Discover the Mysteries: Top 8 Fascinating Fun Facts About the Mayans You Won't Believe!

1. Mayan Bedazzled Grills

Move over, Hollywood smile: the Mayans were rocking bedazzled grills way before the Kardashians! Back in the day, Mayans from various social classes showed off their pearly whites by embedding semiprecious stones directly into their teeth using a complex medicinal cement mixture, spreading dental dazzle throughout modern-day Guatemala, Belize, and Honduras.
Source => bigthink.com

2. Bloodletting Ceremonies

Who needs a paper cut when you can have a bloodletting ceremony? The Mayans sure knew how to make a statement with their own version of Sharp Objects: The Mayans practiced ritualized bloodletting by cutting or piercing body parts like the tongue and collecting the blood on bark paper. This was done mainly by ruling elites and religious figures, symbolizing renewal of divine energy and legitimizing their socio-political position – truly an extreme way to maintain order and express piety!
Source => en.wikipedia.org

Did you know the Mayan calendar didn't predict the apocalypse in 2012? Discover the truth behind this fascinating 5,126-year-long cycle and what it really meant for the ancient Mayan civilization. 📅🌀

=> Fun Facts about The-Mayan-Calendar

3. Pakal the Great, Not an Astronaut

Before we "Pakal" our bags and search for Mayan time travelers: Governor Pakal the Great, who ascended to the throne at the tender age of 12, was an extraordinary leader who ushered prosperity into the lives of his people, but evidence suggests he was not actually an astronaut, despite many wild theories surrounding his enigmatic tombstone.
Source => chichenitza.com

4. Misread Doomsday Calendar

You know how it feels when you're anticipating the end of the world, only to find out the calendar's been misread? Well, the Maya knew a thing or two about botched doomsday predictions: Contrary to popular belief, the Maya did not specify a particular apocalypse in their calendar. Instead, they believed in recurring 5,200-year cycles of creation and destruction, with the current cycle pegged to end in either 2011 or 2012 - but no doom in the fine print!
Source => historymuseum.ca

5. Canine Guides to the Afterlife

They say dog is man's best friend, but the Mayans took that to a whole new level: They buried dogs with the deceased, believing that their canine companions would guide the souls on their journey to the afterlife, often choosing the Xoloitzcuintli, a revered hairless dog, for the task while dedicating specific days of their calendar to these faithful guardians.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

6. Maya Intoxicating Rituals

"Move over, frat parties and Vegas casinos, the Maya civilization had intoxicating substances that would put any modern party to shame: In their spiritual and religious rituals, the Maya consumed hallucinogenic substances like tobacco, fermented drinks, morning glories, water lilies, and psychedelic mushrooms to communicate with divine powers, gain wisdom, manage pain from self-sacrifice, and practice divination."
Source => en.wikipedia.org

7. Sacrificial Ball Game

Talk about a ball buster: The Mayans played a game called "juego de pelota" where they used their hips, shoulders, knees, and elbows to maneuver an 8-pound ball made out of chicle, keeping their hands, feet, and heads off-limits, and the unlucky loser most likely ended up getting sacrificed as seen in Mayan engravings.
Source => absolute-adventure-mexico.com

8. Mayan King's Pimped Out Fashion

In a prehistoric episode of "Pimp My Ride," Mayan King Jasaw Chan K'awiil went all-out on his royal ensemble: He sported round ear bling, a jade chest piece, fancy kneelets, and souped-up sandals, all undoubtedly traded from afar, and even added quetzal feather accents for extra flair – a testament to his wealth, power, and high-fashion sense in the ancient world.
Source => khanacademy.org