Mark Twain

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do ...
Explore. Dream. Discover." Mark Twain

Friday, December 21, 2012

Prepare - the end is near

... or so they say.

Who says?

The Mayans, of course.

When?

Why, today!  Sometime today!!

Oh wait!
  You don't believe in the prediction of the end of the world today?

My husband and I went with friends to a museum in Philadelphia last month to see the Mayan exhibit and find the answers to the question of ... 

Will the world end today?

Here is what we discovered.

The parking lot next to the museum had a speed limit of 7 1/2 miles per hour.  Not 8.  Not 6.
7 1/2 miles per hour, people!  Be sure you take note.  I bet it is radar enforced!!
We discovered that the city of Philadelphia has a sense of humor!

The Mayans were serious about their wall art.  Magnificent.
We discovered that the Mayans were very symbolic in their art and writings.  

The museum provided private listening devices to hear short
explanations of the various exhibits.
We discovered that their written language was picture writing - some of which can be seen on the statute on the left.

A good question.
We discovered that scholars have been studying the picture writing for a long time and believe they have translated the meaning of their writings.

Interesting!  And true.

We discovered that the idea of the end of the world did not begin or end with the Mayan culture.

"The Maya did not predict the end of the world in 2012 - we did."
We discovered that a lot of what we know rests heavily on our interpretation of the symbols.  We also discovered that this interpretation may not be a prediction.  Is it possible that we have just misunderstood what the Mayans were staying?


Here is a cartoon with another interpretation of the symbols.  I vote for this interpretation!

Anyway, we had a great time.

See you guys tomorrow!!  :-)


3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Now I get it...an ancient civilization with a sense of humour.

happyone said...

Well we're still here! : )

Love that 7 1/2 mile an hour sign!!

Linda said...

LOL, Love the cartoon! Sounds like an interesting exhibit!