Mesoamerica: Did you mean...?

A mask of jadeite from the Olmec civilization of the Gulf coast, Mesoamerica, 900-500 BCE. Provenance: Rio Pesquero, Mexico. (Dallas Museum of Art)

A map showing the principal settlements of the Olmec civilization in Mesoamerica (modern-day Mexico) which flourished from c. 1200-300 BCE.

A diagram of the sacred precinct at Tollan (Tula), the capital of the Toltec civilization (10-12th century CE) in Mesoamerica. The site includes two step pyramids, colonnades, a palace structure and two ball-courts.

The Classic Period ball court of Monte Alban (150-650 CE). The ball game was popular across Mesoamerica and the objective was to put a rubber ball through a hoop placed high on each wall. Any part of the body could be used...

The Pyramid of the Sun, Teotihuacan, Mexico, c. 100 CE. Teotihuacan was the largest, most influential, and certainly most revered city in the history of the New World, and it flourished in Mesoamerica's Golden Age, the Classic...

The distinctive pyramid structures of the Tarascan capital Tzintzuntzan, Late Post-Classical period (1350-1520 CE). These structures, known as yacata, are unique in Mesoamerica and combine rectangular and circular stepped...

The Aztec civilization of ancient Mesoamerica believed that dead warriors were reincarnated as hummingbirds or butterflies. These whistling pots often included such birds, and they were considered spiritual conduits...

Fruits hanging on Theobroma cacao, better known as the cocoa-tree. Chocholate was a prized food in ancient Mesoamerica.

This pottery bowl comes from Casas Grandes (also known as "Paquimé"), which is located in what's present-day Chihuahua, Mexico. It is made from clay and dates to c. 1250-1400 CE. Casas Grandes was one...

A hammered silver nose ornament from Mesoamerica. Colima or Mixtec, 12-14th century. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)