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The ancient Mayans used the doorways and windows of their buildings to look at things in space. Venus, the morning star, was the patron planet of warfare.
We know from a historian that people would stop up their chimneys so that no light from Venus could enter their houses and cause harm.
The ancient Mayans used the doorways and windows of their buildings as astronomical sightings, especially for the planet Venus.
At Uxmal, all buildings are aligned in the same direction. Surprisingly, Mayans knew the motions of Venus with much accuracy.
Venus, the morning star, was the patron planet of warfare. Many offerings were made to Venus and the Sun.We
know from a historian that people would stop up their chimneys so that no light from Venus could enter their houses and cause harm.
Maya astronomers had a remarkably accurate knowledge of the
apparent motion of Venus. They knew on what day Venus would
appear again in the east after it had disappeared in the
west.
Moreover, they knew that every 2920 days (about eight years) Venus repeats its movements in relation to the sun. Mayans determined with great approximation the synodic period of Venus, which according to modern astronomers is 583.92 days. For the Mayans, it was 584 days!
The ancient Mayans used the doorways and windows of their buildings as astronomical sightings, especially of Venus. At Uxmal, for instance, all buildings are aligned in the same direction.
Mayans offered numerous human sacrifices to Venus and the Sun. Venus was the patron planet of warfare for the Mayans. That is why the dates of several battles are connected with a key position of Venus cycle.
From the historian Sahagun we know that when Venus (the
morning star) rose, people stopped up their chimneys so that
no harm from its light could get into their houses.
Last modified March 25, 1997 by the Windows Team
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