan Peninsula, where the last Mayan centers were conquered by the Spaniards in the 16th century.

Simultaneously with the heyday of the Maya in the 1st–6th centuries. n. e. In Central Mexico, in the area of ​​the modern city of Mexico, perhaps the most powerful state in the entire history of Mesoamerica, Teotihuacan, is developing. The ruins of this city have long been known to researchers thanks to its outstanding buildings, primarily the giant Pyramid of the Sun, which is often compared to the Great Pyramids in Egypt. For a long time it was believed that Teotihuacan was something of a cultural and religious center of Mesoamerica, but thanks to research in recent years, it has been proven that Teotihuacan grew up as the capital of a huge power stretching from the Valley of Mexico in the west to the Mayan region in the east, created through large-scale conquests . During its heyday in the 6th century. Teotihuacan was one of the largest cities in the world of its time with a population of more than 150,000 people. But by the 8th century. Teotihuacan gradually fell into decay, the huge state collapsed, and small political entities took its place.

In the early postclassic period, the history of Mesoamerica was dominated by the strong military state of the Toltecs, which emerged from the ruins of the Teotihuacan power. In fact, the Toltecs laid the foundation for the cultural development of Central Mexico during the Postclassic period. It is noteworthy that the rulers of many states in this region in the 13th–15th centuries. traced their ancestry back to the Toltec rulers, in particular to the legendary Quetzalcoatl. According to a well-known legend, Quetzalcoatl (i.e. “Feathered Serpent”), named after the revered deity, ruled over the Toltecs, but when he reached the pinnacle of power, he went overseas to the east. This legend came to life again when the ships of the Spaniards sailed from the east - envoys of Quetzalcoatl, as the Indians believed.

The final stage of the history of Mesoamerica was marked by the rise of the powerful state of the Astecs. Until the 13th century. The Aztecs were one of the nomadic tribes that came to the Valley of Mexico from the northern desert regions. The Aztecs themselves made the legendary Aztlan their ancestral home. In the XIV century. On a small island in the middle of Lake Texcoco, the Astecs founded the new capital of Tenochtitlan, whose grandiose temples were later admired by the Spanish conquerors. Over the next hundred years, the Aztecs subjugated all neighboring states and tribes, expanding their borders to the Gulf Coast in the east, in the south to the possessions of the Zapotecs and to the lands of the Tarscs in the west of Mesoamerica. Unfortunately, the sudden invasion of the Spaniards led by Hernando Cortez in 1521 brought an end to the Aztec state, and with it the entire Mesoamerican civilization.

3. Andean civilization

Another no less significant civilizational center of Ancient America was the Andes mountain range, where in the 2nd millennium BC. e. a special civilization, partly similar to Mesoamerica, arose. Initially it was believed that the powerful Inca Empire, conquered in the mid-16th century. The Spaniards represented an independent civilization. However, this was only the tip of the iceberg, the last stage of development of more ancient civilization, whose history goes back over three and a half thousand years.

The epicenter of the Andean civilization was located in the western part of South America in the territory of modern Peru, and its range covered a very large area along the Andes massif from Ecuador in the north to central Chile in the south, as well as the Bolivian highlands and the upper reaches of the Amazon in the east. Thus, the zone of the Andean civilization was extended for 4000 kilometers from north to south along the Pacific coast. From a geographical point of view, it was a very specific region, which included areas of different climates and landscapes. The main part of the territory is occupied by the Andes mountain range, with peaks over 6000 m above sea level. The main centers of civilization development were mountain valleys and highlands suitable for agriculture at altitudes from 2000 to 4500 m, including the basin of the high-mountain Lake Titicaca on the border of modern Peru and Bolivia and Puna - a strip of tundra-steppe in southern Peru and northern Chile. In the western part of the region, a coastal strip up to 50 km wide stretches from north to south, formed by numerous alluvial river valleys flowing from the mountains to the Pacific Ocean, and suitable for intensive agriculture. The second epicenter of the Andean civilization developed here.

The key factors in the development of the Andean civilization were the widespread use of metals, the domestication of large animals and the creation of a special terraced farming system, which distinguishes it from other American cultures. There are not many places on the American continent where in ancient times it was possible to mine metals, primarily copper, as well as gold and silver. One of the centers of metallurgy was in North America in the Great Lakes region, the second - in the central and western regions of Mesoamerica, the third - in the south of Central America in the region of Panama and Colombia, but the most large-scale mining of metals was carried out, perhaps, within the framework of the Andean civilization in Central and Southern Peru. Metallurgy arose here at the end of the 2nd millennium BC. e. and since then all cultures have used gold, silver and copper products to some extent. Initially, ritual objects and jewelry were made from metal, but later they began to make weapons and tools. For example, the Inca warriors and their opponents by the 15th century. They fought exclusively with copper weapons. The inhabitants of the Andes made amazingly beautiful gold jewelry, very few of which have survived to this day, since most of the Incan treasures were melted down by the Spaniards into ingots and taken to Europe. They used metals not only in their pure form, but also learned to make alloys: gold and silver - electr, gold and copper - tumbaga.

The Andean mountainous regions were one of the few places in America where large animals - llamas, close relatives of camels - have been preserved since prehistoric times. These short but hardy animals, covered with thick hair, were adapted by nature for life in the mountains. Man learned to use these advantages - domesticated llamas provided wool for yarn and milk, they were used as pack animals capable of moving along mountain paths, and were occasionally eaten, mainly for ritual purposes.

Man quickly developed all the habitable river valleys in the Central Andes, and already at the early stage of the development of civilization there was not enough free land for farming. Therefore, the inhabitants of the Andes learned to use mountain slopes that were unsuitable for these purposes, on which they began to build special terraces. The terraces rose up the slopes in ledges, they were filled with fertile soil and supplied with special irrigation canals, which were fed from reservoirs located high in the mountains. Thus, the problem of land shortage was solved. The Spaniards, who first came to Peru at the beginning of the 16th century. They were so amazed by the views of endless terraces going up with giant staircases high into the mountains that they named the mountains the Andes (from the Spanish anden - parapet, terrace).

Since the Andes are characterized by an extremely complex landscape, there is a very diverse range of climatic zones. In the north in Ecuador and in the east in the foothills of the Andes, it is a humid tropical climate; on the coast of Peru it is relatively dry and cool, but there are no significant temperature changes. In the mountain valleys, especially in the belt of alpine meadows - páramo in northern Peru, the climate is temperate and very suitable for human activity, and in the highlands in southern Peru, where the tundra-steppe strip - puna - begins, the conditions are very harsh, but suitable for cattle breeding. Further south in northern Chile, the puna gives way to arid deserts. Warm and cold Pacific currents have a significant influence on the climate of the Andean civilization zone, sometimes significantly changing the climatic conditions in the western part of the continent for a certain period.

Of the most important areas for the formation and development of the Andean civilization, the following should be highlighted: the northern coast of Peru with fertile river valleys, where the magnificent Mochica culture and the powerful state of Chimor developed; the southern coast of Peru, where the Nazca culture, known for its giant images on the ground, emerged on the arid plains; the central Peruvian highlands, in the valleys of which the Huari state and the Inca Empire arose; the Titicaca basin, where the powerful state of Tiwanaku also formed.

Since the cultures of the Andean civilization never invented writing, we do not have any reliable information about the historical events of that time. Therefore, mainly archaeological finds, primarily the distribution of ceramic types, became the basis for dividing the history of the Andes into separate chronological periods.

period	time
Pre-ceramic period	4000–2000 BC e.
Initial period	2000–800 BC e.
Early phase	800–200 BC e.
Early transition	200 BC e. – 500/600 AD e.
Middle phase	500/600–1000
Late transition period	1000–1470
Late phase	1470–1532

The Pre-ceramic period, similar to Mesoamerica, became a time when the most convenient areas of the Andes were actively developed by nomadic and semi-sedentary groups of people engaged in hunting, gathering, maritime fishing, primitive agriculture, and the manufacture of various tools. In the subsequent - Initial Period and Early Phase - a number of highly developed cultures appeared in the Andes, engaged in monumental construction, the creation of megalithic sculptures, and the production of complex-figured and polychrome ceramics. These include the Chavin culture, which appeared in the Marañon River valley in northern Peru in the 10th century. BC e. and existed until the 3rd century BC. e. This culture is known from the grandiose temple complex of Chavín de Huantar, built according to the U-shaped design traditional for that time. It is possible that in the 4th–3rd centuries. Chavín became the most powerful political entity in Peru and reached the level of a state. However, then its gradual decline followed and in the first centuries of our era new cultural traditions appeared in the Andes.

In the Early Transitional Period in the 1st century. n. e. On the arid southern coast of Peru, a unique Nazca culture emerges. The culture gained fame not thanks to large cities and buildings, of which very few have been discovered, but to unusual monuments - geoglyphs, giant drawings made on the earth's surface. These could be simple straight lines up to several hundred meters long and figured images of animals and birds. The drawings were so large that they could only be seen from airplanes. Seekers of cheap sensations quickly considered these unusual monuments to traces of the activity of aliens, but the geoglyphs were of completely terrestrial origin. While many ancient peoples built colossal temples to worship their deities, the Nazca Indians built complex paths on the ground along which ritual processions dedicated to the gods passed. And thanks to the arid climate, they were preserved very well.

