The People of the Americas (200 bce)
Who were the ancient civilizations that lived in America? Unfortunately not all of them left a record behind. Fortunately they did leave behind ancient buildings, ruined villages and strange mounds. The Nazca lived along the South America rivers in what is now know as Peru. The Nazca left behind strange drawings scraped into the earth that are clearly viable from an airplane. The drawings are so large that they are not visible from the ground.
In Central America the Olmecs left a strange site as well, enormous stone heads that were probably sculptures of important rulers. None of the rulers have a body, just a giant head that sits on the ground.
Who were these people and where did they come from? I found studying them very fascinating. It is amazing to think that a group of people in an ancient world would create giant sculptures and gigantic line drawings without the aid of modern tools.
(If you want to read about a group that did leave behind: an Ancient American Record)
The Nazca Lines
The Nazca Line Drawings
Olmec Documentary
Olmec Documentary
Extra Activities:
Using chalk draw your own Nazca lines on black top or your driveway.
No comments :
Post a Comment