Olmec

The classic Maya civilization, which flourished in Central America for more than 600 years, has been celebrated for its vast city states adorned with monumental pyramids and for its technological feats such as the development of an elaborate written language and impressively accurate astronomical observations. But for decades, archaeologists have argued over the birth of the culture that spawned those splendid cities about 1000 BC. Did Maya society spring from the Olmec civilization of Mexico's Gulf Coast, known for its colossal carved stone heads?

The classic Maya civilization, which flourished in Central America for more than 600 years, has been celebrated for its vast city states adorned with monumental pyramids and for its technological feats such as the development of an elaborate written language and impressively accurate astronomical observations. But for decades, archaeologists have argued over the birth of the culture that spawned those splendid cities about 1000 BC. Did Maya society spring from the Olmec civilization of Mexico's Gulf Coast, known for its colossal carved stone heads?

Archeologists digging in Copalillo, Mexico, in the remote mountains southwest of Cuernavaca, have unearthed the earliest stone buildings found so far on the North American continent, along with a monumental carved stone head. Confirmed dates for the site, built by the ancient Olmec civilization, are 600 BC to 1200 BC, with preliminary laboratory testing of organic remains indicating dates going back as far as 1400 BC--roughly the time of Tutankhamen in Egypt.

BOGOTA, Colombia - Nearly a century ago, Konrad Preuss did pioneering work in Colombia's most important archaeological zone, called San Agustin. But the German archaeologist also took 35 stone statues back to Germany, and now residents of the southern Colombian region where he worked have mounted a campaign to get them back. About 1,800 residents of the Andean community of the San Agustin region signed a petition this month in a grass-roots effort to urge Colombia's government to make a formal request for the return of the intriguing artifacts.

Archeologists digging near Mexico's Gulf Coast have discovered the earliest-known example of writing in Mesoamerica, pushing the date for the appearance of this cultural breakthrough back by at least 450 years, to about 650 BC.

BOGOTA, Colombia - Nearly a century ago, Konrad Preuss did pioneering work in Colombia's most important archaeological zone, called San Agustin. But the German archaeologist also took 35 stone statues back to Germany, and now residents of the southern Colombian region where he worked have mounted a campaign to get them back. About 1,800 residents of the Andean community of the San Agustin region signed a petition this month in a grass-roots effort to urge Colombia's government to make a formal request for the return of the intriguing artifacts.

Like other historians, I have watched the suppression of the Dead Sea Scrolls from the sidelines for several decades. I was particularly interested in the problem because my own work, and the work of my scholarly associates, has also been suppressed relative to revealing highly scientific evidence related to the possible existence of mythical Atlantis. This is not the first time in history such suppression has taken place. It happened to the famous German businessman Heinrich Schleimann when he discovered Troy.

The banks of the Talgua River were not a good place to build a village. Powered by the intense rainfall of the Mosquitia jungle, the ferocious Honduran river periodically escapes its banks, scouring away the last traces of any dwellings that humans may have had the temerity to erect.

Leonardo Patterson made his first archaeological find at age 7 in a yam field in his native Costa Rica -- a piece of clay pottery his cousin said could be thousands of years old. It launched a lifelong fascination with pre-Columbian art, and a career checkered by charges of smuggling and selling forgeries. In April, Munich police seized more than 1,000 Aztec, Maya, Olmec and Inca antiquities from Patterson after an international investigation and a chase across Europe. "The guy is legendary in the field," said Michael Coe, a retired Yale anthropology professor who told authorities that a 1997 Patterson exhibit in Spain included possible fakes.

Olmec civilization emerged roughly 3,000 years ago in the eastern lowlands along Mexico's Gulf Coast in what is today the region of Veracruz and Tabasco. In many ways, it provided the foundation for all Mesoamerican art, much the way ancient Greek art did for subsequent European culture. Still, Olmec society today remains very much a mystery. For example, no one is quite sure what the monumental, 10-ton stone sculptures of helmeted human heads were used for -- although it is certain that anybody who came upon one at a time when the wheel was not yet in use and carving implements were rudimentary would know he was in the jaw-dropping presence of extraordinary power.