At the same time, at the beginning of the 1st millennium AD. e. On the northern coast of Peru, among vast river oases, a magnificent Mochica culture emerges. The Mochica became known primarily for their stunning ceramics. They learned to make vessels of complex shape, with thin necks and graceful handles, depicting sculptural portraits and figures of rulers, animals, birds, various fruits and buildings. At the same time, the Mochica made their vessels in very large quantities, comparable, perhaps, to ceramic production Ancient Greece. Many vessels were covered with paintings, from which we learn a lot about Mochica religion, myths and history. Using simple looms, Mochica craftsmen produced magnificent fabrics from cotton and llama wool. One of the most remarkable archaeological finds of the Mochica culture was made at the site of Sipan on the northern tip of the coast of Peru. A group of pyramids built of raw brick was discovered there, in which archaeologists discovered several burials that belonged to the Mochica rulers, completely untouched by robbers. Many magnificent items made of gold, silver and copper were found in the tombs - jewelry and regalia of power, ritual objects. In terms of their wealth, the burials of Sipan can be compared, perhaps, only with the tombs of the Egyptian pharaohs. Gradually in the 7th century. The Mochica culture began to decline in the 8th century. ceased to exist.

In the VI-VII centuries. The Mochica and Nazca cultures are being replaced by the large state formations of Huari - in central and northern Peru and Tiwanaku - in the south in the region of Lake Titicaca. These were complex political formations, which in their structure resembled the Teotihuacan state in Mesoamerica - the core of the state was formed around the political and economic center, which gradually acquired a periphery, by subjugating neighboring tribes and creating administrative centers and trade and military strongholds. The state, therefore, did not have a rigid centralized system of government, but for a certain period it maintained control over a vast territory. Within the states of Wari and Tiwanaku, common economic ties were spread and common cults of deities were implanted. The rulers of Wari began building a network of roads, pursued a policy of resettling conquered tribes to develop new lands, and created a special system for recording information - “knot writing”. Thus, we are dealing with examples of the creation of early powers within the framework of the Andean civilization, which, however, were not distinguished by their internal strength. Having reached the 9th century. the peak of its heyday, by the 11th century. rival states gradually decline and are replaced by new states.

In the 11th century on the ruins of the Mochica culture on the northern coast of Peru, the state of Chimor emerges, incorporating the cultural traditions of the Mochica. Thanks to the active expansionist policy of the rulers, by the beginning of the 15th century. Chimor grew into a huge empire, stretching from north to south along the coast of Peru for more than a thousand kilometers. Its capital was in the city of Chan-Chan, which in the middle of the 15th century. was attacked by the troops of a new powerful rival - the Inca state.

The Incas belonged to the Quechua people, a group of pastoral tribes that settled in Central Peru in the territory previously controlled by the Huari state. Then one of the Quechua tribe settled in the Cuzco valley, and its leaders adopted the title Inca. According to beautiful myth, recorded in the writings of Spanish chroniclers, Inca Manco-Capac, the son of the Sun and the Moon, descended with his wife and half-sister Mama Ocllo in the area of ​​​​Lake Titicaca, from where he headed north. The sun presented him with a golden rod - a symbol of power, and where the rod easily entered the ground, the city of Cusco was founded. Gradually, the Inca rulers began to carry out large-scale conquests in the south and north, and thus by the beginning of the 16th century. created a huge empire that covered a huge territory, stretching 4000 km from north to south along the Andes, from Ecuador to Central Chile. The entire empire was connected by a network of roads for the movement of messengers, troops and trade caravans, the total length of which was about 30,000 km. The Incas built majestic cities and high mountain fortresses such as Machu Picchu and Vilcabamba. They used the “knot letter” - a kippah - to keep economic records, and reached heights in the manufacture of artistic jewelry from gold, silver and bronze. However, the Spanish conquest under the leadership of conquistador Francisco Pizarro in 1531–1533. put an end to the history of this majestic state of the New World and the entire Andean civilization.

4. Highly developed cultures of Ancient America

The history of ancient America is not limited to only two regions where highly developed civilizations appeared. On the contrary, over the course of several millennia, people populated almost the entire American continent, from the Arctic islands in the north to Tierra del Fuego at its southern tip, groups of primitive hunters and gatherers mastered territories completely different in natural and geographical conditions, the tundra, taiga and plains of North America, small islands

Of course, Ancient America was not limited to just two civilizations, and many other areas of the New World appeared outstanding cultures, which, although at a lower level of socio-political, economic and cultural development, nevertheless, they made an important contribution to the history of pre-Columbian America. Among these important and very significant for the overall development of the continent are: the Mississippian cultural community, the Pueblo culture and the complex of cultures of the Northern Andes.

In the central part of the North American continent, south of the Great Lakes region, within the framework of one of the largest river systems in the world - the Mississippi, an area of ​​culture developed that left behind quite a few interesting monuments. The epicenter of this culture was located along the Mississippi and its tributaries - the Missouri, Ohio and Tennessee rivers. This territory with special natural-geographical conditions, in the eastern part of the Mississippi basin, was divided between two natural zones: forest in the northeast and steppe in the southwest, so there were favorable conditions for engaging in appropriative farming - hunting and gathering, as well as, subsequently, and highly productive agriculture.

The archaic history of this region is connected with the Paleolithic Clovis tradition, which existed in the XII-X millennium BC. e., and known for its special type of oblong stone tips. However, only in the middle of the 2nd millennium BC. e. Here, along the Mississippi, an area of ​​developed culture is formed, created by primitive hunters and gatherers, and scientifically called Woodland. By this time, ceramics first appeared here, the tradition of building burial mounds appeared here, copper products brought from the Great Lakes region appeared, as well as the beginnings of agriculture. At the turn of the era, truly monumental structures appeared within the Woodland culture - numerous earthen mounds - burial mounds up to 10 m high and more than 100 m long. Moreover, the mounds ceased to play the role of exclusively funerary buildings, but also became sanctuaries and foundations for the dwellings of the elite. Embankments of complex geometric shapes are built, for example, in the state of Ohio (USA), a complex of embankments with an area of ​​about 10 km2 was discovered, consisting of embankments in the shape of octagons, circles and simple lines.

All R. 1st millennium AD e. Based on the Woodland culture, the Mississippian cultural community is formed, which, borrowing much from its predecessors, creates one of the most developed societies in North America before the arrival of Europeans. Large proto-cities appeared in the Mississippi basin, which were the centers of simple political entities. They erected more monumental buildings - earthen mounds, which served as sanctuaries and burial places for the elite. Their population engaged in highly productive agriculture in the floodplains of large rivers and established economic and cultural connections, which connected the entire Mississippi basin, possibly reaching Mesoamerica.

The peak of the community's heyday occurred in the 10th–12th centuries. and is associated primarily with the development of the settlement of Cahokia, located at the confluence of the Mississippi and Missouri. In the 12th century. Cahokia's population was about 20 thousand people. Several dozen mounds were discovered on the territory of the settlement, including the large four-stage platform Manx Mound, more than 30 m high, and the settlement itself was surrounded by a powerful wall of larch logs. But in the XIII century. Cahokia declined and was replaced by other centers such as Moundville, Etowah and Spiro Mound. The tradition of building embankments of complex shapes continues, in particular, embankments in the shape of various animals have been discovered - Snakes, Crocodile Elephants. However, by the middle of the 15th century. The Mississippian cultural tradition finally fell into decline and by the time Europeans arrived here, practically nothing remained of its heritage.

Another important region of cultural development in North America was located in the southwest of the continent and became the basis for the formation of a community called the Pueblo culture (from Spanish pueblo - “settlement”). The southwest differed significantly in natural conditions from the Mississippi basin; these are arid areas in the southern spurs of the Cordillera (now the territories of the states of Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Colorado and Texas), most of which are covered with desert plateaus, cut by narrow canyons with small fertile valleys . It was here, in small oases surrounded by deserts and hostile semi-nomadic tribes of hunters and gatherers, that a special cultural community of farmers emerged, concentrated around grandiose residential complexes.

The cultural development of the region began around the end of the 2nd millennium BC. e., when the tradition of cultivating corn, beans and pumpkins penetrated here, then at the end of the 1st millennium BC. e. ceramic production appears, and then in the first centuries AD, settled settlements appear in the valleys of small rivers suitable for agriculture. Approximately in the VIII–X centuries. settlements increase in size, and permanent dwellings made of stone are built on their basis. Their inhabitants were engaged in highly productive agriculture using irrigation structures, making painted ceramics and wicker baskets. Sometimes the settlements were single multi-storey residential complexes with a complex layout, including living quarters for several tens and even hundreds of people, round sanctuaries - kivas, and other public buildings. The hostile environment forced the inhabitants of the valleys to build fortified settlements - either to surround them with walls, or to use the natural protection of rock overhangs, which are found in abundance in the canyons.

