The End of Time: The Maya Mystery of 2012

Title Page, Copyright Page

The end of Time Also by AnThony Aveni Ancient Astronomers Behind the Crystal Ball: Magic, Science and the Occult from Antiquity Through the New Age Between the Lines: The Mystery of the Giant Ground Drawings of Ancient Nasca, Peru The Book of the Year: A Brief History of Our Seasonal Holidays Conversing with the Planets: How Science and Myth Invented the Cosmos Empires of Time: Calendars, Clocks and Cultures The First Americans: Where They Came From and Who They Became Foundations of New World Cultural Astronomy The Madrid Codex: New Approaches to Understanding an Ancient Maya Manuscript (with G. Vail) Nasca: Eighth Wonder of the World Skywatchers: A Revised and Updated Version of Skywatchers of Ancient Mexico Stairways to the Stars: Skywatching in Three Great Ancient Cultures Uncommon Sense: Understanding Nature’s Truths Across Time and Culture U n i v e r s i T y P r e s s o f C o l o r A d o T h e m A y A m y s T e r y o f A n T h o n y A v e n i For Dylan © 2009 by Anthony Aveni Published by the University Press of Colorado 5589 Arapahoe Avenue, Suite 206C Boulder, Colorado 80303 All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America The University Press of Colorado is a proud member of the Association of American University Presses. The University Press of Colorado is a cooperative publishing enterprise supported, in part, by Adams State College, Colorado State University, Fort Lewis College, Mesa State College, Metropolitan State College of Denver, University of Colorado, University of Northern Colorado, and Western State College of Colorado. The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of the American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials. ANSI Z39.48-1992 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Aveni, Anthony F. The end of time : the Maya mystery of 2012 / Anthony Aveni. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-87081-961-2 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. End of the world (Astronomy) 2. Maya calendar. I. Title. QB638.8.A94 2009 001.9—dc22 2009023097 Design by Daniel Pratt 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 09 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 ...