Sayil: An Ancient Palace Deep in the Jungle
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- Опубликовано: 3 окт 2024
- Sayil (Zayi)
20.1781897° N, -89.6518401° W
Yucatec Maya
Likely first settled in the late classic period (600-900 CE), this site shows many of the elements of Puuc architecture and the cult of Kukulkan which were common in the Terminal Classic period (900-1000 CE). While most of Maya civilization was collapsing in the southern regions, Sayil briefly flourished in this time, before also collapsing itself. Remarkably, this site has barely changed at all since it was first described by John Lloyd Stephens in 1843.
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Still trying to convince my wife this is a better vacation then a beach resort.
Perfect way to start my day off with a new pyramid review!! Very fascinating and one of my favorites so far
So many analogues to classical western architecture. Beautiful rhythm and proportions. The coxcombs are radical! Great tour! I want to go.
I live in the Yucatan. You present it beautifully. Thanks.
Amazing! Never heard of it. Excellent work! Thank you!❤
Thank you for your time and effort !!!! Great film , and. Information. !!!!! Very interesting ! T. California
Isn't it amazing to realize that you are standing in exactly the same spot that Catherwood and Stevens once stood, while Catherwood was making the drawing that you are now looking at, in front of the building that he was drawing. Now that is touching deep history!
Exactly what I wanted to share with the viewer when I filmed this
@@pyramidreview8664 And you certainly succeeded with me (smile)
Having traveled in Mexico and central America and visited a few of the major sites; Tikal, Palanque, Monte Alban, Tonina, etc. back in 2006-7 I'm always interested to see some of the many sites that have been excavated since that trip. Some of the more recent additions to the archaeologist's tool kit, like LIDAR, have expanded our view and knowledge of the monumental civilizations that arose, flourished, and then declined, in the Americas, as cultures are wont to do.
The channel "World of Antiquity" with professor David Miano has a series of videos on Mezoamerican sites that I hadn't heard of (like Sayil) and watching his, and your, videos definitely makes me long to hit the road again and retrace our route and take in a whole new list of sites. We drove from Washington state to the Panama Canal and home. I'd likely opt for a plane and rental car, this time, however. I'll be looking for any other content you put up. Ciao!
Similarly, I enjoy using old maps and guidebooks and seeing what’s changed since then. There has been a lot of work done in the past few years coinciding with the new train that has been built in the Yucatán, and it looks like there will be new areas and museums open in sites like Dzibulchaltun and Uxmal, so it’s definitely a good time to visit. I have much more content to post, so stay tuned!
Really glad to see you back and creating new videos! 😎 Will catch up now! Cheers!👍
Nice superposition of the Catherwood drawing and the Maya structure itself.
Just came up in my recommendations. Great presentation. Subscribed.
Thanks Ray! Did you know that there used to be ancient mounds in Key West too? Although I don't think there is much left of them anymore...
I am Sooo excited to find you! Boots on the ground PLUS QUALITY RESEARCH! Thank you brother, can’t wait to dive into more explores with you! Much peace and love✌🏻
...mmm...you are either a hippie or a pot head...
Thanks for showing this site. I don't think I had seen the style before
I will show some more in this style soon, at Uxmal and Kabah
Wow...great job my friend...I'm an ancient site amateur investigator, and have been through some of the Yucatan and Beliez sites. NEVER heard of this place....Thank you
Fantastic. "Who builds in stone seeks to alter the structure of the universe."
Ok.From a retired stone mason.
We've been there. The structure just appears out of nowhere as you walk down the trail. There is a stela with a huge phallus. A lawn mower is kept in one of the ground floor rooms. Lots of bats inside.
Just discovered you, and your work is valiant, heroic, impressive . to go to these places, and deal with the heat, humidity, wasps, bats etc. Fascinating and intriguing to say the least. Question, was this entire area destroyed by the great asteroid impact, and floods? Thank you!
Thank you! Yes, much of the northern Yucatan is inside of the Chicxulub crater. It was underwater for a long time afterwards to it filled back up with coral and Limestone eventually and it isn't really visible now but the differences in the stone caused the Maya to prefer building settlements inside the area of the crater. I have a script for an episode about geology where I'll explain more about that.
smoked a jaunt there in 92
legend!
