Daily Life in Maya Civilization

302 Pages·2009·5.36 MB·English

by  Robert J. Sharer

DAILY LIFE IN
MAYA
CIVILIZATION
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DAILY LIFE IN
MAYA
CIVILIZATION
Second Edition
robert j. sharer
The Greenwood Press “Daily Life Through History” Series
GREENWOOD PRESS
Westport, Connecticut • London
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Sharer, Robert J.
Daily life in Maya civilization / Robert J. Sharer. — 2nd ed.
p. cm. — (The Greenwood Press “Daily life through history”
series, ISSN 1080– 4749)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978 – 0 –313 –35129 –7 (alk. paper)
1. Mayas—History. 2. Mayas—Social life and customs. 3. Mayas—
Antiquities. 4. Central America—Antiquities. I. Title.
F1435.S54 2009
972.81'016—dc22 2009000194
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data is available.
Copyright © 2009 by Robert J. Sharer
All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be
reproduced, by any process or technique, without the
express written consent of the publisher.
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2009000194
ISBN: 978 – 0 –313 –35129–7
ISSN: 1080 –4749
First published in 2009
Greenwood Press, 88 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06881
An imprint of Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc.
www.greenwood.com
Printed in the United States of America
The paper used in this book complies with the
Permanent Paper Standard issued by the National
Information Standards Organization (Z39.48–1984).
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
For
Dan and Kate,
Michael and Kathleen,
Lisa and John
This page intentionally left blank
CONTENTS
Illustrations ix
Preface xi
Names, Pronunciations, and Abbreviations xv
Chronology of Maya Civilization xvii
1. The Maya of Past and Present 1
2. Understanding the Maya Past 11
3. The Foundations of Maya Civilization 27
4. Early Maya Civilization 43
5. Middle Maya Civilization 63
6. Transformations in Maya Civilization 91
7. Late Maya Civilization 111
8. Maya Economy 131
9. Maya Society 159
10. Maya Government 187
11. Maya Religion 203
viii Contents
12. Maya Writing and Calendars 227
13. The Meaning of Maya Civilization 249
Bibliography 253
Index 261
ILLUSTRATIONS
All illustrations are by the author unless otherwise credited.
1.1 Maya market in the highlands of Guatemala. 7
1.2 Maya woman weaving on the traditional Maya belt loom. 7
2.1 Map of the Maya area. 15
3.1 Pottery often signals permanent settlements. 30
3.2 Stela 2, La Venta, Mexico. 34
3.3 Portrait of war captive from Monte Alban, Mexico. 37
4.1 Boulder sculpture from Chalchuapa, El Salvador. 46
4.2 Glyphs from stela at El Portón, Guatemala. 49
4.3 Stela 11, Kaminaljuyu, Guatemala. 49
4.4 Stela 5 and “throne stone” from Takalik Abaj, Guatemala. 55
4.5 Long Count dates on Stela 5, Takalik Abaj, Guatemala. 56
4.6 Triadic temple at El Mirador, Guatemala. 57
5.1 Temple I and royal palace at Tikal, Guatemala. 64
5.2 Early Classic ruler on the Leiden Plaque. 65
5.3 Caana palace and temple complex at Caracol, Belize. 71
5.4 Reconstructed views of Dos Pilas, Guatemala. 73
5.5 Stela 14 from Piedras Negras, Guatemala. 76
5.6 Two jade mosaic vessels from Tikal, Guatemala. 78
5.7 Temple of the Sun, at Palenque, Mexico. 81
5.8 Dynastic founder and sixteenth king on Copan Altar Q. 84