The Maya: A Very Short Introduction (Paperback)

The Maya forged one of the greatest societies in the history of the ancient Americas - and in all of human history. Long before contact with Europeans, Maya communities built spectacular cities with large, well-fed large populations. They mastered the visual arts, and developed a sophisticated writing system that recorded extraordinary knowledge in calendrics, mathematics, and astronomy. The Maya achieved all this without area-wide centralized control. There was never a single, unified Maya state or empire, but always numerous, evolving ethnic groups speaking dozens of distinct Mayan languages. The people we call "Maya" never thought of themselves as such; yet something definable, unique, and endlessly fascinating - what we call Maya culture - has clearly existed for millennia. So what was their self-identity and how did Maya civilization come to be "invented?" With the Maya historically subdivided and misunderstood in so many ways, the pursuit of what made them "the Maya" is all the more important. In this Very Short Introduction, Restall and Solari explore the themes of Maya identity, city-state political culture, art and architecture, the Maya concept of the cosmos, and the Maya experience of contact with - including invasion by - outsiders. Despite its brevity, this book is unique for its treatment of all periods of Maya civilization, from its origins to the present.

General

Imprint:	Oxford UniversityPress
Country of origin:	United States
Series:	Very Short Introductions
Release date:	November 2020
Authors:	Matthew Restall (Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of History and Anthropology) • Amara Solari (Associate Professor of Art History and Anthropology)
Dimensions:	174 x 113 x 11mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Paperback
Pages:	160
ISBN-13:	978-0-19-064502-1
Categories:	Books > Humanities > History > World history > BCE to 500 CE Books > Humanities > History > World history > 500 to 1500 Books > Humanities > History > American history > General Books > Humanities > History > History of specific subjects > Social & cultural history Books > History > American history > General Books > History > History of specific subjects > Social & cultural history Books > History > World history > 500 to 1500 Books > History > World history > BCE to 500 CE
LSN:	0-19-064502-4
Barcode:	9780190645021

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