Throughout history twins have exerted a strange fascination over people’s minds and imaginations. On the average one set of twins is born out of 80 pregnancies in different proportions, according to various hereditary factors. For example, certain women, in particular black women, have a strong tendency toward the birth of twins. Identical twins with the […]
Continue Reading“Classical” is one of those terms often bandied about with little or no comprehension of its original meaning. As a graduate of two Classics departments, the University of Saint Andrews, Scotland, and the University of Toronto, Canada, there is no doubt in my mind that the term refers primarily to Greek and Latin language and […]
Continue ReadingHow do we know what we know (or think we know) about the ancient civilizations of Mexico and Guatemala? A little knowledge can be a dangerous thing, especially when it comes to ancient Mexico. With a little knowledge and a vivid imagination, some popular writers on the subject even become rich and famous. The latest […]
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In writing of the Persian Wars, Herodotus, our earliest Greek historian of note, declared that his purpose in writing of the attempts by the Persian kings Darius and Xerxes to invade Greece was to ensure that the great deeds – whether of Greeks or barbarians – should not be forgotten in ages to come. He […]
Continue ReadingThe Yucatecan Books of Chilam Balam, which comprise the Chumayel, Tizimin, Mani and others, are notoriously difficult to translate and interpret because of archaic or obsolete words in the Mayan language, esoteric references – the meanings of which are now lost, and the sometimes unintelligible (to us at least) mixture of Spanish and Latin words scattered throughout the Mayan […]
Continue ReadingThe Books of Chilam Balam are indigenous Maya chronicles written in northern Yucatan during the century or so following the Spanish Conquest. The surviving texts we have are copies of the originals to which religious and historical material has probably been added. There are ten or twelve, some in a fragmentary state, others apparently complete. Among the […]
Continue ReadingOur main sources of information on pre-Hispanic religion in Mesoamerica include archaeological monuments and Classic murals, as well as Landa’s Relación and ethnological reports of surviving religious practices and beliefs among the Lacandon Maya of Chiapas and other descendants of the ancient civilizations of Mexico and Guatemala. Of particular importance are the four surviving codices from the […]
Continue ReadingOur main sources of information on pre-Hispanic religion in Mesoamerica include archaeological monuments and Classic murals, as well as Landa’s Relación and ethnological reports of surviving religious practices and beliefs among the Lacandon Maya of Chiapas and other descendants of the ancient civilizations of Mexico and Guatemala. Of particular importance are the four surviving codices from the […]
Continue ReadingThe Internet is an invaluable source of information but it can also be a source of misinformation and great confusion. Recently I was accused of “plagiarizing” some of my material from the Internet. Therefore I shall digress here for a moment to set the record straight. All writers expect criticism, hopefully of a constructive nature. […]
Continue ReadingWhen the Spaniards first arrived in Mexico, they were completely mystified by the religious practices of the Aztecs, Maya, and other indigenous peoples with whom they came in contact. Even the hardened Spanish soldiers were horrified by the Aztec practice of mass human sacrifice. The Spanish missionaries quickly went to work to root out and […]
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