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Maya civilization

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Ancient History,
Classical History and Mythology

   Maya civilization

   Maya architecture
   Maya calendar
   Mayan languages
   Maya mythology
   Maya peoples
   Maya religion
   Maya society
   Maya history
   Spanish conquest of Yucatán

   The Maya civilization is a Mesoamerican civilization, noted for the
   only known fully developed written language of the pre-Columbian
   Americas, as well as its spectacular art, monumental architecture, and
   sophisticated mathematical and astronomical systems. Many of these
   reached high development during the Classic period (ca. 250 C.E. to 900
   C.E.), however these advances were also in the Preclassic (or
   Formative) period which came before, and in the Postclassic period
   which followed. At its peak, it was one of the most densely populated
   and culturally dynamic societies in the world. The area of the Maya
   civilization extended throughout the northern Central American region,
   including the present-day nations of Guatemala, Belize, western
   Honduras and El Salvador, as well as the southern Mexican states of
   Chiapas, Tabasco, and the Yucatán Peninsula states of Quintana Roo,
   Campeche and Yucatán.

   The Maya civilization shares many features with other Mesoamerican
   civilizations, because there was a high degree of interaction and
   cultural diffusion throughout the region. Advances such as writing and
   the calendar did not originate with the Maya, however their
   civilization fully developed them. Maya influence can be detected as
   far as central Mexico, more than 1000 km (625 miles) from the Maya
   homeland. Many outside influences are found in Maya art and
   architecture, thought to be mainly a result of trade and cultural
   exchange, rather than direct external conquest.

   The Maya peoples never disappeared, neither at the time of the Classic
   period decline nor with the arrival of the Spanish conquistadores and
   the subsequent Spanish colonization of the Americas. The Maya remain in
   contemporary Mesoamerican societies, and maintain a distinctive set of
   traditions and beliefs, combined with more recent practices such as the
   almost total adoption of Roman Catholicism. The Maya and their
   descendants form sizeable populations throughout the region formerly
   occupied by the states of the ancient civilization. Many different
   Mayan languages continue to be spoken as the primary language.
   Extent of the Maya civilization
   Enlarge
   Extent of the Maya civilization

History

Preclassic

   What would become the Maya region had been inhabited since at least the
   10th millennium BC. Settled villages along the Pacific coast appear
   from 1800 BC, which is taken as the beginning of the Maya Early
   Preclassic era.

   Some archaeological evidence shows the Maya had started to build
   ceremonial architecture by approximately 1000 BC and by the period
   known as the mid-Preclassic (or mid-Formative), around 600 BC, some of
   the earliest Maya complexes had been constructed. The earliest
   monuments consist of simple burial mounds, the precursors to pyramids
   erected in later times.

   There is some disagreement about the boundaries which differentiate the
   physical and cultural extent of the early Maya and their neighboring
   Preclassic Mesoamerican civilizations, such as the Olmec culture of the
   Tabasco lowlands and the Mixe-Zoque– and Zapotec–speaking peoples of
   Chiapas and southern Oaxaca. Many of the earliest significant
   inscriptions and buildings appeared in this overlapping zone, and
   evidence suggests that these cultures and the formative Maya influenced
   one another. Eventually, the Olmec influence faded after spreading into
   the Yucatan peninsula, present-day Guatemala, and other regions.
   The Palace, Ruins of Palenque
   Enlarge
   The Palace, Ruins of Palenque

Classic

   The later Classic period (c. 250 - 900) witnessed the peak of
   widespread urban centre construction and the recording of monumental
   inscriptions, particularly in the southern lowland regions. They
   developed an agriculturally intensive, city-centered empire consisting
   of numerous independent city-states. This includes the famed cities of
   Tikal, Palenque, Copán and Kalakmul, as well as Dos Pilas, Uaxactun,
   Altun Ha, Bonampak and many other sites in the region (see list of
   sites, below).

   The most notable monuments are the pyramids they built in their
   religious centers and the accompanying palaces of their rulers. Other
   important archaeological remains include the carved stone slabs usually
   called stelae (the Maya called them Tetun, or "Tree-stones"), which
   depict rulers along with hieroglyphic texts describing their genealogy,
   war victories, and other accomplishments.

   The Maya participated in long distance trade in Mesoamerica and
   possibly further lands. Important trade goods included cacao, salt, and
   obsidian; see also: Obsidian use in Mesoamerica. Mayan lighthouse sites
   have been identified.

