Expert on Maya to address end of days

Posted: Wednesday, October 13, 2010

A lecture on ancient Mayan prophesies will take place at noon Monday on the Oconee campus of Gainesville State College.

Edwin Barnhart will speak on "2012: The End of Days?" in the Student Resource Center.

Barnhart's message will delve into Mayan prophesies that predict an end of days coming in December 2012 and whether modern science is collecting evidence that an apocalypse is upon us and what spiritualists are saying. Barnhart, a renowned Mayan scholar, will separate fact from fiction in the free lecture that is open to the public.

According to a statement from GSC, it is true that the Mayan calendar comes to an important cyclical end on Dec. 21, 2012, and that Mayan sacred texts state that three previous world creations came to cataclysmic ends. The question remains: What did the ancient Mayans actually say about the future? The answer lies not in pseudoscience or messages from beyond, but in a better understanding of Mayan religion and hieroglyphic texts.

Barnhart, director of the Maya Exploration Center, has two decades of experience in Mesoamerica as an archaeologist, explorer and instructor. While working in Belize, Barnhart discovered the ancient city of Ma'ax Na (Monkey House), a major center of the Classic Maya Period. He mapped more than 600 structures at Ma'ax Na between 1995 and '97 before moving his research focus to Chiapas, Mexico.

He has documented more than 1,100 new structures at the site.

Barnhart, who received his doctorate from the University of Texas, is a fellow with the Explorer's Club.

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