Today I read an article by Rebecca González Lauck, titled "La Venta" from Archaeology of Ancient Mexico and Central America: An Encyclopedia. The article mainly focuses on La Venta and its location, climate, weather, architecture, sculptures, and socio-political organizations. The article states that La Venta's monumental architecture and sculpture "define it as one of the most important cities of the Olmec civilization, and one of the clearest examples of complex societies in Middle America during the first millennium before the common era" (González Lauck 92). I also watched Kingdom of the Jaguar, an episode from the program Lost Kingdoms of Central America. The video is conveniently uploaded on Youtube but usually shown on BBC. The show's host is Dr. Jago Cooper, a British archaeologist who specializes in the archaeology of the Americas. In the episode, Dr. Cooper journeys to San Lorenzo, La Venta, Chalcatzingo, Juxtlahuaca, Xalapa Museum, and Museum of Santiago. He explores and investigates the Olmec people's art, archaeology, landscapes, and culture. Dr. Cooper states, "arising out of the tropical wetlands of Southern Mexico around 1200 B.C.; they were one of the first civilizations of the Americas; they built the first pyramid and the first planned city in this part of the Americas, devised one of the earliest known systems of writing, believed their rulers had supernatural powers and played one of the world's oldest ball games. They are known as the Olmec, and they reached their height over a thousand years before the Maya, and the Aztec did" (Lost 0:39-1:14).
The description of the climate and landscape was similar in the article and the episode. It is mentioned in the article that "the climate is humid tropical, with an average rainfall of more than 2,000 mm and a mean temperature of 27° C" (González Lauck 92). In the episode, Dr. Cooper states, "this is a swelteringly hot and humid part of the world, prone to hurricanes and torrential downpour" (Lost 4:30-4:37). In both sources, they mentioned that La Venta has these complexes of low earth and platforms and mounds" (Lost 31:22-31:28). The proximity of the river is essential for agriculture. Both sources mentioned that corn can be produced three times per year and was a vital source of sustenance for the Olmec. Both sources talk about La Venta's site map, and it reveals the layout of a planned monumental architecture in ancient Mexico, oriented on a north-south axis.
One can get a sense of the Olmec people's intentions for this city that they designed. It is believed that certain site areas were used for ceremonies while others were used for public use. According to the article, "most of La Venta's edifices have not been subject to archaeological excavation" (González Lauck 92). Dr. Cooper interviews Rebecca Gonzáles Lauck, a lead archaeologist in La Venta for the past 20 years, and the very same author of the article "La Venta". He asks what percentage of the site has been excavated, and González responds, "not even 1% - we have excavated very, very little" (Lost 34:13-34:22). Gonzáles speculated on the episode that about 10,000 people lived in La Venta, while she didn't guess the ancient city's population in her article. The La Venta site map shown in the episode has a scale of 200 meters, while the article's diagram shows the scale as 300 meters. The episode also discussed San Lorenzo and other areas, while the article only featured La Venta.
Video of an Olmec mask, buried as an offering, found in Aztec Temple
Courtesy of Khan Academy. Video is 2:42 min. long.
I already knew from Professor Moore's module, "Introduction to the Olmec 2.3," that the region where the Olmecs mostly lived was in the swampy lowlands. I also knew already from our module that San Lorenzo is considered the earliest known settlement in Mesoamerica. New information that I learned today was about the Red Palace. In the episode, Dr. Cooper states, "around this Red Palace are the lower status residences, and below them, further down the slopes, you find the laborers and the farmers - it's that classic realization of a stratified society with the elite people literally higher, looking down on everyone else" (Lost 10:25-10:42). I also learned from Dr. Cooper a lot more about how the Olmec people regarded their leaders. Dr. Cooper stated, "[the] key to deciphering Olmec belief systems and the status of their leaders is the understanding that the elite was viewed as different; they were thought to have a special relationship with powerful beasts and supernatural forces. Their power, the Olmec believed, created the conditions for fertile soils and an abundant food supply" (Lost 17:22-17:46). What's remarkable is that the Olmec laid the foundation for many civilizations that followed, and it's astonishing to learn of the legacy they left behind.
La Venta's Great Pyramid
Works Cited
González Lauck, Rebecca. "La Venta." Archaeology of Ancient Mexico and Central America: An
Encyclopedia, edited by Susan Toby Evans and David L. Webster, 1992, pp. 798-800. Accessed 14
Sept. 2021.
"Kingdom of the Jaguar, Lost Kingdoms of Central America." Youtube, uploaded by FiveDigitCreature, 29
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