Map of pre-Columbian cultures
Explore the interactive map of pre-Columbian cultures on our website.
Click in the points, you will discover some details about their history and their ceramics.
These cultures sometimes extended beyond the specific points located in the image, and existed at different times, each one indicated in its text.
In addition each description links with a page dedicated to each of the types of pre-Columbian ceramics for you to learn more.
You can also consult the list under the most relevant cultures.
Enjoy your trip!
Explore theinteractive map of the pre-Columbian cultures of the Americas on our website.
Keep in mind that these cultures sometimes extended beyond the specific points located and existed at different times.
Click hereat the information points, you will find out which village was there and see some details about its history and pottery.
Each description links to a page dedicated to each culture for further information.
Enjoy your trip!
- Olmec (1200-400 B.C., Mexico): Their art is recognized for its jaguar figures and colossal heads sculpted in stone, although in ceramics, votive figurines and funerary urns stand out.
- Maya (2000 B.C.-A.D. 900, Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, Honduras): The Maya are famous for their elaborate cylindrical vessels, plates, and bowls with complex mythological scenes, which tell stories of gods, kings, and rituals, with glyphs.
- Teotihuacan (100 B.C.-A.D. 750, Valley of Mexico): Noted for its vessels and urns with geometric and abstract iconography, reflecting its unique cosmology.
- Zapotec (500 B.C.-A.D. 750, Oaxaca, Mexico): Famous for its funerary urns decorated with figures of gods and mythological beings.
- Mixtec (7th-16th century A.D., Oaxaca, Mexico): Known for its polychrome ceramics and fine gold work, reflecting its rich iconography.
- Toltec (900-1150 A.D., Central Mexico):Known for its atlantes and ceremonial figures, although its pottery is less distinctive.
- Tlatilco (1250-800 B.C., Valley of Mexico): Famous for its uniquely styled female figurines and complex ritual ceramics.
- Cuicuilco (800-200 B.C., Valley of Mexico):Predecessor of Teotihuacan, known for its circular constructions and ceramics with geometric designs.
- Casas Grandes (Paquimé) (A.D. 1200-1450, Chihuahua, Mexico): Notable for its geometric and polychrome ceramics and advanced architecture.
- Aztec (A.D. 1345-1521, Valley of Mexico):Aztec ceramics included both utilitarian and ceremonial objects, standing out for their functional and symbolic diversity, integrating elements of their rich mythology and daily life.
- Chavin (900-200 B.C., Peru): Their ceramics often feature complex religious iconography, including felines, snakes and stylized birds of prey.
- Paracas (700 B.C.-200 A.D., Peru): Famous for its embroidered mantles, but its ceramics also include bottles with bridged handles and incised designs.
- Nazca (100 B.C.-A.D. 800, Peru):Famous for her polychrome ceramics with designs that include anthropomorphic beings, animals and abstract geometry.
- Mochica (100-700 A.D., Peru):Renowned for her ceramic portraits and sculpted vessels that depict detailed scenes of daily life and mythology.
- Wari (600-1100 A.D., Peru): Predecessors of the Incas, known for their ceramics with geometric designs and stylized figures.
- Tiahuanaco (200-1000 A.D., Bolivia):Characterized by its ceramics with geometric iconography and stylized figures related to its monumental architecture.
- Chimú (900-1470 A.D., Peru):Predecessors of the Incas, famous for their black pottery and molds for mass production.
- Inca (1200-1533 A.D., Peru and surrounding regions):Their ceramics, known as 'Cuzco' and 'Inca Imperial', have standardized shapes and decorations that reflect their organized society.
- Taino (1000-1500 A.D., Antilles):Their pottery, although less well known, includes vessels and figurines representing both daily life and elements of their cosmology.
- Mississippi (A.D. 800-1600, Mississippi River Valley): Known for its complex decorated ceramics that accompanied the burial mounds.
- Anasazi (100-1600 A.D., Southwestern U.S.A.):Noted for its polychrome ceramics with geometric designs and representations of agricultural life.
- Hohokam (A.D. 200-1450, Arizona): FThe 'Red-on-buff' style ceramics, with red decorations on a cream background, are a real eye-catcher.
- Valdivia (3500-1800 B.C., Ecuador):Among the oldest, known for its small female figurines.
- Quimbaya (300 B.C.-16th century A.D., Colombia):Best known for its goldsmithing, but its pottery includes simple vessels and bowls.
- Nariño (500 B.C.-1500 A.D., Colombia):Distinctive ceramic with black and red geometric patterns on cream.
- Sinú (200-1600 A.D., Colombia): Known for their gold work, but they also produced decorative and utilitarian ceramics.
- Tairona (1st century B.C.-17th century A.D., Colombia):Famous for its finely worked ceramics and complex stone constructions.
Where was each American culture?
| CERAMIC TYPE | PLACE OF ORIGIN | GEOGRAPHIC AREA |
|---|---|---|
| Aztec Ceramics | Central Mexico | Mesoamerica |
| Mayan Ceramics | Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico and Central America | Mesoamerica |
| Olmec Ceramics | Gulf of Mexico | Mesoamerica |
| Teotihuacan ceramics | Valley of Mexico | Mesoamerica |
| Zapotec Ceramics | Oaxaca, Mexico | Mesoamerica |
| Mixtec Ceramics | Oaxaca, Mexico | Mesoamerica |
| Toltec Ceramics | Central Mexico | Mesoamerica |
| Tlatilco Ceramics | Valley of Mexico | Mesoamerica |
| Cuicuilco Ceramics | Valley of Mexico | Mesoamerica |
| Tairona Ceramics | Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Colombia | Caribbean |
| Taino Ceramics | Greater Antilles | Caribbean |
| Mochica Ceramics | North Coast of Peru | Central Andes |
| Inca ceramics | Central Andes, mainly in Peru | Central Andes |
| Nazca Ceramics | South Coast of Peru | Central Andes |
| ChavÃn Ceramics | Northern Peru | Central Andes |
| Paracas Ceramics | South Coast of Peru | Central Andes |
| Wari Ceramics | Central Andes of Peru | Central Andes |
| Chimú Ceramics | North Coast of Peru | Central Andes |
| Tiahuanaco ceramics | Bolivian-Peruvian Highlands | Central Andes |
| Cerámica Valdivia | Coast of Ecuador | South America |
| Quimbaya Ceramics | Coffee-growing zone of Colombia | South America |
| Nariño Ceramics | Southern Colombia | South America |
| Sinú ceramics | Caribbean coast of Colombia | South America |
| Ceramics of Casas Grandes (Paquimé) | Chihuahua, Mexico | North America |