Mundo Maya Blog
About this blog
Travelers to Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, and Honduras in 2012 can expect a yearlong celebration of Maya culture, past and present—and Moon Maya 2012 author Joshua Berman is blogging about all of it.
Recent Posts
- Maya 2012: A Round-up of Celebrations in Mexico, Guatemala, Belize & Honduras
- Reporting for National Geographic on Maya winter solstice in Belize
- Maya calendar cycle celebrated throughout Central America
- Feliz B'aktun! The New Dawn is Here: The First Sunrise in Caracol, Belize
- Maya Calendar 101: What Does “December 21, 2012” Really Mean?
- Gifts for Mayaphiles
- Books on the Maya: Suggested Reading for 2012
- Izapa Sunrise Story by Mary Jo McConahay
- Tranquilo Radio Tour 2012: Seven hours straight of talking about travel
- Tune in this Wednesday! Maya 2012 author Josh Berman on a radio show near you!
- End Maya-Aztec calendar confusion now!
- Q&A with Maya Experts on Satellite Imagery of Archaeological Sites
- Maya response to 'doomsday' 2012 stories
- Only a couple of rooms left for "The Great Return: Copan 2012" tour of a lifetime!
- 5 Questions about Traveling in the Mundo Maya for Rafael Garcia
Mexico Cenote Heaven: Riviera Maya, Quintana Roo, and Yucatan
I am packing my bags for a trip to Mexico this weekend and I'm looking forward to ticking off another cenote or two from my list. Just like Maya archaeological sites across the region, each cenote is totally distinct and travelers can spend days visiting them without getting bored. Cenotes are exposed portions of the Yucatan peninsula's vast underground river system. They present as dry caves, wet caves, underground caves, or above-ground mini-rivers. Authors Liza Prado and Gary Chandler do a great job breaking down the area's RUTA DE CENOTES. I'm hoping to hit Río Secreto, maybe more, there are hundreds of options across the CANCUN AND YUCATAN area. Video above: one way to visit a wet cenote. more >>
Discovery in Guatemala prompts new wave of Maya calendar stories
In an article by Erik Vance entitled "Unprecedented Maya Mural Found, Contradicts 2012 Doomsday Myth: Under the Guatemalan jungle, 1,200-year-old paintings like no others," the scientific case against 12.21.2012 as an Armageddon is strengthened. The site is called Xultún, in Guatemala, and the paintings discovered there include a number of so-called "deep time" calculations. They are long counts longer than the Long Count, which is due to end in a few short months.
"The calculations" found written on the walls, reports the article, "include dates some 7,000 years in the future, adding to evidence against the idea that the Maya thought the world would end in 2012—a modern myth inspired by an ancient calendar that depicts time starting over this year." more >>
Scientists return to cenote excavation in Belize
I've commented before on the incredible pace of discovery in the Maya world. Archaeologists, epigraphers, and other scientists have been producing breakthroughs in our understanding of the Maya for many decades. Well, that does not happen without research on the ground. Lisa J. Lucero, a professor of anthropology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, just posted a "Notes from the Field" update in The New York Times, "A Year Later, Ready to Dive Again," about her studies of ancient Maya underwater offerings in central Belize. more >>
"MAYA 2012: Lords of Time" exhibit at Penn Museum
WHEN: May 4-6
WHERE: Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology, Philadelphia
WHAT: The 30th Annual Maya Weekend, "MAYA 2012: Lords of Time"
FROM Mike Ruggeri's Ancient America Museum Exhibitions, Conferences, and Lectures List: "For 30 years, international scholars, Maya enthusiasts, artists, glyph experts, archaeologists, and others have joined together for a lively weekend of engaging talks and programs centering on the Maya world. During the weekend, numerous lectures and workshops provide opportunities for attendees to learn about Maya culture and current archaeological work at Maya sites. This weekend features an exclusive preview to the new exhibition, MAYA 2012: Lords of Time, and focuses on the Maya and their concept of time.
HOW MUCH: Admission: $180; $140, Penn Museum members.
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