Ancient Olmec: The

First American
Civilization
Pottery of the Olmec, Pueblo and Incas

Name: Regina Best

ID# 0002697
Course Code: ARTH 321
Course Title: History of Design
Tutor: L. Sten-Nicholson
Due Date: December 10, 2014

Long ago before 1200 B.C., a people known as the Olmec settled in Mexico and they
developed along Mexicos gulf coast. They were the first great Mesoamerican civilization and
very advanced in their culture. These people were incredible artists, scientists, astronomers,
traders, warriors and farmers. It is said that the Olmec have connections not only with Africa as
initially learnt, but that they were also supposedly connected to China. Much of the Olmec
culture is lost, however the artwork which survives is the best tool in helping to better understand
this ancient culture.
Traditionally, the Native Indian Americans were thought to be the original inhabitants of
the Americas who came across the Bering Strait from Asia during the Ice Age period but recent
research prove otherwise; that this was not entirely true. Besides the Paleoamericans and the
Clovis period some 12,000 years ago, the Olmec were also becoming present as one of the first
people to arrive in the Americas. We know because the Olmec had their roots in early farming
cultures of Tabasco, which began between 5100 BCE and 4600 BCE. (Ancient Man and His
First Civilizations: The Olmec and the Americas, n. d.) It is difficult to determine where the
Olmec came from and how they got to the Americas. Some say they crossed the Bering Strait,
others say by boat from West Africa or Australia. These are all different parts of the world, so
would it be safe to say that the Olmec were travelling to various areas? We may not know where
they are originally from but we do know that wherever they went, they left their mark. In China,
the Olmec called themselves the Xi or Xia people from the dynasty there and these would have
been the Olmec who used the Bering Strait. Evidence can be seen in their masks and sculptures
of the Tsimshian Indians of the western coast of Canada, and in written accounts of the
California Indians in The United States (Ancient Man and His First Civilizations: The Olmec
and the Americas, n. d.) as they moved from north to south. They mixed with the Amerindians,

Mongolians, Aborigines and Polynesians which gave such diversity in culture of the Americas.
The Olmec culture had similarities with the Shang writing and human sacrifice in China as well
as the African body scarification, linguistics, religion and building. Olmec art proves that they
were blacks from Africa, possibly from the Mende group and that the Olmec were Moors from
Mali. Their presence was also noted in the Middle East and India where linguistics were similar.
So it is clear that they were an advanced culture in many parts of the world through their travels.
As mentioned before, the Olmec culture had similarities in other cultures and was very
progressive. Their dress, food, architecture, language, religion, governmental system,
transportation and currency paved the way for other cultures to improve on. The city of San
Lorenzo, Tenochtitln was the first major city in
Ancient Mexico where the Olmec lived. It had
elaborate water and drainage systems and was
possibly used for rituals and political gatherings.
The city was built of ceremonial temples which
were usually earthen platform mounds, with
house-like structures built upon them. (Ancient Man and His First Civilizations: The Olmec and
the Americas, n. d.) Other sites like La Venta, which had the first pyramid that was more conical
in shape than the Mayan, Aztec or Egyptian pyramids and Laguna de los Cerros, all had bilateral
symmetry in their plans. This was good for their religious practices such as Thunder worship
where the axe was a prominent feature and Shamanism which was the supposed ability to
assume the powers of animals. The importance of children was also emphasised in their religious
beliefs. Among other beliefs was that of nature had some connection to the sky, earth and the
underworld and the worshipped on mountain sites such as the El Manati. Although they had

great cities, most Olmec people lived simply in family groups or villages with chieftains
depending on the size of the village. Monumental sacred complexes, massive stone sculpture,
ball games, chocolate drinking and animal gods were features of Olmec culture. (Cartwright,
2013) The word Olmec was their Aztec name meaning rubber people because they used the
rubber trees for useful things like their rubber ball game. This ball game was played in a ball
court which was situated in valley-like area surrounded by walls where the spectators watched
from. Some were flat where the spectators viewed from
the side-lines. It was very similar to modern day
basketball and football. The hoop or goal was donut
shaped with a slightly larger hole than the rubber ball
built into the walls sideways. The aim was for the team
to get the most scores using their hips and elbows. Later Mesoamerican cultures like the Maya
and Aztec continued this game and perfected it using their own additions and variations. The
Olmec had a writing system and language which looked something like the picture on the right
which was close to the Shang writing. They also
developed a calendar which dated back to 3,113 years
ago

and

again

was

later

perfected

by other

Mesoamericans. They farmed and ate foods such as

maize, beans, sweet potatoes, tomatoes and cocoa and
dug holes in their floors to store food. They preferred
to settle near flood plains so they could fish and catch
alligators.

