Chapter 9 - The Americas: A Separate World

9.1 - The Earliest Americans

They were able to cover a huge part of North America. Glaciers encased vast swaths of the earth's surface, trapping massive volumes of water.
- It dropped sea levels and formed a land corridor connecting Asia and Alaska through the Bering Strait, which is now known as the Bering Strait.
Large species, such as the mammoth, were eventually overhunted and became extinct.
- Smaller prey, such as deer and rabbits, were quickly adopted by hunters as a means of surviving.
- They fished and foraged for food plants and fruits as well.
A revolt began quietly in what is now central Mexico around 7000 B.C. People came to rely more on wild edible plants, some of which were raised from seeds.
- Many people had started growing these favorite plants around 5000 B.C.
Agriculture changed people's lives dramatically and permanently in the Americas, as it did in other parts of the world.
- Corn and other crops were planted, resulting in a more consistent and expanding food supply.
- This aided in population increase and the formation of big, settled towns.

Around 1860, a worker clearing a field in southeastern Mexico's hot coastal plain discovered an amazing stone artwork.
- It was five feet tall with an estimated weight of eight tons.
- The sculpture depicted a massive skull with headgear.
On the surface, the Gulf Coast appeared to be an improbable location for a high culture to flourish.
- The climate was hot and humid, and the area was densely forested with swamps and rainforest.
- Giant trees developed a heavy cover in certain areas, preventing most sunlight from reaching the ground.
- Every year, up to 100 inches of rain poured.
- Rainfall swelled waterways, resulting in significant flooding.
Archaeologists once thought that ceremonial centers like La Venta were places where major rituals were performed but few people lived.
- Experts have begun to change their minds in recent years.
- The Olmec appear to have been an affluent people that ruled over a vast commercial network that stretched over Mesoamerica.
Oaxaca is a mountainous and valleyous region in southern Mexico.
- Three valleys intersect in the state's middle to form the Oaxaca Valley, a huge open expanse.
- This valley features good soil, a mild climate, and sufficient rainfall for agriculture.
- As a result, different peoples, notably the ancient Zapotecs, have made the Oaxaca Valley their home.

Peru was a hard environment in which to build a civilization.
The Andes are rocky and steep, with poor soil in general.
- The highest mountains are covered in ice and snow all year.
- Overland travel can be challenging at times.
From roughly 200 B.C. until 600 A.D., the Nazca culture thrived along Peru's southern coast.
- This location is exceedingly arid.
Recent excavations of Moche tombs have shown a civilisation with great wealth.
- Beautiful jewelry made of gold, silver, and semiprecious stones has been discovered by archaeologists.
The Moche were also accomplished ceramicists.
They made pottery that reflected common life scenes.
- Doctors are depicted curing patients, women are weaving cloth, and musicians are playing instruments on Moche pots.
- They also portray ferocious soldiers wielding spears leading captured enemy soldiers.
Despite the fact that the Moche never established a written language, their pottery has a wealth of information about their lives.