Collapse and Postclassic Period

   For reasons which are still much debated, in the 8th and 9th centuries
   AD (the "Terminal Classic" period) Maya culture went into decline, with
   most of the cities of the central lowlands abandoned. Detailed
   monumental inscriptions all but disappeared. Although there is no
   universally accepted theory to explain Mayan decline, current theories
   fall into two categories: non-ecological and ecological. Non-ecological
   theories of Mayan decline are divided into several subcategories, such
   as foreign invasion, peasant revolt, the collapse of key trade routes,
   catastrophe, epidemic disease and climate change.

   The archaeological evidence of the Toltec intrusion into Yucatan in
   Seibal supports the theory of foreign invasion. But most Mayanists
   don’t believe the foreign invasion as the main cause of the collapse;
   they postulate that no one military defeat can explain or be the cause
   of the protracted and complex Classic collapse process.

   Archaeological evidence reveals that Maya building projects and
   expansion was at its peak from 730 to 790 A.D., with constant
   enlargement and building the majority of the burden was placed on
   peasant workers in the cities. It is believed that the Mayan people
   were generally selfless who would put forth hours of work for the
   betterment of the government. As life became more burdensome, work
   began to undermine the religious development and collective enterprise
   of ordinary people. For it was the strength of Mayan religions that
   historians believe allowed the Mayans to build such great monuments and
   temples. The increased burden of work is what many believe caused Mayan
   people to abandon their values and revolt against the elite of society.
   This would explain the abrupt collapse of elite functions as well as
   unfinished buildings, and ceremonial centers. Peasant revolt also
   explains the evidence of the burning of temples and smashing of
   thrones. It is believed that once the elite lost ceremonial centers
   they no longer had the power to sway people with religion through
   demonstrations and sacrifices. Peasant revolts throughout the empire
   would have happened slowly and at different times, which explains the
   gradual decay of Maya culture and power from 750 and 1050 A.D. However,
   even though the internal revolt theory may be convincing, it still has
   its flaws, most notably the idea that Mayan ideology was so strong that
   people would have never abandoned their religious views to overthrow
   the empire.

   It is also possible that the decay of the Mayans is related to the
   collapse of their intricate trade systems, especially those connected
   to the northern city of Teotihuacán. Teotihuacán abruptly declined
   around 700 and 750 A.D., the fall of this city is believed to have
   contributed to the sudden change in Mayan economic and trade functions
   in the highlands, which resulted in a ripple effect of decline across
   the entire empire. Mayan kings relied heavily on tribute from the city
   of Teotihuacán as essential to their dominance and control of subjects.
   It is also believed that as cities grew in the late classic, 250-900
   A.D., and post classic, 700-800 A.D., periods, they could no longer
   sustain themselves and were forced to become more specialized. As
   cities became more specialized they relied more heavily on trade.
   However, Mayans were not equipped to handle trade at such a magnitude
   because the absence of the wheel made it difficult to move heavy
   amounts of goods from one place to another.

   The catastrophic event theory focuses on one or more natural disasters,
   such as earthquakes, hurricanes and volcanic eruptions, as the cause of
   the collapse of the Mayans. However, the lack of archaeological
   evidence makes it unlikely that a single natural disaster caused the
   long collapse. At the same time, several successive natural disasters,
   each of less than catastrophic proportions, might have caused the
   collapse.

   The disease theory is also a contender for explaining the Mayan
   collapse. Widespread disease could explain the rapid depopulation of
   the classic Maya civilization and the lack of recovery over the long
   run. But the difficulty of getting archaeological evidence makes this
   theory not universally accepted.

   A still further theory is that rapid climate change and severe drought
   contributed to the Classic collapse, based on the evidence of the Lake
   Chichancanab. This evidence, found in shells recovered from Lake
   Chichancanab (in modern Quintana Roo state in Mexico) by a team from
   the University of Florida, suggests that the area suffered the worst
   drought in 7,000 years in the 9th century. This evidence seems to
   support the theory that an unusually severe drought leading to a
   catastrophic decimation of the population was the driving force behind
   the collapse of Maya civilization

   The ecological theories of Mayan decline usually focus on the worsening
   relationship between Mayan civilization and agricultural conditions in
   the late classic period. The archaeological evidence has shown that the
   Mayans’ agriculture was dependent on a simple slash-and-burn system.
   Based on it, the hypothesis of Soil Exhaustion was advanced by O.F.
   Cook in 1921. Similar assumptions are erosion and intensive
   agricultural and Savanna grass competition.

