Mayan history. Mysterious and majestic Mayan civilization

08.04.2019

The majestic Mayan civilization, formed before our era, left behind many mysteries. It is known for its developed writing and architecture, mathematics, art, and astronomy. The well-known Mayan calendar was incredibly accurate. And this is not all the legacy that the Indians left behind, who became famous as one of the most developed and most brutal peoples in the world.

Who are the Mayans?

The ancient Mayans were an Indian people who lived at the turn of the 1st millennium BC. - II millennium AD Researchers claim that they numbered more than three million people. They settled in tropical forests, built cities of stone and limestone, and cultivated unsuitable lands for agriculture, where they grew maize, pumpkin, beans, cocoa, cotton and fruits. The descendants of the Mayans are the Indians of Central America and part of the Spanish-speaking population of the southern states of Mexico.

Where did the ancient Mayans live?

A large Mayan tribe settled in the vast territory of what is now Mexico, Belize and Guatemala, western Honduras and El Salvador (Central America). The center of civilization development was in the North. Since the soils were quickly depleted, people were forced to move and change settlements. The occupied lands were distinguished by a variety of natural landscapes:

in the north - the limestone Petén plateau, where a hot, humid climate reigned, and the Alta Verapaz mountains;
in the south – a chain of volcanoes and coniferous forests;
the rivers flowing through the Mayan lands carried their waters to the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea;
on the Yucatan Peninsula, where salt was mined, the climate is arid.

Mayan civilization - achievements

Mayan culture surpassed its time in many ways. Already in 400-250. BC people began to build monumental structures and architectural complexes, and reached unique heights in the sciences (astronomy, mathematics), and agriculture. During the so-called classical period (from 300 to 900 AD) ancient civilization Maya reached its peak. People improved the art of jade carving, sculpture and artistic painting, observed the celestial bodies, and developed writing. The achievements of the Mayans are still amazing.

Ancient Mayan architecture

At the dawn of time, without modern technology at hand, ancient people built amazing structures. The main material for construction was limestone, from which powder was made and a solution resembling cement was prepared. With its help, stone blocks were fastened, and the limestone walls were reliably protected from moisture and wind. An important part of all buildings was the so-called “Mayan vault”, a false arch - a kind of narrowing of the roof. The architecture differed depending on the period:

The first buildings were huts placed on low platforms to protect against flooding.
The first ones were assembled from several platforms installed one on top of the other.
During the Golden Age of cultural development, acropolises were built everywhere - ceremonial complexes consisting of pyramids, palaces, even playgrounds.
The ancient Mayan pyramids reached 60 meters in height and were shaped like a mountain. Temples were erected on their tops - cramped, windowless, square houses.
Some cities had observatories - round towers with a room for observing the Moon, Sun and stars.

Mayan calendar

Space played a big role in the life of ancient tribes, and the main achievements of the Mayans are closely connected with it. Based on two annual cycles, a chronology system was created. For long-term observations of time, the Long Count calendar was used. For short periods, the Mayan civilization had several Solar calendars:

religious (in which the year lasted 260 days) had ritual significance;
practical (365 days) used in everyday life;
chronological (360 days).

Weapons of the ancient Mayans

When it comes to weapons and armor, the ancient Mayan civilization was unable to reach significant heights. Over the long centuries of existence, they did not change much, because the Mayans devoted much more time and effort to improving the art of war. The following types of weapons were used in wars and hunting:

spears (long, taller than a person, with a stone tip);
spear thrower - a stick with a stop;
dart;
bows and arrows;
blowgun;
axes;
knives;
clubs;
slings;
networks.

Ancient Mayan figures

The ancient Mayan number system was based on an unusual to modern man base-20 system. Its origins are a method of counting in which all fingers and toes were used. The Indians had a structure of four blocks with five numbers in each. Zero was schematically represented as an empty oyster shell. This sign also denotes infinity. To record the remaining numbers, cocoa beans, small pebbles, and sticks were used, since the numbers were a mixture of dots and dashes. Using three elements, any number could be written:

a point is a unit,
line - then five;
sink - zero.

Ancient Mayan medicine

It is known that the ancient Mayans created a highly developed civilization and tried to take care of every fellow tribesman. Knowledge of maintaining hygiene and health, applied in practice, elevated the Indians above other peoples of that time. Specially trained people dealt with medical issues. Doctors very accurately identified many diseases (including tuberculosis, ulcers, asthma, etc.) and fought them with the help of drugs, baths, and inhalations. The ingredients of the medicines were:

herbs;
meat, skin, tails, horns of animals;
bird feathers;
available means - dirt, soot.

Dentistry and surgery reached a high level among the Maya people. Thanks to the sacrifices carried out, the Indians knew human anatomy, and doctors could perform operations on the face and body. The affected areas or those where there was a suspicion of a tumor were removed with a knife, the wounds were sutured with a needle with hair instead of thread, and narcotic substances were used as anesthesia. Knowledge in medicine is a kind of ancient Mayan treasure that is worth admiring.

