2012 Maya Calendar Prediction Inspires Bracelet

From FashionWorld:  2012 Maya Calendar Prediction Inspires Bracelet

gy Muse, Jewelry, Accessories


Los Angeles based jewelry company, Energy Muse, announced the launch of Maya, a bracelet that reflects the 2012 Maya calendar prediction. The release of this piece is in timely occurrence with the end of the Mayan calendar scheduled for the end of this year, December 21, 2012. While some view this as the day the world will end, professional Mayan scholars and anthropologists reveal otherwise. Instead of an apocalypse, the Maya used their calendar to promote continuity and stability. Thus, 12/21/2012 marks merely the end of a cycle, where all of earth’s inhabitants are subject to undergo positive spiritual and physical transformations. With every end comes a new beginning, which is what 2012 symbolizes.
Energy Muse's Maya bracelet capitalizes on the energy and momentum of the Mayan calendar as it prepares for this next cycle beginning 12/22/2012. The next phase reflects a time where actions, thoughts, and words manifest more quickly than they have before. We are increasingly empowered to create the life we want based on our perceptions and attitudes, and a fresh start will compel these thoughts into actions and results.
The colorful beaded bracelet pattern of the piece reflects the increased spiritual interconnectedness that humans will experience upon embarking on this fresh cycle together. Hand woven by indigenous Mayan women in Guatemala, Energy Muse’s “Maya” is a direct reflection of the culture it wishes to embody. The stunning Turquoise at the end of the clasp will help expand the mind in order to fully shape an ideal perspective on life that will manifest into reality.
Customers can acquire this piece at:
http://www.energymuse.com/store/maya-bracelet.html
About Energy Muse:
Energy Muse is the leader in conscious wellness energy, providing tools of empowerment, inspiration and hope. The company, based in Southern California, was founded in 2000 by native Californians Heather Askinosie and Timmi Jandro, best girlfriends for over 35 years. Seeking to educate and reconnect the world to the ancient wisdom and healing properties of crystals, each piece of jewelry combines energy and intention which create a desired outcome. Energy Muse transcends what one might think of jewelry and has instead become a lifestyle of wearable energy. For more information about Energy Muse Jewelry visit http://www.energymuse.com

Mayan Calendar Discovery Confirms 2012 'End Date' : Discovery News

From  Discovery News:  Mayan Calendar Discovery Confirms 2012 'End Date'


An ancient Maya text has emerged from the jungles of Guatemala confirming the so-called "end date" of the Maya calendar, Dec. 21, 2012.
Considered one of the most significant hieroglyphic finds in decades, the 1,300-year-old inscription contains only the second known reference to the "end date," but does not predict doomsday.
"The text talks about ancient political history rather than prophecy," Marcello A. Canuto, director of Tulane University's Middle American Research Institute, said.

Carved on a stone staircase, the inscription was found at the ruins of La Corona, in the dense rainforest of northwestern Guatemala, by an international team of archaeologists led by Canuto and colleague Tomás Barrientos of the Universidad del Valle de Guatemala.

The archaeologists made the discovery as they decided to excavate in front of a building that had been heavily damaged nearly 40 years ago by looters looking for carved stones and tombs.
"We knew they found something important, but we also thought they might have missed something," Barrientos said.
Indeed, the archaeologists not only recovered 10 discarded hieroglyphic stones, but also something that the looters missed entirely -- an untouched step with a set of 12 exquisitely carved stones still in their original location.
Combined with the known looted blocks, the original staircase had a total of 264 hieroglyphs, making it one of the longest ancient Maya texts known, and the longest in Guatemala.
According to David Stuart, director of the Mesoamerica Center of the University of Texas at Austin, who deciphered the hieroglyphics, the stairway inscription recorded 200 years of La Corona's history.
 
Bearing 56 delicately carved hieroglyphs, the stone referring to the year 2012 commemorated a royal visit to La Corona (which the ancient Maya called Saknikte’) by the ruler Yuknoom Yich’aak K’ahk’ from the great Maya capital of Calakmul on Jan. 29, 696 A.D

Also known as Fire Claw or Jaguar Paw, Yuknoom Yich’aak K’ahk’ had suffered a military defeat the year before, during a war with Calakmul's longstanding rival Tikal (located in modern Peten, Guatemala).
"Scholars had assumed that the Calakmul king died or was captured in this engagement, but this new extraordinary text from La Corona tells us otherwise," said Stuart.
In the wake of the defeat, the Maya ruler visited La Corona and perhaps other trusted allies to allay their fears after his defeat.
According to the archaeologists, the 2012 reference would have been a political move by the Calakmul king, who wanted to reassure the peoples of La Corona after the stunning defeat.
 
