The not so peaceful civilization: A review of Maya war

The first Maya encountered by Europeans in the early sixteenth century were exceedingly warlike, but by the 1940s the earlier Classic Maya (AD 250-100 0) were widely perceived as an inordinately peaceful civilization. Today, i n sharp contrast, conflict is seen as integral to Maya society throughout i ts history. This paper defines war, reviews the evidence for it in the Maya archaeological record, and shows how and why our ideas have changed so pro foundly. The main emphasis is on the Classic period, with patterns of ethno historically documented war serving as a baseline. Topics include the ethno historically documented war serving as a baseline. Topics include the cultu re history of conflict, strategy and tactics, the scope and range of operat ions, war and the political economy, and the intense status rivalry war of the eighth and ninth centuries AD that contributed to the collapse of Class ic civilization. Unresolved issues such as the motivations for war, its rit ual vs. territorial aims, and sociopolitical effects are discussed at lengt h.