The Lords of Tikal by Peter D. Harrison

536 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Short note on maya civilization

Shrouded in mythology and mystery, and frequently solely the focus of academic and archaeological exploration, the ancient Maya remain relatively misunderstood by contemporary culture-one needs to look no further than the endless array of alarmist 2012-centric texts that topped last year's best-seller lists, or commercialized salves and potions touting antiquated Mayan cures, to experience the general misconceptions about the remarkable civilization first­ hand. Peter D. Harrison's text, The Lords of Tikal: Rulers of an Ancient Maya City, seeks to make accessible the history of this ancient society through examining the impressive civilization that evolved and thrived at the city of Tikal. Discovered in the 1850' s, the site is Guatemala's most-visited tourist attraction, and reached apogee during the Classic Period, circa 200 to 900 AD. The text, augmented by dozens of impressive photographs, maps, line drawings and charts, appeals to both the layperson and Mayanists alike though revealing the otherwise dense and complicated fmdings of both the University of Pennsylvania and...

Show More
Related

  • The Bridges At Toko-Ri by James Michener

    660 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the novel The Bridges At Toko-Ri by James Michener, the main character Harry Brubaker is a voluntary man. This novel is set during the Korean War, which took place in the early 1950s. Harry Brubaker is a lawyer from Colorado who is called back into service, as a pilot against his will. Despite the fact that he doesn’t want to be there, however, Brubaker does his job to the best of his ability.

    Read More

  • Dbq Mayan Achievements

    636 Words  | 2 Pages

    It is very likely that most people have heard about the Mayan Civilization in one way or another. Whether fictitious or factual, this ancient culture iw idelt recognized. The Mayan people lived from about 250 to 900 CE in Mesoamerica. Which includes modern day Belize, Honduras, Guatemala, and parts of southern Mexico.These people had many remarkable achievements, all of which can fit under the categories of scale, genius effort, and significance. These achievements include an advanced trade system, an amazing understanding of numbers, and the ability to design and build cities that are still mostly standing today. However, their most impressive achievement is their complex calendars.

    Read More

  • Kingdom of Matthias by Paul E.Johnson and Sean Wilentz

    907 Words  | 2 Pages

    Paul E. Johnson and Sean Wilentz, tells a story of a peculiar religious sect, but changed the American society and culture. The story brings rise to changes in economy, sex, politics, religion and race and also the beginning of the Protestant revival known as the Second Great Awakening. Through the story of Matthias and Elijah Pierson, there were many changes in society but a main change was the gender roles. Matthias created his Kingdom during the time period where women had little to no rights, and he carried out this belief through force. From two extremists, a scandalous Kingdom and an ex-slave turned abolitionist leader, gender roles in the early 1800s were very distinct.

    Read More

  • Mutual Misunderstanding Of Maya And Spaniard In Yucatan Summary

    1208 Words  | 3 Pages

    In her study of the sixteenth century Maya, Inga Clendinnen quotes Antonio de Ciudad Real, saying “when the Spaniards discovered this land, their leader asked the Indians how it was called; as they did not understand him, they said uic athan, which means, what do you say or what do you speak, that we do not understand you. And then the Spaniard ordered it set down that it be called Yucatan.” Mutual misunderstanding and incommensurability play many key roles in colonial relations between the Spanish missionaries and the Maya. Social and cultural relations and the effects of misunderstanding between the Maya and Spaniards greatly affected daily life and caused great unrest

    Read More

  • The Book of Yolek by Anthony Hetcht

    1317 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Holocaust was a tragic event in history which instilled fear and sorrow in so many. This time can be seen as one without order, because the law at the time said the actions taken were just (epigraph translation). A poet was able, however, to take such a chaotic time in history in the poem The Book of Yolek, and create a more personal attachment (for the reader) to the topic. The poet Anthony Hecht has taken the Holocaust (more specifically the moving of Jewish orphans to a concentration camp) and made it simple and nostalgic, taking a more calm approach to the subject ("5th August 1942: Warsaw Orphans Leave for Treblinka"). By using the form of a Sestina (very precise form difficult to properly do), along with the images, rhetorical use of grammar, and the tone portrayed throughout the piece, Anthony Hecht demonstrates a peaceful outlook can be given to the most chaotic moments in human life (Strand et al. 20). However, he also demonstrates the need for emotional attachment when referring to an occurrence (in history) of the past.

    Read More

  • The Mystery of the Tikal Hieroglyphs

    677 Words  | 2 Pages

    Before the end of the 20th century archeologist began making progress in translation of the ancient writing. Discoverers believed to have solved the mystery of the Maya when archeologists J.Eric Thompson, after conducting many excavations, concluded the people of Tikal were peaceful and free from conflict. After his analysis of the hieroglyphs believe declared the Maya people were spiritual and used Tikal as ceremonial site. As studies of the Maya people continued translation of the hieroglyphs went undispu...

