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The unsolved mystery of the Mayas


Eldorado

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The Mayas appear to us as an intriguing, puzzling people. Of metals they knew only gold, silver, and copper, all of which they used for jewelry, not for tools, yet they carved beautifully in wood and stone.

They also painted on walls and on paper, modelled plaster, and drew with brushes, like Orientals, their best work showing rapid, strong, sensitive lines.

They knew nothing of the wheel, hence did not use pulleys, yet they erected pyramids of great size, temples, “palaces,” and such structures, and moved large altars and steles from the quarries to the place where they wanted them.

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1958/10/the-unsolved-mystery-of-the-mayas/641689/

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14 minutes ago, Eldorado said:

The Mayas appear to us as an intriguing, puzzling people. Of metals they knew only gold, silver, and copper, all of which they used for jewelry, not for tools, yet they carved beautifully in wood and stone.

They also painted on walls and on paper, modelled plaster, and drew with brushes, like Orientals, their best work showing rapid, strong, sensitive lines.

They knew nothing of the wheel, hence did not use pulleys, yet they erected pyramids of great size, temples, “palaces,” and such structures, and moved large altars and steles from the quarries to the place where they wanted them.

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1958/10/the-unsolved-mystery-of-the-mayas/641689/

Oh my god, how old is this article to use the term "orientals"?!    And the mystery is made up because we are supposed to think they were not as sophisticated as the europeans that tried to wipe them out 500 years ago, when in fact they were much more sophisticated than their conquerors.    

Edited by Desertrat56
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Thanks for sharing this article El. Very interesing.

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That is no setting for the development of simple cultures into high ones. It is a region hostile to man even with today’s equipment, a region in which one would look for primitive hunting tribes or peoples practicing rather precarious farming in clearings made and kept open only by great effort.

I have to say that I have thought about this myself sometimes. It was never clear to me how the Mayas had succeeded in erecting a pyramids and buildings in such inhospitable heavy rainforest conditions. It's still puzzling to me.

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43 minutes ago, Desertrat56 said:

Oh my god, how old is this article to use the term "orientals"?!    

October 1958, apparently, according to the website. It's crazy when you think that's just over half a century.
 

Quote

And the mystery is made up because we are supposed to think they were not as sophisticated as the europeans that tried to wipe them out 500 years ago, when in fact they were much more sophisticated than their conquerors.    

I'm not sure I buy "much more sophisticated" from what I've seen of the Maya it's more like "equally sophisticated"

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16 minutes ago, Orphalesion said:

October 1958, apparently, according to the website. It's crazy when you think that's just over half a century.
 

I'm not sure I buy "much more sophisticated" from what I've seen of the Maya it's more like "equally sophisticated"

They had better astronomical information at the least. 

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2 minutes ago, Desertrat56 said:

They had better astronomical information at the least. 

I'm sure they were ahead in a number of fields, and then probably roughly equal or "behind" in some other fields.

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5 hours ago, Desertrat56 said:

Oh my god, how old is this article to use the term "orientals"?!    And the mystery is made up because we are supposed to think they were not as sophisticated as the europeans that tried to wipe them out 500 years ago, when in fact they were much more sophisticated than their conquerors.    

It's from 1958.

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5 hours ago, jethrofloyd said:

Thanks for sharing this article El. Very interesing.

I have to say that I have thought about this myself sometimes. It was never clear to me how the Mayas had succeeded in erecting a pyramids and buildings in such inhospitable heavy rainforest conditions. It's still puzzling to me.

They burned the rainforests down to create space for their temples and crops.

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Wow... utter rubbish mate.... jeebus.  'orientals'?! 

wow, just wow.

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What about ...

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The mound is almost 20 metres high and its base perimeter is about 250 meters. It holds a burial chamber with a square floor plan (4.39 m X 4.35 m), which gradually merges into the circular shape of a corbelled dome ("false vault"). The total height of the burial chamber is 8.84 meters.

~

 

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12 hours ago, Desertrat56 said:

Oh my god, how old is this article to use the term "orientals"?!    And the mystery is made up because we are supposed to think they were not as sophisticated as the europeans that tried to wipe them out 500 years ago, when in fact they were much more sophisticated than their conquerors.    

Although they did a lot of bad things, 'the europeans' did not wiped Mayas out.

The Fall of the Maya: 'They Did it to Themselves'

https://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2009/06oct_maya

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5 hours ago, jethrofloyd said:

Although they did a lot of bad things, 'the europeans' did not wiped Mayas out.

The Fall of the Maya: 'They Did it to Themselves'

https://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2009/06oct_maya

If they did it to themselves, then why did the pope (crazy Greg the 14th) feel the need to have his warrior preists go in and burn all their books? (yes, they had books)    They are still in existence, just not a great empire and they may have been on the decline when the spaniards arrived, but we will never know for sure because of the lies the catholic church spread about them.   I think they were one civilization that was considered a great threat to the Holy Roman Empire and proof of that is the burning of books and murdering of all the leaders and preists and that the calendar we use is based on the Mayan solar calander, that the romans were too stupid to figure out.    (maybe not stupid, just not concerned enough to give it much thought).

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13 minutes ago, Desertrat56 said:

If they did it to themselves, then why did the pope (crazy Greg the 14th) feel the need to have his warrior preists go in and burn all their books? (yes, they had books)    They are still in existence, just not a great empire and they may have been on the decline when the spaniards arrived, but we will never know for sure because of the lies the catholic church spread about them.   I think they were one civilization that was considered a great threat to the Holy Roman Empire and proof of that is the burning of books and murdering of all the leaders and preists and that the calendar we use is based on the Mayan solar calander, that the romans were too stupid to figure out.    (maybe not stupid, just not concerned enough to give it much thought).

Their temples and their empire (or whatever you want to call it) were already in ruins before the arrival of the conquistadores, not their entire culture.

 

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1 hour ago, Desertrat56 said:

.. but we will never know for sure because of the lies the catholic church spread about them. 

You're right. There are a several theories as to why the Maya folk disappeared. But, there is still no definitive answer to that question.

1. Drought and hunger -  caused by climate change in the combination with a destruction of 70% of forested areas. 

2. Spanish / European inquisition.

3. Self-destruction caused by the constant wars between their ‘City-States’.

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On 5/28/2022 at 10:12 AM, jethrofloyd said:

You're right. There are a several theories as to why the Maya folk disappeared. But, there is still no definitive answer to that question.

1. Drought and hunger -  caused by climate change in the combination with a destruction of 70% of forested areas. 

2. Spanish / European inquisition.

3. Self-destruction caused by the constant wars between their ‘City-States’.

And there you go, pretending like the Mayans "disappeared".  They never disappeared, they are still in Mexico and South America (.   Look it up. Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, Yucatán Peninsula and El Salvador).   

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On 5/27/2022 at 4:35 PM, Orphalesion said:
 

I'm not sure I buy "much more sophisticated" from what I've seen of the Maya it's more like "equally sophisticated"

I feel the same.  Better at some things and worse at others.  

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