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Hidden Life of the Ancient Maya

Revelations from a Mysterious World

Inbunden, Engelska, 2011

249 kr

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Centuries before European explorers 'discovered' the Americas, the ancient Maya flourished in thriving cities like Palenque and Chichen Itza, where they tracked the stars and created elaborate cosmic calendars, built temples to their gods, performed human sacrifices - and drank chocolate. Incoming priests did their best to stamp out the indigenous ways, but the sculptures, cities, murals and even books, highlighted in brilliant Mayan Blue, survived to tell the true story of a vanished civilisation. This lavishly illustrated book goes beyond the apocalyptic 2012 predictions surrounding the end of the Long Count calendar: it delves deep into the mysterious Maya world to uncover the true story of an empire by studying its artefacts. As the players on the cosmic ball court knew, the survivor is the winner.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum2011-05-01
Mått216 x 277 x 22 mm
Vikt1 160 g
FormatInbunden
SpråkEngelska
SerieSaraband
Antal sidor208
FörlagSaraband
ISBN9781887354752

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Clare Gibson is a writer and historian specialising in art history and how to interpret symbols, especially in art, antiquities and architectural details. Her previous works include The Hidden Life of Ancient Egypt (2009), The Hidden Life of Renaissance Art (2007), The Hidden Life of Art (2006), Symbols of the Goddess: Universal Signs of the Divine Female (1997, 2005), Sacred Symbols: A Guide to the Timeless Icons of Faith and Worship (1997), and Signs and Symbols: A Guide to their Meaning and Origins (1996), all previously published by Saraband. Educated in Germany and England, she studied modern and medieval history and worked as an editor before focusing on symbolism and her writing career. She is also well known for her Twitter feed as @MrsSymbols and her popular blog, Seeing Symbols.

FOREWORD; INTRODUCTION (Featured works: Aztec Calendar Stone); SET IN STONE (Featured site: Chichen Itza); PART 1: CALENDARS AND COSMOS (Featured works: Cosmic Tree, Pakal's sarcophagus lid, Palenque; Maya Ballcourt Marker; Cylindrical Vessel Depicting Ballplayers and the Journey to Xibalba; Cylindrical Vessel Depicting a Ballgame; Pages from the Dresden Codex; Details from the Madrid Codex; Stela A, Copan.) PART 2: GODS AND GODDESSES (Featured works: Cylinder Vases; The Creator of the WorldA"; Maya Incense-burners; The Rain God Chac from a Mayan Codex; Polychrome Two-part Effigy Vessel; Rattle in the Form of the Moon Goddess; Vase with Two Blowgunners and Waterbirds; Funerary Urn from Tapijulapa, Tabasco; Lintel 25, Yaxchilan xx.) PART 3: LIFE AND DEATH (Featured works: Altar Q2, Copan; King Pacal Stela; Relief depicting Kan-Xul; Stela 35; Relief depicting the Shield Jaguar, Yaxchilan; Lintel 53 from Yaxchilan; Carved Lintel from Temple 23, Yaxchilan; Lord Bird Jaguar IV; Mexican Lord in Cacaxtla; Relief showing a seated man; Statuette of a warrior; Urn lid with a figure of a warrior; Painted Temple at Bonampak; Priest in ceremonial robes; Anthropomorphic vase; Funerary mask from Tikal; Quiche Burial or Cache Urn Lid; Funerary Urn with Feline Lid; Funerary urn from Tapijulapa, Tabasco.) INDEX; BIBLIOGRAPHY

"There have been any number of stunningly illustrated books on Mayan civilisation: for a long time, though, we couldn't do much more than gaze dumbfounded. While much remains mysterious, in recent decades archaeologists have revealed an enormous amount about this amazing culture. We can thus gawp with more purpose - especially now we have Clare Gibson's guide. The colour pictures are here, but so too are the extracted details, which enable her to account for the form and elucidate the meaning of each one. Not just a beautiful but a revelatory book." (The Scotsman)