In total, several dozen large settlements were discovered. The peak of the culture's heyday came in the 10th–15th centuries, when grandiose settlements appeared, such as the structures of Chaco Canyon in Arizona, or Mesa Verde in southern Colorado. For example, the Pueblo Bonito site in Chaco Canyon was a complex of one to four story houses arranged in an amphitheater around a public ceremonial plaza. And Mesa Verde - a grandiose residential complex, with a dozen multi-story buildings, was built under a large rock overhang, at an altitude of 20 meters above the level of the floodplain of the stream at the bottom of the canyon, where there were agricultural lands. But in the very south of the cultural area, in the Sonoran Desert in the north of modern Mexico, a large settlement of Casas Grandes arose, which was a completely different urban center, with numerous monumental buildings and squares, sanctuaries and ball courts. Its appearance here is explained by the strong influence of Mesoamerican cultural traditions. In the 15th century Pueblo culture declines due to drought and under the blows of nomadic tribes. And by the time Europeans appeared in the South-West in the 18th century. from cultural heritage the inhabitants of the South-West were left only with their abandoned stone dwellings.

During the same period, in the northern part of South America, on the territory of modern Colombia, a number of cultures emerged that were closely related to the history of the colonization of this region by the Spaniards. At the northern tip of the Andes mountain range, bounded on the north by the Caribbean coast, on the west by the Pacific Ocean, and on the east by the tropical forests of the Orinoco basin, the main centers of cultural development were located in several vast mountain valleys, in particular on the plateau of Sabana de Bogota, located at an altitude of 2500 m above sea level. In the 2nd millennium BC. e. Early agricultural cultures were formed here, and at the end of the 1st millennium BC. e. Gold metallurgy and the tradition of making figured painted ceramics are spreading in the region. At the beginning of the 1st millennium AD. e. In the societies of the northern Andes, significant social changes occur and rich burials and the first examples of monumental architecture appear. The burials were completely different in their design, for example, in the Quimbaya culture, nobility were buried in shaft tombs up to 30 m deep, and in the San Agustin culture they built stone crypts, at the entrance to which monumental statues of deities and fantastic creatures were placed, and the body was placed in massive stone sarcophagi. Numerous gold jewelry was placed in the burials, but, unfortunately, not many complete burials have survived to this day.

But the greatest successes in processing precious metals were achieved by the Chibcha-Muisca and Tayrona tribes. At the end of the 1st millennium AD e. they created a complex society based on agriculture, with populous settlements, powerful leaders, developed crafts and trade. The Muscovite and Tayrona cultures survived until the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors in South America at the beginning of the 16th century. During the conquest of the Muisca region by the Spaniards in 1537–1538. under the leadership of Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada, one of the rituals of the Muisca leaders became the basis for the appearance of the most incredible legend of the conquest era about El Dorado - the “Golden Man”. According to legend, one of the Muisca leaders, Guatavita, performed a daily ritual of ablution in the waters of a mountain lake, covering himself from head to toe with gold dust, and brought gifts to the gods by throwing golden objects into the water. Muisca gold items subsequently found actually depict ceremonies in which the leader, surrounded by his entourage, floats on a raft to perform a ritual. In reality, such a ritual was performed only once in the life of a leader, when he assumed power. But the legend was so firmly ingrained in the minds of the conquistadors, for whom the new unexplored continent was invariably associated with countless treasures, that the legend of El Dorado was born, the country where the “Golden Man” rules - a ruler who daily showers himself with golden sand, where there is so much gold, that the houses are built of golden bricks and the streets are paved with golden cobblestones. And, guided by this legend, numerous detachments of conquistadors until the end of the 18th century. unsuccessfully searched for this mythical country in the mountain spurs of the Andes and the wilds of the Amazon, until, finally, at the beginning of the 19th century. the legend was not completely dispelled by European naturalists.

Civilization of pre-Columbian America Inca

Introduction

Scientists are deeply engaged in the study of the three most striking civilizations, whose history goes back hundreds of years - these are the ancient civilizations of the Aztecs, Incas and Mayans.

Each of these civilizations has left for us a lot of evidence of its existence, from which we can judge the era of their heyday and sudden decline or partial disappearance altogether.

Each culture contains a huge cultural layer that has been studied and is still being studied, expressed in the works of architecture, writing, in the remains of craft art, as well as in the language that has come down to us.

But the fate of these cultures is only a preface to a huge book, all the pages of which, it would seem, have long been torn out and lost. What happened to the great ancient American states that were ruthlessly conquered by the Spaniards? What kind of peoples inhabited America before the Incas or Aztecs?

Every time we encounter an ancient culture Latin America and not rarely with modern times, we find a lot of interesting things in it and even more that are unsolved and surrounded by an aura of mysticism. Just look at the myth about the fairyland "El Dorado". Many fragments of the distant era of the existence of the Inca, Aztec and Mayan civilizations, unfortunately, have been lost forever, but much remains that we are directly in contact with, but it also gives us ways to unravel much, sometimes inexplicable, to us, modern people, regarding art in general those distant worlds.

The problem of studying these ancient cultures until recently was the “closedness to the eyes and minds of scientists around the world” of Lat itself. America. With great obstacles and intervals during breaks, work related to excavations and searches for architectural treasures was and is being carried out. Only recently, with the exception of literary information, has access to territories and places associated with the habitation of ancient tribes and peoples been expanded.

Among the ancient civilizations of America we can distinguish the Aztecs, Mayans and Incas. The roots of these great civilizations are lost in the mists of time. Much remains unknown about them, but it is known that they reached a high level of development. The Mayans, Aztecs and Incas had enormous achievements in astronomy, medicine, mathematics, architecture and road construction.

History of the Inca civilization

The Incas (more correctly Inca) are the creators of one of the most ancient civilizations in South America. Initially an Indian tribe of the Quechua linguistic family, which lived in the 11th-13th centuries on the territory of modern Peru, later the dominant layer, as well as the supreme ruler in the state of Tawantinsuyu formed by them (15th century). They achieved a highly developed social system without even mastering the wheel. A highly developed road system helped maintain the integrity of the geographically extensive state. The Incas performed complex surgical operations and mastered the art of mummification. They built stone buildings without using cement, and their buildings withstood earthquakes that destroyed later Spanish buildings to the foundation. And, nevertheless, having a powerful centralized state, they were conquered by a small handful of Spaniards.

The history of the Incas begins with a legend that was passed down from mouth to mouth among the Incas - once the first Inca - Manco Capac and his sister-wife Mama Oklo, fulfilling the sacred will of their great father Sun-Inca, came out of the waters of the protected Lake Titicaca to create huge country, where they will worship their divine father, who gave them a magic rod, which was supposed to find the best place to build a city, which would become the capital of a new great empire. Empire of the Sun.

That's right, with legendary first Inca, the son of the Sun, and the dynasty of Inca rulers began, each of whom expanded the boundaries of the empire. There are twelve successors to the legendary first Inca. Their reign lasted almost two hundred years, until the Inca Pachacuti appeared on the horizon of history; based on his biography, it was safe to write novels and make feature films. He was the youngest son of the Inca governor of the city of Cusco. It is with him that the creation of a new history of the Incas is connected - according to legend, Pacachuli ordered the destruction of all previous “documents” as unworthy of the great Inca empire. Many even translate his name - Pakachuli - as the Incan name “The end of the old and the beginning of a new era”, and everything that the previous Incas did before has practically sunk into oblivion without a trace, we are left with only names, dates and legends that have come down through third hands. But, as compensation for the disappeared history, Pakachuli ordered that all his actions be recorded in detail. This is what all his heirs subsequently did.

In the retelling of his descendants, whose blood had already mixed with the noble Spanish, gradually giving rise to a new nation, in 1438, the first year of his reign, the Inca Empire found a new capital and a new history. The empire even had a new position as an official historian - usually one of the ruler’s relatives, who carefully and diligently described his new campaigns and victorious battles. It was then that the Inca army began to capture the shores of Lake Titicaca. The Incas took possession of thousands of herds of llamas and alpacas. It was not only meat, but also transport and clothing. It is no coincidence that Pakachuli declared these herds the property of the ruler. This was the beginning of the Zloty Age of the Incas.

After his death, he was succeeded on the throne by his son, the Inca Tupac Yupanqui, who became a great commander and successful conquering emperor. He was replaced by his nephew, Huayna Capac. It was these three Inca rulers who created the great Inca Empire, on whose lands more than ten million people lived. During its short heyday, it surpassed the famous Roman Empire in military power.

The Incas were smart rulers who planned their actions decades in advance. So the seizure of neighbors' territories was as bloodless as possible, without massacres and conflagrations. The Incas were thrifty even about their future potential possessions, preferring, unlike the Spaniards, living villagers to devastated desert lands.

The Incas had no money and therefore the state took upon itself all the care of warehouses with food and clothing, placing on its shoulders the need to promptly supply its subjects with everything necessary for life in all the nooks and crannies of this huge empire. And the Incas really succeeded; even ordinary inhabitants of the empire were never left without food and clothing during crop failures. In the Inca Empire, there were special reserves - in case of war, crop failure, natural disasters, and even to help the poor, the elderly and the disabled. Special storage facilities contained supplies of maize, clothing, weapons and much more for decades to come. Reserves that the Incas never managed to use and which for the most part went to the ungrateful Spaniards. The Incas even had a semblance of the future science of statistics - the entire population was divided into age groups, and the load on each person was calculated, corresponding to his capabilities.

The Inca Empire combined such seemingly incompatible things as the deification of the Great Inca and some rules of socialism; iron discipline– labor was obligatory, everyone had to work. Even all sowing and harvesting began with the personal example of the great Inca in Cuzco. To perform heavy work (in mines, coca planting and public construction) and serve in the Inca army, a special forced service called mita was assigned. It was carried by healthy men in the prime of life and lasted three months of the year.

