Mayan Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Mayan Project - Essay Example Hence, symbols could represent either a word or a single syllable. This was a highly elaborate set of glyphs written by scribes who were members of the priesthood. The language was usually written in two blocks arranged in columns, and was read from top to bottom, from left to right. It was rich with words and phonetic rules, and only elite members of the community knew how to write (Beatriz n.d). The Mayan numerals were based on a base-twenty (vigecimal) numeral system, which were made up of three symbols: zero was represented by a shell shape, one by a dot and give by a bar. Numbers above 19 were written as a combination of these written in a descending vertical line. Three cells were written, the uppermost one represented the number of 400s in the number, the middle one represented the number of 20s in it and the lower one represented the 1s in it. In case a number was larger than that, a new row would be started. The Mayans would also rarely use face number glyphs, but this use was very uncommon and mostly appeared in monumental carving. The Mayans used addition and subtraction when needed, and there is also evidence that they were familiar with and used the concepts of infinity and fractions for various needs ("The Maya Mathematical" n.d; "Mayan Numerals" 2009). A Mayan stela (also called stele) was a stone or wooden slab that was very tall and quite wide. It was used mainly for funeral or commemorative purposes, and consisted of the name and titles of the deceased or living person for whom it was erected. It also included of lavish paintings, carvings and inscriptions depicting and describing that person. More often then not, revered rulers or hieroglyphic texts were inscribed to immortalize a unique feat or achievement during a rulers reigning period or simply his character and greatness. It was also used to remember important dates and occasions, something which proved to be