   However, despite a substantial number of possible causes, there is no
   single cause universally accepted for this lengthy decline.

   During the succeeding Postclassic period (from the 9th to the early
   16th century), development in the northern centers persisted,
   characterised by an increasing diversity of external influences. The
   Maya cities of the northern lowlands in Yucatan continued to flourish
   for centuries more; some of the important sites in this era were
   Chichen Itza, Uxmal, Edzná, and Coba. After the decline of the ruling
   dynasties of Chichen and Uxmal, Mayapan ruled all of Yucatan until a
   revolt in 1450. The area then devolved into city states until the
   Yucatán was conquered by the Spanish.

   The Itza Maya, Kowoj and Yalain groups of Central Peten survived the
   "Classic Period Collapse" in small numbers and by AD 1250 reconstituted
   themselves to form competing city-states. The Itza kingdom had its
   capital at Noj Peten, an archaeological site thought to underlay modern
   day Flores, Guatemala. It ruled over an area extending across the Peten
   Lakes region, encompassing the community of Eckixil on Lake Quexil.
   These sites and this region were inhabited continuously by independent
   Maya until after the final Spanish Conquest of 1697 AD.

   Postclassic Maya states also continued to survive in the southern
   highlands. One of the Maya kingdoms in this area, the Quiché, is
   responsible for the best-known Maya work of historiography and
   mythology, the Popol Vuh.

   However by the time of the Spanish arrival in 1519 it is generally
   accepted that most of these centers had substantively declined from
   their Classical peak.

Colonial period

   Shortly after their first expeditions to the region, the Spanish
   initiated a number of attempts to subjugate the Maya and establish a
   colonial presence in the Maya territories of the Yucatán Peninsula and
   the Guatemalan highlands. This campaign, sometimes termed "The Spanish
   Conquest of Yucatán", would prove to be a lengthy and fraught exercise
   for the conquistadores from the outset, and it would take some 170
   years before the Spanish established substantive control over all Maya
   lands.

   Unlike the Spanish campaigns against the Aztec and Inca Empires, there
   was no single Maya political centre which once overthrown would hasten
   the end of collective resistance from the indigenous peoples. Instead,
   the conquistador forces needed to subdue the numerous independent Maya
   polities almost one by one, many of which kept up a fierce resistance.
   Most of the conquistadores were motivated by the prospects of the great
   wealth to be had from the seizure of precious metal resources such as
   gold or silver, however the Maya lands themselves were poor in these
   resources. This would become another factor in forestalling Spanish
   designs of conquest, as they instead were initially attracted to the
   reports of great riches in central Mexico or Peru.

   The last Maya state, the Itza polity of Tayasal at Lake Petén Itzá, was
   not subdued by Spanish authorities until 1697.

Political structures

   A typical Classic Maya polity was a small hierarchical state (ajawil,
   ajawlel, ajawlil) headed by a hereditary ruler – ajaw, later k’uhul
   ajaw. Such kingdoms were usually no more than a capital city with its
   neighbourhood and several lesser towns, although there were greater
   kingdoms, which controlled larger territories and extended patronage
   over smaller polities.

   Each kingdom had a name that did not necessarily correspond to any
   locality within its territory. Its identity was that of a political
   unit associated with a particular ruling dynasty. For instance, the
   archaeological site of Naranjo was the capital of the kingdom of Saal.
   The land (chan ch’e’n) of the kingdom and its capital were called
   Wakab’nal or Maxam and were part of a larger geographical entity known
   as Huk Tsuk. Interestingly, despite constant warfare and eventual
   shifts in regional power, most kingdoms never disappeared from the
   political landscape until the collapse of the whole system in the 9th
   century AD. In this respect, Classic Maya kingdoms are highly similar
   to late Post Classic polities encountered by the Spaniards in Yucatan
   and Central Mexico: some polities could be subordinated to hegemonic
   rulers through conquests or dynastic unions and yet even then they
   persisted as distinct entities.

   Mayanists have been increasingly accepting a "court paradigm" of
   Classic Maya societies which puts the emphasis on the centrality of the
   royal household and especially the person of the king. This approach
   focuses on Maya monumental spaces as the embodiment of the diverse
   activities of the royal household. It considers the role of places and
   spaces (including dwellings of royalty and nobles, throne rooms,
   temples, halls and plazas for public ceremonies) in establishing power
   and social hierarchy, and also in projecting aesthetic and moral values
   to define the wider social realm.

