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Kiva Journal

@kivaswjournal.bsky.social

What can an ancient pithouse from the Viejo period (600 –1250 CE) in Chihuahua tell us about ritual and memory? Zborover uncovers how people shaped space to connect with their ancestors. doi.org/10.1080/0023...
#Archaeology #History #Chihuahua #AncientMexico #Ritual

Zborover 2019. View of Ch-254 and Structure 5A, looking east. Cerro Picacho is in the background.

November 4, 2025 at 11:30 PM

Patrick Kapty

@patrickkapty.bsky.social

Olmec mask
carved stone
900 - 400 BCE
Veracruz, Mexico

#olmec #mexico #mesoamerica #ancient #precolumbian #prehispanic #carved #stone #mask #olmecmask #handmade #ancientart #art #archeology #culture #ancientamericas #ancientmexico

September 26, 2025 at 4:03 PM

Travel Muses

@travelmuses.bsky.social

Uncover the mysteries of ancient Mexico at the Teotihuacan Pyramids! Marvel at the grandeur of the Pyramid of the Sun and the Pyramid of the Moon, and walk the Avenue of the Dead. A journey through history awaits! #Teotihuacan #AncientMexico #TravelHistory

September 9, 2025 at 12:02 AM

∙ ᴘᴀᴜʟɪɴᴀ ∙

@iamthepaulina.bsky.social

🇲🇽 ＭＥＸＩＣＯ 🇲🇽
#MexicanHistory #AncientMexico #MexicoBeforeSpain #HiddenHistory #IndigenousMexico #ForgottenEmpires #TheRealMexico #DecolonizeHistory

August 17, 2025 at 10:15 PM

Patrick Kapty

@patrickkapty.bsky.social

Pendant
carved jade, pigment
Maya culture
circa 600-700 CE
Mexico

#jade #mayaculture #mesoamerica #pendant #mayanjade #carved #handmade #ancientjade #tikal #piedrasnegras #chichenitza #mexico #ancientmexico #precolumbian #prehispanic #archaeology #jadeite #pigment #oneofakind #carving #royaljade

This bright green jade pendant depicts a Maya ruler wearing the headdress of a supernatural being. The lower half of the highly polished stone is a naturalistic face of a Maya lord whose lips are slightly parted, as if about to speak. The face seems to emerge from the gaping jaws of the deity depicted in the headdress. The iconography of the jade ties it strongly with Maya beliefs about rulership, particularly its connection with divine powers (see 2007.134).

The apex of the work terminates in a visual element that is common in artists’ depictions of crown jewels worn by Late Classic period (ca. 550 – 900 CE) kings and queens, especially in the 7th and 8th centuries. In fact, the pendant itself was likely a pectoral or a crown jewel, the centerpiece of a royal diadem, such as those found in the tombs of important historical figures. Fiber run through drill holes on the reverse side would have affixed the jewel to a bark paper or cloth fiber diadem, and multiple drill holes along the jaw of the ruler’s portraits would have allowed beads to dangle below. Red pigment in the drill holes indicates it was once part of a funerary assemblage, which the Maya often dusted with red minerals upon burial, as a king or queen took his or her jewels into the next life.

The work is exceptional for its relative size, the beauty of the apple-green jade (the shade most preferred by the Maya), and the outstanding sculptural qualities of the work. The richly volumetric carving sets this work apart from known, flatter compositions. There are two other pendants of comparable quality and imagery. The first was created for a ruler at Piedras Negras, Guatemala, and later deposited in the Great Cenote at Chichen Itza, Mexico; it is now in the collections of the Peabody Museum at Harvard University. The second was excavated from Burial 77 at Tikal, which likely held the final ruler of the city before its abandonment in the 9th century.

August 15, 2025 at 12:22 PM

Patrick Kapty

@patrickkapty.bsky.social

Yax Ahk’ as captive impersonating jaguar deity
sandstone sculpture
Maya culture
circa 700 CE
Mexico

#Maya #mesoamerica #ancientmexico #stone #sculpture #yaxahk #deity #legend #myth #jaguargod #ritual #religion

Identified by the hieroglyphic inscription on his leg, Yax Ahk’, the lord of a place called Anaayte’, along the Usumacinta River on the modern border between Guatemala and Mexico, is shown as a captive impersonating the jaguar god. The flaming jaguar ear and the twisted cord between his eyes are attributes of the deity, a warrior who was himself captured and tortured by fire in primordial war myths.

August 12, 2025 at 12:17 PM

Travel Earth

@travelearth4real.bsky.social

Mayan Artifacts are displayed at museums and areas of importance to show the way of life of the Mayans and what they used to believe. Those statues played an important role when it comes to worship #mayan #ancienthistory #museum #Cancun #rivieramaya #vacation #artifacts #musee #ancientmexico

July 11, 2025 at 11:49 PM

Archaeology

@archaeology07.bsky.social

Fragment of a mural depicting the Quetzal bird, Puebla, Mexico, 200-600 AD.⁣ ⁣ #archaeology #ancientmexico #puebla #quetzal #mural #precolumbian

June 7, 2025 at 9:16 AM

Patrick Kapty

@patrickkapty.bsky.social

An Aztec carving of a coiled snake. To the ancient Aztecs, the snake was a symbol of rebirth and transformation.

