As the Mayanist-in-residence here at the museum, I was asked to
write up a few thoughts on the dreaded date, December 21, 2012.
The Maya are very much en vogue these days as media outlets
across the country play out doomsday scenarios “as predicted by
the ancient Maya.” Apparently, according to a recent New York
Times article, Russians are frantically stock-piling dry goods
and duct tape as well as sculpting Maya pyramids out of ice. As
the local expert with my finger on the pulse of Maya
scholarship, I can reassure you that scholars around the world
agree: the sun will rise on December 22, 2012—which is good,
because The Ancient Maya World has only been on view for a
couple of weeks so far. But, in the spirit of full disclosure, I
am neither an epigrapher nor a calendrical expert (nor very good
at math); therefore, for a much more detailed explanation of the
complexities of Maya time-keeping, I refer you to Dr. David
Stuart’s blog. Mayanists suddenly find themselves in a rare
historical moment as a sought-af