Ancient Americas

Explore the Maya story of creation as recorded by the K'iche Maya and see how the Maya saw the world around them.

In the first millennium CE, one city was ascending to unseen heights in the Lake Titicaca basin, the city of Tiwanaku. Find out what makes the site of Tiwanaku so amazing and how it became a thriving cultural center in the southern Andes.

Tiwanaku was a cultural powerhouse that left a staggering legacy in Andean culture. Tiwanaku is often called an empire, but was that really the case?

The Keweenaw Peninsula furnished eastern North America with the highest quality copper for millennia. Find out how archaic peoples took advantage of the copper in their environment and how it shaped their culture.

The ancient city of Teotihuacan is one of the greatest cities ever constructed in the Americas. It was a city that was remembered by subsequent cultures long after it was abandoned. Because it was never inhabited again, archaeologists can explore the entire city and try to reconstruct the life and history of this magnificent site. Let’s find out what made Teotihuacan such a spectacular city and culture.

All over Arizona lay the ruins of Hohokam art and architecture and engineering. Find out how small farming communities came together to master the Arizona desert and create a thriving and adaptive culture.

How does a culture thrive in the Amazon? For over half a millennium, Marajoara culture flourished at the mouth of the Amazon river and left the world with some of the most beautiful artwork of the Americas. Discover why this culture was misunderstood and how it’s critical reevaluation in the past 40 years has revolutionized our understanding of the pre-columbian Amazon.

Long before the Classic Period of Maya Civilization, great cities, beautiful art and powerful kings were emerging in the Maya region. Often overlooked, the Preclassic period saw the Maya create some of their greatest achievements in history and develop critical components of their culture. Discover how the Maya bloomed late but brilliantly.

One of Mesoamerica’s most famous rulers cultivated a reputation as a courageous warrior, a talented poet and artist and a wise ruler. He led a life of exile and triumph. Discover the thrilling story of Nezahualcoyotl’s life and why his legacy persists to this day in Mexico.