THE MAYAN CIVILISATION BY MOHAMMAD MUZAFAR AYUB KHAN

Who were the Mayans and history:

The Mayan civilisation was created by the Maya people and mostly known by

the modern impact they have created in the Pre-Classic period.They changed everything during that period such as : their writing system; art, architecture, maths, calendars and their astronomy system. The Mayan culture started in south-eastern Mexico, all the Republic of Guatemala, Belize and Western areas of El Salvador. During 2000 BC TO 250 AD was the first time the first Mayan society had started when the beginning of crops of the Mayan diet started which included corn, beans, squashes and chilli peppers. Beginning of Mayan cities started in 750 BC and during these times these cities included magnificent architecture ever seen at those times [the Pre-Classic period] and these buildings stood out beautifully stood out from other buildings [before the Mayan era]. Everything which the Mayans built, did or even grown was used in a stunning way.

Architecture

The architecture produced by the Mayas is easily recognisable as one of the most historic pieces of architecture and now these days we even have architecture still being built which have been inspired by the Mayas. Architecture produced by the Mayas have big history during the thermal Pre-Classic period. We all know the impact they have made to the period was quite advanced during the Mayan period. This is one big thing the Mayans are known for and going down in history the Mayas architecture has been one of the most iconic and advanced architecture in history.

Structures include: Ceremonial platforms [normally less then four metre]; courtyards, palaces, temple pyramids and ball courts [mostly used to play a game called pok a tok which the Mayas made].

Art

Mayan art started in 500 BCE to 200 CE and people carried it on until the 16th century. Some still include weaving and design of houses. It was so popular and loved it extended to another Post-Classic period phase [which applies to some Pre-Columbian culture].

Maya art includes stone sculptures [a part of Maya art]: stelas [bulky pieces of stone carved with carvings and inscriptions]; lintels [doorways or jambs]; altars[usually

with animal sculpture]; monumental stairs and thrones.

Maths

Mayan maths are the a bit the same as our maths but has slight differences such: represented differently [for example one equals a dot and five equals a line a bit equivalent to tally charts and all you need then is to know your four operations and coding];numbers have different values then how we know it and represented in shapes. Some of this is a bit familiar with roman numerals.

Calendar

Mayan calendars are quite complex and rely on two cycles. A period would equal 52 years if one period was complete. The two cycles were called the Haab and the Tzolkin which have the same period but are both independent cycles themselves.If one period was over 52 years it relied on a system called the Long Count.Mayans also relied on the planet Venus for accurate timing of the day which also helped them with fights.

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