Posted on 01/31/2017 8:22:41 AM PST by BenLurkin
Used by the Maya for travel and transporting goods, the causeways were identified in the Mirador Basin, which lies in the far northern Petén region of Guatemala, within the largest tract of virgin tropical forest remaining in Central America.
Also known as the Kan Kingdom, El Mirador is considered the cradle of Mayan civilization. Prior to its abandonment in 150 A.D., it was the largest city-state in the world both in size — 833 square miles — and population. It boasted the largest known pyramid in Central America, and was home to at least one million people.
Researchers have known about the presence of these roads since 1967, when British Mayanist Ian Graham published a map of Mirador showing causeways crossing the swamp regions. Now laser-based remote sensing has been used to map the area, providing new insights into the massive system of superhighways.
The Light Detection and Ranging tool, known as LiDAR, is capable of penetrating the thick jungle vegetation at a rate of 560,000 dots per second, producing detailed images that mimic a 3-D view of the scanned areas.
...
"These causeways are 130 feet wide, up to 20 feet high and in some cases they extend as far as 25 miles," Hansen said.
The first building of the causeway between Mirador and Tindall and Mirador and Nakbe dates to 600 and 400 B.C., while other causeways date from 300 BC to 100 A.D.
(Excerpt) Read more at seeker.com ...
Sing it James!
“Super highways coast to coast just easy to get anywhere
On the trans continental overload; just slide behind the wheel
How does it feel when there’s no destination that’s too far
And somewhere on the way you might find out who you are?
Living in Mayan Maya, eye to eye, station to station
Living in Mayan Maya, hand to hand across the nation
Living in Mayan Maya, got to have a celebration!
I live in Mayan Maya
I live in Mayan Maya”
Here’s to a new year learning of the past
and of the future!
“a rate of 560,000 dots per second”
How many parsecs is that?
Agree. What’s the difference between watching wild animals tear humans apart for entertainment in the Coliseum or a ritual sacrifice?
“Empire of the Summer Moon”
Have it on my shelf.
I've visited several Mayan sites and have done extensive reading about the culture. I've never run into any indication of cannibalism. Do you have any links, references or anything to back up your comment?
They were pretty heavily into human sacrifice, however.
So are we. There were probably about 2 million Mayans at the peak of their empire. Since 1973 we've torn to bits over 58 million babies in the womb here in the U.S. At least the Mayans believed they were appeasing their gods. We do it because we don't want the inconvenience of using cheap and easily available birth control.
We? You?
Not worth the effort...
Not me.
The Mayans were specialists in torture just for the sheer fun of it, more so than any other culture in Mexico.
I don’t want to get into a huge thing about this, but Central American culture was living in cities of a million people while Rome was a group of huts on a hill.
One doesn’t grow cities like that being stupid savages. It’s all relative to their times. Empires come and go. I guess people always think of “their” times as the best. Being able to look at one without shitting on the other is a skill that many people haven’t developed.
Small pox wiped out about 90% of the Americas population in the early 1500s. The civilization in North America was a shell of what had been.
I am not one of those who blames the Europeans....but the facts are pretty clear. We wiped them out and burned their knowledge. Just as the Mohammedans did in Egypt.
“...Be proud of whAr we are first so we can fight back...”
Boom. Love it.
One has but to watch a movie titled “Apocalypto” (Mel Gibson directed) to see how barbaric Mayan/Aztec/Toltec/whatever “culture” was.
“Just as the Mohammedans did in Egypt.”
Horseshit. There is a world of difference between the accidental spread of disease by people who don’t even know about germs, and deliberate mass murder.
The more you post, the more you look like a leftwad troll.
I was talking about how the Spaniards destroyed all of the Mexican records.
You realize Cortez did that right?
The more you post the more your ignorance is on display to the world.
I was talking about how the Spaniards destroyed all of the Mexican records.
You realize Cortez did that right?
The more you post the more your ignorance is on display to the world.
“I was talking about how the Spaniards destroyed all of the Mexican records.”
Here are your words: “We wiped them out and burned their knowledge.”
Are you claiming that “wiped them out” is another way of saying “destroyed their records?”
And while I’m at it, are you claiming to be a sixteenth century Spanish conquistador? Otherwise, who is this “we” you’re blathering about?
The Spanish stopped a murderous death cult. They should be proud at eradicating the Aztecs as a culture as much as possible.
They were the Nazis of that era.
Yes. I am sure the people of Mexico felt liberated.
You guys make me laugh with your Euro-centric mindset.
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