Hierarchy classification:

1. top of the aat hierarchies
2. Styles and Periods Facet
3. Styles and Periods (hierarchy name)
4. [styles, periods, and cultures by region]
5. The Americas
6. Pre-Columbian (American)
7. [Pre-Columbian Middle American styles and periods]
8. Mesoamerican
9. [Mesoamerican regional styles and periods]
10. Gulf Coast Mesoamerican styles

Anotations

Scope note:

Early prehistoric Mesoamerican culture known from archaeological excavations in the Gulf Coast of Mexico and from various artefacts and an art style distinguished by certain motifs. The Olmec coincided with the transition in Mesoamerican culture from simple agricultural villages to complex proto-state societies in several regions during the Early Pre-Classic (ca. 2000-ca. 1000 BCE) and Middle Pre-Classic (ca. 1000-ca. 300 BCE) periods.