Historic Images of the Ancient Americas
A vast number of ancient cultures inhabited North and South America between the end of the last ice age and the coming of the Europeans. For centuries, European and American scholars tried to discredit Native accomplishments by assigning their monuments, myths, and art to peoples ranging from the Phoenicians to the Israelites to the Vikings, or even to the devil. In these rare photos from the Library of Congress (except where otherwise credited), we see images of the many cultures of ancient America, and some of the hoaxes that tried to usurp America's archaeological past.