Peer Reviews
Mackenzie did a great job breaking down the 4 civilizations of the Americas. It was well written. Sammy showed great modern examples of these cultures displayed in interior design. Both did a good job!
The Americas
Peer Reviews
Mackenzie did a great job breaking down the 4 civilizations of the Americas. It was well written. Sammy showed great modern examples of these cultures displayed in interior design. Both did a good job!
The Americas
The Aztecs
Tenochtitlan
At the time of the Spanish conquest in 1521, the Aztec capital city of Tenochtitlan was among the largest cities in the world, with perhaps as many as 200,000 inhabitants. In less than 200 years, it evolved from a small settlement on an island in the western swamps of Lake Texcoco into the powerful political, economic, and religious center of the greatest empire of Precolumbian Mexico. Tenochtitlan was a city of great wealth, obtained through the spoils of tribute from conquered regions. Of astounding beauty and impressive scale, its towering pyramids were painted in bright red and blue, and its palaces in dazzling white. Colorful, busy markets with a bewiMost of the construction in Tenochtitlan took place during the reigns of four Aztec kings beginning in the 1470s. Built largely upon land reclaimed from Lake Texcoco, the city was laid out on a grid, inspired by the still visible ruins of the ancient city of Teotihuacan of a thousand years earlier. Its network of streets and canals teemed with canoes that transported people and goods within the city and across the lake to towns on the shore, to which it was linked by three raised causeways. Two aqueducts supplied fresh water.
At the heart of Tenochtitlan was the Sacred Precinct, the religious and ceremonial center not just of the city, but of the empire as well. Surrounded by a masonry wall of serpents, this enclave of about 380 by 330 yards could hold more than 8,000 people within its precincts. The temples of the most important Aztec gods were here. There was also a ball court, priests' quarters, and schools for training young noblemen for the priesthood. Adjacent to the Sacred Precinct, sumptuous palaces of the kings and nobles included beautiful gardens, aviaries, and zoos. Administration buildings were there as well. Commoners lived at a distance and were organized into neighborhoods, called calpulli, with their own local temples and markets. Those populations included laborers and farmers as well as craft specialists such as potters, weavers, sculptors, lapidaries, featherworkers, and soldiers.
On a fateful day in August 1521, life in this magnificent urban center changed forever. Shortly after the fall of Tenochtitlan, the Spaniards razed the already devastated city and built the capital of the Viceroyalty of New Spain on its ruins. They named the new metropolis Mexico City, which today, again, is one of the most populous cities in the world.
AZTEC ARCHITECTURE
The Aztec Empire is remembered for many things. One of its most interesting qualities is the archetecture and construction techniques. The Aztec Empire is not remembered by most people as a mecca of technological and engineering skill. This is a misconseption. The Aztecs built some of the most beautiful and ornate buildings found in South America. The buildings continue to inspire the viewer.
The Aztec people had diverse architectual styles. They built everything from regular homes to palaces and great pyramids. They are best remembered for the twin-temple style pyramid. This would either consist of two matching temples being constructed side by side, or one largge pyramid with two temples on top. Unlike the pyramids of ancient Egypt, these temples were not huge coffins for royalty. The temples were usually set in a city center surrounded by perhaps a palace and several smaller/lessor shrines. There was no single style of temple that was built in the Aztec Empire. In the city of Caliztlahuaca, the temple was built in a circular pattern. This city was also known for its private homes, "...all houses, commoner and elite, had well constructed wall foundations of cut stones." This shows the trend in Aztec cities. The Aztecs led their region in techology and engineering. This is in part due to their city-state government and the competition between cities to build the biggest and the best. The city of Tenochhtitlan was by all accounts the largest and most grandiose, but the other lessor cities still felt the need to compete against each other. Which alongside their development of archetecture the Aztecs established a base of their culture through their written and artistic world.
