• The Mayan civilization started in 300 to 500 B.C • 250 A.D was the rise of the Mayan Civilization

• It was founded in Mesoamerica (southern Mexico, Guatemala, and

Belize

• Maya pyramids were made of limestone. These hard-to-climb buildings had temples on top. Mayan priests and rulers were buried under these temples, basically right inside the pyramids. The first large pyramid built by the Mayans was made between 600 b.c. and 400 b.c.

• Theism:

– Polytheism

• Main gods:

– Itzamná; Kukulcán (Quetzalcóatl); Bolon Tzacab; Chac

• Practices:

– Astronomy, divination, human sacrifice, elaborate burial for royalty, worship in

stone pyramid-temples

• There were also about 100 glyphs representing place names and the names of gods. About 300 glyphs were commonly used.

• Examples of the script have been found carved in stone and written on bark, wood, jade, ceramics, and a few manuscripts in Mexico, Guatemala and northern Belize.

• Many syllables can be represented by more than one glyph

• The script was usually written in paired vertical columns reading from left to right and top to bottom in a zigzag pattern.

• The Mayans had a number system consisting of shells, dots, and lines.  You could write up to nineteen with just these symbols. The Maya were one of the only ancient civilizations that understood the concept of zero. This allowed them to write very large numbers.

•  

The # 0

The # 1

The # 2

The # 3

The # 4

The # 5

The # 6

The # 7

The # 8

The # 9

The # 10

• The Mayans along with there other accomplishments also created the calendar .

• The Maya calendar uses three different dating systems in parallel, the Long Count, the Tzolkin (divine calendar), and the Haab (civil calendar). Of these, only the Haab has a direct relationship to the length of the year.