Ancient Olmec Discoveries That Will Make You Question Who They Really Were

olmec mysteries of Mesoamerica thousands of years ago bizarre people who spore on one of the biggest mysteries on the planet settled in the part of the world we call Mesoamerica the entire region comprising of southern Mexico and most of Central America as it stretches between what's now called the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific Ocean the entire region is riddled with ancient sites of pyramid builders and incredible feats of engineering in in his pitiable places although many different countries now exist within this space it was the original home to just one civilization the mysterious Olmec as time advanced other well-known groups became dominant in the area these were primarily the Aztecs and the Mayan many considered the Olmec a proto Mayan civilization what the latest discoveries in lidar and recent unraveling of the Mayan snake Kings their lineage going right back to Olmec times it seems the Olmec of ancient times morphed into the Maya all these early civilizations that existed from approximately 1200 BCE to 900 CE were steeped with culture tradition commerce and conflict they also offer many mysteries and enigmas to modern understanding their knowledge of astronomy and their engineering feats these are the things that baffled people with awe about how the civilizations arose gained such power and why they inevitably disappeared let's travel back in time to the first days to discover the questions that still exist in the minds of archaeologists historians and others who strive to understand the puzzling mysteries of Mesoamerica the earliest civilization known to exist in the Mesoamerican region is called the Olmec the earliest records of their existence come from approximately 1200 BCE it makes sense to understand that there were people in that area before then but they were not truly part of an organized civilization that engaged in trade and other important things people have existed in most places of the world far beyond when discovered civilizations grew still the Olmec are often considered one of the worldwide cradles of civilization they were responsible for launching other groups of people in the area such as the Aztec and Maya evidence for this exists in the records kept by the later civilizations about trade art culture and religion over the centuries of their existence the Olmec people spread throughout Mesoamerica traded with new civilizations that arose and left behind quite an interesting record of mysterious pyramids religious artifacts and so much more we knew little of the Olmec over 100 years ago now having focused on their incredible art bizarre figurines and unusual heads the amazing pyramidal structures like Cantona and lamento incredible obsidian artifacts that are so difficult to make many have speculated West African origins and some have pointed to Egyptian looking headdress clothing as indicators before exploring some of the true mysteries of this group of Native people first it's important to consider how they arose in the first place it's nearly impossible to figure out the precise information about how the civilization started however with some logical thought the intelligence of historians and archaeologists and information left behind by later civilizations you begin to have a clearer picture of the Olmec people where did the Olmec civilization come from the Aztecs traded and otherwise interacted culturally with the people there before them they left behind more information than the Olmec stood themselves in fact it was the Aztecs who called the people Olmec to begin with the term comes from a common resource in the area rubber historians can only guess that it was one of the common trade goods that so impress the Aztecs that they referred to the people in association with it no information exists to tell anyone what the Olmecs called themselves this civilization existed on the northern edge of Mesoamerica near the Gulf of Mexico this area is now near the southern end of Mexico to the left of the Yucatan Peninsula from a sociological perspective it's an area that makes sense to settle in the Gulf of Mexico offers a food source and the opportunity to travel more easily up and down the coast to trade with other civilizations because the existence of the Olmec people occurred so long ago it's proved quite difficult to establish some type of historical continuity to explain where they came from and why they disappeared over a thousand years later by the time the years 400 to 300 BCE came around no more evidence of this once thriving group existed despite the mystery surrounding their appearance and existence the Olmec had considerable power in the region and quite a rich and cultured life after all in the near 2000 years they existed in the Mesoamerican region they had time to establish trade routes agriculture and ancient industry plenty of artwork and unique religious and cultural practices settlements and cities evidence of prosperous cities have been found spread throughout the region these existed at san lorenzo laguna de los cerros teresa Zapdos la venta and las limas the relative success or failure of the cities depended largely on whether they flooded regularly and how successful the surrounding area crops were levente itself was generally considered to be the capital or main city of this region estimations put the highest population numbers around 18,000 which was quite high for any civilization of that time in the world's history some evidence and estimations based on later groups give rise to the idea that Olmecs aasaiya T