The key to understanding the reference to 2012 is a unique title that the king gave himself, said the archaeologists.
In the text, he calls himself the "13 K’atun lord" -- the king who presided over and celebrated an important Mayan calendar ending, 13 K’atun calendar cycle, in the year 692.
In order to vaunt himself even further and place his reign into an eternal setting, the Maya king connected himself forward in time to when the next higher period of the Maya calendar would reach the same 13 number -- December 21, 2012.

"This was a time of great political turmoil in the Maya region and this king felt compelled to allude to a larger cycle of time that happens to end in 2012," Stuart said.
The discovery is consistent with the only other reference to the 2012 date in ancient Maya inscriptions -- Monument 6 from Tortuguero, Mexico.
"What this text shows us is that in times of crisis, the ancient Maya used their calendar to promote continuity and stability rather than predict apocalypse," Canuto said.

 

Top 10 less-crowded Mayan ruins and sites

From Reuters:  Top 10 less-crowded Mayan ruins and sites


(Reuters) - Heard about the end of the world in December 2012 as predicted by the Mayans?
The members and editors of online travel consultants VirtualTourist (www.virtualtourist.com) have compiled a list of the "Top Ten Less Crowded Mayan Ruins and Sites" to help you explore the Mayan culture, but keep you off the heavily beaten path to Chichen Itza and Tikal before the impending doom. Reuters has not endorsed this list:
1. Calakmul, Campeche, Mexico
One of the most important cities of Mayan civilization, Calakmul was once home to more than 50,000 inhabitants. Though the city's timeline goes as far back as the Preclassic period (300 B.C. to 240 A.D.), its golden age was in the Classic period (250 A.D. to 900 A.D.), when it served as Tikal's main rival and battled for dominance of the central Mayan area. Many visitors might focus on the 6,000 structures within the city, but it's equally important to experience the surrounding Calakmul Biosphere Reserve, which encompasses over 723,000 hectares (292,594 acres) of protected land and wildlife. While the reserve is a paradise for bird watching, the site itself is a hotbed of stelae, or stone monuments, often in the form of a high-relief sculpture, that were popular and characteristic of the Mayan civilization. 117 stelae have been discovered at Calakmul so far, more than any other Mayan site, and all of them from the Classic period.
2. Clenque, Chiapas, Mexico
Palenque was the most important city of the low western lands during the late Classic period, reaching its peak between 600 and 800 A.D. Along with Tikal and Calakmul, it was one of the most powerful Classic Mayan cities, as well as the seat of the distinguished Pakal dynasty. Much of the architecture (tilted facades on the buildings, stucco-sections) is unique and uncharacteristic of the time period; it has become a real hot spot for archaeological research interested in architecture and written language. One of the most notable aspects of Palenque is Temple XIII, where the Tomb of the Red Queen was found in 1994. This tomb is significant because it shares the same platform as the Temple of the Inscriptions, suggesting nobility; the remains found are referred to as "the Red Queen" because the tomb was entirely covered in red cinnabar.
3. Yaxchilán, Chiapas, Mexico
Located on the Usumacinta River, Yaxchilán is a great example of the Usumacinta style that dominated the Classic Mayan of the Low Lands from 250 - 900 A.D., with architecture adorned in epigraphic inscriptions and extensive relief sculpture. The city was allied with Tikal, and had a major battle with Palenque, which seems ironic according to a modern map since Palenque is in both the same state and nation as Yaxchilán and Tikal is across the border in Guatemala. The city exhibits strategic planning ,as it was built on a peninsula formed by a bend in the Usumacinta River. Even today, Yaxchilán can only be accessed by lancha (small boat) up the river.
4. Campeche's Edzná, Mexico
Despite being one of the most significant Mayan ruins, Edzná receives fewer visitors in a year than Chichen Itza does in a day. The city's architecture reflects an amalgamation of differing cities and influences, including roof styles and corbelled arches from Palenque and giant stone masks of the Peten style found in Tikal. Founded around 400 B.C., the city reached its peak during the late Classic period, with a gradual decline beginning around 1000 and its abandonment in 1450.
