The Pyramid of Chichen-Itza

The Maya had the most precise calendar of the New World. They calculated the orbit of Venus around the Sun to precisely one day in six thousand years. They also knew the time it takes the Earth to orbit the Sun with the same precision--365.2421 days. The figure is more precise than the one in our Gregorian calendar--365.2424 days. In fact, the Maya had two calendars which they used simultaneously. The "Haab Calendar," which had 365 days like ours. The "Tzolkin Calendar," which had only 260 days. Both calendars ended after 18,980 days or 52 years. Every 52 years, a new calendar cycle began. A third cycle, known in archaeology as the "long count," marks the beginning of the Mayan era. On our calendar, that date would be on August 11, 3114 BC. But the Maya did not exist back then! So why the precision of the date? What took place on that date? What happened that was important enough to make it the beginning of the Mayan calendar?

"Mysteries of the World" will construct a miniature Maya pyramid modelled after the one at Chichen-Itza. Parts of it will be accessible to the public. A curved track will run over the pyramid with an artificial Sun (a fadeable spotlight). The angle of the rays will be adjusted in such a way that they will cast shadows directly on the steps of the pyramid. The interchange of light and shadow will slowly move down the steps just the way it does each year at the original site at sundown on March 21.

Hunched over, visitors will enter an auditorium inside the pyramid. In the dim of the room, young Mayans will extend greetings from the walls. On the screen, a Maya priest will explain to the amazed onlookers that Mayan scientific manuscripts existed once. Examples will be shown on the screen. Then the priest will deliver a simple lecture about the Mayan system of counting and the various uses of their calendar which were closely related (computer animation).

What purpose did the 260-day "Tzolkin Calendar" have? It was useless for the seasons on Earth. The computer animation will bring the planets of our solar system into view and a hypothetical planet will then be overlaid between Mars and Jupiter which orbited the Sun every 5.2 years (1,898 days). The Maya cycle.

In the foyer of the pyramid puzzling Mayan sculptures, so-called "anthropomorphic monsters" will be on display either as replicas or as holograms. In one corner, the "Voladores" will float from the ceiling to the floor. (Four Mayan men who come to Earth suspended head first from a rope. )