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<p class="MLATitleInfo"><a name="bmTitlePageName"></a>Wendy McNamee</p>
<p class="MLATitleInfo"><a name="bmTitleAdd3"></a>Jean Lauer</p>
<p class="MLATitleInfo"><a name="bmTitleAdd1"></a>Huma 1302-007</p>
<p class="MLATitleInfo"><a name="bmTitleAdd4"></a>24 September 2013</p>
<p class="MLAHeadingCenter"><a name="bmTitlePageTitle"></a>Aztec Calendar Stone</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center" align="center"><b><span style="font-size: 36.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family: 'AR JULIAN'">Aztec Calendar Stone </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center"><span style="font-size: 8.0pt;line-height: 115%"><span>                                  <a href="http://image.shutterstock.com/display_pic_with_logo/10750/10750,1141290972,7/stock-photo-aztec-calendar-stone-1038465.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-3296" alt="Aztec" src="http://jeanatacc.com/2011/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Aztec.jpg" width="252" height="200" /></a></span>http://image.shutterstock.com/display_pic_with_logo/10750/10750,1141290972,7/stock-photo-aztec-calendar-stone-1038465.jpg
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 150%">The Aztec Calendar Stone. It was created by a civilization of Mesoamerica called the Aztecs. <span> </span>People believe it was carved in the 15<sup>th</sup> century around 1479.<span style="color: black">  “It was a massive carving, 3 feet thick, almost 12 feet across, and weighing almost 25 tons.  It was carved from basalt – solidified lava.”<span> (Aztec-History.com)</span> “The first calendar of the Aztec people was called the <span>xiuhpohualli</span>, the counting of years.  This was a 365 day year, of course very helpful for planning your farming and predicting the weather.” <span><span> </span>(Aztec-History.com)</span> “Then to bring the year up to 365 days there were 5 "unlucky" days added.  Each year would also be divided into 4 seasons.”<span> (Aztec-History.com) The Aztec Calendar Stone by the ancient Aztec people should be preserved because it was the beginning of a religious era and was a amazing piece of art. </span></span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 150%;color: black"><span>  </span><span>       </span>This stone impeccable for its time, it was made to guide and let the people know when the seasons were coming to allow them to prepare their crops, and when to hold their festivals to the gods. I believe this work was typical of the era because back then a lot of cultures relied on the solar stars to let them know when the seasons would change. Not all calendars where carved in stone, but this was something that was abundant in the region where the Aztecs lived. “ The first attempts by outsiders to understand the system were made only about a century and a half later, by which time little knowledge of the script remained.” (Houston, pg.21)</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt;line-height: 150%"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 150%;color: black"><span> </span><span>          </span><span> </span>The Aztec calendar stone was very innovative and unusual for its time. It was a 500 plus year in depth calender. To which the Aztecs believed in 100%, and would tell the future for the years to come. They also depicted that the world would also end just as it began. “</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 150%">Indeed the depth of Maya knowledge of celestial bodies, mathematics and the calendar has tended to exacerbate the view that they were a peaceful people. Observations of the planets and stars were associated with the migration of the seasons.” (Hinnells, pg.546)</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 150%;color: black">It was received as a miracle in its time. The common people did not have knowledge of the solar system, nor the coming of the seasons. The people knew of the past years and that the days and nights got shorter and longer, hotter and colder. So that is when they started collecting the data and carving it out for the future generations of their time would know when the best time to plant and harvest would be. </span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt;line-height: 150%"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 150%;color: black"><span>              </span>People today think of the Aztec calendar stone as a great piece of history. To the Mayans it was a guide to survive and be prepared for the seasons to come. Today it is a amazing look back on how times where a lot different then. The tools they used and how they lived. “</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 150%">For today’s Maya, the Moon’s astronomical phases have the greatest affect on lunar mythology.” (Read, pg.209) “The Maya say that the Moon disappears at the time of the new moon for a number of reasons: The Moon is now dead, and evil reigns because her protective light is lacking” (Read, pg.209)</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 150%;color: black"><span>                      </span>My personal reaction to the Aztec calendar stone is that it is a modern marvel. It is an phenomenal piece of art. Just the time and effort that went into making it is astonishing. Even today it would be hard for even the most skilled hand crafts man to hand make the same pieces of art. It would be considered almost today a lost art. Today's civilization would hardly even give it a second thought of trying to try and do something that is so time consuming, and meticulous in detail. I would personally love to see more of this dieing art come back. To personally look at hand crafted art, such as these stone carving are amazing and makes you wonder how they did it. <span> </span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt;line-height: 150%"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 150%;color: black"><span>        </span>The Aztec art is not too far off from the northern Americas art for the time. <span> </span>Both of the Americas at the time they used  several things, such as art to tell story's of war and past events. