“Ancient Maya warfare flared up surprisingly early”

“Ancient Mayan city burned in ‘act of total war,’ scientists say”

And thanks to Jason Holker for calling this article to my attention:

“Ancient Maya warfare flared up surprisingly early: Extreme conflicts broke out well before the civilization’s decline, researchers say”

I’m reminded of Mormon 8:7-8:

And behold, the Lamanites have hunted my people, the Nephites, down from city to city and from place to place, even until they are no more; and great has been their fall; yea, great and marvelous is the destruction of my people, the Nephites.

And behold, it is the hand of the Lord which hath done it. And behold also, the Lamanites are at war one with another; and the whole face of this land is one continual round of murder and bloodshed; and no one knoweth the end of the war.

I’m also reminded of something that I wrote in a review of a now long and deservedly forgotten anti-Mormon book back in 1989 or 1990:

The Book of Mormon speaks of terrible wars occurring among its peoples, as Bartley correctly points out. Yet the Maya “were on the whole a peaceful people. Their ceremonial centres had no fortifications, and were for the most part located in places incapable of defence” (p. 53). Bartley here assumes a simple equation of the Maya with the peoples of the Book of Mormon which may or may not be accurate—but, more importantly, he fails to mention Sorenson’s treatment of this issue.  Nor does he show the slightest awareness of the evidence now available on “the state of war that existed constantly among many Maya cities. The modern myth that the Maya were a peace-loving, gentle people who only tended their milpas and followed the stars has fallen with a thunderous crash.”  Yale Mayanist Michael D. Coe puts it simply: “The Maya were obsessed with war. The Annals of the Cakciquels and the Popol Vuh speak of little but intertribal conflict among the highlanders, while the sixteen states of Yucatan were constantly battling with each other over boundaries and lineage honour. To this sanguinary record we must add the testimony of the Classic monuments and their inscriptions.” A brief glance at the volume The Blood of Kings: Dynasty and Ritual in Maya Art is all that is needed to show clearly that the Maya were among the most bloodthirsty people in world history.

Which, in turn, reminds me of this:

“The Hidden Coastal Culture of the Ancient Maya: For thousands of years, ancient Maya kings ruled a vast inland empire in Mexico and Belize. But just how inland was it, really?”

From the article:

“Modern scientists have found that the real ancient Maya were just as war-prone as Aztecs or Europeans. . . . Contrary to their reputation, the ancient Maya engaged in plenty of warfare.”

Also from the article:

“The presence of pirates of the ancient Caribbean might . . . explain the tall pyramid [at the coastal site of Vista Allegre, not far from Cancún near the point of the Yucatán Peninsula] that could serve dual functions: for religious ceremonies and as a lookout.”

Which, in turn, reminds me of the portion of the story of Gideon and King Noah recounted in Mosiah 19:5-6:

And it came to pass that he fought with the king; and when the king saw that he was about to overpower him, he fled and ran and got upon the tower which was near the temple.

And Gideon pursued after him and was about to get upon the tower to slay the king, and the king cast his eyes round about towards the land of Shemlon, and behold, the army of the Lamanites were within the borders of the land.