The Dresden Norx: The Codex In The New World

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The content within the Madrid Codex mainly consists of almanacs and different horoscopes that were used to help plan the timing of their ceremonies and when to perform divinatory rituals. The codex also contained many astronomical tables, although not as many that are found in the other two surviving Maya codices, the Paris Codex and the Dresden Codex. Some of the content is most likely to have been copied from older Maya books.[103] Scenes in the Madrid Codex connected to the hunt.[104] The images in the Madrid Codex also depict rituals such as human sacrifice and ways of invoking rainfall. There are also writings of everyday activities such as beekeeping, hunting, warfare and weaving. These give us a close glimpse into Maya day to day life. …show more content…

Historians believe it to be the oldest book from the Americas in existence. All other copies had been destroyed by fire when the Spanish had conquered the region.[97] The Dresden Codex consists of thirty-nine sheets with writing on both sides, making for 78 pages. The overall length of the Codex laid completely out is 3.56 meters, or 11.7 feet long. Originally, the manuscript had been folded in accordion style folds like the other Maya Codices. But, today it is spread out in two parts and exhibited at the Museum of the Saxon State Library located in Dresden,