This guy he’s the guy ✌🏾👏🏿💨
😆😆🤣
Lol!
Phaha dats liitt ! ^^
In the "very large room" did you notice the square niche where the wall meets the inside of the vault. That used to hold a beam that stretched to the other side of the vault and helped to stop the walls from spreading, and acted as a curtain rod as well. This permitted regions of privacy and intimacy within the structure.
I did not notice it while I was there but I am familiar with these elements
@@pyramidreview8664 It is very hard to notice details when one is boiling inside one's own Panama hat. (Smile)
Look for the curtain loops at the top corners of the doors. This is a detail that always makes me feel as if the inhabitants lived there and only just moved out the day before.
Good job my friend im a new follower just now i now you made this video 7 months ago but it was priceless to me im from mexico and i didn't even know that this palace existed thank you brother
Thank you! I will have one about Palenque soon too.
Thx; I did that PUUC route last year incl. Sayil. As you mentioned; it doesn't get a lot of visitors; one of the main reasons to spend some time there. At their height, with a lot of agriculture keeping the jungle somewhat at bay, they must all have been connected by those Sac-bees.
Indeed, that whole region is one ruin after another and the Sacbes connect everything. Did you go to Xlapak or Labna? I will release some videos about Kabah and Uxmal soon but I didn’t visit those two.
@@pyramidreview8664 Went to 'all' of them. Didn't document as thoroughly as you do but it was fun (except for 'hunting for gas' in the jungle; poor planning). What they all have in common is that they're so 'understated'. Not flashy or glamorous, even their palaces look more like administrative centers. I also saw some archeologist digging/restoring inside one of the buildings and chatted with them for a while. I'll send you a few pix.
Amazing find.
Interesting!!! TY and God Bless!!!
Beautiful
I would love copies of those illustrations!
I like art so I think it's a good idea
It would be great
Visited in the early 90's, it's on the Puuc route w/ many other interesting structures in that area. think it means "place of the ants" in Maya. Best to stay at Uxmal, great hotel there (or there used to be) and go on in the morning.
That was awesome
will be going there soon thankyou for your insight...
I’m from Cancun, here there’s “El Meco” which are also interesting, “Ruinas del Rey” and some others too. Just in this trips in Yucatán never go alone, the wildlife is a bit dangerous and medical facilities are far! Is always a good practice among locals to visit all this places with more people or a guide!
@@RobertoAyalaFotografo I will be careful! My next episode is about Cancún. Unfortunately El Meco was closed when I visited, but I did see El Rey and San Miguelito. I should release it very soon.
Thank you so much for an awesome and informative video!
Great video ❤
Wow an amazing site. The next time i am in Merida i will search for a private tour.
Check out the Puuc Route, there are five sites all right next to each other. I managed to visit three in a day and was completely exhausted though
What a beautiful day you had to film in. This is such an interesting and important video. Thank you for bringing it to us ♡Do you think they thought the fertility goddess brought the babies? I've always wondered why a fertility goddess? Many civilizations created them. They were smart enough to make these fine dwellings.
I am glad you liked it I have dozens more to come!
Well about the fertility statue, in this region they had a lot of very male fertility imagery, and I will show more in later videos. It's thought by some that one of the reasons for the Maya collapse at the end of the classical era when many people disappeared, was that suddenly people were having fewer children. There are many sexualized statues and figures in that area. But there were also many Goddesses in mesoamerican religion, especially among the Aztec. I will mention that when I come to a video about them.
Great. Love from India ❤
love from the university of new mexico !!!
some people amd i stayed a couple times camping all-night at some of those ruins that are far away in YUCATAN i know that we shouldn't, but we did just camping because we though that it will be calm and silence but nope .
And i think is normal for all the people that lived there for hundreds of years ,at night we could hear people talking in maya and one of our friend knew maya so he could understand some of the conversation that i guess the souls of ancient mayan people still there,,we also could hear very clearly like people dancing and using the drums.,theres a lot metaphysical ectivity In those places at night
I would love to do that. I'm fascinated by the ruins of the America's. Everyone looks across to the old world but I have little to no interest in Europe. I guess in part because we know so little about the American civilizations that were on par with old world civilizations.