#aztec #snake #carved #stone #mesoamerica #ancientmexico #handmade #archeology #aztecsnake #azteccarving #precolumbian #prehispanic #ancientcarving #aztecreligion #aztecritual #art

In Aztec culture, snakes held significant symbolic meaning, primarily associated with rebirth, fertility, and the connection between the underworld and the sky. The snake's ability to shed its skin was interpreted as a symbol of transformation and renewal. Additionally, snakes were linked to gods like Quetzalcoatl (Feathered Serpent), Coatlicue (She of the Serpent Skirt), and Huitzilopochtli, the principal Aztec god.
The ability of snakes to move freely between water, earth, and the forest canopy led to them being seen as intermediaries between the different layers of the cosmos, including the underworld, earth, and sky.
Coatlicue, the earth goddess and mother of Huitzilopochtli, was often depicted with a serpent skirt, further emphasizing the snake's connection to the earth and fertility.
Serpents were also used in architecture, with a wall of serpents (coatepantli) often marking out sacred spaces within a ceremonial area.

April 23, 2025 at 3:35 PM

Patrick Kapty

@patrickkapty.bsky.social

Incredibly modern but made by an Aztec artisan over 600 years ago!

#aztec #carved #obsidian #art #artwork #tribalart #archeology #aztecart #mesoamericanart #mexico #ancientmexico #precolumbian #prehispanic #aztecskull #rebirth #cyclical #lifeanddeath #diadelosmuertos #remembrance

For the Aztecs, skulls held profound spiritual significance, symbolizing death, rebirth, and the continuation of life. They were used in rituals to honor the dead, displayed as trophies, and believed to represent the "seeds" that ensured humanity's continued existence. Skulls were also incorporated into art and architecture, reflecting the Aztecs' complex beliefs about the afterlife and the cyclical nature of life and death.
Aztecs believed in a cyclical view of life and death, where death was not an end but a transition to another realm.
Skulls, as reminders of mortality, were seen as a gateway to the afterlife and the renewal of life.
The Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos), which has roots in ancient Aztec rituals, continues to use skulls as a symbol of honoring the deceased and their return.

April 23, 2025 at 3:16 PM

Patrick Kapty

@patrickkapty.bsky.social

Green stone Face Mask
Olmec Civilization
10th-6th century BCE

#olmec #mesoamerica #ancientmexico #carved #greenstone #face #mask #carving #precolumbian #prehispanic #archeology #handmade #art #ancientart #mexico

In Mesoamerica, jade and other green stones held immense cultural and symbolic importance, being prized for their green color, associated with life, water, and fertility, and used in religious objects, royal adornments, and burial rituals
The Olmec civilization thrived in the Preclassic or Formative period of Mesoamerica, roughly from 1500 BCE to 400 BCE, primarily in the Gulf Coast region of Mexico, encompassing the present-day states of Veracruz and Tabasco.
The Olmec civilization is what is known as an archaeological culture. This means there is a collection of artifacts thought by archaeologists to represent a particular society. What is known about archaeological cultures is based on artifacts, rather than texts. In the case of the Olmec, archaeologists think artifacts found primarily on the northern half of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Mesoamerica from 1200–500 B.C.E. timeframe represent the Olmec society. The name Olmec was actually invented by scholars. Derived from the Nahuatl (Aztec) word “Olmecatl”, which means “inhabitant of the rubber country”, Olmec is a reference to the rubber production in the area where many of the artifacts have been found.
San Lorenzo and La Venta are the most significant Olmec centers. San Lorenzo was at its height around 1150 to 900 B.C.E. La Venta reached its height in about 900–500 B.C.E.
Research at these and other sites has led to the following insights. 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. They also built earthen mounds and pyramids, and ceramics of several types that became common throughout a broad region influenced by the Olmec civilization.

April 5, 2025 at 6:21 PM

Patrick Kapty

@patrickkapty.bsky.social

Plate in the Form of a Jaguar with Interior Painted with Floral-Like Motif
ceramic and pigment
200–700 CE
Maya
Mexico

#Maya #mexico #mesoamerica #ancientculture #ancientart #art #handmade #ceramic #jaguar #floral #plate #ancientmexico #ancientamericanart #ancientpeoplesofmexico #archeology

March 24, 2025 at 2:32 PM

Nathaniel Avila

@natmavila.bsky.social

Step into the heart of the Aztec world—Teotihuacán in its prime! Towering pyramids, sacred rituals, and the vibrant pulse of an empire at its peak. Witness the City of the Gods as it once was. 🌞🛕✨ #AncientMexico #Teotihuacan #AztecEmpire #CityOfTheGods

March 12, 2025 at 3:10 PM

Nathaniel Avila

@natmavila.bsky.social

Step into the heart of the Aztec world—Teotihuacán in its prime! Towering pyramids, sacred rituals, and the vibrant pulse of an empire at its peak. Witness the City of the Gods as it once was. 🌞🛕✨ #AncientMexico #Teotihuacan #AztecEmpire #CityOfTheGods

March 12, 2025 at 3:06 PM

Javier Basulto

@javobas.bsky.social

#History #AncientMexico

The Mexica (“ #Aztec ”) (1428-1521 AD) had a network of “painani”, relay runners, who would run almost 400 kms. to bring the first catch of the morning from the Gulf of Mexico to Tenochtitlan (Mexico City), so the Huēi Tlahtoāni (Emperor) could eat fresh fish every day.