Classic Maya Political History
Hieroglyphic and Archaeological Evidence

This volume presents the first history of the Classic Maya based on a combination of the Maya's own dynastic records and archaeological data.

T. Patrick Culbert (Edited by)

9780521564458, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 29 March 1996

416 pages
22.8 x 15.2 x 2.6 cm, 0.68 kg

'In summary, this important book makes the exciting recent developments in Maya epigraphy accessible to a wider anthropological audience … [it] synthesizes the current state of the art and points the way for future research in a field that is changing the way we view Classic Maya civilization.' Man

Ancient Maya civilization once flourished in the rainforests of what is today southern Mexico and Central America. It possessed the only full system of writing ever to be developed in the Americas. The pace of decipherment of Maya hieroglyphic writing has accelerated, and within the last decade half of the inscriptions from the sites of the Classic Period (AD 250–900) have been translated. Much of the newly available information consists of historical records of the careers of Maya rulers of the time. This volume is the first to present in detail the results of decipherment and to consider the implications of a Classic Maya written history. Contributors examine the way in which the Maya elite created the kinship, alliance, warfare and ceremonial networks on which the civilisation was founded. Drawing upon important material recently made available, they have transformed our understanding of the Maya.

Preface
List of figures
List of tables
1. Introduction Norman Hammond
2. Classic Maya emblem glyphs Peter Mathews
3. Prehistoric polities of the Pasion region: hieroglyphic texts and their archaeological settings Peter Mathews, and Gordon R. Willey
4. An epigraphic history of the western Maya region Linda Schele
5. Cyles of growth at Tikal Christopher Jones
6. Polities in the Northeast Peten, Guatemala T. Patrick Culbert
7. Dynastic historys and cultural evolution at Copan, Honduras William L. Fash, and Davis S. Stuart
8. Diversity and continuity in Maya civilization Robert S. Sharer
9. Elite interaction during the terminal classic period: new evidence from Chichen Itza Linnea H. Wren, and Peter Schmidt
10. Royal visits and other intersite relationships among the classic Maya Linda Schele, and Peter Mathews
11. Inside the black box: defining Maya polity Norman Hammond
12. Maya elite interaction - through a glass, sideways Norman Yoffee
13. Maya political history and elite interaction: a summary view T. Patrick Culbert.

Subject Areas: Palaeography [history of writing CFL]