existed based on classes for example the famous stone heads and other carvings apparently showed specific kings or rulers the elite classes may have focused primarily on priests and shamans who would have had quite a bit of influence over daily life and control of the under classes of course and agricultural society that built things from stone would need a strong labor force to get all the work done success through trade besides foodstuffs common trade material were rubber obsidian and jade stone utilitarian and decorative pottery feathers of tropical birds and mirrors fashioned from unique crystalline stones polished to a high gloss prior to the Olmec civilization arising the tribes in the area would undoubtedly trade with each other the landmass is not so vast that each group would stay separate for very long in those early days organized trade routes or dedicated merchants would not exist instead groups would simply come together organize a trade of goods and then move on again there were a lot of middlemen involved and highly desired objects which get traded frequently the city that would one day become San Lorenzo stood at the center of Olmec society and trade as this first civilization had an economy based primarily on agriculture they would not trade for food with other groups instead archeologists have discovered things that the Olmec would not have made in the digs in the land that they controlled some of these included Jade figurines and obsidian blades it also made sense that the Olmec would trade for salts and cocoa which they undoubtedly enjoyed drinking hot like the later Maya the luxury goods created by the Olmec themselves such as pottery small humanoid figurines and natural items like parrot feathers and Jaguar skins undoubtedly fetched a high price whenever trade exists so too does the spread of cultural ideas and art styles this is one predominant way that archeologists and historians unravel the mysteries of Mesoamerican trade when they find something obviously made by an Olmec Potter for example far south in what will become the cradle of mine growth they can see the extent of the trade routes research conducted around 2008 showed evidence of the Olmec people creating an ancient form of asphalt by mixing together these naturally occurring materials with various plant fibers and exposing it to heat they developed a very useful waterproof coating for boats and other source of high-value material to trade with other people in the region an interesting debate about Olmec pottery arose when scientists use more precise mineral examination to examine where the clay came from four pieces found throughout Mesoamerica pottery is frequently one of the most studied artifacts because it's obviously made by human hands although a carved stone has human beginnings of course the actual stone itself cannot be specifically identified internally clay on the other hand is intrinsically chosen and shaped by the person who makes it one type of analysis indicates that most of the clay pottery in the entire region came from the Olmec lands another type that focused on the geology of the sand and rock particles added to temper the pieces indicate that it came from various places and ended up in the main city well these in-depth studies may indicate different types of trade and cultural spread the truth remains shrouded in mystery archeological evidence of how the Olmec lived the natural resources available in the area give an indication of how their cities would look archaeological digs in the cities listed above and found unique structures buildings and statues that allow people today to peer back through time and attempt to unravel the mysteries that surround this early group since all of this occurred so long ago undoubtedly many secrets have been lost to the ages what remains gives a very enigmatic look into a group of people who achieved high degrees of success and then vanished quite quickly for no apparent reason near the large city in San Lorenzo evidence of structures shaped like large mounds were found these man-made structures did not appear to have any formal construction or even entryways in some cases however they did discover drains running through them formed by hand-carved basalt the general idea that currently exists in most traditional historians Minds associates these mounds with nearby Mayan pyramids however since the Olmec people existed many years before the latter were built they succumbed to more erosion from the volatile weather in the area other interesting finds within these ancient cities include the outline of an entire complex of both rectangular and round structures these included what appeared to be religious buildings a red Palace perhaps storage buildings and fields for ceremonial ballgames these were played with rubber balls that share the name with the people according to the Aztec record unique city design choices aligned with the Stars besides the impressive appearance and size of these ancient city layouts one of the great mysteries that surrounds them has to do with their configuration and alignment the Olmec created what is generally considered to be the first pyramid in what is now Central America the buildings at Cantona and at La Venta city are laid out in a very neat grid also this grid follows a rather precise north-to-south alignment why this was done specifically as a mystery lost to the sands of time however it's quite common among ancient civilizations for example the ancient Egyptians aligns their pyramids with astronomical bodies and directional poles what is now called San Lorenzo represents one of the most essential