A History of Maya Architecture and Advanced Astronomy: Decoding the Temples and Observatories of Mesoamerica

Astronomy was an avid hobby for the ancient Maya, who recorded and interpreted every aspect of the sky. As a result, many of their most important buildings were built with astronomy in mind, because they believed it was possible to read the will and actions of the gods in the stars, moon, and planets. The Maya studied the sun, moon, and planets, especially Venus.

At Xultun, Guatemala, Maya daykeepers published astronomical tables tracking the movements of celestial bodies in the early 9th century during the heyday of Maya astronomy. The tables are also found in the Dresden Codex, a bark-paper book written in the 15th century. Specialist astronomical observers corrected and maintained Maya calendars, which were largely based on ancient Mesoamerican calendars created at least as early as 1500 BCE. The Maya even structured their government in part based on astronomy tracking requirements.