 Cultures of North America 1000 BCE map Moxy |
 ANCESTRAL PUEBLO culture continues 15-1200BCE-1300CE in Utah, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico. They live in a range of structures including small family pit huts, larger structures to house clans, grand pueblos, and cliff-dwellings. They are called Anasazi "ancestors of enemies" by the Navajo. |
map Yuchitown wikLPC wikAP |
| Early Basketmaker-II Era continues 1500BC-50CE. |
| c.1000 | Arctic SMALL TOOL tradition in Alaska from 4000 ends in Alaska, but continues until 800 in British Columbia, centered at the Fraser River delta and extending to northern California. Eskimo and Old Cordilleran traditions may have contributed to it. Tools include scrapers, burins, side and end blades used in arrow or spear heads made of stone, bone or antler People make canoes, plank huts, carved household items, and wooden slat armor. They hunt and gather mollusks, salmon, halibut, whale, seal and sea otter. | 1000 mxfld |
| c.1000 | NORTON Tradition begins in Western Arctic along the Alaskan shore until 800CE. People use flake-stone tools same as predecessors. Oil-burning lamps and clay vessels are introduced. They hunt caribou, smaller mammals, salmon and larger sea mammals. Settlements are occupied fairly permanently, evidenced by village sites containing substantial dwellings. CHORIS Stage begins until 500. Consists of coastal sites containing a wide variety of fiber-tempered pottery with linear stamps decorating outsides of vessels. |
1000 wikNT |
| c.1000 | ARCHAIC PERIOD of NORTH AMERICA ends. Began 8000. LATE Archaic Period ends. Began 3000. |
2000 mxfld 1000 wikAP |
| c.1000 |  OLD COPPER Complex of Western Great Lakes from 4000 ends. They hammer copper and produce a variety of spearpoints, tools and decorative objects. Shown here are a knife, spearpoints, awls, and spade from Wisconsin. In addition to practical use, they trade copper goods for other materials. These cultures exploit various terrestrial game, migratory waterfowl, fish, and plants. |
photo Daderot
1000 wikOCC by 1000 wikAP |
| c.1000 | RED OCHRE People in the Upper Great Lakes, Greater Illinois River Valley, and Ohio River Valley begin until 400. Shallow burials in sandy ridges along river valleys, covered in red ochre or hydrated iron oxide, contain diagnostic artifacts including flint points, turkey-tails, and various forms of worked copper. They are believed to have spoken a proto-Algonquian language. | 1000 wikROP |
| c.1000 | GLACIAL KAME Culture in southern Ontario, Michigan, Ohio and Indiana from 8000 ends. Common artifacts are shells of marine animals and goods made from a copper ore, known as float copper. Sites have few projectile points and pottery. | 1000 wikGKC |
| c.1000 |  POVERTY POINT in Louisiana: Late Archaic mound-builder construction from 2500 ends. Area: more than one square mile, six earthwork crescent ridges built concentrically interrupted by radial aisles. |
map Maximilian Dorrbecker 1000 wikMB |
| c.1000 | WOODLAND PERIOD of eastern North America begins until 1000CE. A developmental stage without significant changes, except that POTTERY begins. Continuous development in stone and bone tools, leather working, textile manufacture, tool production, cultivation, and shelter construction. Hunting and gathering remains primary. Some Woodland peoples use spears and atlatls until the end of the period when they are replaced by bows and arrows. EARLY WOODLAND period (Burial Mound-I) begins until 1BC. True agriculture is absent in much of the Southeast for a couple thousand years after the introduction of pottery. |
2000 mxfld 1000 B76 13-218, iu, mxfld, wikAP, wikMB, wikPCe, wikPCe, wikW |
| c.1000 | 
ADENA culture (part of Woodland culture) centered in Ohio valley begins until 200. Rich burial mounds. People live in small, scattered villages with round huts, wattle for walls, and thatched roofs. Similar areas exist from Canada thru Minnesota down to the Louisiana-Texas border. |
pic GNU FDL 1000 PW 15, iu, mxfld, wikAd, wikAP by 800 B76 13-218 |