   Spanish sources invariably describe even the largest Maya settlements
   as dispersed collections of dwellings grouped around the temples and
   palaces of the ruling dynasty and lesser nobles. None of the Classic
   Maya cities shows evidence of economic specialization and commerce of
   the scale of Mexican Tenochtitlan. Instead, Maya cities could be seen
   as enormous royal households, the locales of the administrative and
   ritual activities of the royal court. They were the places where
   privileged nobles could approach the holy ruler, where aesthetic values
   of the high culture were formulated and disseminated, where aesthetic
   items were consumed. They were the self-proclaimed centers and the
   sources of social, moral, and cosmic order. The fall of a royal court
   as in the well-documented cases of Piedras Negras or Copan would cause
   the inevitable "death" of the associated settlement.

Art

   A stucco relief in the museum at Palenque depicting Upakal K'inich
   Enlarge
   A stucco relief in the museum at Palenque depicting Upakal K'inich
   Mayan jadeite "pectoral", 195mm high
   Enlarge
   Mayan jadeite "pectoral", 195mm high

   Many consider Maya art of their Classic Era (c. 200 to 900 AD) to be
   the most sophisticated and beautiful of the ancient New World. The
   carvings and stucco reliefs at Palenque and the statuary of Copán are
   especially fine, showing a grace and accurate observation of the human
   form that reminded early archaeologists of Classical civilization of
   the Old World, hence the name bestowed on this era. We have only hints
   of the advanced painting of the classic Maya; mostly what have survived
   are funerary pottery and other Maya ceramics. Also a building at
   Bonampak holds ancient murals that survived by serendipity. With the
   decipherment of the Maya script it was discovered that the Maya were
   one of the few civilizations where artists attached their name to their
   work.

Architecture

   As unique and spectacular as Greek or Roman architecture, Maya
   architecture spans many thousands of years; yet, often the most
   dramatic and easily recognizable as Maya are the fantastic stepped
   pyramids from the Terminal Pre-classic period and beyond.

   There are also cave sites that are important to the Maya. These cave
   sites include Jolja Cave, the cave site at Naj Tunich, the Candelaria
   Caves, and the Cave of the Witch. There are also cave- origin myths
   among the Maya. Some cave sites are still used by the modern Maya in
   the Chiapas highlands.

   It has been suggested that, in conjunction to the Maya Long Count
   Calendar, every fifty-two years, or cycle, temples and pyramids were
   remodeled and rebuilt. It appears now that the rebuilding process was
   often instigated by a new ruler or for political matters, as opposed to
   matching the calendar cycle. However, the process of rebuilding on top
   of old structures is indeed a common one. Most notably, the North
   Acropolis at Tikal seems to be the sum total of 1,500 years of
   architectural modifications.

   Through observation of the numerous consistent elements and stylistic
   distinctions, remnants of Maya architecture have become an important
   key to understanding the evolution of their ancient civilization.

Urban design

   As Maya cities spread throughout the varied geography of Mesoamerica,
   site planning appears to have been minimal. Maya architecture tended to
   integrate a great degree of natural features, and their cities were
   built somewhat haphazardly as dictated by the topography of each
   independent location. For instance, some cities on the flat limestone
   plains of the northern Yucatan grew into great sprawling
   municipalities, while others built in the hills of Usumacinta utilized
   the natural loft of the topography to raise their towers and temples to
   impressive heights. However, some semblance of order, as required by
   any large city, still prevailed.

   Classic Era Maya urban design could easily be described as the division
   of space by great monuments and causeways. Open public plazas were the
   gathering places for people and the focus of urban design, while
   interior space was entirely secondary. Only in the Late Post-Classic
   era did the great Maya cities develop into more fortress-like defensive
   structures that lacked, for the most part, the large and numerous
   plazas of the Classic.

   At the onset of large-scale construction during the Classic Era, a
   predetermined axis was typically established in a cardinal direction.
   Depending on the location of natural resources such as fresh-water
   wells, or cenotes, the city grew by using sacbeob (causeways) to
   connect great plazas with the numerous platforms that created the
   sub-structure for nearly all Maya buildings. As more structures were
   added and existing structures re-built or remodeled, the great Maya
   cities seemed to take on an almost random identity that contrasted
   sharply with other great Mesoamerican cities such as Teotihuacan and
   its rigid grid-like construction.

