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2nd out of 73 books
—
20 voters
Breaking the Maya Code
Among the more exciting advances to be described are: the discovery of the specific Maya language and sophisticated grammar used by the ancient scribes on stone monuments and painted vases; archaeological explorations of tombs and buildings of the ancient founders of the great city of Copan, whose very existence had been predicted by epigraphers through glyphic d...more
Paperback, 304 pages
Published
October 1st 1999
by Thames & Hudson
(first published 1992)
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This is a fascinating, if at times frustrating, history about the study and eventual decipherment of most of the ancient Maya writing system. This isn't a negative review, but it is one that complains about some drawbacks to an otherwise informative and entertaining book.
Coe is the best and worst person to write this book: best because he is one of the experts in the field, and worst for the very same reason. The story is extremely interesting but he gets in the way too often to supply personal...more
Coe is the best and worst person to write this book: best because he is one of the experts in the field, and worst for the very same reason. The story is extremely interesting but he gets in the way too often to supply personal...more
This book is great. The Mayan glyphs are so mysterious, so artistic. The author walks through the history of the attempts to decipher Mayan glyphs, spanning 150 years. It is a no holds barred, in your face primer on the basics of written language, yet not so technical that you lose interest. The storyline is interesting as Michael Coe introduces the reader to the great minds (and not so great minds) and their contributions to the decipherment. All along the way, the ancient Maya are brought to l...more
Jan 21, 2011
Erik Graff
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
amateur Mayologists
Recommended to Erik by:
no one
Shelves:
history
Although reluctant to be a first world tourist in a third world area, my wife Linda eventually got me to go down to Quintana Roo in the NE Yucatan with her. Ultimately, I made three trips, all of them to the area midway between Cancun and Belize, preparing for them each time by reading up on the region and its original inhabitants, the Maya.
While Linda preferred the beach, I preferred exploring the ruins which are abundant in the area. To do so I befriended the locals, the descendants of the May...more
While Linda preferred the beach, I preferred exploring the ruins which are abundant in the area. To do so I befriended the locals, the descendants of the May...more
May 20, 2008
Scott
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
anyone considering a graduate program in the humanities
Breaking the Maya Code is not so much about deciphering the Mayan script as it is about the adventurers, divines, scholars, librarians, insurance salesmen, and students who contributed to -- and often befuddled -- our understanding of Mayan epigraphy for over four centuries.
Before actually discussing how the Mayan code has been recently deciphered, Coe indulges himself in nearly two-hundred pages of scholarly anecdotes, brief biography, and sometimes curious, though often pointless trivia as he...more
Before actually discussing how the Mayan code has been recently deciphered, Coe indulges himself in nearly two-hundred pages of scholarly anecdotes, brief biography, and sometimes curious, though often pointless trivia as he...more
Though this book was quite scholarly and focused a good deal on the different things that make up any language, I was fascinated by it. I have always been fascinated by the Maya, and I was shocked to learn about the difficulties that arose in deciphering their language. No significant progress was made in the deciphering until the '70s. I recommend this book to anyone with an interest in language or Maya history.
Fascinating read touching on epigraphy, culture, the clash of civilizations, intellectual orthodoxy and the loss of previously held knowledge. Still one of my favorites even if I didn't agree with much that Dr. Coe thought.
The author refused to read the Book of Mormon. It must be nice to be such an authority that you can shrug off the "most correct book".
One of the great books that has increased my understanding of one of the worlds greatest civilizations
A riveting account of the effort to discover how to read Maya glyphs.
Aug 12, 2007
Dave
rated it
2 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
curmudgeonly professors
Shelves:
nonfiction
I was really excited to read this book; as a linguistics dork this sounded great. The pseudo-anthropologist in me felt his heart go pitter-pat. But the book itself is so incredibly tedious in tone that I quickly lost enthusiasm. Praise for certain academics and descriptions of their quirks as people; crotchety indictments of others, along with descriptions of their quirks as people. Shut up and tell me about the role of phonetics in the deciphering of the script already! Sheesh.
If you can get past the textbook quality of the first layer of this book, the insides reveal a splendid morsel of detective novel about the decoding of the ancient Mayan civilization texts carved in stone. As with most great scientific discoveries, this book raises more questions about who we are as a race and how completely separate cultures developed written scripts at approximately the same time in our evolutionary development.
Very interesting view of process of deciphering ancient writing systems and the politics of scholarship. It was sometimes hard to keep all the parties straight in my mind. But it was well written, and there was even a mild sense of suspense. Well worth reading if you're interested in language and writing, archaeology, or Mayan history.
well told story of ancient maya's resistance to modern attempts at deciphering its language. of note is academia's long prejudice and ignorance toward the discipline. coincidentally, a good primer for the lay linguist.
May 29, 2011
Neve Maslakovic
added it
A very interesting read about the varied characters who had a hand in aiding—or hindering!—the decipherment of the Mayan writing system.
Interesting book on Mayan hieroglyphs and and engaging account of the decipherment of Maya hieroglyphs.
difficult read, but good work on linguistics and archeology.
An amazing story.
May 18, 2013
Geoff LeGrand
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Michael D. Coe (born 1929) is an American archaeologist, anthropologist, epigrapher and author. Primarily known for his research in the field of pre-Columbian Mesoamerican studies (and in particular, for his work on the Maya civilization, where he is regarded as one of the foremost Mayanist scholars of the latter 20th century). Coe has also made extensive investigations across a variety of other a...more
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