| c.1000 | TCHEFUNCTE culture begins until 200CE. Hunter-gatherers who live in small hamlets in the Lower Mississippi Valley and Gulf Coast. They live in coastal areas and lowlands, usually near slow-moving streams. Food includes clams, alligators, fish but surprisingly not crabs or crawfish which were likely to have been abundant. They also hunt deer, raccoons, and some migratory birds. Site 600. | 1000 wikTch 600 wikTS |
| c.1000 | Woodland pottery appears in Great Lakes area. | by 1000 B76 13-218 |
| c.1000 | North American Pacific Coast Indians build villages along the Snake, Columbia, and Fraser rivers. Wood frame oval dwellings with floors about 25 by 30 feet. | by 1000 mxfld |
| c.1000 | North American midwest Indians begin to bury their dead under low earth mounds. Mound building characterizes Eastern and Midwestern cultures until 1000CE. | by 1000 iu, mxfld |
| c.1000 | North American Indians begin making clay vessels. | by 1000 mxfld |
| c.1000 | New vegetables, including beans and squash, probably from Mexico, introduced to Southwest. | 1000 iu |
| MESO-AMERICA: : PRE-CLASSIC Age continues 2000BC-200CE. Manufacture of ceramics is widespread, cultivation of maize and other vegetables becomes well-established, society starts to become socially stratified. Capacha culture civilizes Mesoamerica, and its pottery spreads widely. Heavy concentration of pottery on Pacific Coast. Maize and pottery in Panama. Unknown culture in La Blanca and Ujuxte, Monte Alto culture, Mokaya culture |
| c.1000 | Proto-Yucatecs arrive in Yucatan. | by 1000 wikHu |
| c.1000 | CHOCOLATE: Aztecs brew XOCOATL "bitter water" from mashed cocoa beans. | 1000 EOET 414 |
| c.1000 | Earliest evidence of MAYA settlement at Copan in Honduras. | 1000 owjMT 1000-900 wikCpn |
| c.1000 | 
Writing V: CASCAJAL BLOCK, a writing tablet-size block with 62 characters unlike any yet seen in Mesoamerica. Discovered by locals in the Olmec heartland in Veracruz, contains oldest script in Western Hemisphere. Written by Olmecs. Has 62 glyphs, some of which resemble plants such as maize and pineapple, or animals such as insects and fish. Some are just abstract boxes or blobs.(See Linear-A 1600. Linear-B 1150, Phoenician 1100, Phoenician 950, Semitic 950) |
drawing: Michael Everson 1000 wikCB, wikHW 900 wikMWS |
 Cultures of South America 1000 BCE map Moxy |
| c.1000 | CHAVIN culture of Peru begins until 250. Chavin de Huantar Peru, occupied 3000-400. Building of great temple complex of white granite and black limestone, neither of which is found near the site. Drainage canals built under it. Many cult objects found. | 1200 wikCdH 1000 le 900 wikC, wikHA 850 jqj |
| c.1000 | PERUVIANS have hallucinogens and alcohol and smoke cigars, but not tobacco. | by 1000 mxfld |
| c.950 | PINTO INDIANS in California and Sierra Nevadas build huts of wood interwoven with reeds and plastered with loam. | 950 TToH 7 |
| c.950 | Olmec Tenochtitlan loses political power and population. 60 miles southeast, another Olmec center on the floodplain, La Venta, gains both. | 950 eah |
| c.950 | CHALATZINGO, in central Mexican highlands, remodels the natural landscape into broad terraces, and carves ritual scenes in low relief on rock. At other central highland centers such as Tlatilco and Las Bocas, ceramic vessels and figures in Olmec style are present. Trade networks between important regional centers are possibly active, and thought to have pan-Mesoamerican cultural similarities. | 950 eah |
| c.900 | Meso-America: MIDDLE FORMATIVE PERIOD begins until 5-300. La Venta urban complex flourishes, increased cultural regionalism. Zapotecs develop at Monte Albán, producing first writing and written calendar in Mesoamerica. Olmec presence is widely detected. | 1200 eah 900 brit, dlyks |
| c.900 | TENOCHTITLAN (San Lorenzo), Olmec capital from 1400, destroyed and abandoned. Capital moved to LA VENTA (Tabasco) until 400. | 900 B76 11-937, PW 15, TTT, wikO |
| c.900 | LA VENTA (Tabasco) culture begins until 300. | 900 B76 VI-86 800 B76 X-14 |
