America 1492: Portrait of a Continent Five Hundred Years Ago

by Manuel Lucena Salmoral (Author)

• Used

  Hardcover
  1990

  $6.77

  Sequel to Europe 1492 this book examines in detail the society, art, religion and history of the native American nations from the Inuit tribes of the north, to the Maya, Aztec and Inca cultures of the south. The particular focus of Salmoral's text is on the great Aztec, Inca and Maya civilizations, in which he studies their everyday life, including what they ate, how they farmed, how they raised families, viewed death and the afterlife. He goes on to cover the complex social organizations and class systems of the great cities featuring the two capitals of the Inca and Aztec empires Cuzco and Tenochtitlan. Also discussed is the highly developed cultural life including theatre, music and sport, in addition to their scientific and technological achievements, such as the great sun clock and calendars. Final chapters describe the struggle for power within the great empires, and the first encounter with the Spanish conquistadors that changed their lives forever.