Compare And Contrast Mayan And Aztecs

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The Mayans and the Aztecs were two Native American cultures living in present day Mexico. These two ancient civilizations, although living in the same geographical area, were very different in the way that they lived. These two civilizations have many similarities but there are four major areas in both of these cultures that will easily set them apart. Describe the hunting and gathering techniques of the Mayans. The Mayans used spears and traps to hunt animals like wild boar and deer. These traps were made from nets of long vines and leaves that would lead an animal to where the hunter wanted it to go. Their inventions were very cleaver; they laid out “trip wire” that would trigger a much larger spear like object that would kill a large animal instantly.…show more content…
In the film the Aztecs attacked the Mayan village seeking slaves to help build up their empire. They had a very stealth like approach when attacking the Mayans, they moved quickly and quietly. The Aztecs ambushed the homes of the Mayans with torches. The torches were used to scare the Mayans out of their homes; this made it easier for the Aztecs to capture men and women for slavery. The Aztec people showed no mercy when conquering other natives. How is religion expressed in both Mayan and Aztec culture? Both cultures believed that sacrifice was the proper way to show respect to their gods. Although in the Mayan culture, the sacrificing rituals weren’t as extreme as they were in the Aztec civilization. In the Mayan culture the bloodletting of their village members and the killing of animals were popular forms of sacrifice. In the Aztec culture, humans were captured from neighboring tribes and their hearts were sacrificed in a public setting. These sacrifices were held at Tenochtitlan, the ancient Aztec capital that is now known as Mexico City. In your opinion were these early Native American settlers a civilized

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