World's history (part 10 ): The Americas[edit] In North America, this period saw the rise of theMississippian culturein the modernUnited States c. 800 CE, marked by the extensive 12th-century urban complex atCahokia. The Ancient Pueblo Peoplesand their predecessors (9th - 13th centuries) built extensive permanent settlements, including stone structures that would remain the largest buildings in North America until the 19th century. [102][103]InMesoamerica, theTeotihuacancivilization fell and theClassic Maya collapse occurred. TheAzteccame to dominate much ofMesoamericain the 14th and 15th centuries. In South America, the 14th and 15th centuries saw the rise of theInca. TheInca Empire ofTawantinsuyu, with its capital atCusco, spanned the entireAndesMountain Range, making it the most extensive Pre-Columbian civilization. [104][105]The Inca were prosperous and advanced, known for an excellent road systemand unrivaledmasonry. Da Vinci'sVitruvian Manepitomizes Renaissanceartistic and scientific advances. Modern history [edit] Modern history(the"modern period,"the"modern era,""modern times") is history of the period following the Middle Ages." Contemporary history"is history that only covers events from c. 1900 to the present day. Early modern period[edit] Main article:Early Modern period "Early Modern period"[106]is a term used by historians to refer to the period between theMiddle Ages (Post-classical era) and theIndustrial Revolution – roughly 1500 to 1800. The Early Modern period is characterized by the rise of science, and by increasingly rapidtechnological progress ,secularizedcivicpolitics, and thenation-state.Capitalist economiesbegan their rise, initially in northern Italianrepublicssuch asGenoa. The Early Modern period also saw the rise and dominance of the mercantilisteconomic theory. As such, the Early Modern period represents the decline and eventual disappearance, in much of the European sphere, of feudalism, serfdom and the power of theCatholic Church. The period includes the late decades of the Protestant Reformation, the disastrousThirty Years'War, theAge of Discovery, European colonial expansion, and the peak of Europeanwitch-hunting. Renaissance[edit] Main article:Renaissance Europe'sRenaissance, beginning in the 14th century,[107]consisted of the rediscovery of the classicalworld's scientific contributions, and of theeconomicand social rise of Europe. But the Renaissance also engendered a culture of inquisitivenesswhich ultimately led toHumanism[108]and theScientific Revolution.[109]Although it saw social and political upheaval and revolutions in many intellectualpursuits, the Renaissance is perhaps known best for itsartisticdevelopments and the contributions of such polymathsasLeonardo da VinciandMichelangelo, who inspired the term"Renaissance man".[110][111]This era in European culture also saw the 16th-century Protestant Reformationand the 17th-centuryAge of Enlightenment,[112]which led to theScientific Revolution.[113]