    Read More

  • The Tikal Mayan Civilization

    913 Words  | 2 Pages

    Forgotten and lost, this city laid wrapped in vegetation, covered with forest it once commanded. Its temples as side trees, webbed with vines, and walls of ferns. Tropical rain lashing at the crumbling surfaces of stone architecture built by armies of workers. The darkness of the night guided by owls and the day by parrot shrieks. Statues of gods lay along the remaining stone hedges. It was not till 1839 the American lawyer John Lloyd Stephens and English artist Fredrick Caterwood, rediscovered the magnificence of the Tikal Mayan civilization. Development in the Mayan society began with hunters and gatherers leading to sedentary life and agriculture. Then early Maya civic then the highest point of the Tikal at middle Maya civilization.

    Read More

  • Misconceptions Of The Legend Of Mathew Restall: Mathew Restall

    1726 Words  | 4 Pages

    Mathew Restall was born in a suburb of London, England, in 1964. He grew up in Spain, Venezuela, and East Asia, but was schooled in England, primarily at Wellington College, before going on to receive a BA degree with first-class honors in Modern History from Oxford University in 1986. He earned a PhD in Latin American History from UCLA in 1992, studying under James Lockhart, and has since held teaching positions at various universities in the United States. A prolific scholar, Restall 's twenty books and fifty articles and essays published since 1995 have earned him an international reputation as a leader in his field. His books include The Maya World: Yucatec Culture and Society, 1550-1850 (1997), Maya Conquistador (1998), Invading Guatemala (with Florine Asselbergs, 2007), 2012 and the End of the World: The Western Roots of the Maya Apocalypse (with Amara Solari, 2011), Latin America in Colonial Times (with Kris Lane, 2011), and The Conquistadors (with Felipe Fernández-Armesto, 2012). His book The Black Middle: Africans, Mayas, and Spaniards in Colonial Yucatan won the Conference on Latin American History’s 2009 prize for best book on Mexican history. His most widely read book is Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest (2003), also published in Spanish and in Portuguese. Restall has shared with us some of the greatest treasure we will ever know by correcting the myths that we have learned about growing up and then bein told it was all a lie in college. I believe Restall is such a great author because he uncovers the truth, isn’t that what we want everyone to write? The cold hard

    Read More

  • Mayans

    741 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Maya didn’t discover metallurgy until late in the Classic period and used it only to produce jewelry and decorations for the elite. Artists and their numerous assistants cut and filled the stones used for palaces, pyramids, and housing, aided only by levers and stone tools. Each wave of construction represented the mobilization of thousands of laborers.

    Read More

  • Picture/Source: Mayaan Ruinss Of Tikal

    1741 Words  | 4 Pages

    Picture/Source : Mayan ruins of tikal, (Mayan ruins of Tikal in the Peten Jungle. Photograph.)

    Read More

  • Maya Civilization Collapse

    1318 Words  | 3 Pages

    Diamond, Jared M. (2005) "The Maya Collapses.” Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed. New York: Viking, 157-77.

    Read More

  • Religious Syncretism and its Consequences in Mayan Society

    1206 Words  | 3 Pages

    Carlsen, Robert. The War for the Heart & Soul of a Highland Maya Town. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1997.

    Read More

  • Mayan Religion

    1535 Words  | 4 Pages

    BYU Studies 38.4 (1999): 43-64. Print. The. Sharer, Robert. A. The Ancient Maya.

    Read More

  • Mayan Society During The Dark Ages

    1089 Words  | 3 Pages

    The European and Mayan civilizations had inverse experiences during the Classical era, but they were similar in some aspects. While the Mayans were basking in their glorious success as a civilization, the Europeans stood in their shadow. However, after the Renaissance Era, it was as if the Mayans stood in the shadow of the European revival. These two societies have a definite inverse relationship, in that while one was succeeding, the other was squandering. For example, the forward thinking of the Mayans and their knowledge of arithmetic and science was overshadowed by the revolutionary ideas created by European scientists, the fact that the Mayans had created a complex, and accurate calendar wasn’t nearly as celebrated as a European man who got hit by an apple.

    Read More

  • The Maya Civilization

    1075 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Maya culture has a long history that started in about 1000 BC. The history of the Maya is divided up into four different time periods: The Middle Preclassic Period, Late Preclassic Period, Classic Period, and Postclassic Period. The Middle Preclassic Period was when the small areas started to become city-like in the way that they started to build larger temples. The Late Preclassic Period was when the cities began to expand with paved roads and massive pyramids. The Classic Period was the time the Maya civilization hit it’s peak. Populations were growing rapidly and the structure of politics was formed. The Postclassic Period was when warfare was on the rise and cities were being abandoned(Coe 2005). This paper will focus on the Classic Period due to the fact that that is the greatest time period in Maya history.

    Read More

More about The Lords of Tikal by Peter D. Harrison

Open Document