Ancient Mayan art

The diverse Mayan culture was formed under the influence of the geographical environment and other peoples: the Olmecs and Toltecs. But she is amazing, unlike any other. What is unique about the Mayan civilization and its art? All subspecies were aimed at the ruling elite, that is, they were created to please the kings in order to make an impression. To a greater extent this concerns architecture. Another feature: an attempt to create an image of the Universe, a smaller copy of it. This is how the Mayans declared their harmony with the world. Features of the subtypes of art were expressed as follows:

Music was closely associated with religion. There were even special gods responsible for music.
Dramatic art reached its peak, the actors were professionals in their field.
Painting was mainly wall painting. The paintings were of a religious or historical nature.
The main theme of the sculpture is deities, priests, rulers. While the common people were portrayed in a pointedly humiliating manner.
Weaving was developed in the Mayan Empire. Clothing varied greatly depending on gender and status. The people traded their best fabrics with other tribes.

Where did the Mayan civilization disappear to?

One of the main questions that interests historians and researchers is: how and for what reasons did a prosperous empire decline? The destruction of the Mayan civilization began in the 9th century AD. In the southern regions, the population began to rapidly decline, and the water supply system became unusable. People left their homes, and the construction of new cities stopped. This led to the fact that there was no time great empire turned into scattered settlements fighting among themselves. In 1528, the Spanish began their conquest of Yucatan and by the 17th century had completely subjugated the region.

Why did the Mayan civilization disappear?

Researchers are still arguing about what caused the death of the great culture. Two hypotheses are put forward:

Ecological, based on the balance of man and nature. Long-term exploitation of soils has led to their depletion, which has caused a shortage of food and drinking water.
Non-ecological. According to this theory, the empire could decline due to climate change, epidemic, conquest or some kind of catastrophe. For example, some researchers believe that the Mayans could have died even due to minor climate change (droughts, floods).

Mayan civilization - interesting facts

Not only the disappearance, but also many other mysteries of the Mayan civilization still haunt historians. The last place where the life of the tribe was recorded: northern Guatemala. Nowadays only archaeological excavations tell about history and culture and according to them it is possible to collect interesting facts about ancient civilization:

People from the Mayan tribe loved to take a steam bath and play ball. The games were a mixture of basketball and rugby, but with more serious consequences - the losers were sacrificed.
The Mayans had strange ideas about beauty, for example, slanting eyes, pointed fangs and elongated heads were “in fashion”. To do this, mothers from childhood placed the child's skull in a wooden vice and hung objects in front of the eyes to achieve strabismus.
Research has shown that the ancestors of the highly developed Mayan civilization are still alive, and there are at least 7 million of them around the world.

Books about the Mayan civilization

Many works by contemporary authors from Russia and abroad tell about the rise and fall of the empire and unsolved mysteries. To learn more about the disappeared people, you can study next books about the Mayan civilization:

"The Mayan people." Alberto Rus.
"Riddles lost civilizations" V.I. Gulyaev.
"Mayan. Life, religion, culture." Ralph Whitlock.
"Mayan. Vanished civilization. Legends and facts". Michael Ko.
Encyclopedia " The Lost World Mayan".

The Mayan civilization left behind many cultural achievements and even more unsolved mysteries. So far, the question of its emergence and decline remains unanswered. We can only make assumptions. In an attempt to solve many mysteries, researchers stumble upon even more secrets. One of the most majestic ancient civilizations remains the most mysterious and attractive.

About 10,000 years ago, when the last ice age ended, people from the north moved to explore the southern lands, now known as Latin America. They settled in the territory that later constituted the Mayan region, with mountains and valleys, dense forests and arid plains. The Maya region includes modern Guatemala, Belize, southern Mexico, Honduras, and El Salvador. Over the next 6,000 years, the local population transitioned from a semi-nomadic existence as hunter-gatherers to a more sedentary agricultural lifestyle. They learned to grow corn and beans, used a variety of stone tools to grind grain and prepare food. Gradually settlements arose. Around 1500 BC. e. widespread construction of settlements began rural type, which served as a signal for the beginning of the so-called “preclassic period”, from which the countdown of centuries of the glorious Mayan civilization begins. The entire history of the Mayan civilization is usually divided into four periods: “Pre-classic”, early “classic”, late “classic” and “post-classic”.

“PRE-CLASSICAL” PERIOD (1500 BC–250 AD) People acquired some agricultural skills and learned to increase the yield of their fields. Throughout the Maya region, densely populated villages of rural type arose. Around 1000 BC. e. The villagers of Cuello (in Belize) made pottery and buried their dead. Following the required ceremony: pieces of green stone and other valuable items were placed in the grave. In Mayan art of this period, the influence of the Olmec civilization, which arose in Mexico on the Gulf Coast and established trade relations with all of Mesoamerica, is noticeable. Some scholars believe that the ancient Maya owe their creation of a hierarchical society and kingship to the Olmec presence in the southern Maya region from 900 to 400 BC. e.

Olmec power ended. The growth and prosperity of the southern Mayan trading cities begins. From 300 BC e. to 250 AD e. such large centers as Nakbe, El Mirador and Tikal emerge. The Mayans achieved significant advances in the field of scientific knowledge. Ritual, solar and lunar calendars are used. They represent a complex system of interconnected calendars. This system allowed the Mayan Indians to record the most important historical dates, make astronomical forecasts and boldly look into such distant times that even modern experts in the field of cosmology do not dare to judge. Their calculations and records were based on a flexible counting system that included a symbol for zero unknown to the ancient Greeks and Romans, and they surpassed other contemporary civilizations in the accuracy of astronomical calculations. Of all the ancient cultures that flourished in the Americas, only the Mayans had developed system writing. And it was at this time that the Mayan hieroglyphic writing began to develop. Mayan hieroglyphs look like miniature drawings squeezed into tiny squares. In reality these are units writing- one of the five original writing systems created independently of one another. Some hieroglyphs are syllabic, but most of them are ideograms, denoting phrases, words or parts of words. Hieroglyphs were carved on steles, on lintels, on vertical planes of stone stairs, on the walls of tombs, and also written on the pages of codices and on pottery. About 800 hieroglyphs have already been read, and scientists with unabated interest are deciphering new ones, as well as giving new interpretations to already known symbols.

