Ancient Americas

The growth of the great Mayan civilization is as much a mystery as its disappearance.

Explore how the Aztec Empire’s elite Eagle and Jaguar warriors trained.

In ancient Mexico, Chachapoyans and Incas battled for supremacy.

The Aztecs built an expansive system of aqueducts that supplied water for irrigation and bathing.

The Mayans prospered for more than two thousand years. Today, their greatest city Palenque still stands.

Did climate change force the Anasazi to abandon their settlement?

The Aztec warriors built one of history’s most powerful empires through fierce discipline, relentless warfare and a highly effective military force that dominated much of the ancient world.

Ancient Mayans studied the skies thousands of years before modern astronomical observatories.

Though they could build complex suspension bridges, the Aztecs could not ward off diseases brought over by the Spanish.

Well before Europeans arrived, North America contained a number of large cities that rivaled those an ocean away.

Paleo-Indians are believed to be the first humans to populate the Americas, around 10,000 B.C.

Ancient Mayan structures have lasted thousands of years, and their designs continue to influence modern architecture.

The breathtaking Inca city of Machu Picchu was built atop the Andes mountains in Peru.

Explore the origins of the Temple of Chichen Itza, a Mayan pyramid in modern-day Mexico that features several unique features, including an echo designed to sound like a bird call.

Chinampas were a marvel of engineering that allowed the Aztecs to literally create new farming land where there was none before.