End to the Mayan Civilization

The Mayan empire existed for 4,000 years, from 2600 BC to 1500 AD, and it spanned five modern day countries which include Mexico, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala and Belize. Mayan civilization made significant strides in astronomy, agriculture and architecture, and it prided itself on its colorful art and skilled artisans. By the end of their reign, however, the Mayans may have turned self destructive, power grabbing and environmentally abusive (Petrakis).

The end of the Mayan culture is described as very abrupt. Change came quickly to the Maya world. The great cities of the Ancient Maya stopped growing. People began to give up making vast buildings for their priests and religious purposes. It seemed as though the Mayan civilization had disappeared. Many people speculate what happened to this complex civilization. One theory is that constant warfare weakened the great cities. Another is that Maya farming destroyed the land. Geological evidence speculates that drought may have hurt the Maya as well (Garrett). Without this necessary precipitation, the Maya could not support their agriculture and would have most likely starved. The ancient culture of the Maya still lives on today. Many people still speak Mayan languages (Mueller). They also practice many old customs.

Garrett, Kenneth. "The Amazing Maya." National Geographic Explorer Sept. 2006
Science In Context. Web. 7 Dec. 2011

Mueller, Mary "Mystery of the Maya" School Library Journal 52.6 (June 2006) p81

Petrakis, John "The Fall of the Empire" The Christian Century (Dec. 26, 2006) p37.

Mayan's Architecture

Mayans also were famous for their massive temples, pyramids, and castles, which would be religious centers. Their construction relied heavily on bilateral symmetry. Each half of the building was identical. Limestone was used in most buildings. The temples had a relatively small interior compared to the mass of the structure as a whole. Their temples would house altars or stone platforms where priests would perform their sacrifices.  Behind the platforms there would be a painted representation of the god of that city. The Mayan version of a pyramid is truncated so that a temple can be built on top. There were two types of pyramids, those that were meant to be climbed and those that were not (Morley 81). The steps of these structures were too steep to climb many times they had doorways leading nowhere. The staricases lead from ground level to the temple. The number of staircases had varied. Aside from having religious functions, Mayan pyramids also had other purposes. They were build so high that their tops could be seen out of the jungle, Mayans could use them as landmarks (Gallenkamp 90). Some pyramids even house burial chambers for high ranking officials. Treasure such as jade was also found in some of the chambers. Each Mayan city had its own temples and significance. Copan, which was from the first cities to develop, had very good artists and sculptures. Copan is home to the stairway that contains more that 1,500 hieroglyphic carvings. These hieroglyphis chronicles showed the achievements of many great Mayan rulers (Tutor 75).
The Mayans were and still are a mystical civilization. The Spaniards that move in Mesoamerica wiped them out. Today the culture still exists and also ruins and ancient cities are preserved for people to visit and explore.

Gallenkamp, Charles. Maya. The Riddle and Rediscovery of a Lost Civilization. 3rd. ed.
New York: Viking Penguin, Inc, 1985.

Morley, Sylvanus G. The Ancient Maya. Stanford University, CA:
Stanford Univeristy Press, 1946.

Tutor, Pilar. Mayan Civilization.
Chicago: Children's Press Inc/UNESCO, 1993.