During the same period, temples were erected, which were decorated with sculptural images of gods, and then Mayan rulers. Rich offerings are found in the tombs of Mayan rulers from this period.

EARLY “CLASSICAL” PERIOD (250-600 AD) By 250 AD. Tikal and its neighboring city of Washactun become the main cities in the central lowland zone of Maya territory. Tikal had everything: giant pyramid temples, a palace complex, ball courts, a market, and a steam bath.

Society was divided into the ruling elite and the subordinate working class of farmers, artisans, and traders. Thanks to excavations, we learned that social stratification in Tikal primarily concerned housing. While ordinary members of the community lived in villages scattered here and there among the forests, the ruling elite had at their disposal a more or less clearly defined living space of the Central Acropolis, which by the end of the classical period turned into a real labyrinth of buildings built around six spacious courtyards over an area of about 2.5 square kilometers. The buildings consisted of one or two rows long rooms, divided by transverse walls into a number of rooms, each room had its own exit. The “palaces” served as homes for important people, in addition, the city administration was probably located here.

Since the 3rd century, rulers endowed with supreme authority, erect pyramid temples and steles with images and inscriptions designed to perpetuate their reign; The initiation rite consists of a ritual of bloodletting and human sacrifice. The earliest known stele (dated to 292) was found in Tikal, it was erected in honor of one of the heirs of the ruler Yash-Mok-Shok, who founded at the beginning of the century a dynasty that was destined to rule the city for 600 years. In 378, under the ninth ruler of this dynasty, the Great Jaguar Paw, Tikal conquered Vashaktun. By that time, Tikal was under the influence of a tribe of warriors and traders from the Mexican center of Teotihuacan, having adopted some methods of warfare from foreigners.

LATE “CLASSICAL” PERIOD (600-900 AD) The classical Mayan culture, which was characterized by rapid construction of palaces and temples, reached a new level of development in the 7th-8th centuries. Tikal is regaining its former glory, but other, no less influential centers are emerging. In the west of the Mayan region, Palenque flourishes. Which is ruled by Pacal, who came to power in 615 and was buried with the highest honors in 683. The rulers of Palenque were distinguished by great construction zeal and created large number temples, palace complexes, royal tomb and other buildings. But most importantly, the sculptural images and hieroglyphic inscriptions that abound in these buildings give us an idea of what the rulers and the people obedient to them considered important. After studying all the monuments, it seems that during this period there were some changes in the role assigned to the ruler, and these changes indirectly indicate the reason for the collapse of such a seemingly prosperous civilization as the Mayan civilization was in the “classical period.”

In addition, in four different places in Palenque, Pacal and his successor erected the so-called royal registers - steles with records of the members of the ruling dynasty, tracing its roots back to 431 AD. e. Apparently these two were very concerned about proving their legal right to power, and the reason for this were two cases in the history of the city when the ruler received the right of succession to the throne through the maternal line. This is what happened with Pakal. Since among the Mayans the right to the throne was usually passed on through the paternal line, Pacal and his son were forced to make some adjustments to this rule.

In the 7th century, the southeastern city of Copan also gained fame. Many inscriptions and steles of Copan show that the city was a city for 4 centuries, from the 5th century AD. e., ruled by one dynasty. Thanks to this stability, the city gained weight and influence. The founder of the dynasty, ruler Yash-Kuk-Mo (Blue-Ketual-Parrot), came to power in 426 AD. e. And it can be assumed that his authority was very great, and all subsequent rulers of Copan considered it necessary to count their royal line from him. Of his 15 royal descendants, the longest lived was the energetic Smoke Jaguar, who ascended the throne in 628 and reigned for 67 years. Famed as the Great Instigator, Smoke Jaguar led Copan to unprecedented prosperity, greatly expanding its holdings, possibly through territorial wars. The nobles who served under him probably became rulers of the conquered cities. During the reign of Smoke-Jaguar, the urban population reached approximately 10,000 people.

At that time, wars between cities were common. Despite the fact that the rulers of the cities were related to each other due to interdynastic marriages, and in the culture - art and religion - these cities had much in common.

Art continues to develop, artisans supply the nobility with various exquisite crafts. The construction of ceremonial buildings and numerous steles extolling the personal merits of the rulers continues. However, starting from the 8th century, and especially in the 9th century, the cities of the central lowlands fell into decay. In 822, a political crisis rocked Copan; the last dated inscription at Tikal is from 869.

"POST-CLASSICAL" PERIOD (900-1500 AD) Exhaustion natural resources, the decline of agriculture, urban overpopulation, epidemics, invasions from outside, social upheaval and incessant wars - all of this, both together and separately, could have caused the decline of the Mayan civilization in the southern plains. By 900 AD e. Construction in this area stops, once populous cities, abandoned by residents, turn into ruins. But the Mayan culture still lives in the northern part of Yucatan. Such beautiful cities as Uxmal, Kabah, Sayil, Labna in the hilly Puuc region exist until the year 1000.

