Teotihuacan

Question 1

What are the ancient representations of Teotihuacan?

Answer 1

• Murals
• Pyramids
• Sculptures of gods

Question 2

What are the modern representations of Teotihuacan?

Answer 2

• Excavations
• Education through tourism

Question 3

What is the location of Teotihuacan?

Answer 3

• Located in the Mexico Valley about 50km north east of Mexico city.
• Mesoamerican city
• Surrounded by mountains and volcanoes
• Origins of its founders is uncertain

Question 4

What are the key features of the site of Teotihuacan?

Answer 4

• Pyramid of the sun
• Pyramid of the moon
• Temple of the feathered serpent
• Avenue of the dead runs through the site and connects the temples with more than 200 additional buildings (includes apartment complexes)

Question 5

Major geographical features of Teotihuacan

Answer 5

• Volcanoes
• Surrounding mountains
• Caves
• River flowing through
• Close to a supply of obsidian which was used in rituals and weapons
• Chinampas - agricultural purposes
• Ash fertilised the soil

Question 6

What were the four surrounding civilisations in Teotihuacan?

Answer 6

• Mixtecs
• Aztecs
• Mayans
• Zapotec

Question 7

Who are the Zapotecs?

Answer 7

• Polytheistic religion
• Gods connected to natural elements
• Belief in the supernatural
• Religious city Mitla
• Tombs underground
• Murals and art

Question 8

Who are the Mayans?

Answer 8

• Polytheistic and animism
• Rituals include blood letting to appease gods
• Deadly ball game to represent the battle between gods

Question 9

Who are the aztecs?

Answer 9

• Structured society
• Advanced civilisation
• Education was important
• Blood letting and human sacrifice

Question 10

Who are the Mixtecs?

Answer 10

• Worshipped natural elements
• Child sacrifices

Question 11

What were the plans for Teotihuacan?

Answer 11

• Planned city
• Lived in another civilisation while it was being built
• Built over earlier structures
• Plan integrated natural elements
• Humans eroded the site
• Modern mexico is built on top of ancient city
• Makes it difficult to excavate

Question 12

What were the main features of landmarks in Teotihuacan?

Answer 12

• Steep steps
• Cobblestone
• Murals, paintings
• Sculptures of gods
• Housing
• Plazas
• Avenue of the dead was a wide path

Question 13

What are the archaeological sources of Teotihuacan?

Answer 13

• Pyramid of the sun
• Pyramid of the moon
• Uncovered through archaeological digs

Question 14

What do the murals and artifacts depict?

Answer 14

• gods, rituals and daily activities
• artifacts include obsidian tools
• give insight to religious and cultural practices of inhabitants

Question 15

What are the iconography and glyphs?

Answer 15

• Feathered serpent glyph is a recurring symbol in Teotihucan art
• Study of symbols images and writings
• Provides information on language, religious beliefs and social organisation

Question 16

Examples of architectural analysis

Answer 16

• Alignment of the buildings such as the avenue of the dead with celestial events

Question 17

What was the use of radiocarbon dating?

Answer 17

• Used to date organic materials such as burial sites and construction layers
• Establish a timeline for Teotihucans development

Question 18

What are examples of glyphs?

Answer 18

• Jaguar (power and war - war god)
• Headdresses indicate rank, divinity or particular roles
• Clothing (represents rulers, highly ranked priests)
• Represents their elite status or connection to the gods

Question 19

What are the limitations of the evidence of Teotihaucan?

Answer 19

• Lack of written records
• Lot of it remains unexcavated because there are modern buildings on top
• Environmental damage

Question 20

What was the significance of the TMP?

Answer 20

• First excavation site to record findings on technology
• Preserved the information so it wouldn’t get lost and other archaeologists wouldn’t have to start over
• Done in a grid system to ensure efficiency and validity

Question 21

Who was Quetzalcoatl?

Answer 21

• Feathered serpent
• Creator (main god
• Patron of rain, science and agriculture
• Represented through bird/snake hybrid
• Worshipped through human sacrifices

Question 22

What was Quetzalpapalotl?

Answer 22

• Complex that has become ruins in Teotihuacan
• Represented in mythological birds and courtyard pillars

Question 23

Describe the nature of everyday life in Teotihuacan

Answer 23

• Oligarchy (ruled by a few elites)
• Similar to a democracy
• Lot of working class (small elite class)
• Stable population (peaceful or strong army)
• Multi-ethnic society suggested by skeletons of individuals from isotopic analysis
• Evidence provided from Renee Millon (anthropologist)

Question 24

What were the reasons for the collapse of Teotihuacan?

Answer 24

• Burnt down at around 550CE
• May be because of external attack or internal rebellion
• Premeditated (outer source of invasion)
• Failure of the ruling elite
• Class wars
• Environmental problems