Woken by deciphering kiss

Written history in the Americas begins not in 1492, but in AD 156 with a 500-glyph inscription from the site of La Mojarra in Veracruz, Mexico. This early Mesoamerican text was recorded by speakers of a Mixe-Zoquean language. These neighbours to the west of the Maya were part of a tradition of literacy that can be traced to the central Peten region of Guatemala in the early centuries BC. Unfortunately, much of the early evidence of writing has been destroyed, either deliberately or as the result of erosion.

The historical inscriptions at the Maya site of Tikal begin with an account of the arrival of a founding ruler from Teotihuacan on January 16 AD 378. At the Maya site of Copan in Honduras, Altar Q records the arrival of a dynastic founder in AD 426. Scores of additional sites record the subsequent events, the births, accessions, deaths and parentage of rulers. Not since the work of J. E. S. Thompson, who died a quarter of a century ago, has a writer been so successful in weaving the vast scholarly studies of the ancient Maya into a coherent and readable account. The title of David Drew's The Lost Chronicles of the Maya King s is, however, slightly misleading. One might expect its sole focus to be on rediscovered historical records. In fact, the volume is much more than that, with less than half specifically about the hieroglyphic histories of the ancient Maya. It begins with the earliest archaeological evidence for humans in the Americas, discusses the script and culture of the Maya and concludes with their struggles against European colonisation and the cultural resurgence of the Maya people today.

I have had the pleasure of watching the dramatic unfolding of this rediscovered history since the 1970s. Drew does not exaggerate when he writes: "For Maya scholars... recent years have been ones of continuous and almost magical revelation." He attributes this largely to the "kiss of decipherment", which has freed from silence the words that artists inscribed on limestone monuments, jade, shell and bone ornaments, and painted on murals, pottery and bark-paper books.

The book begins with a brief geographic description and cultural summary. This is followed by vibrant accounts of the explorations of the earliest European and North American explorers, curious about the relationship between the archaeological ruins of the rainforest and the Maya people they encountered there. It includes a delightful description of the travels of John Lloyd Stephens and Frederick Catherwood, whose writings and illustrations brought the archaeological ruins to the attention of Europeans and North Americans.

In the chapter "Cracking the code", Drew describes the discovery of the true nature of the Mayan script and the decades of decipherment that resulted. By the end of the 19th century, scholars had established the meaning of most of the calendrical signs. When in 1959 Tatiana Proskouriakoff demonstrated the historical content of the monuments, many archaeologists had reached the conclusion that they contained no historical material at all. Today, understanding that the Mayan script is a mix of logographic and syllabic elements - word signs and phonetic signs - we realise that the non-calendrical texts explain the significance of the dates.

Only a few decades ago, the Maya civilisation was thought to have begun c . AD 300. This marked the beginning of what was called the Classic period, which lasted until AD 900. But recent investigations show that stone carving, hieroglyphic writing and some of the largest monumental building projects were well under way by the Late Preclassic period, calling into question the use of "Classic" to describe only the later period.

In a discussion of Mayan calendrical and astronomical knowledge, Drew describes the Maya's mythology and belief systems, and summarises what has been discovered about several methods of intensive agriculture. In addition to traditional slash/burn agriculture, raised fields were constructed in swamps and stone-walled agricultural terraces were created in hilly regions. These techniques, combined with sophisticated water-management practices, allowed for a population density of Classic Maya sites that is significantly larger than predicted for slash/burn farming areas.

The final chapter, "Conquest and survival", summarises the history of the Maya people from the arrival of the Spanish to the recent civil war in Guatemala and the cultural resurgence in Maya communities today. Drew dispels the illusion that Maya culture ended by acknowledging the growing number of contemporary Maya writers, scholars and political leaders. The Maya people of modern Mexico and Guatemala take pride in the accomplishments of their ancestors and share with readers of this book an intense interest in their ancient past.

Much of the material included in the book originates in highly technical reports, but it is presented as a coherent whole. The volume is remarkably up to date, a result of Drew's collaboration with scholars active in Maya studies. He acknowledges his debt to them for conversations and for access to yet unpublished data. Consequently, in some cases, both theories and data are not only current but ahead of professional publications. Such contributions include material on the early Peten supplied by Richard Hansen, evidence for inter-site relationships currently being compiled by Nikolai Grube and Simon Martin, Mary Miller's work on the Bonampak murals and data on Copan from projects directed by William Fash and Robert Sharer.The contributions to Maya studies by Ian Graham and Linda Schele are evident throughout.

Errors are minor. There is some inconsistency in the spellings of Mayan words, which undoubtedly reflects differences in the author's sources. In one figure, the Tonina emblem glyph is erroneously identified as being that from the site of Naranjo. That said, The Lost Chronicles of the Maya Kings presents a fascinating account of Maya culture that can be appreciated by all those who are curious about ancient civilisations. It is a valuable resource for archaeologists, historians, anthropologists and art historians.

Martha J. Macri is associate professor in Native American studies and anthropology, University of California, Davis, United States.