The Main ceremonial centers of the Zapotecs Were Monte Alban and Mitla; Additionally, Mihuatlán, Zimatlán and Zaachila were also known centers.
Pre-Columbian Zapotec civilization flourished in the Mesoamerican Valley of Oaxaca. Archaeological evidence shows that this culture dates back at least 2500 years ago.
Monte alban
The first Zapotec capital was Monte Alban, then Mitla; the Zapotec Dominated the southern highlands, spoke a variation of Oto-Zapotec language, and benefited from a cultural and commercial exchange with the Olmec, Maya, and Teotihuacan civilizations.
Monte Albán was one of the first large cities of Mesoamerica And was the center of a Zapotec state that dominated much of the territory that nowadays belongs to Oaxaca.
The Zapotec archaeological evidence found in the ancient city of Monte Alban takes the form of buildings, ball courts, tombs, and tombstones with gold jewelry finally worked.
The Zapotecs developed from farming communities that grew up in the valleys around Oaxaca. Thanks to their ties of commerce with the Olmec civilization they were able to build the great site of Monte Albán and could dominate the region during the classic period.
In addition to Monte Albán, they had about 15 elite palaces that have been identified in the valleys of this area. The ceremonial sites of the Zapotecs show a high level of sophistication in their architecture, art, writing, and engineering projects.
List of the main ceremonial centers of the Zapotecs
Monte alban
It is the most famous remnant of the Zapotec civilization. It is located 1200 feet above the foot of the valley; Occupying about 45 hectares. It is believed that its construction began sometime around 500 BC. C. and was inhabited by the next 1500 years.
It is estimated that some 17,000 or 25,000 people inhabited this area. However this site does not have rivers or sources of drinking water where the structures were built.
Indeed, some of the stones used to construct the buildings had to be mounted in the valley by humans, since no wheel or animals were available to the Zapotecs.
It is believed that this site was chosen for its defense attributes, since defensive walls are found on the north and west sides of Monte Albán.
The Olmecs and the Mixtec Also lived and used this site, but it is the Zapotec people who are more related to this area.
This site is a cultural center of humanity. There are dozens of buildings, including pyramids, terraces, tomb chambers, areas of commerce, markets, houses and an observatory. There are about 170 known tombs in Monte Alban; Most have not been excavated.
Among the most important buildings that can be found are the north platform, located to the right of the main square, which was the residence of the Zapotec king and the temples of the nobility. In the hills you can also discover tombs, courtyards, cemeteries, and other temples.
Mitla
It gained prominence around 700 or 900 BC. C. It became the most important center of the Zapotecs following the decline of the capital of Monte Albán. This site continued to be inhabited until the Spanish conquest.
It is believed that its name derives from the legend in which kings, priests, and great warriors are buried in a large chamber under the city. However this camera has not been found.
It is currently known for its giant rectangular building, the Hall of Columns, which is richly decorated in geometric reliefs; Most of the reliefs found in the corridors of the buildings have rather intricate geometric designs.
Mihuatlán
It is located in the south central part of the central valleys, about 100 km from the city of Oaxaca. Its name comes from a word in the Nahuatl language which means place of the corn field.
Its original name, Pelopeniza, refers to a word zapoteca that means water spring; Was founded by the Zapotec Pichina Vedella.
In the Cerro Gordo area many ceramic artifacts have been found; Knives, axes, boxes and containers made of stone. There is also a structure of a bull carved in wood.
In addition, ancient coins, ceramic pieces, and human bones belonging to the Zapotec tombs have been found.
Zimatlán
This word originates from the Nahuatl language and means"place of the bean root". However, its original name in Zapotec language was Huyelachi, which means"land of flowers".
For this reason, it is believed that the Zapotecs cultivated the amaranth plant in this area; In addition to maize, maguey and cactus.
That is why it is assumed that in this site the Zapotecs could achieve a large production of white amaranth seeds instead of black ones.
This civilization was able to achieve this applying both scientific and technological knowledge to obtain the bursting of amaranth.
Zaachila
This site is located about 6 km from the city of Oaxaca. This city was named by a Zapotec leader of the fourteenth century. Zaachila was the home of the last Zapotec princess, Donaji. At present it is an archaeological site.
A large mound of unexplored pyramid is located in the center where two tombs were discovered in 1962. These tombs are believed to have belonged to important Mixtecan people.
Following the fall of Monte Albán, Zaachila became the last Zapotec capital. The capital was conquered by the Mixtecas sometime before the arrival of the Spaniards.
That said, pre-Hispanic history is not very clear. It is believed that this site reached its apogee between 1100 and 1521 BC. C.
Most of the city is not explored since excavation is hindered by the fact that most mounds have structures and tombs in them.
In 1971 new excavations found two tombs registered with the numbers three and four. Remains of paint can be found in one of the tombs; Represent skulls and cross bones on a red background.
Most of the tombs of the place are decorated with stucco figures representing the world of the dead according to the culture of Mesoamerican natives. Inside the tombs have also been found pottery objects from these cultures.
References
- Zapotec civilization (2013) Recovered from ancient.eu
- Monte Alban, the most famous zapotec temple (2015) Recovered from actiyamonth.com
- Mitla (2015) Retrieved from ancient.eu
- Miahuatlan historical town hall museum in Ecotourism. Recovered from exploringoaxaca.com
- In Zimatlán, Oaxaca, a prehispanic plant resumes: amaranth. Recovered from mexicodesconocido.com.mx
- Zaachila. Retrieved from wikipedia.org
- A day in Oaxaca = two thousand years: Monte Alban and Zimatlan Valley in Travel. Retrieved from mexconnect.com.