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The Olmec culture embraced both Nubian and Mandinka traditions. Their seafaring explorations brought forth the first civilization in the Western Hemisphere 4,500 years ago from Africa. The presence of the Olmecs predates the Mayan civilization by more than 1,500 years and the Aztecs by 2,500 years, making the Olmecs the oldest Mesoamerican society in Mexico. The Olmecs established the first writing system influenced by the Mende people of West Africa. They lived in the tropical lowlands on the Gulf of Mexico in present-day Veracruz and Tabasco.
The first Olmec head was found in 1862 at Tres Zapotes, located in Vera Cruz. Presently, 17 Olmec heads have been discovered in La Venta and San Lorenzo, ranging from 5 feet to over 11 feet tall and weighing between 6 and 50 tons. Each Olmec head was hand-chiseled out of volcanic rock so future civilizations would know that African people navigated the globe.
