Lost in the jungles of Honduras, the dilapidated mysterious city, now known as Copan, more than a thousand years ago was the focus of scientific thought and architectural achievements of the Mayan civilization. This city is a symbol of the "classical age" of the Maya. And it was at his excavations that the main myth about the Maya Indians as a peaceful people who did not shed other people's blood was debunked. It was here that blood-curdling "compromising materials" were found: remnants of mass sacrifices, terrible scenes of the execution of prisoners and a lot of sophisticated "devices" for both ritual bloodletting and torture and murder.
“… there are ruins of beautiful temples, proving that once there was a large city, about which it cannot be assumed that such primitive people as the natives were once able to build it … Before getting there, you stumble upon thick walls and a huge bird. On the bird's chest there is a square, the side of which is more than a quarter of the Spanish cubit and on which unknown letters are inscribed. If you come closer, you will find the figure of a large stone giant; the Indians say he was the keeper of the sanctuary … - this is how the Spanish chronicler of the 16th century Diego Garcia de Palacio described the ruins of this amazing city.
PARIS MAYA: FROM BIRTH TO DEATH
The chronological history of Copan is both simple and mysterious: people mastered the Copan River valley as early as 1100 BC. e. Fertile lands at that time provided a comfortable life, and the settlement was rapidly developing. But then, from about 300 BC. e., life here for some unknown reason suddenly stopped: construction stopped, the population left. Copan was empty for almost 500 years, and then again began to fill up with people. And the next 600 years became a "golden age" for the new-old Copan.
At this time, more than 12 thousand people lived here. Magnificent temples were built, hundreds of buildings were erected, including a complex of palaces known as the Acropolis, there were ball stadiums, squares with famous steles and very civilized roads. Canals were also built, stretching for several thousand kilometers, and a reservoir. In addition to the city center, there were 16 outskirts "microdistricts", one of which was removed by as much as 11 km. This blooming and expanding city, "Paris Maya", as it was dubbed by archaeologists, should have continued to bloom and develop, but …
In fact, scientists know the exact "date of death" of Copan - February 6, 822. This is the last date recorded in the history of the city. It was carved on a carved altar dedicated to the coronation of the next ruler of Copan. However, the pompous monument turned out to be unfinished, as evidenced by the unfinished relief. What happened to the carver and the ruler is unclear. But the fact remains - from that time on, Copan began to rapidly empty, and after the 9th century it became completely depopulated.
And by the end of the 10th century, the entire Mayan civilization disappeared from the face of the earth. But what caused this is one of the greatest mysteries of history.
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FIRST AND LAST
It is known that in the “golden” time Copan was ruled by one dynasty for 400 years - only 16 rulers. The founder of this dynasty is considered Yash-Kuk-Mo (Blue Quetzal-Parrot). According to the date carved on the altar, he came to power in 426 AD. e. Some of the researchers even call him "Copan George Washington" - he was so powerful and authoritative. It is not for nothing that all subsequent descendants considered it necessary to start from him the countdown of their royal line.
The most famous ruler of Copan is the Smoke Jaguar, who became famous as the Great Instigator, who ruled for 67 years, significantly expanding the territory of Copan and bringing the city to an unprecedented prosperity.
The last ruler was U-Sit-Tok, about whom it is only known that he took over the reign in that very “crisis” year 822, and whose altar was not finished. The end of the last ruler of Copan is shrouded in darkness.
BEAUTY PLUS RIDDLE
It is extremely difficult to list all the sights of Copan, there are so many of them and so they are destroyed and mixed with each other. The difficulty is also in the fact that for the Maya, each temple necessarily carried something new, and therefore among their temples there were no two alike. So, archaeologists call many fragments among themselves simply "OBI" - "God only knows."