I’m sure you know of Mr. Edwin Barnhart. He has an email, I’m gonna send him a link to your videos. Super cool guy, and I think he will appreciate your research. I know I do. Thanks for sharing.
11:27 oh, my gosh man. I’m so impressed with your work. 12:00 unrecognizable it first this complicated multi faceted style of art just looks like rocks, but a migratory person could not carry around several different statues, so they put several different images on one stone. Yes sir, I don’t know if it was these people that made them or if they just used them , however, geologically speaking there’s no reason to have all these small hand size carry size stones. The only reason we know about it is because of the photo realistic portraits painted on the crystal packed in clay with wooden bows, teeth, charcoal, and precious stones not from the area in NC.
Beautiful :) thank you
Excelente video
Sayil is so big, and it is a Maya maze so a visitor can become quite lost, quite quickly on the pathways in the outback.
I recognize that you are a real mayanist scholar and now that I have your attention, please, please, watch the video I made at Edzna during the solar eclipse there! It was my masterpiece so far, taking months of planning and research and filming, and I would love to hear your commentary about it.
@@pyramidreview8664 It is very nice to meet you, and I truly enjoy traveling through the Meso American sites in your company. I find your commentary very enlightening. I will indeed join your for your tour of Edzna during the eclipse. What a wonderful place to observe the eclipse- truly a significant event for the Maya- the laymen, and the scholars! I will see you in Edzna soon (smile)
Youre livin the dream this is awesome. 😎
Many more videos to come, stay tuned
This is so interesting! It must be very cheap for an American tourist visiting there.
Indeed, it can be quite affordable in comparison to traveling in the US. I am planning on making a travel guide with practical details about how to visit this area.
Amazing and wondrous wow
Hi. Great video, one of my favourites. Interesting palace. Two thoughts: as far as I can remember, scientist never know for sure, what building they discever so they give it a name and a purpose, when in reality it could have been a storehouse not royal palace. Mayan monarchy could be a criminal cyndicate praying on weak peasants and controlling trading routs, and their main building could be the place they keep their stash...don't you think so? I mean it could be not a palace but something we can never imagine from our own prospective. And another thought: when was a secondary student we used to play a self-invented game with my cousin. In a notebook we would draw a Mayan city and its citizens and then enemies and play a conquest using just poker cards to determin who wins here and there in hand to hand combat. Those cities we draw from the books about Maya and they had only pyramids and palaces like this one. Plus maybe magnificent arch from Labna... But we struggled to find an image of a common town house or better some reach family home. Yep some descriptions from Diego De Landa about village home which has 5 walls or something. Chronicles about fall of Tenochtitlan mentioning some Aztec city homes....But Maya....are you sure they lived in cities? Pompei, a little town in Roman empire had few thousand inhabitants, but it has soooo many common buildings....where citizens of every level lived, ate, been entertained etc. Maya absolutely lacking that. Why? Thanks once again for your great job. I mean it.
The main problem is that most common buildings and houses were built out of wood. But wood doesn’t last long in the hot wet jungle climate, so there is little left of these, especially in the Classic era or older, which are more than a thousand years old. Even the stone buildings from this time are in rough shape. There was a large city called Mayapan in the Yucatán not long before the arrival of the Spanish, and because it is quite recent, more things have been preserved. Also new technology like LiDAR has allowed archeologists to things they couldn’t see before. In Mayapan, the center of the city is open to the public, but there are many square kilometers outside that which have also been studied. Here is a good video about that: ruclips.net/video/YCp-WqrwuXY/видео.html
As for Sayil, it has also been surveyed extensively, and there are buildings everywhere. 220 per square kilometer, over many kilometers. there would have been thousands of residents. That’s not a city by modern standards, and it was small for a Maya city, but it was pretty dense for its time.
