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Title:Apotheosis of Janaab' Pakal : Science, History, & Religion at Classic Maya Palenque
Author:Gerardo Aldana
ISBN:087081866X : 9780870818660
Illustrations:4 b/w photos, 33 illus, 2 maps
Format:Hardback
Size:155x230mm
Pages:230
Weight: .55 Kg.
Published:University Press of Colorado - June 2007
List Price: 36.99 Pounds Sterling
Availability:In Print
Subjects:ARCHAEOLOGY: History of specific groups eg ethnic,gender,social: Indigenous peoples: Mexico


Takes up anew the riddles within a number of Maya hieroglyphic inscriptions first recognised by Floyd Lounsbury. Gerardo Aldana unpacks these mathematical riddles using an approach grounded in a reading of the texts made possible by recent advances in decipherment. Using a history of science methodology, he expands upon (and sometimes questions) the foundational work of archaeoastronomers. Aldana follows three lines of investigation: a reading of the hieroglyphic inscriptions of the Classic period (ad250-900), mathematical analysis to recover Classic Maya astronomical practice, and a historiography of Maya astronomy. During troubled times in Palenque, Aldana contends, Kan Balam II devised a means to preserve the legitimacy of his ruling dynasty. He celebrated a re-creation of the city as a contemporary analogue of a mythical Creation on three levels: monumental construction for a public audience, artistic patronage for an elite audience, and a secret mathematical astronomical language only for rulers-elect. Discussing all of these efforts, Aldana focuses on the recovery of the secret language and its historical context.

Introduction; New Life at B'aakal; Recovering Maya Astronomy; Constructing Portals; Errors and Identities; The Public Face of Recreation; Recreation Through K'awiilian Astronomy; Zuyuathan: Secret Knowledge and the Maintenance of Power; Epilogue; Glossary; Index.