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The Maya are one of the best studied of the major pre-Colombian native American civilizations. Unlike the Aztecs and Incas, the Maya were a much older civilization which had passed its peak by the time of the encounter with the Europeans. The Maya first appear in the Yucatan Peninsula about 2600 B.C. They became a civiization of major importance about 250 AD in what is now southern Mexico, Guatemala, western Honduras, El Salvador, and northern Belize. Unlike the Inda and Aztecs, the Maya were not a centralized imperial state. There virtually independent city states were connected by extensive trade routes. The Maya show evidence of assimilating the technology and culture of previous civilizations which had developed to the north in moden Mexic, especially the Olmecs. The Maya are especially noteworthy for their achievements in astronomy, mathematics, accurate calendars, hieroglyphics, and archectecture. Mayan hieroglyphics,probably of Olmec origins, was the most sophisticated writing system in Meso-America. The Mayan archetectural heritage is especially impressive. Many sites in the Yucantan and northerm Central America include temple-pyramids, palaces, and observatories. The Maya especially venerated the jaguar and built temple-pyramids to the being they saw as the Lord of the Underworld. As with the other Meso-American civilizations, these edifaces were built without metal tools, beasts of burden, or even the wheel. Mayan agriculture was especially impressive as methods such as storing rainwater in underground reservoirs dealt with the limited available groundwater. The Maya were also accomplished weavers and potters. The Spanish encountered the Maya centuries after their classical era, unlike the Aztec and Inca who were in their acendancy. The decline of the Maya is one of the great mysteries in archeology. There are numerous theories. Increasingly archelogists are coming to believe that the decline was a more gradual process than was once believed. The process appears to have involved expanding populations which required overcultivation of available land resulting in decling yields that could not support dense populations.
The Mayan civilization flourished over large areas of northern Central America and souththern Mexico for an incredible 3,500 years, finally ending with the Spanish conquest. The Maya are one of the best studied of the major pre-Colombian native American civilizations. Unlike the Aztecs and Incas, the Maya were a much older civilization which had passed its peak by the time of the encounter with the Europeans.
The Maya appear to have originated as an offshoot at the Olmec people. For many years archeologistzs studying Ntive American civilizations saw the Maya as the "mother culture" of Mexican pre-Colomvian civilizations. Gradually scholars armed with improved dating techniques and improved archeoligical methods have come to see the Olmecs as much more important than had earlier been believed. The Olmecs are best known for their huge carved stone heads. For years little more was known about the Olmec. Recent work has uncovered some information about this enigmatic early people.
The basic conclusion is that the Olmec pre-dated the Maya. They developed a complex society centuries before the Maya and appear to have influenced the Maya and other later Native American civilizations. The relationship between the Olmec and Maya as well as the Olmec's relationship with other early Native American civilizations is still not fully understood and much discussed among Native American scholars.
The Maya first appear in the Yucatan Peninsula about 2600 B.C. Archeologists begin to see evidence of an important evolving culture aboy 1500 BC. This is an era that has been poorly understood and researched. Archeologits are today finding increased ecidence of a rich cultural heritage far more advanced and sophisticated than previously believed. One important site from the pre-classical period is El Mirador in Guatemala. El Mirador was a great metropolis and may have been ???, the ceenter of origin of the Mayan once thought to have been mytholgical. Another is a small site--Cival. Althogh not a great metropolis, a wonderful temple with elegant sculptures of what is believed to be the Sun God was found there. A magificent mural was found at an even smaller site of San Bertolo that included hyroglyphs showing the beginning of Mayan writing. It is one of two known Mayan murals of an importance and the only one from the pre-classical period. Kings once thought as mythological are increasingly believed to be atual historical figures. Arcelogists now believe they know the mames of kings dating back as far as 500 BC, kings such as Gret Firey Jaguar Paw. The pre-classical civilization appears to have collsapsed because of an ecolgical disaster. Deforestation stripped the hillsides and clay washed into the swaps that had been the source of rich soil that had supported agriculture. One archeolohist, Richard Hanson, believes that the production of lime plaster to use in coating the great monumental structures significantly contributed to the deforestation.
The Maya became a civiization of major importance about 250 AD in what is now southern Mexico, Guatemala, western Honduras, El Salvador, and northern Belize. The Mayan claaic era is generally seen to have flourished from about 200-800 AD. Many of the best known Mayan sites are in the tropical forest of the eastern Peten or Mayan lowlands.
The decline of the Maya is one of the great mysteries in archeology. There are numerous theories. Some postulate invasions and a sudden decline. A few sites show a rapid collapse and charred remains suggesting a war or peasant revolt. Yhis is not, however, the general pattern. There are scholars that identify the religion and waring city states as a reason for the decline. Some climate change and or crop failures. Increasingly archelogists are coming to believe that the decline was a more gradual process than was once believed. The process appears to have involved expanding populations which required over cultivation of available land resulting in decling yields that could not support dense populations. Archeologhists agree that the Maya at the peak of the classical era densely populated their homelasnd. Some archeologists believe that the monumental building in particvular required vast amounts of lime resulting in deforestation that stressed the enviroment. Other researchers believe that climate change, especially declining rainfall may have been a major factor. [Haug]
The Maya reappear in the northern Yucatan. Here they built great ceremonial sites at Chicheb-Itza and Uxlum as well as a large number of smaller sites.
