(Re)writing (Hi)story ⋆ Dr. John M. Woodruff

Invited Panelist. The end of the Fifth Great Cycle in Maya cosmology (12-21-2012) is nebulous and poorly characterized. This is almost entirely the consequence of exclusive reliance upon the inadequate writings of epistemologically-conflicted Europeans.

MLA Citation

Woodruff, John M. “(Re)writing (Hi)story.” Debunking The Maya Myth: Reassessing The Doomsday Prophecy. Valdosta State University Arts and Sciences Lecture Series. 2 October 2012. Repub. as “(Re)writing (Hi)story.” https://www.johnwoodruff.com/?p=1960. Accessed 05 Sep 2025. Web.

Depiction of classic period Maya realm — (Re)writing (Hi)story: Slide 1

Old World Meets New World• 1502 – First Maya contact • 1508 – First coastal exploration • 1517 – First lowland exploration • 1524 – Commencement of conquest • 1527 – First attempted settlement • 1542 – First permanent settlement (Mérida) — (Re)writing (Hi)story: Slide 2.1

Old World Meets New World• Another prevalent misconception was that Maya possessed an abundance of books • In his memoir, Friar Diego de Landa recalled a particular event that he oversaw in 1562: — (Re)writing (Hi)story: Slide 2.3a

These people also used special characters or letters with which they recorded in their books their histories and knowledge, as well as figures, and particular signs in those figures explained it all, and lent it meaning and understanding. We found a great number of books containing such letters, and as they did not contain an iota in which there was not superstition and falsehoods of the devil, we burned them all, which dismayed and distressed them greatly." — (Re)writing (Hi)story: Slide 2.3b