Guide to Ancient Maya Ruins

9780806119922

0806119926

Since the publication of the first edition of this work, it has become the standard guide for serious travelers to the great Maya sites of Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras. In this expanded and updated edition C. Bruce Hunter offers an introduction to the culture and history of the Maya, taking into account the most recent discoveries and theories about their origins, rise to greatness, and fall. He then takes the reader on a tour through their magnificent cities and ceremonial centers. Each site is presented in the light of current excavations and restorations and illuminated by stunning photographs and detailed site maps. Important centers that have recently become accessible by modern transportation have been added to this edition. Appended are helpful suggestions for reaching the sites, tours, weather and clothing tips, and a list of selected readings. The twenty-four sites included: Guatemala: El Baul, Iximche, Kaminaljuyu, Las Ilusiones, Mixco Viejo, Monte Alto, Quirigua, Seibal, Tikal, and Zaculeu. Honduras: Copan Mexico: Bonampak, Coba, Chichen Itza, Cozumel, Edzna, Kabah, Labna, Palenque, Sayil, Tulum, Uxmal, Xlapak, and Yaxchilan. Throughout the guide the author shares his wealth of experience over thirty years spent leading field-study trips for the American Museum of Natural History, and his special aesthetic vision of this most remarkable of the ancient civilizations of the Americas. Critics have called this guide "among the few books the curious traveler should take along to the field," and the thousands of copies sold attest to its enduring usefulness.