The Maya: Cultural Achievements and leaders
The Maya left a legacy of learning and thriving for the modern historian to enjoy. As mentioned in the overview of the Mayans' religious life, the idea of each day as a deity led to the creation of two calendars--one for the solar year, and one for the rituals throughout the year. The solar calendar was 365 days, just like our own modern calendar. The year was broken up into 18 months of 20 days with 5 days left over at the end. The solar calendar was a precise record of time, as the Maya strived to keep track of the dates not only for to document events, but also to keep a regular harvest schedule that maximized the growing seasons. The ritual calendar, just as important, kept track of annual religious ceremonies and sacrifices. The ritual calendar was 260 days, comprised of 13 months of 20 days. Both calendars were synched together in 52 year cycles, giving a drawn out, but nonetheless systematic, unity to the time keepers. The Maya were also skilled scientists and mathematicians. In the field of science, the Maya accurately tracked celestial movements. The Maya were precise predictors of lunar and solar eclipses and also used mathematical tables to track the movements of the planet Venus. In the field of mathematics, the Mayans made several advancements including creating a number system with base 20 (our modern number system is base 10), conceptualizing zero, and using the idea of place value.
The Maya also left a legacy for visitors to gaze upon in wonder. Some of the main achievements of the Maya were the architecture and art left behind by some of the its greatest rulers whose ambitions to legitimize their power led to massive building projects. The Maya were renowned for art involving unparalleled graphic imagination and expertise not seen elsewhere. They were also skilled in the construction of pyramids and temples, created mostly as tribute to their gods. Further, the Maya left behind records of their greatness, such as their achievements in the intangible subjects discussed above (such as astrology and math), in the hieroglyphic writing system they developed. This writing system is so complex, that it took historians a very long time to decode, proving just how clever the Maya were. However, once decoded, the story of the Maya's path became clearer, piece by piece, hieroglyph by hieroglyph. One of the Mayans' most famous writings in their hieroglyphic writing system was the Popol Vuh, their creation story, providing a window to Mayans' religion through their documented literature and exposing the precious values of the society.
One of the Maya's most powerful rulers was Pakal the Great. Pakal was crowned king of Palenque at the age of 12. Pakal wished to legitimize the power that he gained at such a young age by declaring himself the son of a goddess. Pakal knew that all kings were supposed to hold lineage with the divine, and having divine roots was practically a prerequisite for kingship. Pakal declared that his mother was the "first mother" of all mankind, the mother seen in the creation story, Popol Vuh. Still, Pakal did not feel that his claim of divine lineage was enough to authenticate his authority. Consequently, Pakal began a series of building projects to prove his sovereignty over the Mayan people. Pakal built his royal palace in luxurious magnitude. While most structures at the time were closed in, with small passage ways and walls of chunky stone, Pakal ingeniously used honeycomb as part of the structure of the buildings arches to lessen the weight the arches bore. The use of honeycomb allowed Pakal to have thinner stone walls and create a more airy space inside his palace. Pakal's other great architectural achievement during his 68 year rule was the construction of the Temple of the Inscriptions. The temple doubled as both a place of religious worship and, later, as Pakal's tomb. The hidden passage to Pakal's tomb was not discovered till the early 1950's by Mexican archaeologists when the stone slab that covered the entrance was removed. Down many twists of dark, underground passageways, Pakal's tomb enclosed a sarcophagus carved with the images of Pakal's resurrection in the underworld. The tomb walls are covered in tablets that tell the story of Pakal's reign. Both the tomb and the temple thus reflect the ideals of grandeur and legacy that Pakal wished to leave to the Maya Civilization as his own bequest.
Another great leader of the Maya was Kan Bahlam, the son of Pakal. Kan Bahlam took control in 684 A.D. after Pakal's death. Kan Bahlam consolidated the dynasty started by his father. However, Kan Bahlam was intent not to live in the shadow of his father's legacy. Kan Bahlam set out on a massive building project of three major temples: The Temple of the Cross, the Tempe of the Foliated Cross, and the Temple of the Sun. Kan Bahlam made advancements in learning as he established his legitimacy in architectural achievements. Kan Bahlam used geometric designs in his three temples, leading to his discovery of the golden mean. The golden mean is a ratio of roughly 1:1.618, and it is the "ideal proportions" thought to be seen in humans and nature. Kan Bahlam also discovered the square root of rectangles while planning out the bases of his temples. Though not specifically related to the construction of his temples, Kan Bahlam established the representation of the Maya number system. Zero was represented by a shell, 1 by a dot, and 5 by a dash. Kan Bahlam did not limit his intellectual discoveries to the field of math. When solving the dilemma of a fresh water supply for his city of Palenque, which was surrounded by steep hills and frequently flooded with rain, Kan Bahlam discovered how to create water pressure. To solve the need for fresh, running water, Kan Bahlam built subterranean aqueducts to divert water away from the city to prevent flooding, while simultaneously directing streams of fresh water through limestone cavities to the city. Kan Bahlam correctly hypothesized that he could create water pressure by narrowing the opens of the tunnels and thus make the water coming into the city run instead of stagnate. The narrower openings increased the water pressure, solving Palenque's lack of fresh water.