Historical chronicles of the eve of the Conquest and archaeological data clearly indicate that in the 10th century AD. The Yucatan was invaded by warlike Central Mexican tribes - the Toltecs. But, despite all this, in the central region of the peninsula the population survived and quickly adapted to new living conditions. And later short time a kind of syncretic culture appeared, combining Mayan and Toltec features. A new period began in the history of Yucatan, which received scientific literature name "Mexican". Chronologically, its framework falls on the X – XIII centuries AD.

The city of Chichen Itza becomes the center of this new culture. It was at this time that the city began to prosper, lasting 200 years. Already by 1200, the building area was huge (28 square kilometers), majestic architecture and magnificent sculpture indicate that this city was the main cultural center of the Maya last period. New sculptural motifs and architectural details reflect the increased influence of Mexican cultures, mainly the Toltec, which developed in Central Mexico before the Aztec. After the sudden and mysterious fall of Chichen Itza, Mayapan becomes the main city in the Yucatan. The Yucatan Maya appear to have waged more brutal wars among themselves than those waged by their brethren to the south. Although detailed descriptions of specific battles are lacking, it is known that warriors from Chichen Itza fought against warriors from Uxmal and Coba, and later people The Mayapana attacked Chichen Itza and plundered it.

According to scientists, the behavior of the northerners was influenced by the influence of other peoples who invaded the Mayan territory. It is possible that the invasion took place peacefully, although this is unlikely. For example, Bishop de Lande had information about some people who came from the west, whom the Mayans called “Itza”. These people, as the remaining Mayan descendants told Bishop de Lande, attacked Chichen Itza and captured it. After the sudden and mysterious fall of Chichen Itza, Mayapan becomes the main city in the Yucatan.

If the development of Chichen Itza and Uxmal follows other Mayan cities, then Mayapan in this case was quite different from the general scheme. Mayapan, surrounded by a wall, was a chaotic city. Moreover, there were no huge temples here. The main pyramid of Mayapan was not a very good copy of the El Castillo pyramid at Chichen Itza. The population in the city reached 12 thousand people. Scientists suggest that Mayapan had a fairly high level of economy, and that Mayan society gradually transitioned to business relations, paying less and less attention to the ancient gods.

The Cocom dynasty ruled Mayapan for 250 years. They maintained power by holding their potential enemies hostage behind the city's high walls. The Cocoms further strengthened their position when they accepted into their service an entire army of mercenaries from Ah-Kanul (Mexican state of Tabasco), whose loyalty was bought with promises of war booty. Daily life The dynasty was mostly busy with amusements, dances, feasts and hunts.

In 1441, Mayapan fell as a result of a bloody uprising raised by the leaders of neighboring cities, the city was sacked and burned.

The fall of Mayapan sounded the death knell of the entire Mayan civilization, which had risen from the jungles of Central America to unprecedented heights and sank into the abyss of oblivion. Mayapan was the last city in the Yucatan that managed to subjugate other cities. After his fall, the confederation broke up into 16 competing mini-states, each of which fought for territorial advantages with its own army. In the constantly flaring up wars, cities were raided: mostly young men were captured to replenish the army or to sacrifice them, fields were set on fire to force farmers to submit. In continuous wars, architecture and art were abandoned as unnecessary.

Shortly after the fall of Mayapan, just a few decades later, the Spaniards landed on the peninsula, and the fate of the Mayans was sealed. Once upon a time, a prophet, whose words are quoted in the Books of Chilam-Balam, predicted the appearance of strangers and its consequences. This is how the prophecy sounded: “Receive your guests, the bearded people who are coming from the east... This is the beginning of destruction.” But the same books also warn that not only external circumstances, but also the Mayans themselves will be to blame for what will happen. “And there were no more happy days,” says the prophecy, “sanity left us.” One might think that long before this last conquest the Mayans knew that their glory would fade and their ancient wisdom would be forgotten. And yet, as if anticipating the future attempts of scientists to call their world out of oblivion, they expressed the hope that someday voices from the past would be heard: “At the end of our blindness and our shame, everything will open again.”

Nowadays, the Mayans are a tribe of Indians living in the territory South America. Today they live in countries such as Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala and Belize. And starting from 2000 BC, it was an ancient civilization in Central America. All the ancient peoples and tribes who lived in this territory submitted to them. Maya and civilization were synonymous at that time. The ancient Mayan civilization dominated for 12 centuries. The peak of its heyday falls on the year 900 AD. After this, a long period of cultural decline begins, the reasons for which history does not reveal.

The Mayans were called people who measured their lives against the heavens. At the same time, the life of the tribe remained quite primitive. The main occupation was agriculture. The tools were the simplest. Scientists claim that the Mayans did not even know the wheel. What is even more striking is the fact that during its heyday, the Mayan tribe created unique works of art, temples, tombs, miracle cities and other architectural monuments. Even more amazing is their knowledge of astronomy, the system they created for measuring time and writing.

