Olmec Gods
- the Olmec Dragon
- the Bird Monster
- the Fish Monster
- the Banded-Eye God
- the Maize God
- the Water God
- the Were-Jaguar
- the Feathered Serpent
- Olmec Dragon (God I)
- Maize deity (God II)
- Rain Spirit and Were-jaguar (God III)
- Banded-eye God (God IV)
- Feathered Serpent (God V)
- Fish or Shark Monster (God VI)
What did the Olmecs believe in?
Olmec Cosmology Like many early Mesoamerican cultures, the Olmec believed in three tiers of existence: the physical realm they inhabited, an underworld and a sky realm, home of most of the gods. Their world was bound together by the four cardinal points and natural boundaries such as rivers, the ocean and mountains.
How many gods did the Olmecs have?
Archaeologist Peter Joralemon, who has studied the Olmec extensively, has come up with a tentative identification of eight gods. These gods show a complicated mixture of human, bird, reptile and feline attributes.
Did the Olmecs have temples?
No building easily identifiable as an Olmec temple has been discovered; nevertheless, there are many raised platforms which probably served as bases upon which temples were built of some perishable material such as wood. Complex A at La Venta archaeological site is commonly accepted as a religious complex.
Did the Olmecs have priests?
Olmec Shamans. There is strong evidence that the Olmec had a shaman class in their society. Later Mesoamerican cultures which derived from the Olmec had full-time priests who acted as intermediaries between the common people and the divine.
Who was the main god of the Olmecs?
The most commonly depicted pair are the Olmec Dragon (God I) and the Olmec Bird Monster (God III). The Olmec Dragon, believed to be a crocodilian with eagle, jaguar, human, and serpent attributes, appears to signify earth, water, fire, and agricultural fertility, and may have served as the patron deity of the elite.
What gods did the Olmec most likely worship?
Olmec DeitiesThe Olmec Dragon.The Bird Monster.The Fish Monster.The Banded-eye God.The Maize God.The Water God.The Were-jaguar.The Feathered Serpent.
Did the Olmec believe in a sun god?
Olmec religion centered around the Shaman. The feared and revered shaman would conduct rituals and heal the sick. Some believe that the sun was a part of their worshipping along with the jaguar.
Why did the Olmec worship the jaguar?
To the ancient civilisations of Mexico; the Olmecs, the Mayans and the Aztecs, the jaguar was worshipped as a deity. Because of its ability to see in the night, they believed that jaguars were able to move between worlds. The jaguar was a being of the stars and the earth.
How many Olmec deities are there?
Their names have been lost to time, but archaeologists identify them by their characteristics. No fewer than eight regularly-appearing Olmec deities have been identified. These are the designations given to them by Joralemon:
How long ago did the Olmec culture vanish?
Archaeologists have struggled to put together the few clues that remain today from the Olmec culture which vanished well over 2,000 years ago. Facts about the ancient Olmec are hard to come by. Modern researchers must use three sources for information on the religion of ancient Mesoamerican cultures:
How did the religion of the Olmec influence Mesoamerica?
The religion of the Olmec people significantly influenced the social development and mythological world view of Mesoamerica. Scholars have seen echoes of Olmec supernatural in the subsequent religions and mythologies of nearly all later pre-Columbian era cultures. The first Mesoamerican civilization, the Olmecs, ...
What is the Olmec culture?
The Olmec culture is often considered a "mother culture" to later Mesoamerican cultures. There is no surviving direct account of the Olmec's religious beliefs, unlike the Mayan Popol Vuh, or the Aztecs with their many codices and conquistador accounts.
Who challenged the Olmec pantheon?
This view was challenged in the 1970s by Peter David Joralemon, whose Ph. D. paper and subsequent article posited what are now considered to be 8 different supernaturals. Over time Joralemon's viewpoint has become the predominant exposition of the Olmec pantheon.
What is the Maize God?
Maize deity (God II) Another probable supernatural is identified by the plants sprouting from its cleft head. A carved celt from Veracruz shows a representation of God II, or the Maize God, growing corn from his cleft, and also shows this god with the snarling face associated with the jaguar.
The Olmec Culture
The Continuity Hypothesis
- Archaeologists have struggled to put together the few clues that remain today from the Olmec culture which vanished well over 2,000 years ago. Facts about the ancient Olmecare hard to come by. Modern researchers must use three sources for information on the religion of ancient Mesoamerican cultures: 1. Analysis of relics including sculpture, buildings and ancient textswhe…
The Five Aspects of Olmec Religion
- Archaeologist Richard Diehl has identified five elements associated with Olmec Religion. These include: 1. A cosmos which identifies the socio-cultural context within which Gods and man interacted 2. Divine beings and godswho controlled the universe and interacted with men 3. A shaman or priest class who acted as intermediaries between the common O...
