Mesoamerica

Connections between the southwestern U.S. and Mesoamerica are revealed in these vessels featuring parrots or macaws and a merchant
Paquimé jars

An excerpt from the "Popol Vuh," a sixteenth-century book in K’iché Maya, that recounts the formation of the earth and the first peoples, among other tales.
Mesoamerican art in context: an excerpt from ...

Stela 16 is a Maya royal portrait stela showing the ruler Jasaw Chan K’awiil bedecked in feathers, jade, and an elaborate headdress
Tikal Stela 16

This essay provides a broad overview of the different periods of Mesoamerican history.
Periods in Mesoamerican history

El Tajin has survived as an outstanding example of the grandeur and importance of the pre-Hispanic cultures of Mexico.
El Tajín

From c. 100 B.C.E. to 1300 C.E., the Sierra de San Francisco was home to a people who left one of the most outstanding collections of rock paintings in the world.
Rock paintings of Sierra de San Francisco

Xochicalco is an exceptionally well-preserved example of a fortified political, religious and commercial centre from the troubled period of 650–900
Xochicalco

The ruined citadel and imposing public squares reveal the three main stages of development before the city was abandoned in the early 10th century.
Copán

The ceremonial center of Tikal contains superb temples and palaces, and public squares accessed by means of ramps.
Tikal

Paquimé, Casas Grandes, which reached its apogee in the 14th and 15th centuries, played a key role in trade and cultural contacts between the Pueblo culture of the south-western United States and northern Mexico and the more advanced civilizations of Mesoamerica
Paquimé, Casas Grandes

This plaque is one of relatively few imported Maya objects ever found at Teotihuacan and indicates that interaction between the two cultures went both ways.
Plaque of a Maya king from Teotihuacan

The Pyramid of the Moon and Pyramid of the Sun are massive architectural constructions that tell us a lot about Teotihuacan culture
Pyramid of the Moon and Pyramid of ...

This pendant represents a nobleman wearing a necklace, earrings and a lip plug from which hangs a mask with three suspended bells
Gold pendant depicting a ruler, Mixtec

Offering vessels like this one have been found in the tombs of high-ranking Zapotec lords and noblewomen in the Oaxaca Valley in Mexico.
Ancestor figure, Zapotec

Cholula was known for its beautiful polychrome ceramics that included a wide range of symbols such as calendrical dates, hearts, hands, and knives
Pottery vessel, Mixteca-Puebla style

Mexica wooden slit drums (teponaztli) were generally decorated with designs in relief or carved to represent human figures or animals.
Wooden slit-drum (teponaztli)

Dogs are the most commonly portrayed animal in the art of Colima
Pottery dog, Colima culture

Ancient Mexico is renowned for the production of vivid greenstone mosaics
Turquoise mosaics, an introduction

The serpent played a very important role in Mexica religion and many finely carved stone sculptures have survived.