Middle Preclassic

E815822

The Middle Preclassic is a formative period in Mesoamerican history marked by the growth of early complex societies, increasing social stratification, and the development of distinctive regional cultures and monumental architecture.

All labels observed (5)

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (50)

Predicate Object
instanceOf Mesoamerican cultural period
archaeological period
alsoKnownAs Middle Formative
appliesToRegion Mesoamerica
associatedWith Olmec colossal heads
linked to: Olmec head

earliest Maya monumental architecture
early calendar use
early hieroglyphic writing experiments
jade and obsidian exchange
platform mounds
public plazas
ritual ballcourts
characterizedBy development of regional cultures
emergence of chiefly elites
growth of early complex societies
increased craft specialization
increasing social stratification
intensification of agriculture
long-distance trade networks
monumental architecture
village urbanization
follows Early Preclassic
hasCulturalDevelopment iconography linked to rulership
increasingly formalized religious practices
regional ceramic styles
hasEconomicBase bean cultivation
fishing and hunting
maize agriculture
squash cultivation
hasEndTime c. 400 BCE
c. 500 BCE
hasNotableCulture Epi-Olmec
linked to: Epi-Olmec culture

Maya
Olmec
linked to: Olmec civilization

Zapotec
hasNotableSite Cuicuilco
El Mirador
Kaminaljuyu
La Venta
Monte Albán
Nakbe
linked to: Nakbé

San Lorenzo
Tres Zapotes
hasSocialFeature construction of elite residences
emergence of hereditary leadership
ritual centralization
hasStartTime c. 1000 BCE
c. 900 BCE
partOf Preclassic period
precedes Late Preclassic

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (7)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Cuello earliestOccupation Early Preclassic period
linked to: Middle Preclassic
Uaxactún earliestMajorDevelopment Middle Preclassic period
linked to: Middle Preclassic
Preclassic period (Maya civilization) hasPart Early Preclassic period (Maya)
linked to: Middle Preclassic
Preclassic period (Maya civilization) hasPart Middle Preclassic period (Maya)
linked to: Middle Preclassic
Middle Formative period alsoKnownAs Middle Preclassic period
linked to: Middle Preclassic
Mirador Basin culturalPeriod Middle Preclassic