Olmec Cosmology
- Like many early Mesoamerican cultures, the Olmec believed in three tiers of existence: the physical realm they inhabited, an underworld and a sky realm, home of most of the gods. Their world was bound together by the four cardinal points and natural boundaries such as rivers, the ocean and mountains. The most important aspect of Olmec life was agriculture, so it is no surpri…
Olmec Deities
- The Olmec had several deities whose images repeatedly appear in surviving sculptures, stonecarvings and other artistic forms. Their names have been lost to time, but archaeologists identify them by their characteristics. No fewer than eight regularly-appearing Olmec deities have been identified. These are the designations given to them by Joralemon: 1. The Olmec Dragon 2…
Olmec Sacred Places
- The Olmecs considered certain man-made and natural places sacred. Man-made places included temples, plazas and ball courts and natural places included springs, caves, mountaintops and rivers. No building easily identifiable as an Olmec temple has been discovered; nevertheless, there are many raised platforms which probably served as bases upon which temples were built of so…
Olmec Shamans
- There is strong evidence that the Olmec had a shaman class in their society. Later Mesoamerican cultures which derived from the Olmec had full-time priests who acted as intermediaries between the common people and the divine. There are sculptures of shamans apparently transforming from humans into were-jaguars. Bones of toads with hallucinogenic properties have been found …
Olmec Religious Rituals and Ceremonies
- Of Diehl's five foundations of Olmec religion, the rituals are the least known to modern researchers. The presence of ceremonial objects, such as stingray spines for bloodletting, indicate that there were, indeed, important rituals, but any details of said ceremonies have been lost to time. Human bones - particularly of infants - have been found at some sites, suggesting h…
Sources
- Coe, Michael D and Rex Koontz. Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs.6th Edition. New York: Thames and Hudson, 2008
- Cyphers, Ann. "Surgimiento y decadencia de San Lorenzo, Veracruz." Arqueología MexicanaVol XV - Num. 87 (Sept-Oct 2007). P. 36-42.
- Diehl, Richard A. The Olmecs: America's First Civilization.London: Thames and Hudson, 2004.
- Coe, Michael D and Rex Koontz. Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs.6th Edition. New York: Thames and Hudson, 2008
- Cyphers, Ann. "Surgimiento y decadencia de San Lorenzo, Veracruz." Arqueología MexicanaVol XV - Num. 87 (Sept-Oct 2007). P. 36-42.
- Diehl, Richard A. The Olmecs: America's First Civilization.London: Thames and Hudson, 2004.
- Gonzalez Lauck, Rebecca B. "El Complejo A, La Venta, Tabasco." Arqueología MexicanaVol XV - Num. 87 (Sept-Oct 2007). P. 49-54.
Overview
The religion of the Olmec people significantly influenced the social development and mythological world view of Mesoamerica. Scholars have seen echoes of Olmec supernatural in the subsequent religions and mythologies of nearly all later pre-Columbian era cultures.
The first Mesoamerican civilization, the Olmecs, developed on present-day Me…
Olmec supernaturals
Specifics concerning Olmec religion are a matter of some conjecture. Early researchers found religious beliefs to be centered upon a jaguar god. This view was challenged in the 1970s by Peter David Joralemon, whose Ph. D. paper and subsequent article posited what are now considered to be 8 different supernaturals. Over time Joralemon's viewpoint has become the predominant …
Rulers, priests, and shamans
Olmec religious activities were performed by a combination of rulers, full-time priests, and shamans. The rulers seem to have been the most important religious figures, with their links to the Olmec deities or supernaturals providing legitimacy for their rule. There is also considerable evidence for shamans in the Olmec archaeological record, particularly in the so-called "transformation figur…
Continuity Hypothesis
Marshall Howard Saville first suggested in 1929 that the Olmec deities were forerunners of later Mesoamerican gods, linking were-jaguar votive axes with the Aztec god Tezcatlipoca. This proposal was amplified by Miguel Covarrubias in his 1957 work Indian Art of Mexico and Central America where he famously drew a family tree showing 19 later Mesoamerican rain deities as descendants of a "jaguar masked" deity portrayed on a votive axe. The Continuity Hypothesis ha…
Further reading
• Joralemon, Peter David (1971) A study of Olmec iconography, Dumbarton Oaks.
• Joralemon, Peter David (1976) Olmec Dragon: a study in pre-Columbian iconography, UCLA Latin American Studies Series, v 31, pp. 27–71.