Erst in den vergangenen Jahrzehnten haben Wissenschaftler die politische Geschichte der Maya und ihre Religion mit den oft blutigen Ritualen entschlüsselt. Nichts mehr von der angeblich friedlichen und beschaulichen Geschichte dieser Indianer hat Bestand. Im Mittelpunkt des Buches steht die politische und kulturelle Entwicklung der Maya und die Darstellung der Dynastien der bedeutenden Stadtstaaten von Tikal, Yaxchilán, Copán und Palenque anhand der bildlichen und hieroglyphenschriftlichen Quellen.
The author really knows what he is writing about and if you really want to know many little details about Maya culture, I recommend this book. Sometimes it was hard to get through because there were so many details and descriptions that I got easily bored. Still a good book to expand your knowledge of Maya.
I read this on the plane on my way to Mexico just to get in the mood for the trip and also to dust off some knowledge of the Maya civilization, which I used to be fascinated with as a kid. Overall it is a good unpretentious introductory book on the subject, and it includes a list of suggested reading by topic for those who want to go more in-depth.