Concise Oxford Dictionary of Archaeology (749 page)

Soft volcanic deposits of fragmentary rock and dust bonded together after cooling. Sometimes used as a source of raw material.

 
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Capital of the Toltec state (Tollán), founded on the site of an existing settlement by the priest-ruler Topiltzin
c.
ad 960. The city flourished and by ad 1000 had expanded to cover 11 square kilometres with a population of perhaps 50000.
The focus of the ceremonial centre within the site is the Temple of Quetzalcóatl which contains six Atlantean statues. Each nearly 5m tall, they support the roof.
Tula was destroyed in the mid 12th century
ad
, probably by Chichimec groups.
[Sum.: R. A. Diehl , 1983,
Tula: The Toltec capital of central Mexico
. London: Thames & Hudson]

 
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Alloy of copper and gold used for making fine ornaments in pre-Columbian Middle and South America.

 
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tumulus
(pl.
tumuli
)
[MC].

See
ROUND BARROW
.

 
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Term applied to a group of cultures of the middle Bronze Age of central and eastern Europe, broadly the early 2nd millennium
bc
, in which inhumation beneath a round barrow is the distinctive and predominant burial rite. Formerly regarded as the material manifestations of an intrusive population, the Tumulus Culture is now seen to have developed out of the
ÚN
TICE CULTURE
and spread over a wide area from Hungary and Romania in the east through a heartland of southern Germany, to Alsace in the west. It is characterized by developed bronze types including palstaves, flange-hilted swords, dirks with rounded or trapezoidal butts, and a variety of pins and bracelets. These are found as grave goods in burials and in hoards. Pottery includes globular vessels with cylindrical necks, pedestalled bowls, and one-handled cups, sometimes with embossed ornament. The Tumulus Culture is succeeded by the
URNFIELD CULTURE
of the late Bronze Age.

 
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Unit equal to 365 solar days used in the Classic Maya
LONG COUNT
system.

 
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