| c.900 | CAPACHA culture on the Colima coast of west Mexico from 1800 ends. Earliest widespread cerramic complex of Meso-America: stirrup jars, belted jars, water jars and composite forms. | 900 wikMC |
| c.900 | COLHA in Belize first inhabited. | 900 mxfld |
| c.900 | CHAVIN civilization of Peru begins to flourish in the Mosna Valley until c.300. Establishes a trade network and developed agriculture. Chavin cultural revolution is obsessed with religion. The Urabarriu ceramic phase begins until 500 showing influence of other cultures. People hunt mainly cervid and begin to hunt and use camelids. They grow maize and potatoes, and also eat shellfish, guinea pigs, and birds. This phase has the most animal diversity. |
900 PW 15, bk, le, wikC, wikHA, wikPCe 850 jqj |
| c.900 | Monumental Chavin construction at Las Haldas south of Casma R. from 1190 ends. | 900 jqj |
| c.900 | In the Casma/Sechin culture 3600-200 of Peru, the Initial Period ends. Began 1800. Noted for woven textiles, pottery, adoption or expansion of canal irrigation for agriculture, and construction of pyramids and plazas. Sites include Sechin Bajo and Cerro Sechin, which date back to the Preceramic Period, but are reconstructed and expanded during this phase. Early Horizon phase begins until 200. Area comes under influence, and possibly control, of the highland Chavin culture. Maize and domestic animals, llamas, alpacas, and guinea pigs, are introduced. |
900 wikCSc |
| c.850 | TEHUACAN Valley in Puebla: The AJALPAN cultural phase ends. Began 1500. Complex village life, pottery, elaborate religious rituals, and intricate social organization. SANTA MARIA phase begins. Rise of templed villages, a figurine cult, and some irrigation. |
850 mxfld |
| c.850 | CHAVIN civilization of northern Peru expands into central Peru. | 850 TTT, mxfld |
| c.850 | Chavin-like construction at Quebrada from 1730 ends. | 850 jqj |
| c.850 | Maize farming improved in Peru. | 850 bk |
| c.800 | SAQQAQ Culture of Greenland from 2500 ends. They coexist with Independence I Culture (2400-1300) of north Greenland. Saqqaq live in small tents and hunt seals, seabirds, and other marine animals. They use silicified slate, agate, quartzite, and rock crystals as tool material. | 800 wikSqC |
| c.800 | Arctic SMALL TOOL tradition ends. Began 4000. Began in British Columbia 1000 centered at the Fraser River delta and extending to northern California. | 800 wikAP |
| c.800 | 
DEPTFORD Culture begins near Savannah, Georgia until 200CE. Elaborate ceremonial complexes, increasing social and political complexity, mound burial, permanent settlements, population growth, increasing reliance on cultigens. |
at peak (changed): Donald Albury 800 wikDC, wikAP |
| c.800 | Olmec settlement at TLATILCO from ? fades out. | 800 wikMC |
| c.800 | CUICUILCO, on south shore of Lake Texcoco in southeast Valley of Mexico, occupied from 1200, founded as a city. Lasts until 0. Mid-Preclassical settlements emerge in the area. | 800 wikCui, wikMC |
| c.800 | Large earthen pyramid is constructed by Olmecs at La Venta, possibly conceived of as a sacred mountain. Burials at La Venta contain significant grave goods. Small carefully fashioned figures, personal ornaments, and celts of green jadeite and other greenstones are among the mortuary offerings. | 800 eah 800-751 TTS, TTT |
| c.800 | TAKALIK ABAJ founded by Olmecs in central Highlands of Guatemala. | 800 wikMC |
| c.800 |  Olmec jade mask. (17.1 x 16 x 16cm) |
photo Flickr 1000-600 wikOl |
| c.800 | Olmec settlement at TLATILCO from ? fades out. | 800 wikMC |
| c.800 | GUATEMALA: Iridescent ceramic pottery at La Victoria from 1500 ends. Inhabitants may have gone to Peru. | 800 mxfld |
| c.800 | AMAZON VALLEY: intensive maize cultivation. | 800 PW 15 |
| c.800 | PERU: Higher weaving techniques suddenly appear at beginning of cultist period. | 800 SHT 1-445 |
| c.800 |  PARACAS culture begins in the Paracas Peninsula of Peru until 100. Known for shaft tombs containing elongated human skulls, knowledge of irrigation and water management. Ceramics include incised polychrome. Textiles include many complex weave structures and elaborate plaiting and knotting techniques. Necropolis of Wari Kayan contains two clusters of hundreds of burials set closely together inside and around abandoned buildings on the steep north slope of Cerro Colorado. |
