The Mayan Prophecies Short Overview. The authors demonstrate how the Mayan Holy Number 1,366,560 days, known as the birth of Venus and the basis of their calendar, indicates ancient knowledge of sun spot cycles and their effect on the human race. They explore the popular myth of Quetzalcoatl and its... [Read More]

THE MAYAN LITERATURE POPOL VUH The Mayans were the only people in the Americas who had a developed form of writing, thus some of their inscriptions cannot be entirely deciphered. Part of the problem is the limited number of texts; only three pre-Spanish Maya books, or codices, are known to exist. One... [Read More]

Agriculture Maya diet and subsistence 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... [Read More]

Religion Maya religion God K, the god of lightning A jade mask. Its design metaphorically represents the Rain God Chaac, and the Creator God Kukulkan. The Mayans concept of the cosmos is more complex than the western religion. Benson reminds us that the only evidence of the Maya religion is the ruins... [Read More]

Astronomy Uniquely, there is some evidence to suggest the Maya appear to be the only pre-telescopic civilization to demonstrate 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... [Read More]

Maya numerals Maya Numerals In common with the other Mesoamerican civilizations, the Maya used a base 20 (vigesimal) and base 5 numbering system (see Maya numerals). Also, the preclassic Maya and their neighbors independently developed the concept of zero by 36 BC. Inscriptions show them on occasion... [Read More]

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... [Read More]

Maya art , architechture A stucco relief from Palenque depicting Upakal K’inich A stucco relief from Palenque depicting Upakal K'inich Many consider Maya art of their Classic Era (c. 250 to 900 AD) to be the most sophisticated and beautiful of the ancient New World. The carvings and the reliefs... [Read More]