Aztec Colors & Art
Every color was valuable for the Aztecs, but there were ten or so that had a special meaning: probably the most important was blue-turquoise, because turquoise and jade stones were the equivalent of gold and silver for the Spanish. These metals were known and appreciated by the Aztecs - they linked them to the light and radiance of the Sun and the Moon - but green jade represented fertile vegetation, and blue turquoise mirrored the water of rivers, lakes and seas, and the daytime sky. In Náhuatl (the Aztec language still spoken by some 8-10 million Mexicans) the word for turquoise is ‘xihuitl’ and it’s also used to refer to a herb, comets, the year, and to anything precious. That’s why in the codices the artists often played on the meaning of words: for example, when writing a year sign it was often painted blue or accompanied by a herb leaf; and rulers bore a type of pointed crown (diadem) made of turquoise mosaic, to represent one of the ruler’s titles - ‘Lord of Time or of the Year’ (the god of rulers was called ‘Xiuhtecuhtli’ or ‘Year Lord’ or ‘Lord Precious’).
Common Types of Art
There was a rich variety of art in the empire. Richly coloured clothing, architecture, ceremonial knives, head dresses - many things were adorned with jewels and feathers. It is said that the emperor never wore the same clothes twice. His head piece that supposedly belonged toEmperor Montezuma II is a splash of bright green feathers, embroidered with gold and blue. Noble families had ear pieces, bracelets and necklaces.
Stories were commonly written in pictures, giving more opportunity for art. The pictographs may show the most recent conquest, or the sacrifices of the priests, or even daily life.
Statues made of stone, as well as Aztec masks, pottery, shields, knives, carved pillars and painted walls.
Art could be made with gold, silver, copper, jewels, feathers, coral, clay and stone, to name a few. As mentioned before, many of materials were not native to the region, but had to be bartered for.
Mosaics are very common in ancient Aztec art. Masks would be covered in turquoise, or shells (More on the making and purpose of Aztec masks...). Take for example the beautiful two-headed snake, probably worn as an ornament during ceremonial events, on display at the British Museum (see link below).
Characteristics
Ancient Aztec art was actually very lifelike. Many of their statues of people, as well as animals, look amazingly realistic. They also show age, and a great deal of expression. The art looks alive - but then again, much of it is about death itself. It again reflects the people's passion to avoid death and disaster, and then to conquer even that if it came
Modern Applications
A Little Incan Architecture
The Trapezoid
Moray
This unique archaeological site is one of the best examples—along with Machu Picchu—of what might be called extreme Inca landscaping. Three enormous pits, each with beautifully curved sides that staircase down like the interiors of titanic flowerpots, have been carved out of the earth to depths of up to 100 feet and more. Air temperatures between the top and bottom layers can differ by more than 20 degrees, which has led some researchers to theorize that Moray was an Inca agricultural site where experiments on crops were conducted.
Tipon
The Inca were brilliant engineers who strove to integrate their architecture with its natural surroundings. Tipon, a 500-acre site built around a spring near Cusco, has been called their masterpiece of water management. Because the waterworks were constructed as part of a country estate for Inca nobility, Tipon has beautiful stone structures akin to those at Machu Picchu, built in the imperial Inca style, with trapezoidal doors, and serviced by finely cut stone fountains. The intricate baths and irrigation channels still function five centuries after the Spanish conquest, which provides Tipon with an endless, soothing soundtrack of running water.
At the heart of Tenochtitlan was the Sacred Precinct, the religious and ceremonial center not just of the city, but of the empire as well. Surrounded by a masonry wall of serpents, this enclave of about 380 by 330 yards could hold more than 8,000 people within its precincts. The temples of the most important Aztec gods were here. There was also a ball court, priests' quarters, and schools for training young noblemen for the priesthood. Adjacent to the Sacred Precinct, sumptuous palaces of the kings and nobles included beautiful gardens, aviaries, and zoos. Administration buildings were there as well. Commoners lived at a distance and were organized into neighborhoods, called calpulli, with their own local temples and markets. Those populations included laborers and farmers as well as craft specialists such as potters, weavers, sculptors, lapidaries, featherworkers, and soldiers.
On a fateful day in August 1521, life in this magnificent urban center changed forever. Shortly after the fall of Tenochtitlan, the Spaniards razed the already devastated city and built the capital of the Viceroyalty of New Spain on its ruins. They named the new metropolis Mexico City, which today, again, is one of the most populous cities in the world.
AZTEC ARCHITECTURE
The Aztec Empire is remembered for many things. One of its most interesting qualities is the archetecture and construction techniques. The Aztec Empire is not remembered by most people as a mecca of technological and engineering skill. This is a misconseption. The Aztecs built some of the most beautiful and ornate buildings found in South America. The buildings continue to inspire the viewer.