   At the heart of the Maya city were large plazas surrounded by the most
   important governmental and religious buildings, such as the royal
   acropolis, great pyramid temples and occasionally ball-courts. Though
   city layouts evolved as nature dictated, careful attention was placed
   on the directional orientation of temples and observatories so that
   they were constructed in accordance with Maya interpretation of the
   orbits of the heavenly bodies. Immediately outside of this ritual
   centre were the structures of lesser nobles, smaller temples, and
   individual shrines; the less sacred and less important structures had a
   greater degree of privacy. Outside of the constantly evolving urban
   core were the less permanent and more modest homes of the common
   people.

Building materials

   A surprising aspect of the great Maya structures is their lack of many
   advanced technologies that would seem to be necessary for such
   constructions. Lacking metal tools, pulleys and maybe even the wheel,
   Maya architecture required one thing in abundance: manpower. Yet,
   beyond this enormous requirement, the remaining materials seem to have
   been readily available. All stone for Maya structures appears to have
   been taken from local quarries. They most often utilized limestone,
   which remained pliable enough to be worked with stone tools while being
   quarried, and only hardened once removed from its bed. In addition to
   the structural use of limestone, much of their mortar consisted of
   crushed, burnt, and mixed limestone that mimicked the properties of
   cement and was used just as widely for stucco finishing as it was for
   mortar. However, later improvements in quarrying techniques reduced the
   necessity for this limestone-stucco as their stones began to fit quite
   perfectly, yet it remained a crucial element in some post and lintel
   roofs. In the case of the common Maya houses, wooden poles, adobe, and
   thatch were the primary materials; however, instances of what appear to
   be common houses of limestone have been discovered as well.

Notable constructions

     * Ceremonial platforms were commonly limestone platforms of typically
       less than four meters in height where public ceremonies and
       religious rites were performed. Constructed in the fashion of a
       typical foundation platform, these were often accented by carved
       figures, altars and perhaps tzompantli, a stake used to display the
       heads of victims or defeated Mesoamerican ballgame opponents.
     * Palaces were large and often highly decorated, and usually sat
       close to the centre of a city and housed the population's elite.
       Any exceedingly large royal palace, or one consisting of many
       chambers on different levels might be referred to as an acropolis.
       However, often these were one-story and consisted of many small
       chambers and typically at least one interior courtyard; these
       structures appear to take into account the needed functionality
       required of a residence, as well as the decoration required for
       their inhabitants stature.
     * E-groups are a classification given by Mayanists to certain
       structure complexes attested in quite a few Maya sites of the
       central and southern lowlands - Petén region. Complexes of this
       type consist of a stepped pyramid main structure, which appears
       without fail on the western side of a quadrilateral plaza or
       platform. It has been theorized that these E-groups are
       observatories due to the precise positioning of the sun through the
       small temples when viewed from the pyramid during the solstices and
       equinoxes. Other ideas seem to stem from the possible creation
       story told by the relief and artwork that adorns these structures.

   Maya temple with intricate roof comb and corbeled arch
   Maya temple with intricate roof comb and corbeled arch
     * Pyramids and temples. Often the most important religious temples
       sat atop the towering Maya pyramids, presumably as the closest
       place to the heavens. While recent discoveries point toward the
       extensive use of pyramids as tombs, the temples themselves seem to
       rarely, if ever, contain burials. Residing atop the pyramids, some
       of over two-hundred feet, such as that at El Mirador, the temples
       were impressive and decorated structures themselves. Commonly
       topped with a roof comb, or superficial grandiose wall, these
       temples might have served as a type of propaganda. As they were
       often the only structure in a Maya city to exceed the height of the
       surrounding jungle, the roof combs atop the temples were often
       carved with representations of rulers that could be seen from vast
       distances.
     * Observatories. The Maya were keen astronomers and had mapped out
       the phases of celestial objects, especially the Moon and Venus.
       Many temples have doorways and other features aligning to celestial
       events. Round temples, often dedicated to Kukulcan, are perhaps
       those most often described as "observatories" by modern ruin
       tour-guides, but there is no evidence that they were so used
       exclusively, and temple pyramids of other shapes may well have been
       used for observation as well.
     * Ball courts. As an integral aspect of the Mesoamerican lifestyle,
       the courts for their ritual ball-game were constructed throughout
       the Maya realm and often on a grand scale. Enclosed on two sides by
       stepped ramps that led to ceremonial platforms or small temples,
       the ball court itself was of a capital "I" shape and could be found
       in all but the smallest of Maya cities.