Olmec art was done skilfully using materials such as jade, basalt, stone, clay, wood and
rubber. The tools they used helped them to create what is now marvelled at. Tools were mostly
made of stone and included basic items such as hammers, wedges, mortar-and-pestles and manoand-metate grinders used for mashing corn and other grains. (Minster, n. d.) Deer antlers, bone
and obsidian were excellent for carving and they Olmec made many pottery vessels and plates
used for storage and cooking food. On these pottery pieces were convoluted designs and patterns
which can be compared to those of the Pueblo and Incas. The Olmec art seems to have had a
religious or political significance since they depicted gods or rulers. The Olmec were known for
their colossal heads made from stone which are the most striking art sculptures left. However,
they produced other incredible works like the Olmec thrones, statues and stelae, celts figurines,
masks and cave paintings. Amerindian cultures and technology that came later were influenced
and descend from the Olmec civilization. When looking at the Aztec, Maya, Inca and Pueblo, we
can tell hat this is true. The Pueblo and Inca are the other Mesoamerican people that will be
compared to the Olmec art culture.
\The ancient Pueblo people were the ancestors of the present day Puebloans who live on
the four corners of the southwest of the United States. They were also called the Anasazi people
meaning in Navajo ancestors of the enemy, which is a term that is disliked by their
descendants. They were known as Basket Makers since they
produced fine basketry used for gathering food before storing them
in ground pits. These Basket Makers were the first group whose
period lasted from about 1200 B. C. to 750 A. D. The period after
that emerged the Puebloans and they were more advanced than the previous group. They built
their communities above ground and in canyons instead of in caves as the Basket Makers did.

The Pueblo lived in apartment-like structures with many

rooms which had similar characteristics to the Moorish
Alhambra architecture. Puebloans were not as associated
with the Olmec as the Incas. This could be because they were
Mesoamericans and their location was close enough to travel.
The Inca group were actually very similar to the Egyptians in their culture and the Olmec were
also connected to the Egyptians. The Inca lived in Peru around the 12th century A. D. and were
even more advanced than the Pueblo and Olmec civilizations. Inca or Inka people had set up
their capital at Cuzco and began their conquests in the early 15th century. Within 100 years they
had conquered an Andean population of about 12,000,000 people. They were known for building
road networks throughout the empire and the Inca Dynasty continued to develop into Chile with
the help of their emperors. Both the Pueblo and Inca had fine works of art such as their pottery.
The Olmec had their many pieces of pottery which were later found mostly broken or in
shards. However, the ones that were properly preserved show the decorative designs made by the
people of this group. Ceramic vessels discovered at Olmec sites were found to be very
iconographic as they displayed religion, cosmology and ideology. Olmec
pottery synthesizes and abstracts these concepts on durable material. As
such, understanding the origin and spread of Olmec pottery has important
implications on the nature of Mesoamerican civilization. (Blomster, 2008)
Olmec ceramics were not as intricately designed as the pottery from the
Pueblo. They were simple compared to the clay pottery done by Pueblos who coiled their clay
and then shaped it with their hands. Then it was covered with slip and painted with dyes from
plants. Old pottery remnants were also added to help in the drying process and also produced an

essential spiritual correlation to the past. (Pueblo Pottery, n. d.) Different clay pottery came
from various small Pueblo tribes which could easily be identified
because each tribe painted their own designs. For example, the
Acoma pottery is known for having white clay and thin walls,
Zuni pottery is painted in a brownish black and red over a white
background, and Hopi pottery is typically designed by painting
with dark paint on beige or tan clay. (Pueblo Pottery, n. d.) Designs include birds, rainbows,
rain, water, lightening and geometrical shapes. Pottery from the
Incas in Peru was also similar however their work was very
symmetrical and geometrical. They were keen on precision and used
utmost skill to make hard finished pottery with a polished and
painted surface. Design techniques were used such as crosshatching, repetition of shapes and parallel lines by people who
carried the Inca pottery with them as they were influenced to produce better pieces.
From this research I gathered that the various cultures and people of the Americas were
indeed connected. This was especially interesting in the case of their art and their living areas.
Each of them influenced one another as they mixed which made them stronger and more
progressive. I chose to research them because I found that I did not know much on these people
and found that they were very important to our everyday lives today.

Bibliography
Blomster, J. (2008). Ceramics: Olmec Pottery. Retrieved from Springer Link:
http://link.springer.com/referenceworkentry/10.1007%2F978-1-4020-4425-0_9740
Cartwright, M. (2013, August 30). Olmec Civilization . Retrieved from Ancient History
Enclopedia: http://www.ancient.eu/Olmec_Civilization/
Minster, C. (n. d.). Olmec Culture. Retrieved from About Education:
http://latinamericanhistory.about.com/od/The_Olmec/p/Olmec-Culture.htm
Ancient Man and His First Civilizations: The Olmec and the Americas. (n. d.). Retrieved from
Real History: http://realhistoryww.com/world_history/ancient/Olmec_the_Americas.htm
Pueblo Pottery. (n. d.). Retrieved from Indians.org : http://www.indians.org/articles/pueblopottery.html
Pueblo Pottery. (n. d.). Retrieved from Tribal Directory:
http://tribaldirectory.com/information/pueblo-pottery.html