Literature, Music and Painting – The Mayan Civilization
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There are few examples of Maya literature as many Maya codices (books) were destroyed by time, humidity, or Spanish missionaries, and only four have survived: the Dresden Codex, the Tro-Cortesianus Codex, the Peresianus Codex, and the Grolier Codex, which are located respectively in Dresden, Germany; Madrid, Spain; Paris, France; and Mexico City, Mexico. The Books of Chilam Balam, the Popol Vuh, and the Annals of the Cakchiquels were written respectively in Yucatec Maya, Quiché, and Cakchiquel using the Latin alphabet introduced by the Spanish.
Literature
Thus, the «purity» of these books is under suspicion as the Spanish could have had direct or indirect influence, but in any case, they are Maya books, that is, from the Maya people who lived during the Spanish colonial period. In the case of the Popol Vuh, the discovery of a 1,500-year-old bas-relief on the Acropolis (a pyramid about 75 meters tall) in Toniná, Chiapas, could confirm the authenticity of the Popol Vuh.
The decoration shows four Maya dignitaries representing the lords of the underworld and warfare, agriculture, trade, and respect for divinity. Juan Yadeun, director of the excavations in Toniná, argues that in the Popol Vuh and other ancient texts, descriptions of these four dignitaries are very often found, representing the structure and iconography of power in the classic Maya world. There are some other Maya books from the conquest era, such as the Calkiní Codex.
Music
Maya music was based on two types of instruments: wind instruments (whistles, flutes, and conch shells) and percussion instruments (xylophones [both stone and wooden], turtle shells, and wooden sticks). The hollow wooden sticks have narrow interior passages that make the seeds inside them sound.
No music produced by string instruments (such as guitars) is known. Many wooden instruments that have disappeared over time and due to humidity are not known to us.
Painting
They practiced fresco painting and sometimes incorporated perspective (as seen in the paintings of Bonampak, Chiapas, in the scenes of martyred war prisoners), as most of the time they depicted characters in profile.
Small characters represented distant individuals, lower social status, or slaves. There were several layers of stucco with murals that did not necessarily repeat the same decoration. Positive or negative handprints also appear on the walls of buildings with unknown significance. Preferred colors include red and blue.
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