This publication by the famous French historian is dedicated to the most mysterious civilization of America, which originated back in 2000 BC and developed on the lands of Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. During their heyday, the Mayans lived in white-stone cities and used an accurate solar calendar , had a unique hieroglyphic writing and developed mathematics. Already in the first centuries of our era, the Mayan peoples achieved amazing perfection in architecture, sculpture and painting. For many centuries, populous states and cities existed in the Mayan lands. But in the 9th-10th centuries, the period of prosperity ended with a sudden terrible catastrophe, the reasons for which scientists are still arguing.