5. Ek Balam, Mexico
Ek Balam, which means "black jaguar" in the Yucatec Maya language, is one of the few Mayan settlements that remained occupied until the arrival of the Spaniards. While not the hardest site to get to (it's in the Yucatan), it is under active restoration, so visitors can get a great overview of the entire archaeological process. One unique aspect of this site is the 100-foot El Torre (or Acropolis) pyramid, which easily surpasses Chichen Itza's El Castillo; visitors can still scale El Torre today. Once climbers reach the top, they can see both Chichen Itza and Coba in the distance!
6. Quirigua, Guatemala
Quirigua (pronounced Kiri-gua) is a relatively small site, almost directly across the border from Honduras' Copan. Strategically located on the Montagua River trade route, which was important for the transport of jade and obsidian, it was also originally a vassal of Copan. However, Quirigua rebelled and defeated Copan, then allied itself with Calakmul, after which it erected elaborate stone monuments in a style similar to that of Copan. In fact, one of the monuments at Quirigua, known as "Stele E," is the largest known quarried stone in the Maya world, standing 35 ft (10.6 m) tall and depicting a Mayan lord over three times life size.
7. El Mirador, Guatemala
Deep in Guatemala's Petén jungle, El Mirador hides under 2,000 years' worth of jungle overgrowth. Though the well-known Classical Maya ruins in Tikal National Park are frequently visited, the largest Preclassic Mayan city is much more difficult to access. El Mirador is actually over twice the size of Tikal, with over 80,000 people residing at the site from 300 B.C. to 150 A.D. The grandeur and size of the site suggest that there were already complex state societies in the Late Preclassic period, contrary to the popular thought that the Preclassic period was a formative period. El Mirador is only accessibly by foot, horse, mule, or helicopter, lying over 60km from the nearest road.
8. Lamanai, Orange Walk, Belize
Lamanai, the Mayan word for "submerged crocodile," was aptly named. Not only do crocodiles appear in the site's effigies and decorations, but you are likely to see crocodiles while trying to get there. In order to reach the site, you must take a small boat up the winding New River through the tropical rainforest of central Belize. Lamanai was one of the longest continuously occupied cities, starting in 500 B.C. to 1675 A.D. or even later, probably due to its strategic location on the trade route of the New River. The most notable among this site's ruins is the Mask Temple at the northern end of the complex.
9. Caracol, Cayo District, Belize
Once you turn off the main road, it will take you over 2 hours by 4-wheel drive to arrive at Caracol, but VirtualTourist members promise it is worth the trip! Despite being located along the Guatemalan border and about 80 km (50 miles) from the nearest town of San Ignacio, there are 11 causeways into Caracol, signifying the importance of transportation routes throughout the site. Additionally, the excavation data collected in Caracol suggests that the social organization of the settlement included not only elites and specialists living in the urban centres with peasants living on the peripheral, but also a sizable "middle class." There is also evidence of artesian specialization, similar to the guilds found in the European Middle Ages, making this site a very unique find and of great anthropological significance.
10. Joya de Ceren, La Libertad Dept, El Salvador
Joya de Ceren is a Pre-Columbian site in El Salvador that preserves the daily life of the indigenous settlements prior to the Spanish conquest. Often referred to as the "Pompeii of the Americas," Joya de Ceren was buried under ashes of a violent volcanic eruption, therein preserving evidence of the lifestyle and activities of a Mesoamerican farming community around 6th century A.D. This site is unique in that it is still being excavated today, and since excavation was halted for much of the 1980's it is highly likely that middle-aged and older travellers have not had the opportunity to visit these ruins. Visiting Joya de Ceren can easily be combined with visiting San Andres, a nearby site whose findings suggest it had strong contacts with both Copan and Teotihuacan.