Among the main architectural "symbols" of Copan, one can name the "staircase of hieroglyphs": its width is almost 10 meters, its height is 20 meters, the number of steps is 72, but most importantly, it is decorated with reliefs-hieroglyphs, whose number reaches a truly fantastic figure - two and a half thousands! And these are not just reliefs - this is an inscription, the longest of its kind, emerging from the mouth of the Serpent of All-Seeing, a symbol that signified the transition from the world of the living to the world of the dead and back. The inscription has not yet been fully deciphered, and what has been deciphered comes down to a warning that all the formidable rulers of the past may one day return to earth. No analogues to this giant stone code have been found yet.
A sensation was the accidental discovery of the most ancient temple of Copan, hidden … inside the pyramid. "Rosalila" - this is how archaeologists called it, for it was pink and purple in color. Scientists tried to understand what caused the Maya to place one temple in another, instead of simply destroying the earlier one, as was their custom.
Perhaps the reason lies in the fact that "Rosalila" is an ancient tomb. But who is buried in it is a mystery. Firstly, because the burial was reliably filled with mercury. Secondly, when archaeologists, donning protective suits (how to increase immunity), nevertheless got to the mysterious deceased, they turned out to be … a woman. It was literally strewn with tens of thousands of jade beads, pearls, ceramics and shells. In addition, her skull and bones were covered with red paint, and this could only mean that the priests (most likely they were) descended into the tomb several years after the burial and specially covered the decayed remains with red pigment, and then sealed the entrance and everything was filled with mercury. And thirdly, under the grave of a mysterious woman ("The Woman in Red", "Margarita" - these are the "nicknames"data of researchers) was discovered the richest burial of a man.
Who were these two, whose grave, after centuries, did not dare to destroy the descendants, but carefully hidden from the whole world? Archaeologists suggest that the important dead are the founder of the dynasty - the Blue Quetzal Parrot and his wife. But why, then, is there not a single corresponding inscription, and why is the ruler's wife given honors almost greater than the ruler himself? Her tomb is the richest Mayan female burial site ever found.
Where does all this come from?
Copan is considered almost the main scientific center of the Mayan civilization. A kind of "Alexandria" in the jungle of Honduras. Perhaps this is indeed the case. No wonder it was in Copan that the famous Mayan calendar was found, according to which the end of the world should come in 2012.
Archaeologists, on the other hand, are much more concerned with images for which there is no rational explanation. For example, one of the altar stones depicts priests-astronomers … in turbans, sitting in an oriental way and discussing the 260-day ritual calendar. Could there be a connection between the territories of modern Honduras and the East at that time?
Or - images of bearded people on steles. It has now been proven that Maya men have never worn beards in the past. Then - who are these mysterious bearded men, where did they come from and how did they deserve the honor of being depicted in stone?
Equally mysterious are the cogwheels carved in stone, altars decorated with glyphs with dates and suspiciously resembling a wheel with a hub located in the center. In some ways it even looks like a motorcycle. But it is known that the Maya did not know the wheels, and even more so they were not familiar with the motorcycle …
AND AZ FEE?
At Copan's excavations, scientists study the decline of the Mayan "golden age" and get lost in riddles, which caused the extinction of the city and the general disappearance of this amazing civilization.
Some see the reason in the aggressive actions of hostile tribes. Others defend the hypothesis of the depletion of natural resources, which led first to a crisis of power, and then to a social conflict.
But there are also such researchers who are sure that the ordered mass brutality of the Maya at some point got out of control and destroyed their entire world. The renowned American archaeologist Arthur Demarest believes that Maya society has reached a level of brutality that is difficult to imagine. He found evidence that the accumulated hostility in society and, as a result, the collapse of the social order led to an environmental disaster that ended the Mayan culture. The very method of warfare among the Maya radically changed, and a huge territory was plunged into chaos.
If you come closer, you will find the figure of a large stone giant; the Indians say he was the guardian of the sanctuary.
The end of the Mayan civilization in the light of modern research and the theory of Demarest was very accurately described by the prominent Mayanist David Freidel: “The supreme power fell, everything was shattered to smithereens. Anarchy began. The result of the war was general chaos …"