The Olmecs
Mesoamerica's earliest complex culture
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The Olmecs are regarded as Mesoamerica's "mother culture", with centres at San Lorenzo and La Venta. The basalt blocks used for the colossal heads were moved over 90 kilometres without wheels or draught animals. The calendar, the ball game, the idea of a sacred centre and probably the precursor of Mesoamerican writing all originate here, passing on to the Maya, Zapotecs and Aztecs. The absence of large domesticable animals and of practical wheels shows how differently civilisations can develop.
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By the Gulf of Mexico, the Olmecs carved colossal stone heads, some three metres tall. They also invented a calendar and a ball game played for thousands of years afterwards. Many later cultures in Mexico built on what they began.
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Part of Terra Saga — the story of Earth on a timeline. terrasaga.org