Discovered Mayan structures used to observe solstices

(A different take on the ballcourt report from yesterday:)

From USA Today:  Discovered Mayan structures used to observe solstices

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexican archaeologists say they have determined that the ancient Mayas built watchtower-style structures atop the ceremonial ball court at the temples of Chichen Itza to observe the equinoxes and solstices, and they said Friday that the discovery adds to understanding of the many layers of ritual significance that the ball game had for the culture.
The structures sit atop the low walls of the court, where the Mayas played a game that consisted, as far as experts can tell, of knocking a heavy, latex ball with their elbows, knees or hips, through a stone ring set in the walls.
The bases of the structures — essentially, look-out boxes set atop the walls, each one with a small slit running through it —had been detected before, but archaeologist hadn't been sure what they were used for. Since the ball court was built around 864 A.D., the boxes and the stairs leading to them had crumbled.
The government's National Institute of Anthropology and History announced Thursday that the boxes had been 90-percent reconstructed, based on the stone footings that remained. Late last year and early this year, a team led by archaeologist Jose Huchim confirmed that the sun shone through the slit-like openings when the setting sun touches the horizon at the winter solstice.
The sun's rays also formed a diagonal pattern at the equinox in the slit-like openings, which are about tall enough to stand up in.
Huchim said he knew of no similar structures at other Mayan ball courts. "This is the place where we're finding this type of pasaje (structure)," Huchim said. He said a stone structure atop a ball court at the nearby ruin site of Uxmal appeared to have been used as a sort of spectators' stand for elite audiences.
Huchim said the slits may have been used to determine when ball matches were played, given that the ball itself, as it was knocked through the air by the players, may have been seen as imitating the sun's arc as it passed through the sky.
It may have also been used "like a calendar, to mark important periods for agriculture," like planting the core crop of corn.
Finally, Huchim noted that old descriptions of the ball courts sometimes depicted people atop the walls, and that they may have been acting as umpires in the game.
Huchim said Thursday that stairways to the structures are being restored so visitors can observe the phenomenon.
Boston University archaeologist Francisco Estrada-Belli, who was not involved in the project, said the solar sighting lines were part of "part of Maya architecture and cosmology."
"The fact that the sun rise can be observed behind a structure should be understood in that sense, as reverence to the sun or other star, not necessarily as an observatory in the technical sense," Estrada-Belli said. The orientation of the structures "emphasized the sacrality of the ritual space."

 

Mexico: Mayan ball court was celestial ‘marker'

From NewsOK.com: Mexico: Mayan ball court was celestial ‘marker' 

MEXICO CITY — Mexican archaeologists say they have determined that the ancient Mayas built watchtower-style structures atop the ceremonial ball court at the temples of Chichen Itza to observe the equinoxes and solstices, and they said Friday that the discovery adds to understanding of the many layers of ritual significance that the ball game had for the culture.


The structures sit atop the low walls of the court, where the Mayas played a game that consisted, as far as experts can tell, of knocking a heavy, latex ball with their elbows, knees or hips, through a stone ring set in the walls.

The bases of the structures — essentially, look-out boxes set atop the walls, each one with a small slit running through it —had been detected before, but archaeologist hadn't been sure what they were used for. Since the ball court was built around 864 A.D., the boxes and the stairs leading to them had crumbled.
The government's National Institute of Anthropology and History announced Thursday that the boxes had been 90-percent reconstructed, based on the stone footings that remained. Late last year and early this year, a team led by archaeologist Jose Huchim confirmed that the sun shone through the slit-like openings when the setting sun touches the horizon at the winter solstice.

The sun's rays also formed a diagonal pattern at the equinox in the slit-like openings, which are about tall enough to stand up in.

Huchim said he knew of no similar structures at other Mayan ball courts. “This is the place where we're finding this type of pasaje (structure),” Huchim said. He said a stone structure atop a ball court at the nearby ruin site of Uxmal appeared to have been used as a sort of spectators' stand for elite audiences.

Huchim said the slits may have been used to determine when ball matches were played, given that the ball itself, as it was knocked through the air by the players, may have been seen as imitating the sun's arc as it passed through the sky.

It may have also been used “like a calendar, to mark important periods for agriculture,” like planting the core crop of corn.

Finally, Huchim noted that old descriptions of the ball courts sometimes depicted people atop the walls, and that they may have been acting as umpires in the game.
Huchim said Thursday that stairways to the structures are being restored so visitors can observe the phenomenon.

Boston University archaeologist Francisco Estrada-Belli, who was not involved in the project, said the solar sighting lines were part of “part of Maya architecture and cosmology.”

“The fact that the sun rise can be observed behind a structure should be understood in that sense, as reverence to the sun or other star, not necessarily as an observatory in the technical sense,” Estrada-Belli said. The orientation of the structures “emphasized the sacrality of the ritual space.”

