Aztec Greatest Accomplishments

Europe during the middle ages was concerned with exploration rather than furthering themselves, while people in the early americas were making their own great accomplishments. The Aztecs, the Maya and the Inca all made huge advancements that are still relevant in today's world. Three of these advancements are: foundations, terraced farming, and chinampas. The three civilizations eventually fell but their lasting impacts and great accomplishments are still reflected in today's world.

Firstly, the first great accomplishment comes from the Aztec empire. The Aztecs had a huge challenge to face as they were forced to build their civilization on marshy land. Their greatest accomplishment was building Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital city, which they built in the middle of lake Texcoco (Cannon,2006). They did this by creating a technique that is being used in modern buildings today. They dug logs into the ground and then kept them in place using volcanic rock creating foundations used to build giant buildings on very soft soil. The Aztecs used this to build giant buildings and causeways out in the middle of a lake. In addition, they were able to make squares and public areas for trade in the city with this method (Noonan, 2007). They would not have been able to do this without foundations which is why
This accomplishment was the agricultural system of chinampas. Chinampas were artificial islands made with sticks, wreaths, and mud, which enabled the Aztecs to have a greater expanse of land to farm on (Cannon,2006). Not only was this beneficial for more crops, but it also helped the Aztecs provide for themselves rather than leave the empire in the lake for food (Cannon,2006). In addition, it was also quite brilliant for the Aztec engineers to plan and execute the idea of man made islands. Therefore, the Chinampa is one of the three most impressive accomplishments of the