Sak Tahn Waax (“White-Chested Fox”) is the first known Maya astronomer and mathematician identified by name. At Xultun in northeastern Guatemala, layered murals in Structure 10K-2 — excavated by David Stuart’s University of Texas at Austin team over three seasons beginning in 2010 — bear his name beside an AD 781 formula involving Venus and Mars. A 52-column lunar table uses distance numbers of 936–6,073 days and resembles the Dresden Codex.
Sak Tahn Waax identified as first known named Maya astronomer
GuatemalaEpigraphy
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Key facts
- The name is Sak Tahn Waax, meaning “White-Chested Fox,” not “Sakon Wash” or “White-Breasted Fox.”
- He is the first and only known Maya astronomer-mathematician credited by name; “first known” is more accurate than “first in history.”
- The find is at Xultun in northeastern Guatemala; San Bartolo is a separate nearby site.
- Structure 10K-2 was excavated over three seasons beginning in 2010 by David Stuart, not Stewart, and a University of Texas at Austin team.
- The study appeared in the Cambridge Archaeological Journal, published by Cambridge University Press.
- The layered murals portray rulers and include a 52-column lunar table with dates and lunar deities, using distance numbers ranging from 936 to 6,073 days—not thousands of years from the present.
- His name appears beside an AD 781 formula involving Venus and Mars, while the lunar table resembles that in the Dresden Codex.
Sources
Maya Astronomer's Name Identified in Guatemalaarchaeology.org
Maya mathematician and astronomer who lived. San Bartolo-Xultun archaeological site, The name, Sak Tahn Waax, is translated as "White-chested Fox."
Maya Mathematician-Astronomer Named in Xultunbrieflynews.io
A Maya mathematician-astronomer has been identified from a painted chamber at Xultun, Guatemala. · The named individual is called Saktahn ( ...
First Named Maya Astronomer Identified in Xultun Inscriptionverity.news
Xultun finally puts a name to Maya science — Sak Tahn Waax, or "White-chested Fox," is now the first known Classic Maya mathematician.
Archaeologists decipher the name of a Maya astronomer ...nationalgeographic.com
His moniker translates to "White-chested Fox." Maya ruins of Xultun in Guatemala, Maya ruins of Xultun in Guatemala have, for the first time, ...
In 781, a Maya scholar at Xultun signed a calendar formula ...timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Maya scholar at Xultun signed a calendar formula linking Venus and Mars, and archaeologists say he may be the earliest named astronomer in the ...
We finally know the name of an ancient Maya mathematicianscientificamerican.com
The signature of Sak Tahn Waax, or “White-Chested Fox,” was found inscribed in a 1000-year-old chamber beneath present-day Guatemala.
Sak Tahn Waaxen.wikipedia.org
Sak Tahn Waax ("White-Chested Fox") was an 8th-century Maya astronomer and mathematician from Xultun (now in Guatemala). He is the only Classical Mayan ...
Mathematics formula found on Maya wall rivals insights of ...nature.com
Mathematical texts from a Maya site in Guatemala identify an astronomer called Sak Tahn Waax. Mathematics formula found on Maya wall rivals ...
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