Many years ago, there were thousands of people, slaving away in the hot sun of the Yucatan, laying stone after stone of the great, awe-inspiring temples of the Mayan civilization. The Mayan civilization was one of the most sophisticated cultures in the world, and their temples show the world today of their power. More than 2,000 miles away, the Egyptians were building the Great Pyramids in Giza, the greatest monuments of Egypt. Grand pyramids, temples and ruins are all that are left of these ancient cultures. It seems amazing that such ancient people were able to create such massive structures. Amazingly, by comparing the two civilizations, you will find that these two cultures had very similar materials, architecture and reasons why they built pyramids.
Easily, the greatest civilization in Central America was the Maya. They were outstanding in many different ways. For example, they built magnificent cities with huge pyramids and temples, yet they had no knowledge of the wheel or metal tools. The great Mayans developed an advanced system of writing, mathematics and astronomy, which they used to calculate an accurate calendar. They lived in a society where religion was part of their daily life. The ancient Mayans can be long remembered for their remarkable advances of the arts, science, and religion. When you travel to the Yucat n, all you see are grand temples, reminding you of the Mayas. In Mayan culture, the pyramid is more of a frustum shape, which is a pyramid with a horizontal surface on top instead of the cone-shaped top of a true pyramid. Mayan pyramids were built with usually two or four staircases that led to the horizontal surface of the pyramid. At the top of the pyramid, there was a temple built on the horizontal surface to worship a specific god. At Tikal, which was once a flourishing Mayan city, there are numerous pyramids, but the most famous pyramid-temple is called "Temple of the Great Jaguar".