archaeological sites in Mesoamerica this sprawling city represents much of what people today know about how the Olmec lived and what they valued the city itself laid approximately 38 miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico while this may seem like it's too far removed from the source of undoubtedly much of their food and potential coastline trade routes the city had something much more important fresh water although the geography of the area has changed in the millennia since the Olmec lived there and the course of the coats at Koko's River has changed its course San Lorenzo would have originally stood on an island in its centre when its high ridges the island would have protected the city quite effectively from both floods and invasion generally however although some conflicts usually arise between multiple civilizations in the same area there is no real evidence of battles or seizures the city itself underwent various incarnations over hundreds of years and with different groups of Olmec people it even stood vacant for quite a while around 500 BCE some new buildings in a ball court were added in later years but nothing was done to maintain its former glory archeologists found evidence of a main city structure several nearby villages or clusters of farmer homes and many statues and other artifacts they even discovered evidence of aqueducts to transport fresh river water into the city's most high-class areas to fill artificial pools and the unique monument 9 which is well shaped like a duck since the Mesoamerican area is so hot and humid no soft furnishings leather or other degradable items have ever been found in San Lorenzo in the surrounding area however the stonework still stands as evidence of the grandeur of their civilization some was built with very large stones transported down the river from mines in the mountains while others were constructed of carefully fitted smaller stones culture and religion give clues about Olmec much of what's remained of the Olmec civilization over the years gives most information about their religion the pantheon of gods and goddesses and spiritual practices that affected their everyday lives these take the form of artwork which is mostly stone statuary and some later records for example the Aztec Mayan and even Spanish explorers and conquistadors shared information about the religious practices they found when they arrived in Mesoamerica archaeologists have found coded records of their gods and goddesses and how they practiced religion in general while there is an indication that they had priests who were quite influential and important to everyday life the records did not give enough specific information to create a complete picture of what they did from a political standpoint it seemed obvious that a ruling family appointed members to go out and control various agricultural villages that surrounded the main city this was especially noticeable in the san lorenzo area due to the configuration of this and other city areas and through understanding the later Aztec and Mayan groups the Olmec priests class was undoubtedly quite powerful as well besides the massive stone heads that obviously depicted Kings due to their Jaguar headdresses much of the other art and artifacts discovered in the region focused on religious beliefs and those who could speak to the gods elements of Olmec religious beliefs and practices how did the Olmec people worship they believed in a sky based home to the gods an underworld and the ability of special priests or shamans to act as intermediates and the people as with many early religions the multiple gods and goddesses that the people who lived in this part of Mesoamerica believed in were shown using interesting combinations of humanoid and animal figures their focus on the cosmos helped them create a precursor to the famous Mayan calendar to religious rituals focus on agriculture and in the early civilizations stressed the importance of various land features as well the Olmec people's religion could partially be described as a fertility cult other things that seem to be important to the practice of their spiritual beliefs included nearby caves and the mountain science games played with rubber balls pyramidal structures and highly polished stones that acted as mirrors for light and reflection some evidence that poison toad induced hallucinations due to the bones of those species found at ceremonial sites also played a role in the shamans communication with the gods looking back through thousands of years however leave modern people unsure of when or where this concept began the unique deities some of the information about these deities came directly from artwork and images found in association with the ancient Olmec culture others were recorded in Aztec or Mayan cultural records in reference to their neighbors beliefs instead of specific names they're generally referred to with descriptions as the water God banded ìgod maize God where Jaguar Olmec dragon bird monster fish monster and feathered serpent vague ideas about the dragon's mouth symbolized by cave entrances and footprints of what could have been temples give only limited information to go on when historians focus specifically on the Olmec the overall Mesoamerican group shared most belief systems with only a few deviations however animals played an important role most relatively primitive civilizations from millennia ago had a nearly spiritual relationship with the animals that lived around them for the Olmec some of these included Eagles Jaguars caiman sharks and snakes these are things that they would have come across on a