Unlike the Inca and Aztecs, the Maya were not a centralized imperial state. The Maya were more of a culture than a politicial entity. Maya culture was composed of independent city states connected by extensive trade routes. There was intermitent warfare between these cities states ruled by kings with absolute power. War was an integral para of Mayan life. So little was known about the Maya that important anthropoligists though that in contrast to the Aztec, the Msya were a peaceful people. The recently discovered Mayan paintings leave no doubt about the martial ethos of Mayan courts. Some Maya cities were conquered by others, but no large kingdoms ever were created.
The Maya show evidence of assimilating the technology and culture of previous civilizations which had developed to the north in moden Mexic, especially the Olmecs. The Maya are especially noteworthy for their achievements in astronomy, mathematics, accurate calendars, hieroglyphics, and archectecture. Mayan hieroglyphics,probably of Olmec origins, was the most sophisticated writing system in Meso-America. The Mayan archetectural heritage is especially impressive.
The Maya were phenomenal mathematicians. They were not only interested in numbers, but they were truly obsessed with numbers. The devised a calendar of remarkable accuracy, much more accurate than the Europen calandar, a phenominal achievement for a stone age people. Maya mathematics was based on a system of 20.
The Mayan system of hyroghyphics wasvinterwoven with Mayan religion. Partly as a result, Spanish briests destroyed Mayan texts they found, Thevtedts were written on a kind of paper madev from the bark of fig trees. Only a few of these texts called codicies survived. Anthropologists found it difficult to dechipher the text and only succeeded after Workd War II. A Soviet linguist played a major role here working on material looted by the Red Army at the end of World war II.
Many sites in the Yucantan and northerm Central America include temple-pyramids, palaces, and observatories. Many cities are built on an axis toward the rising sun of the autumn equinox. Some scholars see the monumetal structures in the city centers evolving toward structures designed to give a small elite the best view for the ceremonies associated with the equinox and thus reflect the evolving social structure. The Maya especially venerated the jaguar and built temple-pyramids to the being they saw as the Lord of the Underworld. As with the other Meso-American civilizations, these edifaces were built without metal tools, beasts of burden, or even the wheel.
The most important crop on which Mayan civilization was based was maze or corn. Many areas inhabited by the Maya were not rich agricultural areas. Poor soil makes intensive agiculture difficult. Yet Mayan agriculture supported a large population and important cities. Mayan agriculture was especially impressive as methods such as storing rainwater in underground reservoirs dealt with the limited available groundwater. The Maya were also accomplished weavers and potters.
The popal moo are creation epic centers on the Maze God, the deity at the center of the Mayan cosmos. He is killed by the Lords of Death, but rescued by this children, the hero twins.
The Maya loved color. Temples and palaces were painted bright colors. The Maya liked to paint. Most of their psainting was on stucco and part of their decoration of the interior of palaces and temples. Almost all of this was destroyed by the Spanish. The major examples of Mayan painting are tomb paintings discovered by moder anthropologists. These paintings as well as pottery and sculptures provide visual depiction of clothing. All of the Mayan art we have seen, however, depicts adults, thus providing no viual depivtion of children.
For those of us who have traveled in Yucatan and other areas of the Mayan lowlands, there is an awarness that there was not a great need for clothing through much of the year. The situation is somewhat different in the Mayan highlands. Much of the available information on Mayan clothing is more about the colonial era than the pre-Colombian era. The classic Mayan government for women is the huipil, a kind of blouse worn since ancient times. It is essentially a simple square or rectangular, the easiest shape to weave. There is a hole in the center for the head. The cloth is then folded in half and the sides stitched up except for the arm slits. The huipil is worn over a skirt normally tied with a woven belt. The neck area of the huipil was elaborately embroidered with beautiful designs meant to representing the Mayan cosmos, the gods and their helpers. Women in cooler areas of the Mayan highlands added a tzute, another rectangular garment worn over the shoulders both for warmth as a kind of shawl as well as decoration. Women have persisted on wearing garments worn by the ancient Maya. Modern Mayan men have for both political and economic reasons moved more toward European-styled clothing. There are still some influences from ancient times. The embroidered loincloth worn by the ancient Maya can today be seen in embroidered sashes or belts. Men also wear the embroidered tzute over their shoulders. We have no details yet about specific clothing styles for children
The Spanish encountered the Maya centuries after their classical era, unlike the Aztec and Inca who were in their acendancy.
Coe, Michael. The Maya.
Coe, Michael and Rex Koontz. Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs.
Davies, Nigel. The Ancient Kingdoms of Mexico.
Haug, Gerald. Nature (January 2006). Haug group researched sediments in China and Venezuela. They studied the Cariaco Basin along the coast of Venezuela. While outside the area of the Maya, there are climatic similarities and at least suggest that this line of research may be productive within the area ingabited by the Maya. The team led by Haug suggests that weak monsoons in China may have been a factor in the demise of the T'ang which disappeared at about the same time as the lcassical Masya.
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