When the supreme Inca, a descendant of the “divine sun,” died, according to tradition, his body was embalmed and the mummy was left in his palace. The new ruler was forced to build himself a new palace, and the legal wife of the Supreme Inca could only be his sister, and all the other hundreds of his women were only concubines, of whom the most beautiful were considered young beautiful virgins - “Brides of the Sun.” To select them, a special government official traveled even to the most remote places of the empire, choosing among the ten-year-old the most beautiful and most perfect girls, who were then taught the art of cooking for four years, and then the best of the girls were again chosen, who became the “brides of the sun.” They had to preserve their virginity, which only the great Inca himself “had the right to violate.”

The trouble that destroyed the empire came from within - when the ruler Huayn Capac suddenly died, his eldest legitimate son Huascar took the throne. But in another city, his half-brother Atahualpa thirsted for power, and in the struggle for the Incas throne, more than 150 thousand people died, most of the relatives of both rulers were destroyed and the best commanders were killed. And then the last ruler of the great Inca empire, Atahualpa, was captured by the detachment of Francisco Pissaro. The emperor of a great empire was captured by a ruthless man who until recently had been a despised, illiterate, simple Spanish swineherd. And this man managed to outwit the ruler of almost an entire continent, forcing him to pay a monstrous ransom, but by taking the gold, Pissaro still broke his word and “condemned” the now unnecessary Inca ruler to death.

The magnificent gold jewelry, unmatched in craftsmanship and design, from the ransom received was melted down. The Indians again and again rose to fight the strangers - but now everything was useless. When some of them fought the Spaniards, other tribes and cities helped the Spaniards, hoping with the help of someone else's unprecedented weapons and terrifying horses to seize the throne of the great Incas and destroy their competitors, to avenge their murdered relatives. The settling of scores between the Incas had gone too far - no one believed anyone. Many Inca leaders in the fight against the Spaniards turned out to be capable students - they began to adopt their tactics. So, having recaptured the horses from the Spaniards, the Indians started up their own cavalry and even artillery, forcing the captured Spaniards to shoot their relatives from their own cannons. But this could no longer help - there were too many greedy strangers in the land of the Incas. So, in a few decades, the great Inca Empire became just history.

Even before the Incas achieved their power, several other cultures flourished in the vast Andean region. The first hunters and fishermen appeared here at least 12,000 years ago, and by 3000 BC. e. fishing villages dotted this entire waterless coastline. Small rural communities arose in the fertile valleys at the foot of the Andes and green oases in the desert.

Thousands of years later, larger ones penetrated deeper into the territory. social groups of people. After overcoming the high mountain peaks, they began to settle on the eastern slopes of the range, using the same irrigation techniques they had developed on the coast to irrigate their fields and harvest their crops. Around the temple complexes arose settlements, and artisans produced increasingly complex pottery and textiles.

Archaeologists classify the products of Andean artisans according to the time and geographical period of their distribution. For this purpose, the term “horizons” is used to identify the main stages of stylistic uniformity, broken by certain features, from the point of view of aesthetics and technology.

Early horizon: 1400-400 BC.

Early Intermediate Period: 400 BC - 550 AD

Middle horizon: 550-900 AD

Late Intermediate Period: 900-1476 AD

Early colonial period: 1532 - 1572 AD

Fall of the Inca Empire

Francisco Pissarro arrived in America in 1502 in search of fortune. He served for seven years in the Caribbean, participating in military campaigns against the Indians.

In 1524, Pissaro, together with Diego de Almagro and the priest Hernando de Luque, organized an expedition through the undiscovered territories of South America. But its participants fail to find anything interesting.

In 1526, a second expedition took place, during which Pissaro exchanged gold from local residents. During this expedition, three Incas were captured by the Spaniards in order to make them translators. This expedition turned out to be very difficult; they suffered from illness and hunger.

In 1527, Pissaro arrived in the Inca city of Tumbes. From the locals he learns about the large amounts of gold and silver decorating the gardens and temples in the depths of their lands. Realizing that military forces are needed to obtain these riches, Pissarro travels to Spain and turns to Charles V for help. He talks about the countless treasures of the Incas, which can be quite easily obtained. Charles V gives Pissaro the title of governor and captain of governor in all the lands that he can conquer and control.

Even before the Spanish conquest began, the Incas suffered from the arrival of Europeans on their continent. Black smallpox wiped out entire families of natives who had no immunity to it.

Around this time, Huayna Capaca (Sapa Inca) dies. The highest government position should go to one of the sons from the main wife. The son who, in the opinion of the monarch, could cope better with his responsibilities was chosen. In Cusco, the capital of the Incas, the nobility proclaims the new Sapa Inca - Huascara, which means "sweet hummingbird".

The problem was that last years The previous Sapa Inca spent his life in Quito. As a result, most of the court lived in Quito. The city became a second capital, dividing the tribal leaders into two rival factions. The army stationed in Quito gave preference to Huayna Capac's other son, Atahualpa, which means "wild turkey." He spent most of his life next to his father on the battlefields. He was a man of keen intelligence. Later, the Spaniards were surprised at the speed with which he mastered the game of chess. At the same time, he was merciless, evidence of which could be the fear of the courtiers to incur his wrath.

Atahualpa showed loyalty to the new Sapa Inca. But he refused to come to his brother’s court, perhaps fearing that Huascar saw him as a dangerous rival. Eventually, Sapa Inca demanded his brother's presence at his side at court. Refusing the invitation, Atahualpa sent ambassadors with expensive gifts in his place. Huascar, perhaps influenced by courtiers hostile to his brother, tortured his brother's men. Having killed them, he marched his army to Quito, ordering Atahualpa to be taken by force to Cuzco. Atahualpa called his loyal warriors to arms.

At first, the Cuzco army even managed to capture the rebellious brother. But he managed to escape and join his own. In battle, Atahualpa defeated those who captured him. Huascar urgently gathers a second army and sends it to his brother. The poorly trained recruits were no match for Atahualpa's veterans, and were defeated in a two-day battle.

As a result, Atahualpa captured Huascar and triumphantly entered Cuzco, after which a brutal massacre was carried out against the wives, friends and advisers of the unlucky brother.

In 1532, Pissaro and Almagro returned to Tumbes along with 160 well-armed adventurers. In place of the once flourishing city, they found only ruins. He suffered greatly from the epidemic, and then from civil war. For five months, Pissaro moved along the coast, plundering imperial warehouses along the way.

As a result, Pissaro goes to the court of Atahualpa. Nine of his men, frightened by the prospect of being stranded in mountainous Inca territory, turned back.

The Spaniards were surprised by the Inca roads, paved with stone slabs, with trees planted along the edges creating shade, as well as canals lined with stone.

Having learned about the movement of white people within his country, Atahualpa invites them to visit him. From the words of the ambassador, he realized that the Spaniards looked and were friendly. During the meeting with the ambassador, Pissarro made gifts to the monarch and spoke a lot about peace.

Pissaro placed his men in an open space in the main square of the city of Cajamarca. He sent Hernando de Soto to pay his respects to Atahualpa, so that he would try to seduce him with his offer to meet in person.

Atahualpa reproached the Spaniards for plundering his warehouses and for neglecting some Indians on the coast. To which the Spaniards began to praise their military art and offered to use their services. Atahualpa agrees to pay a visit to Pissaro in Cajamarca.

During this meeting, Hernando de Soto wanted to scare Atahualpa and almost ran over him on his horse, stopping in close proximity to him, so that drops of the horse’s saliva fell on the Inca’s clothes. But Atahualpa did not flinch. He later ordered the execution of those courtiers who showed fear.

Pissaro, following the example of Cortes, who conquered powerful empire The Aztecs, with the help of kidnapping the emperor, began to prepare their ambush.

At night, Atahualpa sent 5,000 warriors to block the road north of Cajamarca. According to the plan he developed, as he later admitted to the Spaniards, he wanted to capture Pissaro and all his warriors alive in order to sacrifice Inti to the Sun God, and leave their horses for breeding.

At dawn, Pissaro placed his men in the buildings around the square. The wait was agonizing for the Spaniards, since the tenfold numerical superiority of the Incas was frightening and overwhelming. Later, as one of the eyewitnesses admitted, “many Spaniards unconsciously urinated in their pants because of the horror that shackled them.”

At sunset, the imperial procession approached the square. Atahualpa was carried by 80 servants on a wooden stretcher inlaid with gold and decorated on all sides with parrot feathers. The monarch, dressed in clothes with gold threads and all decorated, sat holding in his hands a golden shield with a heraldic image of the Sun. There were also dancers and musicians accompanying them. His retinue numbered more than 5,000 warriors (the main forces, about 80,000 warriors, were outside the city). They all came without weapons.

In the square they saw only one Dominican monk in a cassock with a cross in one hand and a Bible in the other hand. The Royal Council in Spain decided that pagans should be given the opportunity to convert to Christianity voluntarily, without bloodshed, and the conquistadors decided not to break the letter of the law. The monk explained the meaning of the Christian faith to the Inca ruler, and the translator explained to him that he was being asked to accept the religion of foreigners. “You say that your God accepted death,” Atahualpa responded to this, “but mine still lives,” he emphasized, pointing to the Sun creeping beyond the horizon.