regular basis and undoubtedly believed to have considerable power just as the ancient Egyptians had Falcons and jackals represented in their gods and goddesses the Olmec had unique holy combinations a human Jaguar may have been representative of their primary God that had power over all the others various statues of these have been discovered in situations that depict their unique power other information about their belief systems include a dragon-like creature that lived in the sky and a collection of numbered gods that did not particularly have names the dragon there is a very similar appearance to quetzel Codel who was revered by the Aztec in later years of course since there are not any written documents telling stories or listing prayers that people use to worship these deities they may have had names that are now lost to history the stone head statues all soul historians believe the stone heads that the Olmec civilization was so famous for depicting Kings instead of deities something about them is still resonated with the religious undoubtedly practiced at the time the general Mesoamerican belief systems stated that the spirit emotions and mind of an individual existed solely in their head this is mimicked in the Aztec belief later of the Chun Ali's location in the body this term is used for a life force or spirit that the gods gave an individual before they were born ceremonial ball playing if anyone has ever seen the Disney movie El Dorado they have a good indication of how the ancient Mesoamerican ball game was played the players were into a walled field or pit with stone rings attached up high on each wall using a rubber ball they would kick hit and bump the ball into the rings to score in the children's movie the main characters had some fun and provided a few laughs in the genuine all that can later Aztec and Mayan cultures the ceremonial ball game was deadly serious in fact it may have been one of the ways that the next priests were chosen the basis of this belief comes from ancient religious stories themselves the tale tells of some noisy brothers who were brought to the underworld and forced to play the game against deities as punishment when one eventually lost he was summoned back from the underworld later Aztec tales support this hypothesis the ball game using a unique rubber ball was used to determine the accuracy of prophecies and predictions a game lost apparently showed that the ruler would succumb to the European invaders this all came much later than the first Olmec representations of the game however they shared the same ideas as they had one or more courts or playing fields in the main cities when it came to rules of the game the basic idea followed modern football or for North American soccer you could not use your hands pads were sometimes used to protect from the very heavy rubber ball and only six male players entered the court at one time both professional and amateur teams existed apparently which would surely create quite a spectacle for traders and villagers who came to the cities archaeologists have found possible trophies that consisted of sticks or belts or necklace amulets most of the in-depth information about these games comes from the later Aztec and Mayan civilizations however there's no reason to believe that the earlier Olmec simply played a nice friendly game with no focus on their religious practices at all the oldest of the Olmec courts were I shaped the size of a football field and are approximately 3,600 years old spiritual mirrors it makes logical sense that any reflective and highly polished stone surface would be associated with the power of the Sun after all these ancient Olmec mirrors reflected light quite well to a modern eye they looked very little like the mirrors we know earlier archaeologists did not even recognize them as such until they found an excellent example at La Venta City some were fashioned from rough iron or others from blaka City and glass and from other stones like hematite and magnetite the religious significance of these mirrors was obvious they hung around the necks of priests and shamans seated rulers also were depicted with concave mirrors on their chests people of importance were buried with them as honorifics to help them carry on into the underworld besides looking quite impressive these curved mirrors could reflect light parabolically and can be used to light fires evidence especially in the later Mayan civilization gives clues to how the priests used them throughout time everything from reflective bowls or water to crystal balls have been tools of divination the mirrors were also used for this purpose other associations besides water included deity gods fire which could reflect its light and come from mirrors and images of the Sun all these things logically go together and are the source of great power fire of course was one of the most important and potentially dangerous things the early people could harness evidence survives into the Aztec and Mayan cultures the influence of the Olmec on the later groups cannot be ignored of course it makes a lot of sense that three geographically and historically close civilizations that traded with each other would have a considerable effect between them as with most religious practices around the world throughout time a new civilization borrows ideas from an older or established one in order to ease the transition for believers who wish to fit into the new way of life more fully luckily the Aztec and Mayan civilizations had much more in-depth information about the people they traded with and what they saw them in general besides rock carvings that