THE MAYA OF CENTRAL AMERICA 21
Maya writing was not narrative used to re-
cord literature but the large body of Maya myths,
legends, poetry, and traditional history that was
transmitted orally from generation to generation.
Examples of such material are found in the Popol
Vuh, the so-called Sacred Book of the Quiché Maya
of Guatemala. This book includes the adventures
of the heroic twins Hunahpu and Xbalanque, who,
after many exploits, ascended into heaven to be-
come the sun and the moon. It was written in post-
Conquest times in the Spanish alphabet by a native
who drew on the oral traditions of his people.
In certain types of artistic activity, the Maya
surpassed all other Middle American peoples.
The temples and pyramids at Teotihuacán and
Tenochtitlán were often larger than their Maya
counterparts but lacked their grace and subtlety. A
distinctive feature of Maya architecture was the cor-
beled vault, or false arch. Other Middle American
peoples used horizontal wooden beams to bridge
entrances, producing a heavy and squarish impres-
sion. The Maya solved the same problem by hav-
ing the stones on either side of the opening project
farther and farther inward, bridging the two sides
at the apex by a capstone. Other characteristics of
the Maya architectural style were the great façades
that were richly decorated with carved stone and
high ornamental roof combs in temples and palaces.
Inner walls were frequently covered with paint-
ings, a few of which have survived to this day. The
most celebrated of these paintings are the frescoes
discovered in 1946 at Bonampak, an isolated site
in the tropical forests of the northeastern corner of
the Mexican state of Chiapas. They date from about
800 CE. These frescoes completely cover the inner
walls of a small building of three rooms. They tell a
story that begins with a ritual dance, goes on to por-
tray an expedition to obtain sacrifi cial victims, con-
tinues with a battle scene, and ends with a human
sacrifi ce, ceremonies, and dance. Despite the highly
conventionalized and static style, the absence of
perspective and shading, and the obvious errors in
the human fi gure, it has an effect of realism that is
often missing from other Mesoamerican art.
Students of the Maya have frequently testifi ed
to the admirable personal qualities of the people
who, with a very limited technology and in a most
forbidding environment, created one of the great-
est cultural traditions of all time. Bishop Diego de
Landa, who burned twenty-seven Maya codices
as “works of the devil,” nevertheless observed that
the Maya were very generous and hospitable. No
one could enter their houses, he wrote, without be-
ing offered food and drink.Ancient murals uncovered at the Bonampak acropolis depict Mayan cultural rituals
that integrated history, music, and dance. Here, dancers dressed as lobsters, birds,
and cro codiles accompany musicians playing drums, gourd-maracas, and trumpets
in a celebration of the debut of a royal heir to the throne. [e.t. archive, London/ The Art
Archive]