Atahualpa took the prayer book handed to him. As far as he understood, the Spaniards valued this thing as much as the Huaca Indians, a talisman in which the spirit of the gods was found. But this object seemed like a toy to him compared to their huge stone “huaca”, which the Incas worshiped, so he threw it to the ground. According to eyewitnesses, after this the monk turned to Pissaro and told him and his men: “You can attack them after this. I forgive you all your sins in advance.”

Pissaro gave the signal to attack. Two cannons fired into the crowd of Indians. Spanish horsemen rode out of the buildings in full armor and attacked the unarmed Inca warriors. They were followed by infantrymen to the sound of trumpets with a battle cry - “Santiago!” (the name of the saint who, according to the Spaniards, helps to defeat the enemy).

It was a brutal massacre of unarmed Indians. Pissaro had difficulty pulling Atahualpa out of her. Within a few hours, 6,000 Inca warriors died in and around Cajamarca, but not a single Spaniard was killed. Among the few wounded was Pissaro himself, who was wounded by his own soldier when he tried to break through to the royal enemy in order to capture him alive.

Many researchers tried to understand why Atahualpa made such a fatal mistake by approaching the Spaniards with unarmed warriors. Perhaps the leader did not even consider this scenario, when such a small detachment would try to attack his huge army. Or he believed in the Spaniards' speeches about peace.

In captivity, Atahualpa was allowed to retain all royal privileges. All his wives and servants were near him. The nobles came to him and carried out his orders. In less than a month, he learned to speak Spanish and even write a little.

Realizing that white people were attracted to gold, he decided to pay off, offering to fill the rooms he was in with gold for his freedom, and also “stuff the Indian hut with silver twice.” Instead of releasing Atahualpa, he signed his death sentence with such a proposal. By ordering all the gold in Cuzco to be plucked and delivering it to the Spaniards, he only inflamed their passion for precious metal. At the same time, fearing that his brother might offer even more gold for his freedom, he ordered his execution. The Incas did not perceive gold and silver as something valuable. To them it was just beautiful metal. They called gold “sweat of the Sun,” and silver “tears of the Moon.” Fabrics were valuable to them because they took a lot of time to make.

The Spaniards began to suspect that Atahualpa was plotting against them. This created panicky fear in their ranks. Pissaro for a long time opposed the mood of his compatriots. But in the end, panic broke his decisive spirit.

Atahualpa began to realize the inevitability of his death. His religion guaranteed him eternal life if the ritual was performed correctly.

At a meeting of the council, headed by Pissaro himself, it was decided to burn Atahualpa. When the Spaniards informed the leader of their decision, he burst into tears. Destruction of the body meant deprivation of immortality.

Before his death, the monk once again tried to convert the pagan to the Christian faith. Realizing that if he converted to Christianity, he would not be burned, but strangled with a garrote (a hoop with a screw to slowly strangle the victim), he agreed to undergo the initiation rite, assuming that the body would be handed over to the people for mummification. But the Spaniards deceived him here too. After the leader was strangled, they burned his clothes and part of his body at the stake. They buried the rest.

Pissaro understood the benefits that a local ruler under Spanish control would offer him. He chose Huayna Capac's son, Manco Inca. When the Spaniards arrived in Cusco, they were greeted as well-wishers who had restored the legitimate ruling branch of the Incas, although all the mummies were safely hidden before their appearance.

The conquistadors were not distinguished by their generosity and humiliated Manco in every possible way, showing a disregard for the customs of the Incas. The worst happened when Pissaro went to the ocean coast to found the new capital of Lima. He left his brothers Gonzalo and Juan in charge. Gonzalo treated Manco with undisguised contempt. Having kidnapped his beloved wife, he abused her.

The atrocities committed by the Spaniards led to Manco flatly refusing to cooperate and attempting to leave Cusco. The Spaniards returned him to the capital in chains. In conclusion, they were subjected to various kinds of humiliation.

As a result, Manco persuades one of Francisco's brothers, Hernando, who had recently arrived in Cusco from Spain, to release him temporarily from prison so that he could pray in the sanctuary, for which he promised to give him a golden statue depicting his father. As soon as Manco got out of Cuzco, he called his people to revolt. The matter ended with the siege of Cuzco, which lasted almost whole year. During this siege, there were traitors among the Indians, both in Cuzco and beyond, who secretly carried food to the invaders. Among them were even relatives of Manco himself, who were afraid of reprisals for their previous support of the Europeans from the new ruler. The hopelessness of the siege became clear when reinforcements arrived from Spain. Some of Manco's supporters even broke away from him, realizing that the good moment had been missed.

After the failure of the siege of Cuzco, Manco took 20,000 of his compatriots with him into the dense jungle. There they built a new city, Vilcabamba, in a short time. It covered an area of ​​about two square miles and contained about three hundred houses and sixty monumental structures. There were convenient roads and canals.

From this city the Incas sometimes launched raids against the conquerors, attacking outposts. In 1572, the Spaniards decided to put an end to this last stronghold, as evidence of the former power of the natives. Having reached Vilcabamba, they found only deserted ruins on the site of the city. The defenders burned it down before leaving the city. The Spaniards continued the chase, penetrating further and further into the jungle. As a result, they captured the last Inca leader Tupac Amaru. He was brought to Cusco and beheaded in the city square. This is how the dynasty of Inca rulers ended.

The result of the fifty-year stay of the Spaniards was a reduction in the indigenous population by three-quarters. Many died from diseases brought from the Old World, and many from hard labor.

Huge amounts of gold and silver were exported to Spain. Objects of art were usually melted down before export. The most beautiful products were delivered to the court of Charles V, then they were exhibited for public viewing in Seville. When Charles began to lack funds for military campaigns, these outstanding works of Inca art were ordered to be melted down.

Conclusion

Studying the Incas and their culture, the richness of their traditions and the solidity of the experience they accumulated during the period of their existence becomes clear and visible.

And yet it is worth thinking deeply about who the Incas were? Based on the fact that world scientists cannot give a clear answer to many phenomena of this ancient civilization, and most importantly, cannot give an explanation for the level of its development in those times. In fact, it is surprising that in an era when Europe was only dreaming of many discoveries in the field of various sciences, there, on the American continent, there already existed civilizations that had long since stepped over the barrier of many scientific achievements and developed at a much faster pace than Europe did it. It is also noteworthy that in the world of ancient civilizations of America, the primitiveness of morals bordered on extraordinary awareness in a variety of sciences, the appearance of many of which in a society of this type did not fit into the consciousness of the minds of the Europeans of that time, and indeed, even now it is even more difficult for us to understand this paradox of the ancients civilizations.

A person is always driven by a feeling of insufficient knowledge, and he will never stop studying various phenomena if even one drop of incomprehensible remains. Apparently this is the nature of the human mind.

The lack of real evidence and explanations for certain phenomena of ancient culture itself gives rise to more and more new research searches towards the subject of study, because it cannot be otherwise.

The ancient civilizations of America remain a storehouse of knowledge for all areas scientific world. Ethnographers discover a lot of little-studied or not-studied-at-all tribes and peoples living in remote areas of the Amazon River basin. Historians and archaeologists, through archaeological finds and other evidence, discover unknown episodes of history for themselves and for the world ancient world America. Evidence of this can be the fact of the attention of scientists and the pilgrimage of tourists to the cities of Machu Picchu and Cusco, the ancient capital of the Inca Empire.

Bibliography

To prepare this work, materials from the site were used /archive/history.alltheuniverse/

Introduction - - - - - - - 1

History of the Inca civilization - - - - - - - 2

1. Early horizon: 1400 - 400 BC. - - - - - - - 5

   Early Intermediate Period: 400 BC - 550 AD - - - - - - - 6

   Middle horizon: 550 - 900 AD . - - - - - - - 7

   Late Intermediate (Coastal): 900 - 1476 AD - - - - - - 8

   Late Intermediate Period (mountainous regions): 900 - 1476 AD - - - - - 9

   Late horizon: 1476 - 1532 AD - - - - - - - 10

   Early colonial period: 1532 - 1572 AD - - - - - - - 11

Inca Army- - - - - - - 12

Religion - - - - - - - 13

1. Hierarchy of the Incas clergy - - - - - - - 13

   Theology rooted in the natural history of the world - - - - - - - 15

   Respect for the "living" stone - - - - - - - 16

   The art of working with metal - - - - - - - 17

Fall of the Inca Empire - - - - - - - 18

Conclusion - - - - - - - 23

Bibliography - - - - - - - 24

RUSSIAN STATE SOCIAL UNIVERSITY abstract in the subject “History of World Civilizations”

Inca Empire

Prepared by a 4th year student Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, specialty "journalism" Lyubov Bezukladnikova Incas Literature

1. Features and main historical stages in the development of pre-Columbian America.

2. Religious ideas.

3. Scientific knowledge.

4. Writing and literature.

5. Architecture and fine arts.

1. Features and main historical stages in the development of pre-Columbian America

The peoples of pre-Columbian America were geographically isolated for several millennia. As a result, although culture developed according to general laws, it was characterized by a time lag from the main world civilizations and slower development. European colonization effectively destroyed and destroyed Indian civilizations and led to their oblivion, which created the need to rediscover them.