Writing and literacy

Writing system

   The Maya writing system (often called hieroglyphs from a superficial
   resemblance to the Ancient Egyptian writing) was a combination of
   phonetic symbols and logograms. It is most often classified as a
   logographic or (more properly) a logosyllabic writing system, in which
   syllabic signs play a significant role. It is the only writing system
   of the Pre-Columbian New World which is known to completely represent
   the spoken language of its community. In total, the script has more
   than a thousand different glyphs, although a few are variations of the
   same sign or meaning, and many appear only rarely or are confined to
   particular localities. At any one time, no more than around 500 glyphs
   were in use, some 200 of which (including variations) had a phonetic or
   syllabic interpretation.

   The earliest inscriptions in an identifiably-Maya script date back to
   200 - 300 BC. However, this is preceded by several other writing
   systems which had developed in Mesoamerica, most notably that of the
   Zapotecs, and possibly the Olmecs. There is a pre-Mayan writing known
   as " Epi-Olmec script" (post Olmec) which some researchers believe may
   represent a transitional script between the Olmec writing and Maya
   writing, but since there are yet no clear examples of Olmec writing,
   the matter is unsettled. On January 5, 2006, National Geographic
   published the findings of Maya writings that could be as old as 400 BC
   , suggesting that the Maya writing system is nearly as old as the
   oldest Mesoamerican writing found so far, Zapotec. In the succeeding
   centuries the Maya developed their script into a form which was far
   more complete and complex than any other that has yet been found in the
   Americas.

   Since its inception, the Maya script was in use up to the arrival of
   the Europeans, peaking during the Maya Classical Period (c. 200 - 900
   AD). Although many Maya centers went into decline (or were completely
   abandoned) during or after this period, the skill and knowledge of Maya
   writing persisted amongst segments of the population, and the early
   Spanish conquistadores knew of individuals who could still read and
   write the script. Unfortunately, the Spanish displayed little interest
   in it, and as a result of the dire impacts the conquest had on Maya
   societies, the knowledge was subsequently lost, probably within only a
   few generations.

   At a rough estimate, around 10,000 individual texts have so far been
   recovered, mostly inscribed on stone monuments, lintels, stelae and
   ceramic pottery. Maya civilization also produced numerous texts using
   the bark of certain trees in a "book-format", called a codex. Shortly
   after the conquest, all of these latter which could be found were
   ordered to be burnt and destroyed by zealous Spanish priests, notably
   Bishop Diego de Landa. Out of these Maya codices, only three
   reasonably-intact examples are known to have survived through to the
   present day. These are now known as the Madrid, Dresden, and Paris
   codices. A few pages survive from a fourth, the Grolier codex, whose
   authenticity is sometimes disputed, but mostly is held to be genuine.
   Further archaeology conducted at Mayan sites often reveals other
   fragments, rectangular lumps of plaster and paint chips which formerly
   were codices; these tantalizing remains are, however, too severely
   damaged for any inscriptions to have survived, most of the organic
   material having decayed.

   The decipherment and recovery of the now-lost knowledge of Maya writing
   has been a long and laborious process. Some elements were first
   deciphered in the late 19th and early 20th century, mostly the parts
   having to do with numbers, the Maya calendar, and astronomy. Major
   breakthroughs came starting in the 1950s to 1970s, and accelerated
   rapidly thereafter. By the end of the 20th century, scholars were able
   to read the majority of Maya texts to a large extent, and recent field
   work continues to further illuminate the content.

   In reference to the few extant Maya writings, Michael D. Coe, a
   prominent linguist and epigrapher at Yale University stated:

          "[O]ur knowledge of ancient Maya thought must represent only a
          tiny fraction of the whole picture, for of the thousands of
          books in which the full extent of their learning and ritual was
          recorded, only four have survived to modern times (as though all
          that posterity knew of ourselves were to be based upon three
          prayer books and 'Pilgrim's Progress')." (Michael D. Coe, The
          Maya, London: Thames and Hudson, 4th ed., 1987, p. 161.)

