File:The American Museum journal (c1900-(1918)) (18133433446).jpg

Title: The American Museum journal
Identifier: americanmuseumjo14amer (find matches)
Year: c1900-(1918) (c190s)
Authors: American Museum of Natural History
Subjects: Natural history
Publisher: New York : American Museum of Natural History
Contributing Library: American Museum of Natural History Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Biodiversity Heritage Library

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CHAPTER OF ANCIENT AMERICAN IIISTJRV 29 hieroglyphs that probably tell the signi- ficance of these dates. A third line of research enables us however, to prove what dates are in all probability contem- poraneous with the monument on which they are found and what dates refer to the past or future. Progressive changes in style of sculpture and progressive adap- tation of superior mechanical devices in architecture enable us to arrange many works of art in their proper time sequence but do not, of course, enable us to express this time sequence in terms of years. Space does not permit a full explanation of this complicated subject which, however, the writer has elsewhere given in detail. Suffice it to say that by carefully coordinating the three lines of study just explained an outline of the course of Maya history is made pos- sible. The following names and limits have been suggested for the various periods: Protohistoric Period 235 B.C. to Archaic Period Great Period Transition Period League Period Nahua Period Modern Period 160 A.D. 455 A.D. 600 A.D. 960 A.D. 160 A.D. to 455 A.D. to 600 A.D. to 960 A.D. to 1195 A.D. 1195 A.D. to 1442 A.D. 1442 A.D. to ? Now let us see what place Chichen Itza occupies in this historical vista. Several of the chroni- cles relate that Chi- chen Itza was dis- covered during a residence of the Itza at Bacalar on the east coast of Yuca- tan. By the term "discovered" is probably meant that the cenotes which made habitation pos- sible were discov- ered. The settle- ment was made about 450 a.d. at a time when the south- ern cities, such as Copan and Tikal, were entering upon their most brilliant epoch. It seems certain, however, that Chichen Itza was only a mediocre provincial town at this time. Only one dated stone has been found and this is poorly- carved. The date upon it corresponds to 603 A.D. Shortly after this date Chichen Itza was abandoned and the Itza went to the land of Chanputun, near Campeche, where they stayed according to the chronicles, for two hun- dred and sixty years. Somewhere near the middle of the tenth century they made their way back to the north and reestablished Chichen Itza. x\t about the same time Uxmal and Mayapan were likewise founded and a league between the three was instituted. This League of Mayapan, as it is commonly called, en- dured for over two hundred years and controlled the destinies of northern Yucatan. Trouble between the allies broke out with the Plot of Hunac Ceel, the chief of Mayapan, and as a result the hereditary ruler of Chichen Itza, whose name was Chac Xib Chac, was driven out in 1176. A disastrous war lasting thirty-four years took place and the ruler of Mayapan seems to have en- listed seven warriors from the highlands of
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Serpent heads, death heads and other sculptured figures He scattered about in the brush, awaiting the careful study of the archaeologist and student of primitive art

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