The origins of the ancestors of Latin Americans still remain a mystery. Basically, modern researchers believe that America did not belong to the centers of anthropogenesis, and its primary population penetrated here at the end of the Paleolithic of North-East Asia 30-25 thousand years ago as a result of several waves of migration. The ancestors of the American Indians inhabited vast areas and split into a large number of linguistic families and isolated groups. There is a lot of debate in science about the possible connections of America with other parts of the world in the pre-Columbian period.

The reasons for relocation to America could be climate change, depletion of local vital resources, and population growth during favorable climatic periods.

There are several periods in the cultural history of pre-Columbian America.

Paleo-Indian period(XXV-VIII millennium BC). is characterized by the development of stone tools from cores, scrapers, and pointed points with one-sided processing to flint blades processed on both sides with perfect and thorough pressing retouch, which have longitudinal narrow grooves along both surfaces. People are united in small nomadic groups with non-stationary (seasonal) stops. They were engaged in gathering, hunting first small and then large animals.

From the 8th to the middle of the 2nd millennium BC. - archaic period. The basis of the economy, as before, was hunting and gathering, but the tools of labor were improved: stone grinding was used, mortars and grain grinders appeared. Agriculture began, although most of the plants remained in the wild. A fabric was invented that was made from cotton. The dead were cremated or mummified. An original way of preparing hot dishes appeared: boil food in baskets made of wood, bark and skins. Such a vessel was filled with water, into which stones previously heated on a fire were lowered with wooden tongs.

The period between the 2nd millennium BC. and I century. AD got the name formative or protoclassical. It is characterized by the final transition to a sedentary lifestyle, which is due to the emergence of intensive forms of agriculture. Irrigation canals, dams, and dams were built. Later life led to the invention and development of ceramics, as well as to the formation of the art of sculpture, the appearance of the first pyramids. Various crafts developed rapidly, active process class stratification, the formation of the foundations of scientific knowledge. As a result of important economic and cultural changes, mass colonization of new lands became possible, and large centers of social life were formed.

The subsequent so-called classical period(I-IX centuries AD) was characterized by the emergence and development of early class states. The material basis of the societies was intensive slash-and-burn and irrigated agriculture, various varieties of corn, zucchini, pumpkins, tomatoes, cotton, tobacco, etc. were grown. In the early class states, the bulk of the population - communal farmers - were mercilessly exploited; the states waged endless wars in order to seize spoils and slaves. In addition to the secular nobility, the priests were distinguished by their extraordinary power. The main political and administrative unit were city-states or associations of city-states, among which Teotihuacan, Xochicalco, Tajin, Tikal, Palenque, Copan and others stood out. The ethnic composition of these formations is practically unknown. The despotic form of government and the closely associated deification of the king and royal power became widespread. Developed craft production. The Indians of this period knew gold, silver, and copper, which were subjected to complex processing techniques to make jewelry and tools. Great importance acquired scientific knowledge. Art has become a weapon of social struggle.

IN post-classical period(X - early 16th centuries) the vast majority of huge city-states ceased to exist, new political and cultural centers were formed. The Aztec kingdom with its center in Tenochtitlan (modern Mexico City), the slave-owning despotic Inca state of Tahuantinsuyu, the Mayan - Toltec state with the capital of Chichen Itza, and then Mayapan as the largest state formations were formed. Internecine wars led to the formation of a number of small city-states that were at war with each other. Signs of the process of cultural degradation, which was intensified by a wave of uprisings and epidemics, began to clearly appear.

At the end of the 15th - beginning of the 16th centuries. The territory of Latin America becomes the object of colonial expansion of a number of European states as a result of great geographical discoveries. Colonial conquests were accompanied by robbery, enslavement and extermination of the indigenous population, and the destruction of their cultural values. Trying to strengthen their dominance in the occupied lands, the colonialists intensively implanted their religions (mainly Catholicism) and language. So-called conquest period continued until the end of the XVIII - first quarter of the XIX century, when national Latin American states emerged during the liberation struggle.

At the beginning of the 19th century. In Europe, under the influence of reports, memoirs and diaries of famous navigators and explorers, Indian studies arose as a complex of sciences that study the history, literature, languages, folklore, art, ethnic characteristics, and socio-economic problems of the American Indians of the pre-Columbian period and modern times.

2. Religious beliefs

By the time of the discovery of Latin America by H. Columbus, there were many religious cults (with the exception of monotheistic ones), beliefs and rituals that had developed in various ethno-social groups of the indigenous population. Totemism, which distorted the blood ties of the Indian primitive community, became widespread. As a relic of totemism, the ancient Peruvians revered the puma, condor, hawk, fish, octopus, monkeys, corn, potatoes, etc.

A specific feature of Indian mythology is the presence of many myths about the old and new homeland, due to the numerous migrations of Indian tribes and the corresponding processes of ethnogenesis. This Aztec translation is about the exit of the Aztecs from the mythical homeland of Aztlan. At the direction of the god Huitzilopochtli, led by their “prophets,” the Aztecs set out on a long journey to find a new homeland in the place where they would meet an eagle sitting on a cactus and devouring a snake. Having reached the Mexican valley several generations later, they saw a prophesied sign on one of the islands of the mountain lake Texcoco and founded Tenochtitlan, which became the capital of the powerful kingdom of the Aztecs. Often in myths, the search for a new homeland is associated with sea and overseas navigation. Cosmogonic myths convey the idea of ​​the multiple act of creation of the world; in a primitive form, they contain the concept of the universe as a phenomenon that arises at a certain moment and develops according to certain laws, which are perceived as the will of the gods. Many Indian peoples have myths about the structure of the world. In ancient Mayan mythology, the universe consists of 13 heavenly and 9 underworlds. In the religious cosmology of the most developed tribes, concepts close to the concept of hell and heaven arose; there were myths and prophecies about the final fate of humanity, the destruction of worlds, kingdoms and peoples.

In the mythology of the ancient Mexican peoples (Toltecs, Aztecs, etc.), history is divided into eras; Each era ends with the death of the Sun, Earth and humanity. In Aztec mythology during the 1st era, the Sun was the god Tezcatlipoca, and the Earth was inhabited by giants. This era ended with the extermination of the giants by ocelots. The 2nd era, when the god Quetzalcoatl was the Sun, ended with hurricanes that destroyed the world, as well as the transformation of people into monkeys. At the end of the 3rd era, the world and people were destroyed by a giant fire. The flood destroyed the 4th world, turning people into fish. The 5th (modern) era will end with an earthquake, from which the Earth, the Sun, and people will perish.

The mythologies reflected the remnants of matriarchy, which manifested themselves in a significant number of goddesses and female ancestors.

A very complex and rich pantheon of the classical period. At first these were local deities, which, with the growth of tribal and state associations, merged into one genealogical system. The pantheon includes groups of gods of fertility and water, hunting gods, deities of fire, stars and planets, death, war, etc. At the end of the classical period, the peoples of Central America created a complex of myths based on ideas about the need to regularly support the life of deities with human blood. Particular importance was attached to “feeding” the sun god so that he could perform his daily journey across the sky. In 1486, in the Aztec capital Tenochtitlan, a temple (pyramid) was erected, on the top of which, in honor of the god of the sun and war, Huitzilopochtli, mass human sacrifices were performed twice a year (usually prisoners of war were sacrificed). Scenes of the sacrifice of captives are depicted in the “temple of paintings” of the Mayan cult center of Bonampak.

Magic rituals, both individual and group, were widespread. The complication of social relations and the formation of a tribal structure led to the emergence of the cult of a tribal god. When a tribal union was formed, among the gods the god of the tribe that occupied a dominant position in the union gradually stood out. This process of the rise of the gods intensified with the development of tribal unions into a state. Contradictions between individual tribes, tribal unions, and the formation of despotic states caused a hidden and open opposition between the cult of some gods and the cult of others. The gradual strengthening of the despot's power gave rise, at first, to a weak and then an increasingly noticeable tendency towards monotheism.

With the transition of some Indians to agriculture, their belief in gods and spirits who patronized agricultural work consisted.

The emergence of astral cults was caused by the desire of the Indians to explain the relationship between the periodicity of dry and rainy periods, the ripening of the harvest with the location of the heavenly bodies.

The drama concentrated in the Mayan prophecy about the conquest is striking, which speaks of the arrival of white people with red beards as messengers of the white god, the children of the Sun. They will come from the East, "fire will flash at the ends of their hands" (firearms), they will bring depravity, they will accumulate many stones and logs, put them in prisons, hang rulers with ropes, their teaching is only about sin.

Mythological subjects are reflected in many works of art. Some myths were used by European colonialists to conquer the Indians.

3. Science knowledge

The formation of science among the peoples of pre-Columbian America is inextricably linked with the historical process of their economic, cultural and socio-political development. The individual peoples who inhabited this territory, in ancient times, achieved significant success in the development of a number of branches of knowledge: the technology of growing and selecting many crops using irrigation and natural fertilizers, the invention of a counting and writing system, and a calendar; construction of large religious and defense structures, laying paved roads, creating irrigation systems, mining and smelting of metals, jewelry, shipbuilding (pies, canoes), making rope and textile fibers, weaving and other crafts.