At the time when colonialists from the old world set foot on the eastern coast of South America, the Mayan civilization came into almost complete decline. During its heyday, it occupied the entire Central America. The colonialists treated the works of art and art they inherited from the Mayan civilization in a barbaric manner. architectural monuments. They considered them “pagan idols,” a legacy of pagan culture, and ruthlessly destroyed them. But even what remains today of the culture and knowledge of the ancient Mayans amazes the imagination of modern scientists.

Rightfully, one of the main achievements of the Mayans is their unique calendar, which is based on accurate astronomical calculations. Our scientists never cease to admire its amazing accuracy. The ancient Mayan priests used their astronomical observations both to solve pressing issues (for example, in agriculture) and to explain more global problems. So the Mayan priests calculated very accurately life cycles our planet, which is confirmed by modern scientists. With the onset of 2012, everyone is especially worried about the Mayan prediction about the supposedly impending end of the world. Everyone decides for themselves whether to believe the ancient Mayan prophecies about the approaching apocalypse.

One thing is certain: the reasons why this ancient civilization disappeared remain mysterious and incomprehensible today. People simply left their cities in droves. There are several versions, but what exactly? real reason no one knows. Who they are and where they came from remains a mystery today...

For those who want to know more, we suggest watching the video film: “Mexico. Mayan. Unknown story." in 6 parts. The film was created on the basis of materials collected during an expedition to Mexico in March 2007 and is based on facts that have been hidden and hushed up for a long time. Enjoy watching.

Video film: “Mexico. Mayan. Unknown story"

The Mayan civilization is unique. Their writing, calendar system, and knowledge of astronomy amaze even modern cosmology specialists. The Mayan Indians are one of the most ancient and mysterious civilizations that ever existed on Earth.

Birth of the Mayan civilization

Scientists have determined where the Indians lived. According to the theory, after the end of the last ice age, the tribes living in the north went south to develop new lands. Today it is the territory of Latin America.

Then, over the next 6 thousand years, the Indians created their own culture - they built cities and practiced farming.

By 1500 BC, the Mayans lived in the Yucatan Peninsula, present-day Guatemala, the southern states of Mexico, and the western parts of El Salvador and Honduras.

Mayan Indians: history of the development of civilization

The first major centers were the cities of El Mirador, Nakbe and Tikal. The construction of temples flourished, calendars were widely used, and hieroglyphic writing developed.

The photo below shows the ancient Mayan cultural center in ancient city Tikal.

The Indians created their own system, including architecture with unique buildings - pyramids, monuments, palaces, politics and social hierarchy. Society was divided into the masses and the elite, consisting of rulers.

The Mayans believed that their rulers were descended from the gods. The status was emphasized by robes with a mandatory attribute - a breast mirror. “Mirror of the people” - this is what the Mayans called their supreme ruler.

Mayan ruling class

The ancient Mayan civilization numbered more than 20 million people.

A whole system of 200 cities was created, 20 of them were megacities with a population of more than 50 thousand people.

Economic development of the Mayans

Initially, the Mayans were engaged in slash-and-burn agriculture - they cut down the forest on the site that they planned to cultivate, then burned the trees and shrubs, and fertilized the soil with ash. Since the land in the tropics is infertile, its resources were quickly depleted, and the fields ceased to be cultivated. They words were overgrown with forest. Then the whole process began again.

But as the population increased, new methods were required, and the Indians began to use hillsides for terrace farming. Swamps were also developed - raised fields were built on them by building beds a meter high above the water level.

They installed irrigation systems, and water flowed into reservoirs through a network of canals.

They traveled on the water in canoes made of red wood. They could accommodate up to 50 people at the same time. They traded fish, shells, shark teeth and other seafood. Salt was like money.

Salt production

Obsidian, brought from Mexico and Guatemala, was used to make weapons.

Jade was a ritual stone, it was always in price.

Jade products

Those who lived on the plain traded food supplies, cotton, jaguar skins and quetzal feathers.

Art and architecture

During the "classical" early and late periods(250 - 600 AD and 600 - 900 AD) a huge number of temples were built, wall paintings depicting rulers appeared. Art is flourishing.

Below is a photo of a Barel'ev with the image of the ruler.

New cultural centers become Copan and Palenque.

Migration

Beginning in 900 AD, the southern plains gradually emptied, leaving settlements in the northern part of Yucatan. Until 1000 AD, the influence of Mexican culture grew, and the cities of Labna, Uxmal, Kabah and ChiChen Itza flourished.

Below is a photo of the pyramid in the city of ChiChen Itza

After the mysterious collapse of Chichen Itza, Mayapan becomes the main Mayan city.

Why did the Mayan civilization disappear?

No one knows for sure the reason for the disappearance of the Indian people. There are only hypotheses on this matter. According to the main one, in 1441 there was an uprising of the leaders who lived in the cities neighboring Mayapan. This caused the degeneration of civilization and its transformation into scattered tribes. Drought and famine also had an impact. Then the conquistadors appeared.

Below in the photo is the last center of civilization.

In 1517, Spanish ships landed on an unknown shore. In the battle with the Indians, the conquistadors saw gold. This began the extermination of the Mayan people, since the Spaniards believed that gold should belong to their rulers. In 1547, the Mayans were conquered, but some of the tribes managed to escape and hide in the center of the Yucatan Peninsula, where they lived for 150 years.

The diseases that the Spaniards brought with them caused outbreaks of epidemics. The Indians had no immunity to influenza, measles and smallpox, and they died by the millions.