 

Don’t Forget Today’s Maya during 2012

From Yahoo News:  Don’t Forget Today’s Maya during 2012, Chaa Creek Says

It’s good news that the ancient Maya culture is getting more notice in the lead-up to the Winter Solstice of 2012, but it’s important that visitors to Belize and the Maya region don’t forget about today’s vibrant Maya culture, Chaa Creek’s resident anthropologist said today.

(PRWEB) October 02, 2012

It’s good news that the ancient Maya culture is getting more notice in the lead-up to the Winter Solstice of 2012, but it’s important that visitors to Belize and the Maya region don’t forget about today’s vibrant Maya culture, Chaa Creek’s resident anthropologist said today.

Joe Awe, who is Chaa Creek’s Mayanist at the eco resort’s Belize Natural History Centre, said he fears contemporary Maya culture is being overlooked as the spotlight is put on their ancestors during the 2012 Maya Winter Solstice celebrations taking part throughout the “Mundo Maya” or Maya world, as Belize and parts of Guatemala, Mexico, Honduras and El Salvador are known.

“It’s great that interest is building all over the world and so many people are finally discovering how incredibly rich and complex the ancient Maya culture was. Our guests at Chaa Creek are just amazed when they discover the beautiful Maya temples nearby and see how magnificent cities like Caracol, which had a population of some 180,000 people, were.

“People come back from our tours, whether to Caracol, Tikal, Xunantunich, the royal palace of Cahal Pech, the Maya sacred caves like Actun Tunichil Muknal, or even just walking around Chaa Creek’s 365 acre private rainforest reserve with a greater interest in Maya culture.

“And then when we tell them some 12% of Belize’s population is Maya, and they hear Mayan spoken among our staff, the interest grows and their experience gets richer. We encourage people to learn more about contemporary Maya life and meet today’s Maya. It can be a real eye-opener,” he said.
Owner Lucy Fleming said that members of the local Maya community have been an integral part of Chaa Creek since the days when it was a small family farm on the banks of the Macal River.
“Back when we were trying to get by as farmers, we learned so much from our neighbours, many of whom were of Maya descent. From organic farming to our earliest construction methods, with pole walls and thatch roofs all done in a traditional Maya style thousands of years old, we depended on local knowledge and skills, just as we do today,” she said.
The Lodge at Chaa Creek has a strong Maya cultural element with its Natural History Centre, Maya Medicinal Plant Trail, Maya Organic Farm and the over 70 Maya archaeological sites dotting the 365 acre property. A look at the eco resort’s 135 member staff shows an abundance of Maya surnames such as Tzib, Tun, Ku, Moh, Hob, Uck, Pech, Sac and other typical Maya titles.

Arcenio Itza, a celebrated Maya master stone carver is at work completing a large stela, a type of stone monument the Maya recorded their history upon, for the upcoming December 12 Maya Winter Solstice. The stela is carved with Mayan glyphs, one of the world’s oldest written language symbols.

“We’re hoping that as people discover more about this fascinating culture, they’ll take the time to learn about today’s Maya and their challenges, aspirations and contribution to society,” Mr Awe said, “As magnificent as the Mundo Maya’s temples and city-sites are, there’s even more to Maya culture just waiting to be discovered, and 2012 is the perfect time to do so.”

Larry Waight
The Lodge at Chaa Creek
8777098708

 

Gratis Hotel Rooms To Celebrate The End Of The Mayan Calendar

From Gradling:  Gratis Hotel Rooms To Celebrate The End Of The Mayan Calendar

It's the end of the world as we know it ... or at least the end of the Mayan Calendar. On December 21, 2012, the day the Mayan Calendar resets the date to "zero," Expedia has partnered with 11 Mayan area hotels to offer special $0 rates.

From the Grand Melia to the Intercontinental Presidente and Hyatt Regency in Cancun, some of these names are on the luxe side. The deals even extend to a few all-inclusives. We're sure the rates will go fast, so we'd suggest booking asap.

"The Mayan region has always been a fascinating destination, but interest is up this year for reasons that might be obvious. In fact, travel to this part of the world is up over 10% this year over last," said Joe Megibow, Vice President and General Manager, Expedia.com in a release.

Can't make it then? More than 100 hotels throughout Cancun, Cozumel, Riviera Maya, Merida, Guatemala, Belize and El Salvador are going to be around 40% off from today through March 2013 in celebration.