In the early 20th century, archeologists thought that Maya cities were just ceremonial centers inhabited by only a few elite people or religious authorities, but this view has changed as more excavations have been done on the outskirts of cities, and focus has shifted towards trying to understand the life of common people, and not just the rulers.
Thanks for the interesting reply. Sayil shows density good for a countryside settlement not a city, Mayapan is the city where Maya had their last stand against Spanish, so it is actually a postcolumbian city. Everything archeologists found there including gated walls and dense household's layout can be a resullt of European influence, shared ideas totally alien for Maya themselves. Same like city built in North America by Tecumseh was an abomination for North American cultures. I understand that the study of that culture is 150 years old but still in the very beginning. So our knowledge of Maya might take a 180 degree turn one day and we will realise something totally new and unpredictable about them.
The amazing thing is that the roof comb is largely intact.
This one was very thick
Thanks for the trip to something seldom seen.
Cool stuff thank you ❤❤❤❤
It seems to cover a large area, and the buildings are like no other, they seem opulent. So this area must have been governed by wealthy mayans
It must take a lot of money and a monumental work to bring it back. But it is incredible, and a very important mayan society. The government may not have the funds nor the University of Anthropology to do anything about it. It is so sad and a grat loss. There are other ruins around the world as well, waiting to be restored...
Awesome
Looks like geopolymer was a worldwide technology.
Beautiful ❤❤❤❤
and watching these vids, when you go inside, I just try to imagine what it was like to live in them. certainly better that living in a grass hut, but it must have been still difficult with all the bugs and snakes.
I’m sure they knew how to deal with this with cultural roots thousands of years in the same environment. They did plaster stone walls as well and could seal up and clean up the spaces as needed. Smoke, ashes, lye, and fire come to mind as ways to reduce the unwanted pests in an area, plus myriad slaves or plebeians with brooms and sticks! Yet I wonder, like most cultures up to the 20th century, that they knew any ways to combat malaria.
@@pcatful yes, that's always a thought when is see these ancient empires. Malaria! one of mans most feared and deadly enemy.
Malaria wasn't a great concern because the worst types didn't arrive in America until transatlantic trade started happening, but there would have been other diseases to worry about for sure. It has been argued that the deformed figurines in another Maya site called Dzibilchaltun represented an epidemic of syphilis (I have a video about that site too). www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-19554-0
@@pyramidreview8664 wow, good point, I’m checking out the vid now
They say that one can tell a lot about another by taking the time to look at the books that they have in their library. You have an impressive small collection of books on the Maya, and on their language. These speak well for you.
While at Sayil, visit LabNah and Xlapak as well. Then visit Uxmal and Ox K'in Tok' on the way back to Merida. It will take you 2 to 3 days to do them all.
I just got back from Palenque, Yaxchilan, and Bonampak. I have about 5x more books than that! I have a Chilam Bałam of Chumayel from the Carnegie institute from 1933 and the modern one Tizimin, I have facsimiles of the códices Borgia and Magliabechiano! I have a first edition of Willard's book on the sacred well. My favorite is The Star Gods of The Maya, please see my video about Edzna about that. I have a dozen books about Maya hieroglyphics and I will soon be releasing a video about that. Please watch my video about Edzna, I am currently working on carving a stela about that event.
@@pyramidreview8664 I don't know your name. May I ask it? You are a bibliophile like myself. I also have the Chilam Balam of Chumayel, and the Chilam Balam of Tizimin, as well as the Chilam Balam of Mani (Perez), The Chilam Balam of Na, and also the Chilam Balam of Kaua, as well as the Titles of Ebtun. I feel the most important of these are the Chumayel and the Tizimin. Paradoxically the Chumayel tends to be pro Itza and Kokom, while the Tizimin is pro Xiu and critical of the Itza. Together the two provide a more balanced picture of the dynastic confrontations of the ages prior to the arrival of the Castellanos.
I also managed to acquire a copy of the book on Mayapan, produced after the Carnegie excavations there. I tend to favour primary documents, and luckily many of these have been reproduced in older publications and some are still available from specialist book and document sellers.
