Mayan Astronomer’s Name Revealed After 1200 Years

Archaeologists in Guatemala identified the name of a Mayan astronomer and mathematician named Sak Tahn Waax, meaning “White-breasted Fox”, who lived around 800 AD. The discovery marks the first time a Mayan scientist from the Classic Period has been directly linked to specific scientific work.

Researchers deciphered his name and work from murals within the ruins of the ancient city of Xultún, near the border with Mexico. The murals contained mathematical and astronomical calculations dating from 400 BC to 900 AD.

Sak Tahn Waax uniquely connected six different Mayan time cycles, ranging from 20 to 780 days, into a single 2920-day cycle, the least common multiple of the Venus and solar year. The Guatemalan Ministry of Culture analyzed over fifty short texts inscribed on the walls to make the identification. This finding offers a rare glimpse into the intersection of art, science, and daily life within the Mayan civilization, which declined around 900 AD.