Page 572 - Atlas of Creation Volume 2

Temple of the Warriors at Chichen Itza

The Mayans' Knowledge of Astronomy

Three books which have come down to us from the Mayans, known as the Maya Codices, contain im-
portant information concerning their lives and astronomical knowledge. Of the three—the Madrid Codex,
the Paris Codex and the Dresden Codex—the latter is the most important in terms of showing the depth of
the Mayan knowledge of astronomy. They possessed a very complex system of writing, of which only less

than 30% has been deciphered. Yet even this is enough to show the advanced level of science they attained.
For example, page 11 of the Dresden Codex contains information about the planet Venus. The Mayans
had calculated that the Venusian year lasted 583.92 days, and rounded it up to 584 days. In addition, they

produced drawings of the planet's cycle for thousands of years. Two other pages in the codex contain infor-
mation about Mars, four are about Jupiter and its satellites, and eight pages are devoted to the Moon,
Mercury and Saturn, setting out such complicated calculations as the orbits of these planets around the Sun,
their relationships with one another, and their relationships with the Earth.
So accurate was the Mayans' knowledge of astronomy that they were able to determine that one day

needed to be subtracted from the Venusian orbit every 6,000 years. How did they acquire such information?
That is still a matter of debate for astronomers, astro-physicists and archaeologists. Today, such complex cal-
culations are made with the help of computer technology. Scientists learn about outer space in observatories

equipped with all kinds of technical and electrical apparatus. Yet the Mayans acquired their
knowledge centuries before the invention of present-day technology. This yet again
invalidates the thesis that societies always progress from a primitive to a more ad-
vanced state. Many bygone societies had just as advanced a level of civilization
as current ones, and sometimes even more so. Many communities today have

not yet achieved the levels attained by societies in the past. In short, civiliza-
tions sometimes move forwards and at other times backwards, and both
advanced and primitive civilizations sometimes exist at the very same

time.

Astronomical knowledge that can calculate the one day that needs to be subtracted from the orbit of
Venus every 6,000 years is an important example of the advanced civilization of the past peoples.

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