Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Old Stone Pyramids

Since the late 1700s, explorers have found many ancient ruined pyramids in the forests of Central American. American Indians had built the pyramids centuries earlier.

Old Stone pyramids stand in parts of Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. They were used as temples. Most had flights of steps that led up to a small room on top. Here, priests used to sacrifice animals or people to their gods.

The first of these pyramids were built more than 3,000 years ago. Some are the largest (nut not the tallest) pyramids on earth. Pyramid builders included peoples such as the Zapotecs, Mixtecs, Mayas, Toltecs and Aztecs.

In time, the pyramids and nearby towns were abandoned. This probably happened when the land around no longer produced enough crops or water to meet the needs of the people.

0 comments: