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Page 9 of the Dresden Codex (from the 1880
Frstemann edition)
Maya codices
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Maya codices (singular codex) are folding books
stemming from the pre-Columbian Maya civilization, written
in Maya hieroglyphic script on Mesoamerican bark cloth,
made from the inner bark of certain trees, the main being
the wild fig tree or amate (Ficus glabrata). 'Paper' of this
sort, generally known by the Nahuatl word matl [amat

],
was named by the Mayas huun. The folding books are the
products of professional scribes working under the
patronage of deities such as the Tonsured Maize God and
the Howler Monkey Gods. The Maya developed their
huun-paper around the 5th century,
[1]
which is roughly the
same time that the codex became predominant over the
scroll in the Roman world. However, Maya paper was
more durable and a better writing surface than papyrus.
[2]
The codices have been named for the cities where they
eventually settled. The Dresden codex is generally
considered the most important of the few that survive.
Our knowledge of ancient Maya thought must
represent only a tiny fraction of the whole picture, for
of the thousands of books in which the full extent of
their learning and ritual was recorded, only four have
survived to modern times (as though all that posterity
knew of ourselves were to be based upon three
prayer books and Pilgrim's Progress).
Michael D. Coe
[3]
Contents
1 Background
2 Dresden Codex
2.1 Venus cycle
3 Madrid Codex
4 Paris Codex
5 Grolier Codex
6 Other Maya codices
7 Forgeries
8 See also
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9 Notes
10 References
11 External links
Background
There were a lot of books in existence at the time of the Spanish conquest of Yucatn in the 16th century, but they
were destroyed in bulk by the Conquistadors and priests soon after. In particular, all those in Yucatn were
ordered destroyed by Bishop Diego de Landa in July of 1562. De Landa wrote: "We found a large number of
books in these characters and, as they contained nothing in which were not to be seen as superstition and lies of the
devil, we burned them all, which they (the Maya) regretted to an amazing degree, and which caused them much
affliction." Such codices were primary written records of Maya civilization, together with the many inscriptions on
stone monuments and stelae that survived. However, their range of subject matter in all likelihood embraced more
topics than those recorded in stone and buildings, and was more like what is found on painted ceramics (the so-
called 'ceramic codex'). Alonso de Zorita wrote that in 1540 he saw numerous such books in the Guatemalan
highlands that ...recorded their history for more than eight hundred years back, and that were interpreted for me by
very ancient Indians. (Zorita 1963, 271-2). Fr. Bartolom de las Casas lamented that when found, such books
were destroyed: "These books were seen by our clergy, and even I saw part of those that were burned by the
monks, apparently because they thought [they] might harm the Indians in matters concerning religion, since at that
time they were at the beginning of their conversion." The last codices destroyed were those of Nojpetn, Guatemala
in 1697, the last city conquered in the Americas.
[4]
With their destruction, the opportunity for insight into some key
areas of Maya life has been greatly diminished.
There are only three codices whose authenticity is beyond doubt. These are:
The Madrid Codex, also known as the Tro-Cortesianus Codex (112 pages, 6.82 metres (22.4 feet));
The Dresden Codex also known as the Codex Dresdensis (74 pages, 3.56 metres (11.7 feet));
[5]
The Paris Codex, also known as the Peresianus Codex (22 pages, 1.45 metres (4.8 feet)).
The authenticity of the so-called Grolier Codex, also known as the Grolier Fragment, is disputed (see below).
Dresden Codex
The Dresden Codex (Codex Dresdensis) is held in the Schsische Landesbibliothek (SLUB), the state library in
Dresden, Germany. It is the most elaborate of the codices, and also a highly important specimen of Maya art. Many
sections are ritualistic (including so-called 'almanacs'), others are of an astrological nature (eclipses, the Venus
cycles). The codex is written on a long sheet of paper that is 'screen-folded' to make a book of 39 leaves, written
on both sides. It was probably written just before the Spanish conquest. Somehow it made its way to Europe and
was bought by the royal library of the court of Saxony in Dresden in 1739. The only exact replica, including the
huun, made by a German artist is displayed at the Museo Nacional de Arqueologa in Guatemala City, since
October, 2007.
Venus cycle
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Rain-bringing snakes, Madrid Codex
The Venus cycle was an important calendar for the Maya, and much information in regard to this is found in the
Dresden codex. The Maya courts employed skilled astrologers, who could calculate the Venus cycle with
extraordinary accuracy. There are six pages in the Dresden Codex devoted to the accurate calculation of the
location of Venus. The Maya were able to achieve such accuracy by careful observation over many centuries. The
Venus cycle was especially important because the Maya believed it was associated with war and used it to divine
appropriate times (electional astrology) for coronations and war. Maya rulers planned for wars to begin when
Venus rose. The Maya may have also tracked the movements of other planets, including Mars, Mercury, and
Jupiter.
Madrid Codex
The Codex was discovered in Spain in the 1860s; it was divided into two
parts of differing sizes that were found in different locations.
[6]
The
Codex receives its alternate name of the Tro-Cortesianus Codex after
the two parts that were separately discovered.
[7]
Ownership of the
Troano Codex passed to the Museo Arqueolgico Nacional ("National
Archaeological Museum") in 1888.
[8]
The Museo Arqueolgico
Nacional acquired the Cortesianus Codex from a book-collector in
1872, who claimed to have recently purchased the codex in
Extremadura.
[9]
Extremadura is the province from which Francisco de
Montejo and many of his conquistadors came,
[6]
as did Hernn Corts,
the conqueror of Mexico.
[10]
It is therefore possible that one of these
conquistadors brought the codex back to Spain;
[6]
the director of the Museo Arqueolgico Nacional named the
Cortesianus Codex after Hernn Corts, supposing that he himself had brought the codex back.
[10]
The Madrid Codex is the longest of the surviving Maya codices.
[8]
The content of the Madrid Codex mainly
consists of almanacs and horoscopes that were used to help Maya priests in the performance of their ceremonies
and divinatory rituals. The codex also contains astronomical tables, although less than are found in the other two
generally accepted surviving Maya codices.
[6]
A close analysis of glyphic elements suggests that a number of
scribes were involved in its production, perhaps as many as eight or nine, who produced consecutive sections of the
manuscript; the scribes were likely to have been members of the priesthood.
[11]
Some scholars, such as Michael Coe and Justin Kerr,
[12]
have suggested that the Madrid Codex dates to after the
Spanish conquest but the evidence overwhelmingly favours a pre-conquest date for the document. It is likely that
the codex was produced in Yucatn.
[6]
J. Eric Thompson was of the opinion that the Madrid Codex came from
western Yucatn and dated to between 1250 and 1450 AD. Other scholars have expressed a differing opinion,
noting that the codex is similar in style to murals found at Chichen Itza, Mayapan and sites on the east coast such as
Santa Rita, Tancah and Tulum.
[13]
Two paper fragments incorporated into the front and last pages of the codex
contain Spanish writing, which led Thompson to suggest that a Spanish priest acquired the document at Tayasal in
Petn.
[14]
Paris Codex
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The Paris Codex (also or formerly the Codex Peresianus) contains prophecies for tuns and katuns (see Maya
Calendar), as well as a Maya zodiac, and is thus, in both respects, akin to the Books of Chilam Balam. The codex
first appeared in 1832 as an acquisition of France's Bibliothque Impriale (later the Bibliothque Nationale, or
National Library) in Paris. Three years later the first reproduction drawing of it was prepared for Lord
Kingsborough, by his Lombardian artist Agostino Aglio. The original drawing is now lost, but a copy survives
among some of Kingsborough's unpublished proof sheets, held in collection at the Newberry Library, Chicago.
[15]
Although occasionally referred to over the next quarter-century, its permanent "rediscovery" is attributed to the
French orientalist Len de Rosny, who in 1859 recovered the codex from a basket of old papers sequestered in a
chimney corner at the Bibliothque Nationale where it had lain discarded and apparently forgotten.
[16]
As a result, it
is in very poor condition. It was found wrapped in a paper with the word Prez written on it, possibly a reference
to the Jose Prez who had published two brief descriptions of the then-anonymous codex in 1859.
[17]
De Rosny
initially gave it the name Codex Peresianus ("Codex Prez") after its identifying wrapper, but in due course the
codex would be more generally known as the Paris Codex.
[17]
De Rosny published a facsimile edition of the codex
in 1864.
[18]
It remains in the possession of the Bibliothque Nationale.
Grolier Codex
While the three codices above were known to scholars since the 19th century, the Grolier Codex only surfaced in
the 1970s. The codex, said to have been found in a cave, is really a fragment of 11 pages. It is currently in a
museum in Mexico, but is not on display to the public (scanned photos of it are available on the web). Each page
shows a hero or god, facing to the left. At the top of each page is a number, and down the left of each page is what
appears to be a list of dates. The pages are much less detailed than in the other codices, and hardly provide any
information that is not already in the Dresden Codex. Mayanists continue to debate its authenticity (see below,
'Forgeries').
[19]
Other Maya codices
Given the rarity and importance of these books, rumors of finding new ones often develop interest. Archaeological
excavations of Maya sites have turned up a number of rectangular lumps of plaster and paint flakes, most
commonly in elite tombs. These lumps are the remains of codices where all the organic material has rotted away. A
few of the more coherent of these lumps have been preserved, with the slim hope that some technique to be
developed by future generations of archaeologists may be able to recover some information from these remains of
ancient pages. The oldest Maya codices known have been found by archaeologists as mortuary offerings with
burials in excavations in Uaxactun, Guaytn in San Agustn Acasaguastln, and Nebaj in El Quich, Guatemala, at
Altun Ha in Belize and at Copn in Honduras. The six examples of Maya books discovered in excavations date to
the Early Classic (Uaxactn and Altun Ha), Late Classic (Nebaj, Copn), and Early Postclassic (Guaytn) periods.
Unfortunately, all of them have degraded into unopenable masses or collections of very small flakes and bits of the
original texts. Thus it may never be possible to read them.
[20]
Forgeries
Since the start of the 20th century, forgeries of varying quality have been produced. Two elaborate early 20th-
century forged codices were in the collection of William Randolph Hearst. Although fake codices have seldom
fooled serious scholars, the so-called 'Grolier Codex' may be a major exception. Its paper seems to be ancient, and
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the influential Mayanist Michael D. Coe believed the artifact to be genuine; but other eminent Mayanists such as
J.E.S. Thompson,
[21]
Claude Baudez,
[22]
and Susan Milbrath
[23]
concluded that its pictures and glyphs are
falsifications. They pointed out a long series of inconsistencies and errors in the alleged codex, and drew attention to
its arthistorical improbability and its uselessness for astrological and divinatory purposes.
[24]
Although their
arguments were never effectively countered, no scholarly unanimity has been reached up to now (2014).
See also
Aztec codices
Mesoamerican Long Count calendar
Notes
References
1. ^ Burns (2004, p. 199).
2. ^ Wiedemann (2007),.
3. ^ Coe, Michael D. The Maya, London: Thames and Hudson, 4th ed., 1987, p. 161
4. ^ Maya writing (http://www.authenticmaya.com/maya_writing.htm)
5. ^ "O Cdice de Dresden" (http://www.wdl.org/pt/item/11621/). World Digital Library. 12001250. Retrieved
2013-08-21.
6. ^
a

b

c

d

e
Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 127.
7. ^ FAMSI.
8. ^
a

b
Noguez et al 2009, p. 20.
9. ^ Noguez et al 2009, pp. 2021.
10. ^
a

b
Noguez et al 2009, p.21.
11. ^ Ciudad et al 1999, pp. 877, 879.
12. ^ Miller 1999, p. 187.
13. ^ Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 129.
14. ^ Coe 1999, p. 200. Ciudad et al 1999, p. 880.
15. ^ See "The Paris Codex" (http://www.famsi.org/mayawriting/codices/paris.html), in Marhenke (2003),.
16. ^ Coe (1992, p.101), Sharer & Traxler (2006, p.127)
17. ^
a

b
Stuart (1992, p.20)
18. ^ Coe (1992, p.101)
19. ^ Vail, Gabrielle. 2006. Maya Codices. Annual Review of Anthropology. 35:497519
20. ^ Whiting 1998: 207208
21. ^ Thompson 1975: 1-9; 1976: 64-75
22. ^ Baudez 2002: 70-79, 98-102
23. ^ Milbrath 2002: 50-83
24. ^ For a succinct account, see Kelker & Bruhns 2010: 95-104
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BAUDEZ, CLAUDE (2002). "Venus y el Cdice Grolier". Arqueologa Mexicana 10 (55): 7079, 98102.
CIUDAD RUIZ, ANDRS; and ALFONSO LACADENA (1999). "El Cdice Tro-Cortesiano de Madrid en el contexto de la
tradicin escrita Maya" [The Tro-Cortesianus Codex of Madrid in the context of the Maya writing tradition]
(http://www.asociaciontikal.com/pdf/67.98%20-%20Andres%20y%20Alfonso.pdf) (PDF). In J.P. Laporte and
H.L. Escobedo. Simposio de Investigaciones Arqueolgicas en Guatemala, 1998 (Guatemala City, Guatemala:
Museo Nacional de Arqueologa y Etnologa): 876888. Retrieved 2012-07-23. (Spanish)
COE, MICHAEL D. (1992). Breaking the Maya Code. London: Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0-500-05061-9.
OCLC 26605966 (https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/26605966).
COE, MICHAEL D. (1999). The Maya. Ancient peoples and places series (6th edition, fully revised and expanded
ed.). London and New York: Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0-500-28066-5. OCLC 59432778
(https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/59432778).
FAMSI. "Maya Hieroglyphic Writing The Ancient Maya Codices: The Madrid Codex"
(http://www.famsi.org/mayawriting/codices/madrid.html). FAMSI (Foundation for the Advancement of
Mesoamerican Studies). Retrieved 2012-07-24.
KELKER, NANCY L.; with KAREN O. BRUHNS (2010). Faking Ancient Mesoamerica. Walnut Creek, California: Left
Coast Press. ISBN 978-1-59874-150-6.
MARHENKE, RANDA (2003). "The Ancient Maya Codices"
(http://www.famsi.org/mayawriting/codices/marhenke.html). Maya Hieroglyphic Writing. Mesoweb.
OCLC 53231537 (https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/53231537). Retrieved 2008-08-16.
MILBRATH, SUSAN (2002). "New Questions Concerning the Authenticity of the Grolier Codex". Latin American
Indian Literatures Journal 18 (1): 5083.
MILLER, MARY ELLEN (1999). Maya Art and Architecture. London and New York: Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0-500-
20327-X. OCLC 41659173 (https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/41659173).
NOGUEZ, XAVIER; MANUEL HERMANN LEJARAZU;MERIDETH PAXTON and HENRIQUE VELA (August 2009). "Cdices