The culture and religion of the Indians was exterminated in every possible way: temples were destroyed, shrines were destroyed, idolatry was punishable by torture.

In the 100 years since the arrival in Latin America The Mayan civilization was completely eradicated by Europeans.

Watch the BBC documentary about the mysterious Mayan civilization below

The Mayan peoples inhabited the territories:

in the west - from the Mexican state of Tabasco,
in the east - to the western outskirts of Honduras and El Salvador.

This area is divided into three areas clearly distinguishable by climatic and cultural-historical characteristics.

The northern one - the Yucatan Peninsula, formed by a limestone platform - is characterized by an arid climate, poor soil and the absence of rivers. The only sources of fresh water are karst wells (cenotes).
The central area covers mexican states Tabasco, part of Chiapas, Campeche, Quintana Roo, as well as Belize and the Guatemalan department of Petén. This area is made up of lowlands, abounding in natural water bodies and crossed by large rivers Usumacinta, Motagua, etc. The area is covered with wet tropical forests with a diverse fauna, a rich selection of edible fruits and plants. Here, as in the north, there are practically no mineral resources.
The southern region includes mountain ranges up to 4000 m high in the state of Chiapas and the Guatemalan highlands. The territory is covered with coniferous forests and has a temperate climate. Various minerals are found here - jadeite, jade, obsidian, pyrite, cinnabar, which were valued by the Mayans and served as trade items.

The climate of all regions is characterized by alternating dry and rainy seasons, requiring precision in determining the time of sowing, which is impossible without the development of astronomical knowledge and the calendar. The fauna is represented by ungulates (peccaries, tapirs, deer), feline predators, varieties of raccoons, hares and reptiles.

History of the Mayan civilization

Periodization of Mayan history

…-1500 BC - Archaic period
1500-800 BC - Early formative
800-300 BC - Medium formative
300 BC - 150 AD - Late formative
150-300 - Protoclassical
300-600 - Early Classic
600-900 - Late Classical
900-1200 - Early Postclassic
1200-1530 - Late Postclassic

The problem of settling the Maya region is still far from a final solution. Some evidence suggests that the Proto-Maya came from the north, moving along the Gulf Coast, displacing or intermingling with local populations. Between 2000-1500 BC began to settle throughout the zone, breaking up into different language groups.

In the VI-IV centuries. BC In the Central region, the first urban centers appear (Nakbe, El Mirador, Tikal, Vashaktun), distinguished by the monumentality of their buildings. During this period, the urban layout took on the appearance characteristic of Mayan cities - an articulation of independent, astronomically oriented acropolises adapted to the relief, representing a rectangular area surrounded by temple and palace buildings on platforms. Early Mayan cities formally continued to maintain a clan-fratric structure.

Classical period - I (III) -X centuries. n. BC - the time of the final formation and flowering of the Mayan culture. Throughout the Maya territory, urban centers with subordinate territories of the city-state appeared. As a rule, the cities in these territories were no further than 30 km from the center, which was apparently due to communication problems due to the lack of draft animals in the region. The population of the largest city-states (Tikal, Calakmul, Caracol) reached 50-70 thousand people. The rulers of large kingdoms bore the title of Ahav, and the centers subordinate to them were ruled by local rulers - Sahals. The latter were not appointed officials, but came from local ruling families. There was also a complex palace hierarchy: scribes, officials, masters of ceremonies, etc.

Despite the changing structure social relations, power in city-states was transferred according to a tribal scheme, which was expressed in the magnificent cult of deified royal ancestors, in addition, power could also belong to women. Since Mayan acropolises and cities were of a “genetic” nature and were associated only with specific representatives of one or another clan, this was the reason for the periodic abandonment of individual acropolises and the final “abandonment” of Mayan cities in the 10th century, when the invading invaders destroyed members of the elite related by blood relationship with ancestors buried within the acropolises (pyramids). Without such a connection, the acropolis lost its significance as a symbol of power.

Social structure

Evidence of a tendency towards centralization of power in the 3rd-10th centuries. - usurpation by the rulers of capital centers of the ritual ball game, the emergence of which dates back to the times of intra-tribal rotation of power and collective decision-making. The aristocracy concentrated in its hands the trade in valuable items, cocoa beans and minerals used for making jewelry and handicrafts - obsidian, jadeite, etc. Trade routes ran both over land and along rivers and seas, going far into foreign territories.

Hieroglyphic texts mention priests divided into

priest-ideologists,
priest-astronomers,
"seeing" and
soothsayers.

Psychedelic practices were used for divination.

Detail of a sacred fresco from San Bartolo (Guatemala). OK. 150 BC The painting depicts the birth of the cosmos and proves the divine right of the ruler.

The basis of the society was made up of free community members who settled in family households, sometimes near cities, and sometimes at a considerable distance from them, which is due to the nature of land use and the need to change (due to a decrease in yield) the sown plots cultivated by the family every 4 years.

In their free time from sowing and harvesting, community members participated in public works and military campaigns. Only in the postclassical period did a special layer of semi-professional Kholkan warriors begin to emerge, who demanded “services and offerings” from the community.

Mayan texts often mention military leaders. Wars were in the nature of short-term raids to ruin the enemy and sometimes capture prisoners. Wars in the region were constant and contributed to the restructuring political power, strengthening some cities while weakening and subjugating others. There is no data on slavery among the Classic Mayans. If slaves were used, it was as domestic servants.

