Maya and Aztec

Ancient Mesoamerican civilizations

Archives for the ‘Maya’ Category

Conquest of Yucatan. General information on the history of the Maya

Category: Maya

1511 – 20 people with Valdivia boarded a boat without a sail, escaping from sinking caravels and without supplies. They drifted 13 days in the sea. Reaching the coast of Yucatan, they fell into the hands of evil cacique, who sacrificed Valdivia and four men, and then hosted a feast of their bodies. Others were […]



General information on the history of the Maya. Postclassic period

Category: Maya

In the Postclassic period Mayan high culture is preserved only in the north of Yucatan, but in the synthesis of a completely different civilization – Toltec. Petén city and the mountains of Guatemala have come to desolation, and many were abandoned by residents, while others turned to the tiny hamlet. North of the Yucatan and […]



General information on the history of the Maya. Classical period

Category: Maya

Classical period lasts from 325 to 925 AD. It is divided into Early Classic (325-625 AD.) – when was stopped the outside influence and appeared own features, such as Cone arch in the architecture and registration of historical dates using hieroglyphs; period of the heyday (625-800 AD.), when was reached its maximum brightness in mathematics, […]



General information on the history of the Maya. Formation and Teotihuacan influence

Category: Maya

In ancient time there were various groups of maya that have a common historical tradition. In this regard, the characteristics of their cultures were similar, the physical features matched, and they spoke the languages belonging to the same linguistic branch.



European Influence and conquest of the Maya

Category: Maya

The earliest known contact by Europeans probably occurred during the last voyage of Christopher Columbus in 1502. However, the existence of the Maya did not become fully known to the outside world until 1517, when three ships commanded by Francisco Hernandez de Cordova landed at Cape Catoche. They arrived back in Cuba almost dead from […]



Pre-Maya Civilizations

Category: Maya

By the 1840’s most historians and archaeologists believed that the Mayan Civilization could not have been built by an indigenous cul­ture. Originally, archaeologists believed that the Mayan civilization must have built by people who were descendants of Egypt. Most of this theory was based on the fact that they both had pyramids. No one believed […]



Maya Religion

Category: Maya

The Mayans worshiped a broad array of deities. The exact order of their importance is not exactly clear. However, it is believed that the ancient Mayans called their supreme god Hunab Кu. Hunab Ku was the creator of the universe. He was so sacred that he took no part in everyday human affairs. Next in […]



Origins of the Maya

Category: Maya

We know that this first people entered the New World from Asia by way of the Bering Strait. This occurred during the Pleistocene or Ice Age. between 10.000 to 20.000 years ago. Armed with flint-tipped spears, and wearing animal skinned clothing these people slowly spread throughout the hemisphere. Mostly, they lived in caves and under […]



Maya Military

Category: Maya

When the Spaniards entered Guatemala they soon re­alized that unlike the Aztecs or the Incas, the Mayans were not a single nation, and there was no empire governed by a supreme ruler. Instead, they were forced to defeat one city-State after another. Probably, the most organized of these city-states were the Quiche Mayans, and the […]



Mayan Architecture

Category: Maya

The architecture of the Maya was extraordinarily im­pressive in terms of size, design, and external decora­tion. It becomes even more amazing when we realize that they did not have metal tools, the wheel, or pack animals. Mayan architects used a variety of methods to enhance the beauty of their buildings. Almost always they elevated temples […]