Mayas" [Maya codices]. Arqueologa Mexicana: Cdices prehispnicos y coloniales tempranos Catlogo
(Editorial Races). Special Edition (31): 1023. (Spanish)
SHARER, ROBERT J.; with LOA P. TRAXLER (2006). The Ancient Maya (6th (fully revised) ed.). Stanford, CA:
Stanford University Press. ISBN 0-8047-4816-0. OCLC 28067148 (https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/28067148).
STUART, GEORGE E. (1992). "Quest for Decipherment:A Historical and Biographical Survey of Maya Hieroglyphic
Decipherment". In Elin C. Danien and Robert J. Sharer (eds.). New Theories on the Ancient Maya. University
Museum Monograph series, no. 77. Philadelphia: University Museum, University of Pennsylvania. pp. 164.
ISBN 0-924171-13-8. OCLC 25510312 (https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/25510312).
THOMPSON, J.E.S. (1975). "The Codex Grolier". Contributions of the University of California 27 (1): 19.
THOMPSON, J.E.S. (1976). "The Grolier Codex". The Book Collector 25 (1): 6475.
WIEDEMANN, HANS G.; with Klaus-Werner Brzezinka, Klaus Witke, and Ingolf Lamprecht (2007). "Thermal and
Raman-spectroscopic analysis of Maya Blue carrying artefacts, especially fragment IV of the Codex Huamantla".
Thermochimica Acta 456 (1): 5663. doi:10.1016/j.tca.2007.02.002
(http://dx.doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.tca.2007.02.002).
WHITING, THOMAS A. L. (1998). "The Maya Codices". In Peter Schmidt, Mercedes de la Garza, Enrique Nalda.
Maya. New York City: Rizzoli. ISBN 0847821293.
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External links
The Construction of the Codex In Classic- and Postclassic-Period Maya Civilization
(http://www.mathcs.duq.edu/~tobin/maya/) Maya Codex and Paper Making
Maya Codices (http://www.mayadiscovery.com/ing/history/codices.htm)
Complete Dresden codex as JPG (http://www.famsi.org/research/graz/dresdensis/thumbs_0.html),
Complete Dresden codex as PDF (WARNING: File size is very large. Downloads using a dial-up
connection are not recommended.) (http://www.famsi.org/mayawriting/codices/dresden.html)
Complete Madrid Codex as PDF (WARNING: File size is very large. Downloads using a dial-up
connection are not recommended.) (http://www.famsi.org/mayawriting/codices/madrid.html)
Complete Paris Codex as PDF (Moderate size PDF)
(http://www.famsi.org/mayawriting/codices/pdf/paris_love.pdf)
Complete Grolier Codex as JPG (http://www.mayavase.com/grol/grolier.html)
Codex and Maya Writing (http://www.authenticmaya.com/maya_writing.htm)
The Maya Codex and the Maya Astronomy (http://www.authenticmaya.com/maya_astronomy.htm)
Dresden Codex and the Mayan Calendar (http://mathdl.maa.org/convergence/1/?
pa=content&sa=viewDocument&nodeId=1459)
The Dresden Codex Lunar Series and Sidereal Astronomy
(http://jqjacobs.net/archaeology/maya_astronomy.html)
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Maya_codices&oldid=614950170"
Categories: Maya civilization Maya script Manuscripts Astrological texts Maya codices
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