Olmecs

In the museum in Xalapa, I encountered the colossal Olmec heads. There are about 14 in all that have been discovered. The Olmecs, dating back to 500 B.C. are considered the "mother culture". They had a number system including zero; social stratification and art which has influenced most of the indigeneous groups that followed. The continued mystery is where the civilization came from. Because of the resemblance to African features on some of the statues, it was first thought that the group was influenced by Africa; some say the resemblance is Asian or Mongoloid. This topic is quite intriguing and definitely requires further investigation.