The Maya Gods of Time

Centuries before Hollywood, moving pictures existed in ancient Maya culture. Examining Maya art from a new perspective, The Maya Gods of Time reveals the dazzling equivalent of ancient cinematic clippings, showing how Maya animation portrays the motion of dance, the dressing of a king, the flight of birds and the dawning of the sun. In an act of cultural restoration, authors Jennifer and Alexander John resurrect a philosophy centred on time and the worship of creative destruction. Using art and artefacts from all periods and areas of Maya civilisation, they reinterpret ancient imagery to demonstrate the importance of the linked concepts of ‘three’, time and stone in Maya thought. Stunning original photographs and illustrations allow the reader to appreciate the full grandeur and complexity of Maya art, from the Palenque Cross Group tablets to the lost Santa Rita murals. Addressing the ‘unseen’ in Maya art, this book will not only transform the reader’s Maya experience and show ancient artefacts in an entirely new light, it also demonstrates the relevance of a forgotten belief system to the modern world.