A History of Mexico in 2000 Words

Twenty-eight thousand years ago B.C., Mexico was discovered by hunters looking for a recipe for Sopa Azteca. A resourceful lot, they created corn by combining two types of grasses. These seekers of good eats eventually morphed into the splendor of the Olmec civilization.

By 8000 B.C., corn had evolved enough to think about creating pre-Columbian burritos and submitting the ingredients to Julia Child for culinary analysis.

In 2300 B.C., the Olmecs invented pottery to put the corn in, making them the first agro-industrial giant, even before Martha Stewart came along to teach them how to shuck.

Between 1800 and 1500 B.C., the Olmecs became the Donald Trumps of the day when they invented real estate by distributing their power into chiefdoms. The Olmecs are remembered for constructing massive earthen mounds called "condominiums," sculpting colossal basalt heads and building large and prosperous cities that existed for hundreds of years. They were also renowned politicians, lobbying their agricultural, industrial, and theological beliefs right into the Mayan civilization.

By 300 B.C., as the Olmec declined, the Mayans rose to prominence, contributing mightily to astronomy, medicine, and writing. The Mayans were also gifted mathematicians who independently developed the concept of zero, and astronomers who deduced that a solar year was slightly more than 365 days. An even more important discovery, both culturally and gastronomically, was made about 600 B.C. -- chocolate. ˇOlé molé!

About 200 B.C., rose a great city and the religious center of Mesoamerica --Teotihuacan. It was dominated by two enormous pyramids which the Aztecs called the "Pyramid of the Sun" and the "Pyramid of the Moon." Teotihuacan had an enormous influence over the Maya civilization in politics, art, and economics. It had a population of 100,000, and the inhabitants were as enthusiastic as Chicagoans about architectural achievements. It was here Frank Lloyd Wright purportedly apprenticed.

Teotihuacan's cultural impact lasted nearly a millennium, to 950 A.D. Between 250 and 650 A.D., the Maya civilization flourished intellectually, built elaborate cities and made further advancements in the fields of mathematics, astronomy, theology, writing and science, influencing Gallileo, Einstein, and Erma Bombeck. next page


Copyright Maggie Van Ostrand
"A Balloon In Cactus" - November 7, 2005 column
Email: maggie@maggievanostrand.com

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