form the more primitive form of record keeping these two later groups of people had books if the Olmec ever had such a thing they've been lost forever the Olmec giant heads one of the most obvious and well understood types of artifacts from the ancient Olmec civilization are the giant stone heads that appear in their cities around the pyramid mounds and excavated out of the ground in various other places throughout the region a total of 17 have been unearthed since archeologists have started studying the Olmec people for example for massive heads were positioned at the corners of the Leventis city layout also their uses not precisely known it makes sense that they were placed there in some sort of protection or spiritual honor that would hopefully bless their city another common theory exists that states these colossal heads directly depicted popular rulers of the Olmec civilization in fact they could have done double duty in honoring the kings and representing a desire for protection for their cities still many mysteries surround them and archaeologists argue about various aspects of how they're designed and created appearances of the stone heads these 17 heads range in size were approximately nine and a half feet to 14 and a half feet in circumference most are approximately six to seven feet tall the unique property of the stone used to create them makes them exceptionally heavy they weigh in at approximately 8 tons each in the far-off tuxtla mountains Olmec miners separated these massive basalt boulders from the ground and transported them down the river on rafts or Overland using logs to roll them across open ground there were no organized road systems in the civilization although there were regularly used trade routes that could potentially make this process much easier the faces have broad features white noses thick lips and invariably wear the type of helmet over the top of their heads although time is rough in the feature some they're generally smooth and quite precise for a time when people used only stone tools archeologist suggests they could have been painted in bright colors much like the Aztec and Mayan statuary was in years after the heads were carved other types of Olmec art besides the massive heads made of basalt the Olmec appeared to enjoy carving smaller heads out of various other types of stone archaeologists have found stone masks and statues as well much of the information that the world now has about this early Mesoamerican civilization comes from carvings and paintings that stood the test of time caves in the area which may have been used for religious ceremonies and decorations near the entrances images of kings and queens seated on beautiful Thrones have been seen in various places some are also surrounded by images of crops or simply decorative patterns archeologists were very lucky to realize that some of the Olmec treasures had been preserved in the Alma natty bogs they found stone ceramic and even wooden artifacts with some dedicated digging some include the rain baby God a lovely Jade ax head and even depictions of rubber and paper offerings that were apparently burned for religious ceremonies the mystery surrounding the disappearance where did the Olmec come from exactly and where did they go well it seems to make sense to just say they gradually coalesced into an actual civilization from the native tribal people of the area some arguments against this idea do exist however all native people come from somewhere else it's generally accepted idea that early humans arose in Africa far before anything close to a civilization would form the early people historians called Native Americans came from the Northwest originally during the migration across the Bering Strait similarities between ancient Chinese G face carvings that carried into Canadian native communities and the Olmec car faces may support this theory due to the unique facial features and clothing and ornamentation depicted in the giant stone heads and other carvings some believed the Olmec may have more direct African roots did people long ago come across the ocean to settle in a new world while before Europeans dead from a transportation standpoint it's theoretically possible that people in Africa could have rode the winds and currents across to Mesoamerica although it seems unlikely the early evidence of Olmec language however seemed to have quite a few similarities to the mending language from Western African regions the helmets on the massive stone heads look like those worn across the ocean did the omec get their idea of sterilized pyramids from the Egyptians as mysterious as the source of the Olmec civilization remains its disappearance presents just as many questions and ideas the usual way of people's decline includes being assimilated into another culture or conquered by them completely from all accounts however the Aztec and Maya traded with the late Olmec and did not have serious problems with them approximately 1,500 years since its beginning around 400 BC the main city of La Venta started falling apart ultimately then the tens of thousands of people who once lived there simply abandoned it there was some evidence that they purposefully took some of the buildings apart before they left perhaps to save materials with the intention to rebuild elsewhere trade networks stopped flowing all Olmec style artwork and carvings ended [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music]

Channel: DTTV Studios

Views: 79,978

Rating: 4.6872125 out of 5

Keywords: olmec, mesoamerica, documentary

Id: XmGWkq4t-dw

Length: 32min 0sec (1920 seconds)

Published: Mon Aug 26 2019