I have noticed that you are making a personal investment in studying some of the Maya dialects and also in the glyphic texts. The Chumayel by Roys and the Tizimin by Edmonson provide direct translations from the 17th Century European letter Yucatek to English, and, thus, is a super means to study and learn not only how to read and write Yucatek in its colonial form, but also Maya poetic forms, expressions, and speech. Since you have both of these sources you may really enjoy using them in this way as well.
Alej alexanderheph@gmail.com
Of those stones could speak 😮
Such a mystery!
Nice, thanks. The blocks and a majority of stone is a Geopolymer. Recreated stone. Cast, formed or worked before fully hardened. Or rendered like a stucco.. Not cut natural stone. As seen across the globe.
Wouldn't it be an idea to make a drawing of the glyphs, take them back to your place, and use your glyph books to help you to read what is written on the door lintel and door jambs.
Honestly I assume someone else has already done this… but maybe not… maybe I can do it?!
@@pyramidreview8664 Of course you can do it. (smile) You would be surprised at how much important stuff just gets missed. Imagine if you were the first one to read the lintel and jambs on this door in a thousand+ years. Now that would leave you staring at the ceiling late at night..... Especially if you were the only one alive that knew what it said to the one that took the time and effort to read it.
Oh, by the way, I have sent you my email address in my reply to your book collection below.
High probability theres still gold treasures burried in and around those ruins
The Maya did not have a lot of gold, since there isn’t much in the Maya region. They did acquire some through trade, but jade artifacts were far more common, and surely there are many of those still around.
Very interesting, but who are you and what is your interest in these ruins? Just wondering your interest in these out of the way places.
I am a historian, and I personally find these sites very interesting. I research them a lot in books and by visiting them. However, when I looked up many of these places on youtube, I saw that there wasn't much information about them available in English. And I think that's unfortunate. These places are very interesting and I think that more people should be able to learn about them. So I'm just trying my best to share them with others.
i couldn't help but wonder if any of those flowers or berries found in these types of places could somehow be utilized to shape, melt or liquify stone. Probably never learn how these megalithic, smooth creations were done.
I do know that Maya concrete has been chemically analyzed and they found that in some cases they did some plant materials into the mix like tree sap from certain trees that made it stronger.
Resembles some places in india
Has that building been excavated and cleaned up, or was it already clear when it was discovered? Who discovered it and when? Thanks for excellent video.
Yes indeed, I answered each and every one of these questions in the video
That palace.is huge wth?
how is this one so unknown it looks crazy
Was there half a day ago, g****nit I hated those mosquitos
I don't think that you're allowed to say WASPS. 😂
Love it. ❤
Ill just look at the book you looked at . Very nice
hey it sounds like heavy Equipment in the background. great vid by the way. I'm jealous that you can get to these sites easily.
There was some construction equipment near the entrance but the sound at the Palace was the guy walking around on top with a weedwhacker
@@pyramidreview8664 ya after a while I could see. great vid !
@@InFamousProductions I'm glad you liked it! Many more to come
As far as I understand Diving God is found across Mesoamerica and Feathered Snake is sign of alliance with Tolteca culture.
The feathered snake is an ancient symbol and exists across most mesoamerican cultures
Your videos are dope but MAN I wish I could film/edit for you
Perhaps one day I will be able to afford a nice camera or an editor but until then it’s going to be very… uh… “authentic”
The clapping hand thing for the sound of a K'uk (Quetzal) is something cooked up by a guide and is based on nothing, but it impresses tourists so they repeat it 8 billion times.
Yes, I don't think it is related to the bird at all, but I noticed when I was at the triadic group at Yaxha, and in other places, that the acoustic features carry very well up and down the stairs. This creates an impressive effect where you can hear people very well from the top of a pyramid to the bottom, or in other interesting ways. There was a well developed sound system that had many interesting properties, but the quickest way to demonstrate that is with a few claps.
@@pyramidreview8664 The acoustic effect is planned for and created by the architecture and Maya architects in order to magnify sound. This is totally legitimate. The K'uk thing is an "urban myth" created by a tourist guide that realized that he had said something the bored tourists actually listened to. The understanding of how to create and use acoustics in architectural design is another of the remarkable educated qualities of Maya culture.
