![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
A lesson from the Maya
Oct. 9th, 2011 04:38 pmWe've been hearing too often about the Maya lately, mostly in relation to this famed 2012 apocalypse that is about to happen. Hehe. But I think the Maya might have a more interesting lesson to give to us, the presumably advanced modern humanity.
In the 9th century the Maya civilization suddenly disintegrated. For decades the historians and archaeologists have been trying to unravel the enigma about its mysterious demise. Now there's an intriguing theory about the reason: the political Balkanization of the region at the time.
Apparently the decline started suddenly and happened relatively quickly about 1200 years ago. The great temples went into disrepair, the palaces fell apart, people stopped writing hieroglyphs on the stone walls. In just a couple of centuries the Maya abandoned 90% of their cities.
Was it because they became victims of a natural disaster, or a civil war, or maybe a foreign invasion? The answers to these questions could explain how historic decline happens, therefore they're important for understanding what threatens modern societies.
( Read more )
In the 9th century the Maya civilization suddenly disintegrated. For decades the historians and archaeologists have been trying to unravel the enigma about its mysterious demise. Now there's an intriguing theory about the reason: the political Balkanization of the region at the time.
Apparently the decline started suddenly and happened relatively quickly about 1200 years ago. The great temples went into disrepair, the palaces fell apart, people stopped writing hieroglyphs on the stone walls. In just a couple of centuries the Maya abandoned 90% of their cities.
Was it because they became victims of a natural disaster, or a civil war, or maybe a foreign invasion? The answers to these questions could explain how historic decline happens, therefore they're important for understanding what threatens modern societies.
( Read more )