There is no information about the Mayan legal system.

Crisis of the 10th century - political and cultural restructuring

By the 10th century In the Central region, active migration begins, while the population decreases sharply, by 3-6 times. City centers are falling into disrepair political life freezes. There is almost no construction going on. The guidelines in ideology and art are changing - the cult of the royal ancestors is losing its primary importance, while the justification for the power of the ruler is the origin of the legendary “Toltec conquerors”.

In Yucatan, the crisis of the end of the classical period did not lead to a decline in population and the fall of cities. In a number of cases, hegemony moves from old, classical centers to new ones. The processes of social and political change after the destruction of the traditional Mayan system of urban government by the Toltecs are observed in the postclassic period in the example of such cities as

Chichen Itza of the Toltecs in the X-XIII centuries;
Mayapan during the reign of the Cocoms in the 13th-15th centuries;
postclassical Mani, under whose command in the 16th century. there were 17 towns and villages.

By the time the Spaniards appeared in the southeast of Yucatan, the state of Acalan (Maya-Chontal) was formed, where the capital city of Itzamkanak with 76 subordinate cities and villages had already emerged. It contains an administration, temples, 100 houses made of stone, 4 quarters with their patrons and their temples, a council of quarter heads.

Confederations of cities with their own capital became a new type of political-territorial entities that controlled the political, administrative, religious and scientific spheres of life. In the spiritual sphere, the concept of reincarnation goes into the realm of religious abstraction, which allows cities (emerging capitals) to retain their functions even after a change of power. Internecine wars become the norm, the city acquires defensive characteristics. At the same time, the territory is growing and the control and protection system is becoming more complex.

The Yucatan Mayans had slavery and trade in slaves was developed. Slaves were used to carry heavy loads and homework, but more often acquired for sacrifice.

In mountainous Guatemala, with the onset of the Postclassic period, the “Maya-Toltec style” spread. Obviously, the infiltrated nahuacultural groups were, as in Yucatan, assimilated by the local population. As a result, a confederation of 4 Mayan tribes was formed - Kaqchiquel, Quiche, Tzutihil and Rabinal, which subjugated in the XIII-XIV centuries. various Mayan and Nahua-speaking tribes of highland Guatemala. As a result of civil strife, the confederation soon disintegrated, almost simultaneously with the invasion of the Aztecs and the appearance at the beginning of the 16th century. Spaniards.

Economic activity

The Mayans practiced extensive slash-and-burn agriculture with regular rotation of plots. The main crops were maize and beans, which formed the basis of the diet. Of particular value were cocoa beans, which were also used as a unit of exchange. They grew cotton. The Mayans had no domestic animals, with the exception of a special breed of dogs, which were sometimes used as food, poultry - turkeys. The function of the cat was performed by the nose, a type of raccoon.

In the classical period, the Mayans actively used irrigation and other methods of intensive agriculture, in particular “raised fields” similar to the famous Aztec chinampas: artificial embankments were created in river valleys, which, during floods, rose above the water and retained silt, which significantly increased fertility. To increase productivity, the plot was simultaneously sown with maize and legumes, which created the effect of fertilizing the soil. Fruit trees and chile peppers, which are an important component Indian diet.

Land ownership continued to remain communal. The institution of the dependent population was underdeveloped. The main area of its application could be plantations of perennial crops - cocoa, fruit trees, which were privately owned.

Mayan civilization culture

Scientific knowledge and writing

The Mayans developed a complex picture of the world, which was based on ideas about reincarnation and the endless alternation of cycles of the universe. For their constructions, they used precise mathematical and astronomical knowledge, combining the cycles of the Moon, Sun, planets and the time of the precessional revolution of the Earth.

The complication of the scientific picture of the world required the development of a writing system based on the Olmec. The Mayan writing was phonetic, morphemic-syllabic, involving the simultaneous use of about 400 characters. One of the earliest inscriptions is from 292 AD. BC - discovered on a stela from Tikal (No. 29). The bulk of the texts were applied to monumental monuments or small plastic objects. A special source is represented by texts on ceramic vessels.

Mayan books

Only 4 Mayan manuscripts have survived - “codes”, representing long strips of paper folded like an accordion (pages) from ficus bark (“Indian paper”), dating back to the Postclassic period, obviously copied from more ancient samples. Regular copying of books was probably practiced in the region from ancient times and was associated with the difficulties of storing manuscripts in a humid, hot climate.

The Dresden manuscript is a strip of “Indian paper” 3.5 m long, 20.5 cm high, folded into 39 pages. It was created earlier than the 13th century. in Yucatan, from where it was taken to Spain as a gift to Emperor Charles V, from whom it came to Vienna, where in 1739 the librarian Johann Christian Götze acquired it from an unknown private person for the Dresden Royal Library.

The Parisian manuscript is a strip of paper with a total length of 1.45 m and 12 cm in height, folded into 11 pages, of which the initial ones are completely erased. The manuscript dates back to the period of the Cocom dynasty in Yucatan (XIII-XV centuries). In 1832 it was acquired by the Parisian National Library(kept here to this day).