The Aztec people had diverse architectual styles. They built everything from regular homes to palaces and great pyramids. They are best remembered for the twin-temple style pyramid. This would either consist of two matching temples being constructed side by side, or one largge pyramid with two temples on top. Unlike the pyramids of ancient Egypt, these temples were not huge coffins for royalty. The temples were usually set in a city center surrounded by perhaps a palace and several smaller/lessor shrines. There was no single style of temple that was built in the Aztec Empire. In the city of Caliztlahuaca, the temple was built in a circular pattern. This city was also known for its private homes, "...all houses, commoner and elite, had well constructed wall foundations of cut stones." This shows the trend in Aztec cities. The Aztecs led their region in techology and engineering. This is in part due to their city-state government and the competition between cities to build the biggest and the best. The city of Tenochhtitlan was by all accounts the largest and most grandiose, but the other lessor cities still felt the need to compete against each other. Which alongside their development of archetecture the Aztecs established a base of their culture through their written and artistic world.
Aztec Colors & Art
Every color was valuable for the Aztecs, but there were ten or so that had a special meaning: probably the most important was blue-turquoise, because turquoise and jade stones were the equivalent of gold and silver for the Spanish. These metals were known and appreciated by the Aztecs - they linked them to the light and radiance of the Sun and the Moon - but green jade represented fertile vegetation, and blue turquoise mirrored the water of rivers, lakes and seas, and the daytime sky. In Náhuatl (the Aztec language still spoken by some 8-10 million Mexicans) the word for turquoise is ‘xihuitl’ and it’s also used to refer to a herb, comets, the year, and to anything precious. That’s why in the codices the artists often played on the meaning of words: for example, when writing a year sign it was often painted blue or accompanied by a herb leaf; and rulers bore a type of pointed crown (diadem) made of turquoise mosaic, to represent one of the ruler’s titles - ‘Lord of Time or of the Year’ (the god of rulers was called ‘Xiuhtecuhtli’ or ‘Year Lord’ or ‘Lord Precious’).
Common Types of Art
There was a rich variety of art in the empire. Richly coloured clothing, architecture, ceremonial knives, head dresses - many things were adorned with jewels and feathers. It is said that the emperor never wore the same clothes twice. His head piece that supposedly belonged toEmperor Montezuma II is a splash of bright green feathers, embroidered with gold and blue. Noble families had ear pieces, bracelets and necklaces.
Stories were commonly written in pictures, giving more opportunity for art. The pictographs may show the most recent conquest, or the sacrifices of the priests, or even daily life.
Statues made of stone, as well as Aztec masks, pottery, shields, knives, carved pillars and painted walls.
Art could be made with gold, silver, copper, jewels, feathers, coral, clay and stone, to name a few. As mentioned before, many of materials were not native to the region, but had to be bartered for.
Mosaics are very common in ancient Aztec art. Masks would be covered in turquoise, or shells (More on the making and purpose of Aztec masks...). Take for example the beautiful two-headed snake, probably worn as an ornament during ceremonial events, on display at the British Museum (see link below).
Characteristics
Ancient Aztec art was actually very lifelike. Many of their statues of people, as well as animals, look amazingly realistic. They also show age, and a great deal of expression. The art looks alive - but then again, much of it is about death itself. It again reflects the people's passion to avoid death and disaster, and then to conquer even that if it came
Modern Applications
A Little Incan Architecture
The Trapezoid
Moray
This unique archaeological site is one of the best examples—along with Machu Picchu—of what might be called extreme Inca landscaping. Three enormous pits, each with beautifully curved sides that staircase down like the interiors of titanic flowerpots, have been carved out of the earth to depths of up to 100 feet and more. Air temperatures between the top and bottom layers can differ by more than 20 degrees, which has led some researchers to theorize that Moray was an Inca agricultural site where experiments on crops were conducted.
Tipon
The Inca were brilliant engineers who strove to integrate their architecture with its natural surroundings. Tipon, a 500-acre site built around a spring near Cusco, has been called their masterpiece of water management. Because the waterworks were constructed as part of a country estate for Inca nobility, Tipon has beautiful stone structures akin to those at Machu Picchu, built in the imperial Inca style, with trapezoidal doors, and serviced by finely cut stone fountains. The intricate baths and irrigation channels still function five centuries after the Spanish conquest, which provides Tipon with an endless, soothing soundtrack of running water.
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