Coe's classic inside story of one of the major intellectual breakthroughs of our time--the last decoding of an ancient script--has been updated to reflect the fast-changing advancements in decipherment. 112 illustrations.
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Coe's classic inside story of one of the major intellectual breakthroughs of our time--the last decoding of an ancient script--has been updated to reflect the fast-changing advancements in decipherment. 112 illustrations.
Read Less
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Seller's Description:
Very good. Pages are clean! The cover has visible markings and wear. This is a paperback copy There is staining on the text block edges Fast Shipping-Each order powers our free bookstore in Chicago and sending books to Africa!
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Good. Good condition. A copy that has been read but remains intact. May contain markings such as bookplates, stamps, limited notes and highlighting, or a few light stains.
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TRUST OUR FEEDBACK RATING-USED VERY GOOD.2. Construction of the book is very good i.e. Tight spine. No loose pages. Clean pages. No writing, highlighting, marks or underlining on the pages. Some page discoloration. Reasonably tidy looking front cover with only a few minor creases or marks. Minor shelf wear along the edges and sides of the book. Different cover design than in the stock photo (Different edition). All books are mailed out in a bubble wrap mailer to protect your purchase. Orders are ALWAYS shipped same day or next day with FREE TRACKING emailed to you automatically. (WE TRY HARD TO DESCRIBE OUR BOOKS ACCURATELY SO YOU CAN BUY WITH CONFIDENCE)
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Seller's Description:
Good. All pages and cover are intact. Possible minor highlighting and marginalia. Ships from an indie bookstore in NYC. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 304 p. Contains: Illustrations.
Prof. Coe, himself a pre-eminent Mayanist and epigrapher, adeptly blends the history of this intriguing decipherment, still only two-thirds accomplished, with revelation of the pertinent idiosyncracies of those who have figured prominently in the cumulative study and reading of the Maya glyphic (logosyllabic) writings. Authoritative, informative, lively, fascinating -- there is no book in my personal library that I value more highly.
Sarattus
Jul 9, 2009
Maya mystery
It takes a bit of patience to get into this book but it is well worth it. Worth it if you are interested in how a "hieroglyphic" system was finally and belatedly decyphered. I found it a hard book to put down once the story took hold, The Maya glyphs were a longtime enigma to scholars, so much so that for decades many thought they had nothing to do with spoken Maya. One major hurdle to breaking the code was the absence of a "Rosetta Stone" for the Maya script, another was scholastic arrogance. By the way, the Mayans were the only New World civilization which developed a true written language.