MUISCAS CULTURE

MUISCAS

LOCATION:

The Muisca lived between the highlands and valleys of the Eastern Cordillera of Colombia, mainly between the solid and the snow of Sumapaz Cocuy along rivers Bogotá, Suárez and Chicamocha. The most populated area was savanna cundiboyacense, including Bogota, Nemocon Ubaté, Chiquinquirá, Tunja and Sogamoso. The conditions of land suitable for agriculture and healthy climate made them sedentary. It was the Chibcha language group more important in the Colombian Andes, which occupied the area about 1000. C.

GENOTYPIC CHARACTERISTICS:

The rate of the indigenous Muisca still preserved and can be described as follows: medium height, robust and straight black hair, short broad nose, small eyes, mouth and big teeth, high cheekbones. They were intelligent, courageous and sustained.

CULTURE AND CUSTOMS:

Economics

Muisca Indians were very laborious. Its main activities were: agriculture, mining, fishing, hunting, textiles, ceramics, pottery and trade.

• Agriculture:

His main work was the cultivation of plants used in food, like corn, with which preparing arepas, buns and alcoholic beverages such as chicha, the pope who was the major crop, but also planted the parsnips, quinoa, cubios, ibias, chuguas, beans and pumpkins, they used pepper as a condiment. Cultivated fruits like guava, tomatoes, cape gooseberries and curubas.

• Mining:

The Muisca were distinguished among the other tribes for their ability to exploit the salt mines, coal and emeralds. Salt extracted Zipaquirá Nemocon Sesquilé and Upía.They obtained the emerald mines of Muzo and Somondoco. Coal used as fuel in the preparation of salt and other trades.

• Fishing and Hunting:

They fished in the lakes, hunted deer, armadillos and tapirs, domesticated rabbits and turkeys.

• The Manufacturing Industry:

He was also highly developed. They wove blankets worn as a dress. These were very fine and varied colors.

• Gold and Ceramic:

Among the highlights were tunjos Muisca gold, pieces with defined characteristics: small human figures on a piece, made of thin, triangular plate-shaped.

• Trade:

Stood by his skill as a merchants; practiced commercial exchange between the cold lands of the plains They gathered for their markets in Funza, Tocancipá and Turmequé. One of the main products Muiscas exchanged through the barter system was salt, which they received in exchange for gold, then worked his way to re-exchange.


So were emeralds, amethysts and topaz gemstones traded for salt and then returned to their former owners, but this time polished and carved.A similar case happened with cotton, lacking product. I got through the exchange of commodities and he elaborated ponchos or poncho, weaving and decorated with colorful style and particular. Thus able to develop a textile industry.


Dress:


The dress was a tunic and a blanket tied at the ends in the shoulder, made of thick cotton cloth, decorated with colored stripes. Not used footwear. They painted their bodies with achiote, also used colorful head feathers of birds also wore bracelets, necklaces, nose rings and pectoral beautifully made of gold.


Social Organization:      


The base of the Muisca was the family organization. Marriages were made usually between people of the same tribe, the chiefs had the privilege of having several wives. The society was divided into several classes or usaques Nobles, priests and sheikhs, Quechua or warriors, merchants and people, which included farmers, miners and artisans.Priests or sheikhs were both doctors and sorcerers to reach this position, the Indian had to study for many years.


Political Organization:


The Muisca were organized into three chiefdoms and confederations: The Bacatá (Bogota), the Hunza (Tunja) and the Tundaza (Duitama). There were also other smaller chiefdoms such as Sáchica. Each group of these had its independent government, territorial jurisdiction over a number of villages who paid tribute. The main leader or chief was obeyed.


The most important was the sovereign or lord of Bacatá Zipa, who lived in Funza was revered by his subjects, he had great wealth, jewels and enjoyed recreational houses.


Socially and economically, between Muiscas existed six classes or estates, as follows:


1. The priests and sheikhs.
2. The noble warrior or guechas.
3. The criers or officials who did know the will of the chief.
4. Traders, craftsmen and farmers, who were governed by a rigid legal system.
5. The miners, especially those working in the mines of salt and emeralds.
6. Slaves generally were prisoners of war and times were used for religious sacrifices.


The elders were highly respected were part of a council to assist the chiefs in government. The laws of the Chibcha were very wise. Rigorously punished those who stole, lied or killed. His chief legislator was Zipa Nemequeme.


Science:


The sciences were represented by astronomy, meteorology and the making of a calendar that was the basis for agriculture since the crops directly dependent on the behavior of the sun (UEZ) and Moon (Chia). They divided the solar year into four periods, separated by periods of winter and summer, which in turn were subdivided according to the lunar changes.


Religion:


Muisca priests were the sheiks and these, to do their job, are recruited for some time in a "seminar". Fasted and devoted his life to religion.

The Muisca, unlike other pre-Columbian groups represented in different animals to their principal deities and placed man at the center of nature.He represented the strength, power, wisdom and prudence, woman, life, fertility and the organization. They were farmers and consumers of coca, and yopo snuff. Such consumption had religious connotations.Celebrating their festivals with great solemnity. The processions were well attended. The most famous shrines were gaps Guatavita Siecha, Ubaque and Fúquene. In Sogamoso was the temple of the Sun.


The Indians usually worshiped as the dead and believed in the immortality of the soul were buried with food, jewelery, clothes, etc...


Rites:

Religious rites celebrated mainly in the lagoons. They regularly attended the pilgrimage to bring their offerings to the Sun and the Moon also had shrines as the cushions of the devil in Tunja. The ceremonial center was located zipa in the town of Chia (current municipality of Cundinamarca), where a temple dedicated to Goddess Moon. Sun worship is held in the ceremonial center of the population zaque Sogamoso (current municipality of Boyaca), and the Guatavita took place the famous gold coat of this State zaque Muisca, which gave way the famous legend of El Dorado. In Guatavita, the chief of the region, to worship the gods covered his body with gold dust and bathed in it, the Indians completed the ceremony, throwing its emerald waters and golden figures.


Religion was also very cruel practice, the Sun was offered as sacrifices of children and youths who ate carefully. In Gacheta each week a boy was sacrificed on a stone as an offering to idols.


In the lagoon Siecha found a gold object shaped raft with ten human figures. This image released the ceremony. They celebrated rites originated the legend of El Dorado, which both attracted to the conquistadores.


METRIC AND MATH:


They used a system based on the fingers and toes to count, to get to twenty, started another score, the span and foot length measurements were his.

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