The handiworks of the seven sages
Very dangerous area...
That looks like the pallachios des las grecas,!!!! And the name is zoe =life
What's that guy with a metal detector doing in the palace?
Tomb robber?
Metal detectors wouldn't help much in the Yucatan as the ancient Maya there used very little metal. But in any case, it was a weed whacker, he was mowing the Pyramid so that it doesn't get overgrown again.
Be careful with the jaguars 🐆 güero , you have to carry a machete in that jungle.
Pumas too!
❤
Where can I get a map of Mexico like that?
@@BumperFisher-j1d I found it in a book store in Merida. Paper maps aren't very popular anymore, but they still make them, check it out online.
Red soil is called Chak Lu'um. Black soil is Ek Lu'um. White soil is Sak Lu'um.
There are many more, I read a good paper about this.
@@pyramidreview8664 I would appreciate if you could give me a reference for the paper. I will read it myself.
@@alexanderalexander7404 Construction of an Yucatec Maya soil classification and comparison with the WRB framework by Bautista www.researchgate.net/figure/Study-area-and-location-of-soil-profiles-in-the-state-of-Yucatan-LP-Leptosol-CM_fig1_41426456
And as a bonus, a paper about the Maya soil app!
www.researchgate.net/publication/335331465_Technology_and_local_wisdom_The_Maya_soil_classification_app
There had to have been an early Iron Age in Central America because there is no way you can have perfectly squared stone and columns with primitive Stone Age tools. When Cortez arrived in the New World, the central Americans were in a Stone Age, and only had Stone Age weapons to fight the invading Spaniards. Some thing does not square up with all of this.
@@ChambersWineandTravel There was indeed metalworking along the pacific coast, likely knowledge brought over from South America, but mostly used for precious metals and arsenical bronze. As for the stone tools, there was a great trade in ilmenite from an early time around Mesoamerica, which is a naturally occurring stone made of iron and titanium(!) oxide which was worked into tools, and significantly tougher than the soft limestone which the Maya carved their buildings out of. Other hard stones were mined in the southern mountains and widely traded, and chisels and other tools made from these stones have been found at various sites. Look up "Maya hardstone" for further examples.
www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/317303
www.researchgate.net/publication/317569649_Mineralogical_and_magnetic_characterization_of_Olmec_ilmenite_multi-perforated_artifacts_and_inferences_on_source_provenance
Is Puuk where Pug-nosed dogs are from?
Why didnt you go into the rest of the palace? You barely showed anything at all.
It's closed off to the public, I went to the parts one was permitted to enter.
@pyramidreview8664 Well, it looked like you were pretty well alone, was the guy mowing the lawn going to snitch you out?
The damage is unusual.
I just can't imagine humans building this. I just can't. Not back then. How??? How????
Limestone is pretty soft, people are pretty creative, and they had a lot of practice building hundreds of cities, and a lot of time to develop a society that could make it happen. It's truly wonderful and amazing though, I am always in awe.
watch out for those vines 🤣
After all the bats and bugs and snakes it really feels like everything is sneaking up on you!
Maybe Zayi is also Zion.
It’s looks like the Ziggurat from ancient Sumer!
Moss not mold
Please read reply to your book collection below.
Who’s mowing the lawn?
The guy on the pyramid with the weed whacker. Trees growing on pyramids destroys the pyramid as the roots enter and pull the stones apart, so they have to kill all the plants growing on top of them regularly.
@@pyramidreview8664 maybe its a weedwacker/metal detector combo
Oh to fund the local university to restart excavations.
You're so lucky.
pyramid?
😃
So they are colonial Colombian building? Not pre-Colombian.
These buildings were built in the late classic era of Maya history, around 800 AD, many centuries before Columbus arrived in the Americas.
This is a place to start rebuilding Gods Kingdom. One of the 12. Kingdom Comes some. This is a axis point.
You sound like Gene Simmons
😛
I wouldn’t go there either. Don’t like the jungle and poisonous snakes and other critters.
Now that we know of it is it going to become rentable live-able apartments otherwise shut up.