The Madrid manuscript was written no earlier than the 15th century. It consists of two fragments without beginning and end of “Indian paper”, 13 cm high, with a total length of 7.15 m, folded into 56 pages. The first part was acquired in Extremadura by José Ignacio Miró in 1875. Since it was suggested that it once belonged to the conqueror of Mexico, Cortez, hence its name - “Code of Cortez”, or Cortesian. The second fragment was acquired by Brasseur de Bourbourg from Don Juan Tro y Ortolano in 1869 and was called Ortolan. The pieces joined together became known as the Madrid Manuscript, and it has since been kept in Madrid in the Museum of the Americas.

Grolier's manuscript was in a private collection in New York. These are rather fragments of 11 pages without beginning or end, dating back to the 13th century. Apparently this Mayan manuscript, the origin of which is unknown, was composed under strong Mixtec influence. This is evidenced by the specific recording of numbers and features of the images.

Texts on Mayan ceramic vessels are called “clay books.” The texts reflect almost all aspects of the life of ancient society, from everyday life to complex religious ideas.

The Mayan script was deciphered in the 50s of the 20th century. Yu.V. Knorozov based on the method of positional statistics he developed.

Architecture

Mayan architecture reached its peak in the classical period: ceremonial complexes, conventionally called acropolises, with pyramids, palace buildings and ball stadiums. The buildings were grouped around a central rectangular square. The buildings were erected on massive platforms. During construction, a “false vault” was used - the space between the roof masonry gradually narrowed upward until the walls of the vault closed. The roof was often crowned with massive ridges decorated with stucco. Construction techniques could vary from stone masonry to concrete-like masses and even bricks. The buildings were painted, often red.

There are two main types of buildings - palaces and temples on pyramids. Palaces were long, usually one-story buildings, standing on platforms, sometimes multi-tiered. At the same time, the passage through the enfilades of rooms resembled a labyrinth. There were no windows and light came in only through doorways and special ventilation holes. Perhaps the palace buildings were identified with long cave passages. Almost the only example of buildings with several floors is the palace complex in Palenque, where a tower was also erected.

The temples were built on pyramids, the height of which sometimes reached 50-60 m. Multi-stage staircases led to the temple. The pyramid embodied the mountain in which the legendary cave of our ancestors was located. Therefore, an elite burial could occur here - sometimes under the pyramid, sometimes in its thickness, and more often immediately under the floor of the temple. In some cases, the pyramid was built directly over a natural cave. The structure on top of the pyramid, conventionally called a temple, did not have the aesthetics of an internal very limited space. The doorway and the bench placed against the wall opposite this opening had functional significance. The temple served only to mark the exit from the cave of the ancestors, as evidenced by its external decoration and sometimes its connection with the intra-pyramidal burial chambers.

Appears in the Postclassic new type areas and buildings. The ensemble is formed around the pyramid. Covered galleries with columns are being built on the sides of the square. In the center there is a small ceremonial platform. Platforms for risers appear with poles studded with skulls. The structures themselves are significantly reduced in size, sometimes not corresponding to human growth.

Sculpture

The friezes of buildings and massive roof ridges were covered with stucco made of lime mortar - a piece. The lintels of temples and the steles and altars erected at the foot of the pyramids were covered with carvings and inscriptions. In most areas they were limited to relief techniques; only in Copan did round sculpture become widespread. Palace and battle scenes, rituals, faces of deities, etc. were depicted. Like buildings, inscriptions and monuments were usually painted.

Monumental sculpture also includes Mayan steles - flat, about 2 m high monoliths, covered with carvings or paintings. The highest steles reach 10 m. Steles are usually associated with altars - round or rectangular stones installed in front of the steles. Steles with altars were an improvement on Olmec monuments and served to convey the three-level space of the universe: the altar symbolized the lower level - the transition between worlds, the middle level was occupied by the image of events occurring with a specific character, and the upper level symbolized the rebirth of a new life. In the absence of an altar, the subject depicted on it was compensated by the appearance on the stele of a lower, “cave” level, or a relief niche, inside which the main image was placed. In some cities, roughly rounded flat altars placed on the ground in front of the stele, or stone figured images of reptiles, as for example in Copan, became widespread.

The texts on the steles could be dedicated to historical events, but most often they were calendar in nature, marking the periods of the reign of one or another ruler.

Painting

Works monumental painting were created on the internal walls of buildings and burial chambers. The paint was applied either over wet plaster (fresco) or over dry ground. The main theme of the paintings is crowd scenes battles, festivals, etc. The most famous are the Bonampak paintings - buildings of three rooms, the walls and ceilings of which are entirely covered with paintings dedicated to victory in military operations. Mayan fine art includes polychrome painting on ceramics, which is distinguished by its great variety of subjects, as well as drawings in “codes.”

Dramatic art

The dramatic art of the Maya came directly from religious ceremonies. The only work that has come down to us is the drama of Rabinal-Achi, recorded in the 19th century. The plot is based on the capture of a Quiché warrior by warriors of the Rabinal community. The action develops in the form of a kind of dialogue between the prisoner and the other main characters. Basic poetic device-rhythmic repetition, traditional for oral Indian folklore: the participant in the dialogue repeats the phrase spoken by his opponent, and then pronounces his own. Historical events- Rabinal's wars with the Quiché - are superimposed on a mythological basis - the legend of the abduction of the goddess of waters, the wife of the old god of rain. The drama ended with the real sacrifice of the main character. Information has been received about the existence of others dramatic works, as well as comedies.