Mesoamerican civilization: Did you mean...?

Mosaics are designs and images created using small pieces (tesserae) of stone or other materials which have been used to decorate floors, walls, ceilings, and precious objects since before written records began. Like pottery, mosaics have...

This map illustrates the rise and extent of the Olmec civilization, which flourished from around 1200 to 400 BCE (the earliest Olmec finds near the San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán sites, date back to c.1600) in the present-day Gulf Coast in the...

Maya architecture is best characterized by the soaring pyramid temples and ornate palaces which were built in all Maya centres across Mesoamerica from El Tajin in the north to Copan in the south. The Maya civilization was formed of independent...

Tláloc (pron. Tla-loc) is one of the most important and formidable gods in the Aztec pantheon. He was considered the god of rain, water, lightning and agriculture. Tlaloc was seen as both a benevolent god providing life-giving rain but also...

A map showing the extent of the Chavin civilization (900-200 BCE) and its religious centre Chavin de Huantar, a celebrated site of pilgrimage.

Xipe Totec (pron. Xi-pe To-tec) or 'Flayed One' in Nahuatl, was a major god in ancient Mesoamerican culture and particularly important for the Toltecs and Aztecs. He was considered the god of spring, the patron god of seeds and planting...

A belief in an afterlife was central to every major civilization of the ancient world and this encouraged the recognition of the reality of ghosts as the spirits of the departed who, for one reason or another, either returned from the realm...

Agriculture arose independently at several locations across the world, beginning about 12,000 years ago. The first crops and livestock were domesticated in six rather diffuse areas including the Near East, China, Southeast Asia, and Africa...

An artist's impression of Harappa and the Indus Valley Civilization, depicting fields and cities in ancient India. Created by Amplitude Studios for the video game Humankind.

The map shows the extent of the Harappan or Indus Civilization along with the various neolithic sites in the region.