Petén Itzá
"La selva maya"
La Selva
The Mayan land encompassed a vast expanse of territory, extending its influence from beyond Guatemala, Chiapas and Yucatan. It is speculated that as far north as Mexico it may have reached beyond the Huasteca Potosina. To the south, the Mayan culture reached Honduras, crossing Belize, and it is believed that its influence could have reached as far as the northern border of Colombia. However, the full extent of its legacy still remains unknown, buried and hidden beneath the jungle of Central America. The cultural richness and geographical extent of the Mayan civilization continues to be the subject of study and discovery, as new findings may reveal even more about this fascinating and enigmatic civilization.
La Tierra del Jaguar
La mayoría de las antiguas ciudades mayas yacen actualmente en ruinas, muchas de ellas enterradas, y muchas más aún están por descubrirse. El tiempo, la llegada de nuevas tribus, la conquista y los diferentes asentamientos han dejado muchas de estas ciudades perdidas y veladas para siempre a nuestros ojos.
En 1839, la zona maya estaba cubierta por un denso bosque selvático, que hoy en día está prácticamente extinto. Durante esa época, jaguares, serpientes, venados y faisanes deambulaban libremente por la región. Sin embargo, en la actualidad, estos magníficos animales están casi extintos. En la era de los grandes señores mayas, estos animales no solo formaban parte de su cultura, sino que también eran altamente valorados y respetados. La pérdida de estos recursos naturales y la desaparición de la biodiversidad son testimonios del cambio significativo que ha experimentado la región a lo largo de los años.
"John Lloyd Stephens y Frederick Catherwood"
With limited resources available in the 19th century to reach inhospitable places, two adventurers, John Lloyd Stephens and Frederick Catherwood, embarked on an expedition to the hot and humid land of Petén. Stephens, an adventurous explorer famous for his tales of exotic journeys, teamed up with Catherwood, a draftsman whose charcoal and paper strokes captured the vestiges of the lush Mayan culture mired in jungle and time.
Stephens had previously undertaken two expeditions, one including Egypt, Arabia Petraea, and the Holy Land in 1837, and another to Greece, Turkey, Russia, and Poland in 1838. His previous successes as a writer enabled him to finance part of his trip to Petén with the reluctant backing of his publisher. Stephens' fascination with an even more exotic and mysterious land in America, which he had heard about during his visit to Egypt, led him to persuade his publisher to finance this new venture.
The crucial presence of Catherwood, who accompanied Stephens, proved to be decisive in the expedition. His artistic strokes visually documented the vestiges of the Mayan civilization hidden in the jungle, contributing significantly to the understanding and appreciation of this ancient culture.
The First Book by J. Stephens about his trip to the Mayan lands.
En 1841, John Lloyd Stephens escribió "Incidentes de viaje en América Central, Chiapas, y Yucatán" (volumen 1 y 2), y debido al gran éxito de estas obras, realizó un segundo viaje a Yucatán. En 1843, publicó su cuarto libro titulado "Incidentes de viaje en Yucatán" (volumen 1 y 2).
A pesar de los contratiempos y problemas que enfrentaron, Stephens y Catherwood, contagiados por el fascinante encanto de la selva maya, deseaban explorar aún más las profundidades de esta región. Su dedicación a documentar visualmente las ruinas de la época maya marcó un hito significativo. Aunque la arqueología moderna puede no otorgarles todo el mérito, las imágenes rescatadas por Stephens y Catherwood se consideran evidencia crucial y valiosa.
Estos exploradores fueron los primeros en capturar visualmente las ruinas de ese tiempo, y el impacto de sus descubrimientos ha perdurado en la historia. Las ilustraciones de Catherwood, en particular, proporcionaron una representación gráfica única y detallada de las maravillas arqueológicas de la civilización maya, dejando un legado invaluable en el estudio de esta antigua cultura.
The Mayan lands of Chichén and Uxmal
When my feet touched these lands steeped in mystery, I could already breathe the atmosphere of a rich archaeological tradition, where excavations and restorations told stories buried in the ancestral land. Even today, under the gaze of the burning sun, vestiges can be seen that await to be freed from their millennial lethargy.
It was through the pages of the book "Incidents of the trip to Yucatan", among other works, that I immersed myself in the exciting journey of Mayan culture. I let myself be carried away by the words of the writers, allowing myself to lose myself in the shadows of an ancient tree and rest at the foot of a pyramid that stood as a silent witness to a glorious past.
Now, as I present to you the novel KinBe, I invite you to dive into the depths of a narrative that fuses history and fiction, where characters come to life between the lines and Catherwood's illustrations give shape to the whispers of yesteryear. May this journey through words and strokes be as captivating for you as it was for me, an odyssey that awakens dormant curiosity and awakens the adventurous spirit that lies in every heart.
INTERNATIONAL STRATEGIC ALLIANCES
