Archaeology & History

What happened to the ancient Maya ?

By T.K. Randall
November 12, 2012 ·  14 comments

Image Credit: Bruno Girin The Maya were a brilliant and advanced society possessing expertise in everything from architecture to art, yet within the space of less than 80 years their entire civilization simply fell apart. What happened exactly has been an enduring mystery for years, but now it seems that extreme changes in the weather might have been the primary contributing factor in their untimely demise.

Comparing Maya political history from hieroglyphs with the climatic records of the time, researchers have found a clear correlation between a period of extreme weather conditions and notable political collapses within ancient Maya society. "It's a cautionary tale about how fragile our political structure might be," said Professor Bruce Winterhalder. "Are we in danger the same way the Classic Maya were in danger?"[!gad]The Maya were a brilliant and advanced society possessing expertise in everything from architecture to art, yet within the space of less than 80 years their entire civilization simply fell apart. What happened exactly has been an enduring mystery for years, but now it seems that extreme changes in the weather might have been the primary contributing factor in their untimely demise.

Comparing Maya political history from hieroglyphs with the climatic records of the time, researchers have found a clear correlation between a period of extreme weather conditions and notable political collapses within ancient Maya society. "It's a cautionary tale about how fragile our political structure might be," said Professor Bruce Winterhalder. "Are we in danger the same way the Classic Maya were in danger?"

Source: Science Daily | Comments (14)

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