The Maya Book That Predicted Venus
One of only four Maya books to survive the Spanish conquest contains tables predicting the movements of Venus across centuries, with remarkable accuracy.
What was reported
The Dresden Codex is a folding book of bark paper, painted by Maya scribes, probably in the Yucatán around Chichén Itzá. Spanish priests burned almost all Maya books; this one reached Europe and was bought for the royal library in Dresden in 1739.
Among its pages are tables tracking the appearances of Venus as morning and evening star over more than a century, and tables warning of eclipses. To the Maya, the first appearance of Venus at dawn was a dangerous moment, linked to war.
Explanations offered
The Venus table corrects itself to stay accurate to within about two hours over 481 years. The codex was damaged by water when Dresden was bombed in 1945, but it survives in the library there.
- When
- Written in the 1100s or 1200s
- Where
- Chichén Itzá, Yucatán, Mexico
- Witnesses
- Maya astronomer-priests
- Status
- Confirmed
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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