   Most surviving pre-Columbian Maya writing is from stelae and other
   stone inscriptions from Maya sites, many of which were already
   abandoned before the Spanish arrived. The inscriptions on the stelae
   mainly record the dynasties and wars of the sites' rulers. Also of note
   are the incriptions that reveal information about the lives of ancient
   Maya women. Much of the remainder of Maya hieroglyphics has been found
   on funeral pottery, most of which describes the afterlife.

Writing tools

   Although the archaeological record does not provide examples, Maya art
   shows that writing was done with brushes made with animal hair and
   quills. Codex-style writing was usually done in black ink with red
   highlights, giving rise to the Aztec name for the Maya territory as the
   "land of red and black".

Scribes

   Scribes held a prominent position in Maya courts. Maya art often
   depicts rulers with trappings indicating they were scribes or at least
   able to write, such as having pen bundles in their headdresses.
   Additionally, many rulers have been found in conjunction with writing
   tools such as shell or clay inkpots.

Literacy

   Although the number of logograms and syllabic symbols required to fully
   write the language numbered in the hundreds, literacy was not
   necessarily widespread beyond the elite classes. Graffiti uncovered in
   various contexts, including on fired bricks, shows nonsensical attempts
   to imitate the writing system.

Mathematics

   Mayan numerals
   Enlarge
   Mayan numerals

   In common with the other Mesoamerican civilizations, the Maya used a
   base 20 (vigesimal) and base 5 numbering system (see Maya numerals).
   Also, they independently developed the concept of zero by 357 AD
   (Europeans did not import the zero concept until the 12th century from
   India, via the Islamic world.). Inscriptions show them on occasion
   working with sums up to the hundreds of millions and dates so large it
   would take several lines just to represent it. They produced extremely
   accurate astronomical observations; their charts of the movements of
   the moon and planets are equal or superior to those of any other
   civilization working from naked eye observation.

   Also in common with the other Mesoamerican civilizations, the Maya
   utilized a highly accurate measure of the length of the solar year, far
   more accurate than that used in Europe as the basis of the Gregorian
   Calendar. They did not use this figure for the length of year in their
   calendar, however. Instead, the Maya calendar(s) were based on a year
   length of exactly 365 days, which means that the calendar falls out of
   step with the seasons by one day every four years. By comparison, the
   Julian calendar, used in Europe from Roman times until about the 16th
   Century, accumulated an error of one day every 128 years. The modern
   Gregorian calendar accumulates a day's error in approximately 3257
   years.
     * Learn more about Maya hieroglyphs and Maya numbering from the
       National Gallery of Art

Astronomy

   Uniquely, the Mayans appear to be the only pre-telescopic civilization
   to evidence knowledge of the Orion Nebula as being fuzzy, i.e. not a
   stellar pin-point. The information which supports this theory comes
   from a folk tale that deals with the Orion constellation's part of the
   sky. Their traditional hearths include in their middle a smudge of
   glowing fire that corresponds with the Orion nebula. This is a
   significant clue to support the idea that the Mayans detected a diffuse
   area of the sky contrary to the pin points of stars before the
   telescope was invented.

   The Mayans were very interested in Zenial Passages, the time when the
   sun passes directly overhead. The latitude of most of their cities
   being below the tropic of cancer, these Zenial Passages would occur
   twice a year equidistant from the solstice. To represent this position
   of the sun overhead, the Mayan's had a god named Diving God.

   The Dresden Codex contains the highest concentration of astronomical
   phenomena observations and calculations of any of the surviving texts
   and it appears that the data in this codex is only of an astronomical
   nature. Examination and analysis of this codex reveals that Venus is
   the most important astronomical object to the Mayans, even more
   important to them than the sun.

Religion

   Chaac, the god of Rain and thunder
   Enlarge
   Chaac, the god of Rain and thunder

   Like the Aztec and Inca who came to power later, the Maya believed in a
   cyclical nature of time. The rituals and ceremonies were very closely
   associated with celestial/terrestrial cycles which they observed and
   inscribed as separate calendars. The Maya shaman had the job of
   interpreting these cycles and giving a prophetic outlook on the future
   or past based on the number relations of all their calendars.

   Much of the Maya religious tradition is still not understood by
   scholars, but it is known that the Maya, like most pre-modern
   societies, believed that the cosmos has three major planes, the
   underworld, the sky, and the earth. The Maya Underworld is reached
   through caves and ball courts. It was thought to be dominated by the
   aged Maya gods of death and putrefaction. The Sun and Itzamna, both
   aged gods, dominated the Maya idea of the sky. The night sky was
   considered a window showing all supernatural doings. The Maya
   configured constellations of gods and places, saw the unfolding of
   narratives in their seasonal movements, and believed that the
   intersection of all possible worlds was in the night sky.