During the centuries-long development of pre-Columbian America, the Indian peoples accumulated a wealth of knowledge, especially in astronomy and mathematics, medicine, a variety of practical information on construction equipment, blacksmithing and metal welding, geography, meteorology, climatology, seismology, etc. The development of this knowledge was closely related to religious cult.

Calendar systems were the most accurate of all created by ancient civilizations.

The ancient Mayan chronology system was based on mathematical calculations and astronomical observations, which were embodied in the original calendar. The Mayan calendar arose primarily from agricultural needs. Later it acquired a mysterious mystical character, becoming the basis of the Mayan religious cult. Its accuracy can be evidenced by the following information: the length of the year, according to modern data, is 365.2422 days; ancient Julian year - 365.2510 days; modern Gregorian year - 365.2425 days; Mayan year is 365.2420 days. For the Mayans from the city of Copan, the synodic month - the period of time between equal phases of the moon - was 29.53020 days, and from the city of Palenque - 29.53086 days. According to modern data, this value is 29.53059 days, i.e. lies between the values ​​determined from Copan and Palenque. As we can see, the ancient inhabitants of Central America used a calendar with accuracy adequate to the modern one.

The Mayan year consisted of 18 months of 20 days each. In the Mayan language, the time periods were called: 20 days - vinal; 18 vinals - tun; a tun was equal to 360 kin (days). To align the solar year, 5 days were added - mayeb (unfavorable, unhappy). It was believed that on this 5th day the year “dies”; on these days the ancient Mayans did nothing so as not to bring trouble upon themselves.

The tun was not the last unit of time in the Mayan calendar. With an increase of 20 times, cycles began to form: 20 tuns - katun; 20 katuns - baktun; 20 baktun - piktun; 20 pictuns - kalabtun; 20 kalabtuns - kinchiltun, etc.

The largest cycle - Alautun - was 23040000000 days or kiniv (suns). that is, 63,081,429 years, which is about a third of a galactic year - the time it takes the Sun to revolve around the center of our galaxy. This is the most long period, which is recorded in the time counting systems of our civilization (humanity). Its origin is unknown.

All dates have a single starting point. We would call it “Year One,” from which the Mayan countdown begins. According to our chronology, it falls on September 7, 3113 BC, or, according to another correlation system, on October 13, 3373 BC. These dates are close to the first year of the Hebrew calendar, which falls in 3761 BC.

The Mayans skillfully combined 2 calendars: haab - solar, consisting of 365 days, and Tzolkin - religious, consisting of 260 days. With this combination, the cycle consisted of 18,890 days (52 years), only at the end of which the name and number of the day again coincided with the same name of the month. This would be true if November 15 necessarily fell on Thursday every time.

The Aztecs also had a similar calendar. Various calendar systems also existed among other peoples of Ancient America.

Such a significant development of astronomical science would not have been possible without a perfectly developed counting system. The Mayans created a 20-digit counting system from 0 to 19, which made it possible to record an infinite number of quantities and carry out complex calculations.

Medical knowledge was also deep, especially in the field of dentistry and surgery, which in many ways surpassed the knowledge of European doctors of that era. With the help of the surgical instruments of that time, complex operations were performed, including craniotomy. The Indian pharmacopoeia used quinine, cocaine, papaya juice, etc.

In the states of the Mayans, Aztecs, and Incas, there were relatively developed legal systems that were based on legal codes. Philosophical ideas about the world and man's place in it were integral part spiritual culture. In philosophical teachings one encounters the idea of ​​four primary elements (fire, water, earth, wind) and the concept of struggle as the cause of cosmic changes.

Thus, some of the peoples who inhabited Ancient America achieved significant success in the development of a number of branches of knowledge in the pre-Columbian period.

4. Writing and literature

One of the important results of the process of cultural development was the formation of various writing systems among some peoples of pre-Columbian America.

An interesting example of primitive “writing” in the Andean region was “knot writing” - a quipu, which is a cloth or stick with multi-colored cords tied to them (the color was given a symbolic meaning) on ​​which knots were tied at different distances from each other. Sometimes an object (a piece of wood, a stone, grain, etc.) was secured in the bundle. In Tauantinsuyu there were a significant number of professional kipukamayok ("khipu masters"). According to some scientists, the quipu was a purely mnemonic device, while others believed it was a unique form of writing. According to the most controversial concept, the khipu contains the texts of chronicles, laws and political works. There is an assumption that the kippah served as an attribute of a funeral ritual.

We find something similar in North America among the Iroquois - their “writing”, which was called “wampum”, is a ribbon or belt of threads on which colored shells of different shapes and sizes are strung. It happened that wampum consisted of 6-7 thousand shells. Shells strung on threads formed intricate patterns with a specific content.

The writing of the Aztecs and Kuna peoples is a pictographic (Malyunko) script with elements of hieroglyphics. There was no specific arrangement system for pictograms: they could be located either horizontally or vertically. For the first time, the writing of the Kuna peoples was discovered and studied by the Norwegian ethnographer E. Nordelskiöld. Legends and books of recipes for traditional medicine are written in pictographic writing.

The writing system of the peoples of ancient Mexico developed in the 2nd-5th centuries. AD in Olmec. It is a combination of elements of pictographic and syllabic writing. An indispensable companion for recording was drawing. The color and arrangement of signs had semantic meaning.

The most advanced writing system in ancient America was the Mayan hieroglyphic script. It used phonetic signs (alphabetic and syllabic), ideographic (whole words) and key signs (explaining the meaning of words, but those that are not readable). In total, about 300 signs were identified. The language of hieroglyphic texts differs significantly from the living language with pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar. Mayan hieroglyphic texts and inscriptions have not yet been fully translated. The first attempts to decipher the Mayan writing date back to the middle of the 19th century. In the mid 1950s huge contribution Soviet scientist Yu.V. contributed to the decipherment of Mayan writing. Knorozov, originally from the Kharkov region.

The development of literature was closely related to the emergence of writing. Literary creativity Indians of ancient America artistic form reflected the most important features of the life of Indian tribes. The ancient genre of literature included labor (hunting, fishing), ritual, and also war songs, which included an appeal to the gods for help in achieving victory, victory songs, and laments for fallen soldiers. The genre of fairy tales - fairy tales, everyday tales, about animals, etc. - has become widespread. In some Indian peoples there was an epic. Literary monuments include the “Annals of the Kakchikels”, “Genealogy of the Lords of Totonikapakan”, the prophetic book “Chilam Dumpty”, the sacred epic of the Quiche Indians “Popol Vuh” (“Book of Advice”), etc. A great contribution to the treasury of world culture is the drama on Quechua language "Apu-Ollantay". One of the greatest poets of Ancient America was Nezualcoyotl. The leitmotif of his works, which have reached us, are reflections on the instability of human existence, ideas about the continuity of movement and the relativity of peace, an affirmation of the eternity of beauty. 4 Mayan manuscripts and a significant number of inscriptions on stones in the ruins of cities have also survived to this day.

The books were strips of paper made from plant fiber (ficus bast was often used) and natural adhesive. Both sides of the strip were covered with a white coating. Hieroglyphic characters were drawn with a brush, just as the juice of plants or fruits was used as ink. The paper strip was folded like an accordion and framed with a cover made of wood or leather.

A large number of manuscripts were destroyed during the Conquest.

Writing instruction was carried out in special schools. The Aztecs had two types of schools: telpochcalli and calmecac. The first were intended for ordinary children from the people, the second - for gifted children who graduated from Telpochkalli, and children of the nobility. Schools for ordinary children trained primarily warriors, so the main attention here was paid physical education and sports. Schools for the nobility prepared the intellectual and administrative elite of society (priests, astrologers, mathematicians, clerks, judges), so the peaks of science were taught here - history, philosophy, law.

The bulk of the surviving literary monuments and written sources of the Indians of pre-Columbian America are still awaiting their researchers and decipherers.

5. Architecture and fine arts

The art of pre-Columbian America received its fullest expression in the monumental architecture that developed in what is now Mexico and Central America. The architecture of both these areas had many common features, due to the similarity of economic, social and religious institutions, and the similarity of natural conditions.

The architecture and urban planning of ancient America are characterized by the stability of types and the slow evolution of compositional, decorative and technical techniques. The leading type were religious complexes, which included step pyramids with a temple or altar on the upper platform, a temple, palace buildings for priests and nobles, palaces for holidays, “stadiums” for ritual sports game, “observatories” for astronomical observations, as well as various engineering and defensive structures. The buildings were erected on artificial earthen platforms and consisted of mud bricks (adobes), various types of stone, using primitive concrete and various decorative cladding. Stone masonry was carried out using clay mortar or dry, using tenons and metal fasteners. The stone was processed with stone or bronze tools and transported without the help of wheels. Ceilings in the form of false vaults (with gradual overlap of rows of masonry) or wooden ones ensured the creation of very limited internal spaces in comparison with the external mass of the structure and the thickness of the walls. Often the building was divided into two narrow rooms by a longitudinal wall, sometimes square or round pillars and even atlases were used - pillars in the form of statues of warriors. The composition used simple geometric shapes, static, symmetrical solutions. The widespread use of ornamentation, sculpture and painting was traditional. The planning of complexes and cities was of a regular nature; they were oriented, of course, according to the cardinal directions. Large cities had paved streets, external water supply, and defensive structures.