1000 B76 1-843 800 wikPC 700 B76 9-259 |
| c.750 |  Chavin de Huantar Circular Plaza appears to have been a sacred open space within a ceremonial center. Prior to 800, this served as an atrium for entering Temple A thru its north staircase. The plaza in the classic period, after 700, is bounded on 3 sides by major Temples A, B, and C. The plaza is close to 20m diameter, with a floor of pillow-shaped pavers of yellow diatomite. A center line of black limestone blocks appears to run on its architectural east-west axis. Walls are cut stone, mostly granite, laid in courses of varying width. The 2 broadest courses are carved in arcs closest to the western staircase and in 2 pairs of terminal stones flanking the eastern staircase. Ceremonial use continues until 500. |
photo CyArk no date: GNU FDL |
| c.750 | Chavin de Huantar Peru, occupied 3000-400: Major building phase from 1200 ends. Used as a ceremonial center until 500. | 750 wikCdH |
| c.700 | Norton Tradition inhabitants of the St. Lawrence and other Bering Strait islands develop a more specialized culture, based entirely on the ocean, called the THULE Tradition. It lasts until 1600CE. Old Bering Sea stage begins until 500CE. | 700 wikNT 200 wikTP |
| c.700 | POVERTY POINT: a mound builder culture of the lower Mississippi Valley and surrounding Gulf coast from 2200 ends. | 700 wikPP |
| c.700 | Olmec settlement at TEOPANTECUANITLAN, in Guerrero from 1350 ends. | 700 wikMC |
| c.700 | IZAPA founded by Olmecs in central Highlands of Guatemala. | 700 wikMC |
| c.700 | Pyramidal basement at CUICUILCO built. | 8-600 wikCui |
| c.650 | OLMEC civilization, centered at LA VENTA 900-400 peaks. Villages are linked in a network of trade up and down the valleys and between highlands and coasts. Salt, maize, obsidian, oyster shells, stingray spines, shark teeth, conch & turtle shells are traded widely. Olmecs carve jade into statuettes, jewelry, and axes. Olmec art shows two ethnic types: one Negroid, with thick lips, broad noses and round faces, the other Semitic with sharp profiles, hook noses, narrow faces & lips, and beards - usually either square or pointed goatees. | 7-600 mxfld |
| c.650 |  Olmec hollow baby figurine. |
GNU FDL 1000-300 |
| c.613 | Mayan Λ Calendar V indicates activity in Central America. (See Roman 713, Cleostratos 520) | 613 mxfld |
| c.600 | 
Point Peninsula Complex: An indigenous Hopewell culture begins until 700CE in Ontario and New York. Influenced by the Hopewell traditions of the Ohio River valley until 250CE, its ceramics are first introduced in Canada. Thinner and more decorated than existing ceramics, this new pottery has superior clay modeling, is better fired, and contains finer grit temper. (See 200) |
map: Heironymous Rowe 600 wikPPC |
| c.600 | TCHEFUNCTE site begins in Tchefuncte culture, which began 1000: 2 oval-shaped shell middens a mile north of Lake Pontchartrain in eastern Louisiana. Community lasts until 200CE. Just east of it is a large bayou of fresh water emptying into the lake. | 600 wikTch |
| c.600 |  Major buildings at San Jose Mogote in Valley of Oaxaca are built of masonry. Monument 3, a carved relief, is set in a corridor floor that depicts a dead and bloodied captive with a hieroglyph for "1 Earthquake" between its feet. Earliest known calendrical glyph and the earliest recorded date appear in the Zapotec hieroglyphic system. |
photo GNU FDL 600 eah 6-500 wikMWS |
| c.600 | Earliest known Mayan ceramics at Tikal and Uaxactun. | 600 mxfld |
| c.600 | CHOCOLA founded by Olmecs. Inhabited until 200CE. | 600 wikMC |
| c.550 | MANASOTA culture begins in Florida until 800CE. Each settlement contains a few related families. Dead are buried near their home or in nearby cemeteries. No grave goods or indication of differential treatment in death. | 550 wikAP no date: pinel |
| c.550 | Zoque build pyramids in Chiapas. | 550 eah |
Americas 500-301
V