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt;line-height: 150%"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 150%;color: black">The North Americas Native Indian used similar weapons and stone walls to tell their stories, a similarity in the North American tribes was “</span><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 150%">the modern distinction between craft and fine art is non-existent among those who practice weaving, bead work, ceramics, and jewelry       making.”</span>(Fiero, Ch.18)<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 150%"> Also, </span><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 150%">the indigenous peoples of North America were culturally similar to the relative </span><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 8.5pt;line-height: 150%;font-family: TimesNewRomanPSMT"><span> </span></span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 150%">Mayan Aztecs</span><span style="font-size: 8.5pt;line-height: 150%;font-family: TimesNewRomanPSMT">.</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 150%">“The Maya engaged in a variety of activities and, in particular, show women grinding corn on metates, weaving, and using pots. These activities are also depicted on figurine whistles that were common.”(McKillop, pg.127)</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 150%"><span>             </span>The Aztec Calendar stone is very significant to the future generations. If future generations don’t know of how their ancestors lived and learn from the trial and errors that they have made in the past, the future generations are doomed to repeat the same mistakes. In the Mayans life time they made several amazing accomplishments that in even today’s world we cannot repeat, even with all the technology and advanced tools. The future generations should learn of the how the people in the past survived and lived, with no electricity.<span>  </span>Lessons and skills from the past should not be forgotten. If everyone just tried to live a day in the life of the Mayans of the past they would greatly appreciate all the advantages and very simple life style we live in today. As a new American civilization no longer have to hunt and gather our food anymore, nor do we have to make human sacrifices to the gods. It is a very different time now, but the past should not be forgotten.<span>  </span></span></p>
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<p class="MLAHeadingCenter" style="margin-left: 2.0in;text-align: left;text-indent: .5in" align="left">Work Cited</p>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'">Fiero, Gloria K. <i>The Humanistic Tradition</i>. Sixth Edition ed. : McGraw-Hill, . .</span>

<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="medium-font"><span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="medium-font"><span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'"><span> </span></span></span><span class="medium-font"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'">McKillop, Heather Irene. In: <i>Understanding Ancient Civilizations</i>. Santa Barbara, Calif : ABC-CLIO. 2004. eBook.</span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span> </span><a href="http://www.aztec-history.com/aztec-calendar-stone.html"><span style="color: black"><span style="color: black">http://www.aztec-history.com/aztec-calendar-stone.html</span></span></a></p>
<p class="MLAReference" style="margin-left: 0in;text-indent: 0in"><span class="medium-font"> </span></p>
<p class="MLAReference" style="margin-left: 0in;text-indent: 0in"><span class="medium-font">Read, Kay Almere; González, Jason J. In: <i>Handbooks of World </i></span><strong><i><span style="font-weight: normal">Mythology</span></i></strong><span class="medium-font"><b>.</b> Santa Barbara, Calif : ABC-CLIO. 2000. eBook.</span></p>
<p class="MLA" style="text-indent: 0in"><span class="medium-font"><span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MLA" style="text-indent: 0in"><span class="medium-font"><span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'">Hinnells, John R., <i>The Handbook of Ancient Religions</i>. Cambridge, UK : Cambridge University Press. 2007. eBook.</span></span></p>
<p class="MLA" style="text-indent: 0in"><span class="medium-font"> </span></p>
<p class="MLA" style="text-indent: 0in"><span class="medium-font"><span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'">Houston, Stephen D.; Chinchilla Mazariegos, Oswaldo Fernando; Stuart, David. </span></span><i><span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'">The Decipherment of Ancient Maya Writing</span></i><span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'">, <span class="medium-font"><span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'">Norman, OK : University of Oklahoma Press. 2001. eBook</span></span></span></p>