Olmec civilization emerged roughly 3,000 years ago in the eastern lowlands along Mexico's Gulf Coast in what is today the region of Veracruz and Tabasco. In many ways, it provided the foundation for all Mesoamerican art, much the way ancient Greek art did for subsequent European culture. Still, Olmec society today remains very much a mystery. For example, no one is quite sure what the monumental, 10-ton stone sculptures of helmeted human heads were used for -- although it is certain that anybody who came upon one at a time when the wheel was not yet in use and carving implements were rudimentary would know he was in the jaw-dropping presence of extraordinary power.

Leonardo Patterson made his first archaeological find at age 7 in a yam field in his native Costa Rica -- a piece of clay pottery his cousin said could be thousands of years old. It launched a lifelong fascination with pre-Columbian art, and a career checkered by charges of smuggling and selling forgeries. In April, Munich police seized more than 1,000 Aztec, Maya, Olmec and Inca antiquities from Patterson after an international investigation and a chase across Europe. "The guy is legendary in the field," said Michael Coe, a retired Yale anthropology professor who told authorities that a 1997 Patterson exhibit in Spain included possible fakes.

A 2,500-year-old city influenced by the Olmecs -- often referred to as the "mother culture" of Mesoamerica -- has been discovered in Mexico, hundreds of miles away from the Olmecs' Gulf Coast territory, archeologists said Wednesday. Two statues and architectural details at the site, known as Zazacatla, indicate that the inhabitants adopted Olmec styles when they changed from a simple, egalitarian society to a more complex, hierarchical one.

Archeologists working on the gulf coast of Mexico have uncovered a 3,000-year-old stone tablet that bears the oldest writing in the Western Hemisphere and the first text unambiguously linked to the Olmec empire -- the enigmatic civilization believed to be the progenitor of the Aztecs and Maya. The 26-pound tablet, about the size of a legal pad, bears 62 symbols arrayed in a manner suggesting an organized text. "We have long thought that the Olmec would have writing," said archeologist William A.

A carved monolith unearthed in Mexico may show that the Olmec civilization, one of the oldest in the Americas, was more widespread than thought or that another culture thrived alongside it 3,000 years ago. Findings at the newly excavated Tamtoc archeological site in the north-central state of San Luis Potosi may prompt some scholars to rethink whether Mesoamerica's earliest peoples were based in southern Mexico.

Analysis of 3,000-year-old pottery shards from the ancient Olmec capital of San Lorenzo and other sites contradicts the notion among some researchers that the Olmec civilization was the "mother culture" that laid the foundation for the Inca, Maya and other civilizations of Central and South America. Many researchers believe that the Olmec were the primary culture of the region, dominating, inspiring and ultimately raising the other chiefdoms to the level of civilization.

A 2,500-year-old city influenced by the Olmecs -- often referred to as the "mother culture" of Mesoamerica -- has been discovered in Mexico, hundreds of miles away from the Olmecs' Gulf Coast territory, archeologists said Wednesday. Two statues and architectural details at the site, known as Zazacatla, indicate that the inhabitants adopted Olmec styles when they changed from a simple, egalitarian society to a more complex, hierarchical one.

Human bones believed to date from the ancient Olmec civilization have been found in southeastern Honduras, suggesting that the influential culture extended farther than previously thought, Honduran authorities said. Carmen Fajardo at the Honduran Institute of Anthropology and History said the bones appeared to be the first Olmec remains found outside the so-called Mesoamerican corridor, which stretches from Mexico to central Honduras.

Human bones believed to date from the ancient Olmec civilization have been found in southeastern Honduras, suggesting that the influential culture extended farther than previously thought, Honduran authorities said. Carmen Fajardo at the Honduran Institute of Anthropology and History said the bones appeared to be the first Olmec remains found outside the so-called Mesoamerican corridor, which stretches from Mexico to central Honduras.

Archeologists digging near Mexico's Gulf Coast have discovered the earliest-known example of writing in Mesoamerica, pushing the date for the appearance of this cultural breakthrough back by at least 450 years, to about 650 BC.