Maya Archaeologist is an account of the life of an archaeologist in the tropical rain forests of Mexico, British Honduras and Guatemala, in the days before roads, airfields, and the wireless brought mid-twentieth-century 'civilization' to those remote areas and ended a fascinating way of life
Dr. Eric Thompson, who has spent thirty-five years studying the Maya, describes the ruins he excavated in those early days and the actual techniques of excavation. There are the excitement of discovery of some dated monument or fine pieces of jade and the disappointment of an empty tomb expected to contain a rich burial. Theories of what caused the fall of Maya civilization, dances of the present-day Maya, stories of fellow archaeologists or ex-revolutionaries Maya witch-doctors, the taste of parrot or monkey meat, are blended to bring past and present into a living relationship.
The author describes his life in a remote Maya village when he was trying to find out what memories of their ancient ways and religious beliefs these descendants of the builders of Maya civilization still retain. He also touches on the life of the forest, from jaguars to ticks; on the chewing gum gatherers, who often locate unknown ruins; and on all the flotsam and jetsam of what O. Henry called the Banana Republics. There are no tall stories or breathless adventures, for, as the author notes, the shorter the visit of a professional Explorer to those lands, the taller his stories. The heroes of this book patient mules on past and present, and patient mules on jungle trails.
