David Stuart (Mayanist)
Encyclopedia
David Stuart is a Mayanist
scholar and professor of Mesoamerican art and writing at the University of Texas at Austin
.
.
, particularly related to the decipherment of the Maya script
used by the pre-Columbian
Maya civilization
of Mesoamerica
. See for example Coe (1992), p. 231 et seq. Stuart was featured in the 1988 PBS
series, The Second Voyage of the Mimi
, starring a young Ben Affleck
.
He received his Ph.D in Anthropology from Vanderbilt University
in 1995, and taught at Harvard University
before beginning at UT Austin in 2004. Stuart has conducted field research at numerous archaeological sites in Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras, mostly focusing on the documentation of Maya sculpture and inscriptions. He remains actively engaged as a member of several excavation projects.
His publications include Ten Phonetic Syllables (1987), which laid much of the groundwork for the now-accepted methodology of Maya hieroglyphic decipherment. In 2003 he published a volume in the ongoing Corpus of Maya Hieroglyphic Inscriptions series (Peabody Museum, Harvard University), devoted to drawings and photographs of sculpture from Piedras Negras, Guatemala. His co-authored Palenque: Eternal City of the Maya (Thames and Hudson, 2008) with his father, George Stuart. Recently his research and contributions to Maya studies were featured in the award-winning PBS documentary Cracking the Maya Code (NightFire Films, 2008). His most recent work, The Order of Days (Random House - Harmony, 2011) explores the important role of time for the classical Mayan civilization, while debunking the 2012 phenomenon
claim that Mayans view the year 2012 as an end of the world.
Stuart is the Director of The Mesoamerica Center at the University of Texas at Austin, which fosters multi-disciplinary studies on ancient American art and culture. He also oversees the activities of the newly established Casa Herrera, UT's new academic research center in Antigua, Guatemala, devoted to studies in the art, archaeology and culture of Mesoamerica. He is the Linda and David Schele Professor of Mesoamerican Art and Writing at UT.
Mayanist
A Mayanist is a scholar specialising in research and study of the Central American pre-Columbian Maya civilization. This discipline should not be confused with Mayanism, a collection of New Age beliefs about the ancient Maya....
scholar and professor of Mesoamerican art and writing at the University of Texas at Austin
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
.
Early life
He is the son of Mayanist scholars George Stuart and Gene S. Stuart. He began researching Maya hieroglyphs at the age of 8, and since an early age worked closely with Linda ScheleLinda Schele
Linda Schele was an expert in the field of Maya epigraphy and iconography. She played an invaluable role in the decipherment of much of the Maya hieroglyphics. She produced a massive volume of drawings of stelae and inscriptions, which, following her wishes, are free for use to scholars...
.
Career
His early work on the decipherment of Maya hieroglyphs led to a MacArthur Fellowship in 1984, at the age of 18. He is the youngest-ever recipient of that award. Stuart has made major contributions in the field of epigraphyEpigraphy
Epigraphy Epigraphy Epigraphy (from the , literally "on-writing", is the study of inscriptions or epigraphs as writing; that is, the science of identifying the graphemes and of classifying their use as to cultural context and date, elucidating their meaning and assessing what conclusions can be...
, particularly related to the decipherment of the Maya script
Maya script
The Maya script, also known as Maya glyphs or Maya hieroglyphs, is the writing system of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization of Mesoamerica, presently the only Mesoamerican writing system that has been substantially deciphered...
used by the pre-Columbian
Pre-Columbian
The pre-Columbian era incorporates all period subdivisions in the history and prehistory of the Americas before the appearance of significant European influences on the American continents, spanning the time of the original settlement in the Upper Paleolithic period to European colonization during...
Maya civilization
Maya civilization
The Maya is a Mesoamerican civilization, noted for the only known fully developed written language of the pre-Columbian Americas, as well as for its art, architecture, and mathematical and astronomical systems. Initially established during the Pre-Classic period The Maya is a Mesoamerican...
of Mesoamerica
Mesoamerica
Mesoamerica is a region and culture area in the Americas, extending approximately from central Mexico to Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica, within which a number of pre-Columbian societies flourished before the Spanish colonization of the Americas in the 15th and...
. See for example Coe (1992), p. 231 et seq. Stuart was featured in the 1988 PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
series, The Second Voyage of the Mimi
The Second Voyage of the Mimi
The Second Voyage of the Mimi is a twelve-episode American educational television program depicting a fictional crew of a sailboat named the Mimi exploring Mayan ruins in Southern Mexico. Along the way, they learn a lot about ancient civilization and also attempt to foil the plans of looters who...
, starring a young Ben Affleck
Ben Affleck
Benjamin Géza Affleck-Boldt , better known as Ben Affleck, is an American actor, film director, writer, and producer. He became known with his performances in Kevin Smith's films such as Mallrats and Chasing Amy...
.
He received his Ph.D in Anthropology from Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University is a private research university located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, the university is named for shipping and rail magnate "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided Vanderbilt its initial $1 million endowment despite having never been to the...
in 1995, and taught at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
before beginning at UT Austin in 2004. Stuart has conducted field research at numerous archaeological sites in Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras, mostly focusing on the documentation of Maya sculpture and inscriptions. He remains actively engaged as a member of several excavation projects.
His publications include Ten Phonetic Syllables (1987), which laid much of the groundwork for the now-accepted methodology of Maya hieroglyphic decipherment. In 2003 he published a volume in the ongoing Corpus of Maya Hieroglyphic Inscriptions series (Peabody Museum, Harvard University), devoted to drawings and photographs of sculpture from Piedras Negras, Guatemala. His co-authored Palenque: Eternal City of the Maya (Thames and Hudson, 2008) with his father, George Stuart. Recently his research and contributions to Maya studies were featured in the award-winning PBS documentary Cracking the Maya Code (NightFire Films, 2008). His most recent work, The Order of Days (Random House - Harmony, 2011) explores the important role of time for the classical Mayan civilization, while debunking the 2012 phenomenon
2012 phenomenon
The 2012 phenomenon comprises a range of eschatological beliefs that cataclysmic or transformative events will occur on December 21, 2012. This date is regarded as the end-date of a 5,125-year-long cycle in the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar...
claim that Mayans view the year 2012 as an end of the world.
Stuart is the Director of The Mesoamerica Center at the University of Texas at Austin, which fosters multi-disciplinary studies on ancient American art and culture. He also oversees the activities of the newly established Casa Herrera, UT's new academic research center in Antigua, Guatemala, devoted to studies in the art, archaeology and culture of Mesoamerica. He is the Linda and David Schele Professor of Mesoamerican Art and Writing at UT.