On the territory of Mexico, among the ancient cultures, the Teotihuacan “pyramid culture” was important. In the sacred city of Teotihuacan, planned taking into account mathematical and astronomical knowledge, there were the Step Pyramid of the Sun and the Pyramid of the Moon, the Temple of Quetzalcoatl, decorated with the heads of feathered serpents.

The most popular is Mayan architecture, which in the classical period created the majestic ensembles of Palenque, Tikal, Copan, etc. in the territory of modern Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala. In Mayan architecture, the interior spaces, and the facades and interior walls are decorated with paintings, alabaster reliefs and relief hieroglyphic texts.

In South America, architecture developed along a narrow coastal strip in the west and in the Central Andes region. Here it was distinguished by its attention to the utilitarian side of development and the proliferation of engineering structures: paved roads, bridges, fortresses, dams, reservoirs, canals, harbors, aqueducts. Masonry made of polygonal (in early structures) and horizontal blocks of gigantic size, later of cut stone of regular shape, was proven to be virtuoso in mountainous regions; Bronze creaking elements were used in the masonry. Mud brick was widely used. The roof was made of reeds and straw. Reliefs and paintings were used less in decoration than in Mexico. The most important buildings were decorated with friezes made of gold plates. The architecture of South America was distinguished by the grandeur of its scale, the simplicity of large forms and details, and the severity of its appearance. Its main centers were Chan Chan, Pachacamac, Tiahuanaco, Cusco (the capital of the Inca Empire); The fortified cities of Paramonga, Machu Picchu, Sacsahuaman and others played an important role.

The Coricancha (Temple of the Sun) is striking in its wealth - the most important Inca sanctuary, which consisted of an ensemble of stone buildings surrounded by a wall. In the main room of the temple there was an altar located opposite the door so that the golden figure of the deity and the golden plates on the walls sparkled in the rays of the morning sun. Near the temple there were sanctuaries of the moon, thunder, stars, and rainbow-rainbow. Adjoining it were rooms for priests, servants and the so-called Golden Garden with gold and silver images of plants, birds, animals and people. The Indians built skillfully and suspension bridges, woven from vines, which centuries later gave architects the idea of ​​​​using similar metal structures.

Ancient Indian art reflects the world as an active interaction of two principles: life and death. The art of painted and figured ceramics, clay sculpture, stone sculptures and rock paintings reflected the element of primitive, fabulous and fantastic images that merged with religious symbolism and the harsh essence of human existence.

In figurines, as well as in figured and painted vessels, human types were reproduced in all their diversity, including everyday, comic and pathological motifs; The depiction of animals also provided a vivid expressiveness of life.

The art of Indian peoples developed unevenly. Often, aliens displaced carriers of higher artistic culture. Thus, on the territory of Mexico, the oldest art was the Olmec art (1st millennium BC), whose funeral masks and the huge stone heads (up to 13 tons) amaze with the freedom of plasticity, the specificity of the transmission of ethnic type and humanity. For about two and a half millennia, the rich art of the Maya flourished, which created vitally expressive works of small plastic art, amazing ornamentation in decorative fantasy, developed and complex compositions of historical, everyday and ritual significance, in jewelry in the craftsmanship of stone reliefs. Aztec art was distinguished by ceramics, products from precious stones and metals, patterned weaving, feather products, monumental creativity was imbued with religious ideas.

Music was important - an integral element of religious rites and ceremonies. In developed tribes there was a differentiation of music into “folk” and “court”; there were special schools training of professional musicians. The musical instrumentation included a large variety of wind and percussion instruments; string instruments included the simplest monochord - a musical bow.

Rituals and ritual actions contained elements of theatricality, large amphitheaters were built, works of drama were created, such as “Apu-Ollantay” in the Quechua language, the drama “Rabinal-Achi”.

By the 16th century The peoples of pre-Columbian America mastered the vast expanses of the continent, achieved significant success in intensive agriculture, knew many crafts, mastered construction equipment, and achieved success in navigation, astronomy, medicine, fine arts and literature. Thanks to the Indian peoples, the practice of world agriculture included corn, potatoes, beans, tomatoes, pumpkin, cocoa, pineapple, sunflower, peanuts, and vanilla. They discovered rubber. Europe received medicine for malaria from the Indians - quinine. Achieved significant success ancient art peoples of America. Despite the significant lag cultural process In time from the cultural development of the peoples of Eurasia, many achievements of the Indians significantly influenced the culture and art of subsequent generations.

V. MEDIEVAL MUSLIM CULTURE OF THE NEAR AND MIDDLE EAST
8. VI. CIVILIZATIONS OF PRE-COLUMBIAN AMERICA
9. X. CULTURE OF HUMANITY IN THE XX CENTURY
10. I. HISTORICAL WAYS OF FORMATION OF UKRAINIAN CULTURE
11. III. UKRAINIAN CULTURE AFTER THE TATAR-MONGOL INVASION (SECOND HALF OF THE XIII - XV centuries)

The civilizations of pre-Columbian America were distinguished by significant originality; they developed in a different natural-geographical environment. The limited cultural space and the absence of inland seas did not create an incentive for the development of land and sea means of communication.

The first American culture known to historians is the Olmec. The Olmecs inhabited the Tabasco region in what is now Mexico. Already in the 2nd millennium BC. they knew developed agriculture and built settlements.

The first significant civilization in Central America was the Mayans. The Mayans belonged to the Mayan language family and occupied most of what is now Mexico. Already by the 8th century. The Mayans created a strong centralized state.

The Mayans built complex aqueducts, often underground, drainage tanks and other hydraulic structures that made it possible to regulate river floods, condense rainwater, etc. The Mayans used a 20-digit counting system borrowed from the Olmecs; they knew the number zero. The Mayans developed a perfect calendar that took into account the cycles of the Sun, Moon and Venus. In the 10th century The Mayan civilization faced external invasions. In 917, Chichen Itza was occupied by the Nahua tribes. In 987, this cult center came under the rule of the Toltecs; Mayans are reduced to the position of unfree...

Another significant civilization in South America was the Incas. The Incas belonged to language group Quechua and occupied the territory of Peru, partly Chile, Bolivia, Argentina, Colombia and Ecuador. The state they created reached its peak in the 14th-15th centuries. The official name of the Incan state was "Tauantinsuyu", "four connected cardinal directions." The capital was the legendary city of Cusco.

The Incan economy was of the same nature as the Mayan: there was no private property, there was no money. However, barter trade was developed. The Incas made reed boats and huampas, rafts with covered structures, masts and square sails. They made voyages into the ocean.

The Incas had two types of writing: the quipu, intended to convey administrative and economic information, and the kilka, for the transmission of traditions and ritual; the first type of writing was “knotted”, cords of different lengths and different colors were used, on which dozens of types of knots were tied; the second type of writing is “patterned”. Much attention was paid to education and science. In Cusco in the middle of the 15th century. a higher school was opened - Yachahuasi, the first university of Ancient America.

Inca civilization existed until the 20s of the 16th century, until the conquest by the Spanish conquistodor Francisco Pizarro. He captured and plundered Cuzco and captured the last Sapa Inca Atahualpa.

The last major civilization of America was the Toltec-Aztec. In the 10th century The Toltecs, who belonged to the Nahua language family, appeared in Mesoamerica. In the 11th century The leader Meshi separated from the Toltecs, a clan of Meshis was formed, which moved towards Lake Texcoco. In 1247, Tenoch was elected leader of this clan, from that time the Toltec clan began to be called Tenoch. They led a semi-nomadic lifestyle, were distinguished by belligerence, and knew metal processing. In 1325, the Tenochki Mexica settled on the islands of Lake Texcoco. This is how the city of Mexico-Tenochtitlan arose, which later became the capital of the huge Aztec empire. The head of state was the Tlatoani. His power was absolute and inherited.

The Aztecs knew pictographic writing. They knew how to make codices and picture books (tlaquilos). They used two calendars - a ritual one, known only to the priests, and a general one, which included 365 days. In 1519, the Aztec Empire was invaded by Spanish conquistadors led by Hernan Cortes. In 1520, Mexico-Tenochtitlan was captured and the last Tlatoani, Moctezuma II Xocoyotsin, was killed. Thus ended the history of the Toltec-Aztec civilization.

Thus, the civilizations of pre-Columbian America were distinguished by significant diversity. The first American culture known to historians is the Olmec.

The first truly significant civilization in Central America was the Mayans. The Mayans built complex aqueducts, often underground, drainage tanks and other hydraulic structures that made it possible to regulate river floods, condense rainwater, etc. In the 10th century The Mayan civilization faced external invasions and died.

Another significant civilization in South America was the Incas. The Incas belonged to the Quechua linguistic group and occupied the territory of Peru, partly Chile, Bolivia, Argentina, Colombia and Ecuador. The state they created reached its peak in the 14th-15th centuries. The Inca civilization existed until the 20s of the 16th century, until the conquest of the Spanish conquistodor Francisco Pizarro. He captured and plundered Cuzco and captured the last Sapa Inca Atahualpa.

The last major civilization of America was the Toltec-Aztec. Its capital was the city of Mexico-Tenochtitlan, which later became the capital of the huge Aztec empire.

In 1519, the Aztec Empire was invaded by Spanish conquistadors led by Hernan Cortes. In 1520, Mexico-Tenochtitlan was taken, and the last Atzecan ruler, Moctezuma II, was killed.