A Maya glyph of a cloth bag “xiquipilli’ that kept 8,000 cacao beans, a standard measure of unit of currency. While the Olmecs were the likely the first civilization to consumer cacao, the use of cocoa beans as commodity money began with the Maya (“The True History of Chocolate”).

What did the Olmec use for money?

A Maya glyph of a cloth bag “xiquipilli’ that kept 8,000 cacao beans, a standard measure of unit of currency. While the Olmecs were the likely the first civilization to consumer cacao, the use of cocoa beans as commodity money began with the Maya (“The True History of Chocolate”).

Why did the Olmec need to trade so much?

Trading helped the Olmec build their urban centers of San Lorenzo and La Venta. These cities, however, were used predominantly for ceremonial purposes and elite activity; most people lived in small villages. Individual homes had a lean-to—sort of like a garage shed—and a storage pit for storing root vegetables nearby.

What resources did the Olmecs have?

The Olmec people discovered and made use of many natural resources in the area, including rubber and corn. Dozens of mysterious stone heads were discovered in the Olmec territory as well; archaeologists are still not sure what their purposes were.

What 3 things did the Olmec develop?

The Olmec created massive monuments, including colossal stone heads, thrones, stela (upright slabs), and statues. They may have been the originators of the Mesoamerican ball game, a ceremonial team sport played throughout the region for centuries.

How did Olmec make money?

Olmec Economy Most common Olmec “citizens” were involved in food production, tending fields of basic crops such as maize, beans, and squash, or fishing the rivers that flowed through the Olmec homelands.

What did the Olmecs invent?

In addition to their influence with contemporaneous Mesoamerican cultures, as the first civilization in Mesoamerica, the Olmecs are credited, or speculatively credited, with many “firsts”, including the bloodletting and perhaps human sacrifice, writing and epigraphy, and the invention of popcorn, zero and the …

What are the Olmecs known for?

The Olmec are probably best known for the statues they carved: 20 ton stone heads, quarried and carved to commemorate their rulers. The name Olmec is an Aztec word meaning the rubber people; the Olmec made and traded rubber throughout Mesoamerica.

What were the Olmec known for?

What did the Olmecs believe in?

Like many early Mesoamerican cultures, the Olmec believed in three tiers of existence: the physical realm they inhabited, an underworld and a sky realm, home of most of the gods. Their world was bound together by the four cardinal points and natural boundaries such as rivers, the ocean and mountains.

Did the Olmecs have money?

Trade with neighboring clans and tribes was common, but these societies did not have long-distance trade routes, a merchant class, or a universally accepted form of currency, so they were limited to a down-the-line sort of trade network.

What did Olmecs do?

What was the economic structure of the Olmecs?

Economic Structure. The principal economic practice in the Olmec Society was farming, mainly stationary farming, but occasionally they would engage in slash-and-burn agriculture. Farmers grew maize, yams, squash, beans, grains, gourds, and avocados. Despite the variety of plants grown, maize was still the predominant crop.

What are the Olmec trading practices?

The Olmec trading practices, traced through the movement of goods produced or mined elsewhere, are key to understanding the Early and Middle Formative histories of Mesoamerica. Characteristics of the Olmec trading network include:

How many market stages did the Olmec have?

It has been considered that the Olmec economic system was able to transit through two major market stages during the period of existence of this civilization. A first stage of isolated trade and of little transit and exchange, where the main products were for the sustenance and materials for the constructions.

What crops did the Olmecs grow?

On top of all these natural boons, the Olmec, like all Mesoamerican societies, developed a variety of agricultural crops to grow and use. This included gourds like squash, avocados, beans, yams, and various grains, however the primary crop nurtured and utilized by the Olmec was maize.