History - Maya Civilizations: The Blood of Kings

The Mayan civilization had a very startling way of portraying the Mayans to us. They start off by showing how advanced their culture was and how the Mayan society was a utopia. Then in 1947, Giles Healy discovered the Mayan temple with pictures on the walls that depicted the Mayans as blood thirsty savages. This discovery radically changed the image of the already mysterious Mayan civilization. This drastic change in the Mayans was almost necessary to fully show how important uncovering the temple was. It was almost inconceivable for the public to accept this new, not-so-civilized Mayan culture that had astonished scholars, for being so brilliant for their time. Since there are only 4 books in existence left of the Mayan writing, it is hard for us to really know what went on during the flourishing time of 300 - 900 AD. Scholars speculate that the Mayans may have derived from the Greeks, Egyptians, or even the lost city of Atlantis. But what is more puzzling is not the rise of the Mayans, but the fall. According to the film they did not fall to famine or war, they merely deserted the cities. The great dynasties and achievements of the Mayans were built upon the faith of the people. The great mystery is what happened to them? Where did they get their knowledge?