The Maya also left a legacy for visitors to gaze upon in wonder. Some of the main achievements of the Maya were the architecture and art left behind by some of the its greatest rulers whose ambitions to legitimize their power led to massive building projects. The Maya were renowned for art involving unparalleled graphic imagination and expertise not seen elsewhere. They were also skilled in the construction of pyramids and temples, created mostly as tribute to their gods. Further, the Maya left behind records of their greatness, such as their achievements in the intangible subjects discussed above (such as astrology and math), in the hieroglyphic writing system they developed. This writing system is so complex, that it took historians a very long time to decode, proving just how clever the Maya were. However, once decoded, the story of the Maya's path became clearer, piece by piece, hieroglyph by hieroglyph. One of the Mayans' most famous writings in their hieroglyphic writing system was the Popol Vuh, their creation story, providing a window to Mayans' religion through their documented literature and exposing the precious values of the society.
One of the Maya's most powerful rulers was Pakal the Great. Pakal was crowned king of Palenque at the age of 12. Pakal wished to legitimize the power that he gained at such a young age by declaring himself the son of a goddess. Pakal knew that all kings were supposed to hold lineage with the divine, and having divine roots was practically a prerequisite for kingship. Pakal declared that his mother was the "first mother" of all mankind, the mother seen in the creation story, Popol Vuh. Still, Pakal did not feel that his claim of divine lineage was enough to authenticate his authority. Consequently, Pakal began a series of building projects to prove his sovereignty over the Mayan people. Pakal built his royal palace in luxurious magnitude. While most structures at the time were closed in, with small passage ways and walls of chunky stone, Pakal ingeniously used honeycomb as part of the structure of the buildings arches to lessen the weight the arches bore. The use of honeycomb allowed Pakal to have thinner stone walls and create a more airy space inside his palace. Pakal's other great architectural achievement during his 68 year rule was the construction of the Temple of the Inscriptions. The temple doubled as both a place of religious worship and, later, as Pakal's tomb. The hidden passage to Pakal's tomb was not discovered till the early 1950's by Mexican archaeologists when the stone slab that covered the entrance was removed. Down many twists of dark, underground passageways, Pakal's tomb enclosed a sarcophagus carved with the images of Pakal's resurrection in the underworld. The tomb walls are covered in tablets that tell the story of Pakal's reign. Both the tomb and the temple thus reflect the ideals of grandeur and legacy that Pakal wished to leave to the Maya Civilization as his own bequest.
Another great leader of the Maya was Kan Bahlam, the son of Pakal. Kan Bahlam took control in 684 A.D. after Pakal's death. Kan Bahlam consolidated the dynasty started by his father. However, Kan Bahlam was intent not to live in the shadow of his father's legacy. Kan Bahlam set out on a massive building project of three major temples: The Temple of the Cross, the Tempe of the Foliated Cross, and the Temple of the Sun. Kan Bahlam made advancements in learning as he established his legitimacy in architectural achievements. Kan Bahlam used geometric designs in his three temples, leading to his discovery of the golden mean. The golden mean is a ratio of roughly 1:1.618, and it is the "ideal proportions" thought to be seen in humans and nature. Kan Bahlam also discovered the square root of rectangles while planning out the bases of his temples. Though not specifically related to the construction of his temples, Kan Bahlam established the representation of the Maya number system. Zero was represented by a shell, 1 by a dot, and 5 by a dash. Kan Bahlam did not limit his intellectual discoveries to the field of math. When solving the dilemma of a fresh water supply for his city of Palenque, which was surrounded by steep hills and frequently flooded with rain, Kan Bahlam discovered how to create water pressure. To solve the need for fresh, running water, Kan Bahlam built subterranean aqueducts to divert water away from the city to prevent flooding, while simultaneously directing streams of fresh water through limestone cavities to the city. Kan Bahlam correctly hypothesized that he could create water pressure by narrowing the opens of the tunnels and thus make the water coming into the city run instead of stagnate. The narrower openings increased the water pressure, solving Palenque's lack of fresh water.