   Maya gods were not discrete, separate entities like Greek gods. The
   gods had affinities and aspects that caused them to merge with one
   another in ways that seem unbounded. There is a massive array of
   supernatural characters in the Maya religious tradition, only some of
   which recur with regularity. Good and evil traits are not permanent
   characteristics of Maya gods, nor is only "good" admirable. What is
   inappropriate during one season might come to pass in another since
   much of the Mayan religious tradition is based on cycles and not
   permanence.

   The life-cycle of maize lies at the heart of Maya belief. This
   philosophy is demonstrated on the Maya belief in the Maize God as a
   central religious figure. The Maya bodily ideal is also based on the
   form of the young Maize God, which is demonstrated in their artwork.
   The Maize God was also a model of courtly life for the Classical Maya.

   The Maya believed that the universe was flat and square, but infinite
   in area. They also worshipped the circle, which symbolised perfection
   or the balancing of forces.

   It is sometimes believed that the multiple "gods" represented nothing
   more than a mathematical explanation of what they observed. Each god
   was literally just a number or an explanation of the effects observed
   by a combination of numbers from multiple calendars. Among the many
   types of Maya calendars which were maintained, the most important
   included a 260-day cycle, a 365-day cycle which approximated the solar
   year, a cycle which recorded lunation periods of the Moon, and a cycle
   which tracked the synodic period of Venus.

   Philosophically, the Maya believed that knowing the past meant knowing
   the cyclical influences that create the present, and by knowing the
   influences of the present one can see the cyclical influences of the
   future.

Agriculture

   The ancient Maya had diverse and sophisticated methods of food
   production. It was formerly believed that shifting cultivation
   (swidden) agriculture provided most of their food but it is now thought
   that permanent raised fields, terracing, forest gardens, managed
   fallows, and wild harvesting were also crucial to supporting the large
   populations of the Classic period in some areas. Indeed, evidence of
   these different agricultural systems persist today: raised fields
   connected by canals can be seen on aerial photographs, contemporary
   rainforest species composition has significantly higher abundance of
   species of economic value to ancient Maya, and pollen records in lake
   sediments suggest that corn, manioc, sunflower seeds, cotton, and other
   crops have been cultivated in association with deforestation in
   Mesoamerica since at least 2500 BC.

   Contemporary Maya peoples still practice many of these traditional
   forms of agriculture, although they are dynamic systems and change with
   changing population pressures, cultures, economic systems, climate
   change, and the availability of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides.

Rediscovery of the Pre-Columbian Maya

   False-color IKONOS image of a bajo (lowland area) in Guatemala. The
   forest covering sites of Mayan ruins appears yellowish, as opposed to
   the red color of surrounding forest. The more sparsely vegetated bajos
   appear blue-green.
   Enlarge
   False-colour IKONOS image of a bajo (lowland area) in Guatemala. The
   forest covering sites of Mayan ruins appears yellowish, as opposed to
   the red colour of surrounding forest. The more sparsely vegetated bajos
   appear blue-green.

   Spanish American Colonies were largely cut off from the outside world,
   and the ruins of the great ancient cities were little known except to
   locals. In 1839 United States traveler and writer John Lloyd Stephens,
   after hearing reports of lost ruins in the jungle, visited Copán,
   Palenque, and other sites with English architect and draftsman
   Frederick Catherwood. Their illustrated accounts of the ruins sparked
   strong interest in the region and the people, and they have once again
   regained their position as a vital link in Mesoamerican heritage.

   However, in many locations, Maya ruins have been overgrown by the
   jungle, becoming dense enough to hide structures just a few meters
   away. To help find ruins, researchers have turned to satellite imagery.
   The best way to find them is to look at the visible and near-infrared
   spectra. Due to their limestone construction, the monuments affected
   the chemical makeup of the soil as they deteriorated. Some
   moisture-loving plants stayed away, while others were killed off or
   discolored. The effects of the limestone ruins are still apparent today
   to some satellite sensors.

   Much of the contemporary rural population of the Yucatán Peninsula,
   Chiapas (both in Mexico), Guatemala and Belize is Maya by descent and
   primary language.

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