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Showing posts from February, 2021

The Forgotten Olmecs

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    The Olmecs were once a thriving civilization for a long time in Mesoamerica. Nowadays, there are a limited number of artifacts preserved that were left behind. It is unclear what happened that caused the downfall disappearance of the Olmecs. In the YouTube video Lost Kings of Central America , James Cooper goes on an adventure to discover the rich history of the Olmecs and what is left from them that has been preserved. Through many hours of driving and walking, he uncovers a lot of landmarks and objects that not a lot of people have the opportunity to see in real life. After uncovering a volcanic basalt rock, James goes on to explain how "important stone working was to the Olmec" and "the effort involved in immortalizing members of the elite tells us how strongly the Olmec must have believed in their leader's ability to influence nature and provide for the people" ( Lost 20:48-20:50, 21:20-21:30). The volcanic basalt rock was one of the boulders that the Ol