玛雅历法的最早证据 ：壁画上的“七鹿”符号

Scientists in Guatemala believe they have found the earliest example of the Mayan(玛雅人的) calendar inside the remains of an ancient building. The archeologists(考古学家) found fragments(碎片) of glyphs(石雕符号) from a Mayan pyramid. One glyph representing the day called “7 deer” was found. It is one of 260 days with special names in the Mayan calendar. The researchers believe this glyph is over 2,200 years old. It shows the Mayan writing for the number seven above a picture of an animal called a deer.

The fragments came from a wall painting inside the pyramid known as Las Pinturas. It is in San Bartolo, an ancient Mayan place that became famous in 2001 when archaeologists found a buried room that contained colorful wall paintings, or murals(壁画). Those murals are thought to be about 2,100 years old. They show images of ceremonies and the ancient stories of the Mayan people. The deer glyph came from the same Las Pinturas pyramid. But it is older.

Researchers believe the Mayans built smaller religious structures and then built the pyramids on top of them. David Stuart is a professor of Central American art and writing from the University of Texas. He wrote about the discovery in the publication Science Advances.

He said the fragments from the mural fit in your hand, but they were once attached to a stone wall. He said the wall was torn down when the ancient workers were building the newer space that became the pyramid. He said the paintings from the older period are all broken up, unlike the newer murals found in 2001. Until the discovery, the oldest known example of the Mayan calendar came from about 2,100 years ago.

The calendar is thought to be one of the top achievements of Mayan culture. It followed the movement of the sun, moon and planets and was based on a 260-day cycle. The Mayans also counted time based on the sun and considered one year to be 365 days. There was also a system based on the moon.

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1.What can we know about the glyphs?

A Glyphs were named after ancient animals.

B The fragments were found outside a pyramid.

C The Mayan people used glyphs as different numbers.

D Each glyph represents one day in the Mayan calendar.

解析：选D。D细节理解题。根据第一段的“One glyph representing the day called “7 deer” was found. It is one of 260 days with special names in the Mayan calendar.”可知其中有一个石雕符号代表“七鹿”这一天，它是玛雅历法中的260个命名日之一。由此推测还有其他259个石雕符号代表不同的259天。故选D。

2.What was Las Pinturas famous for in the past?

A The long history.

B The ancient pyramids.

C The colourful wall paintings.

D Ceremonies of the Mayan people.

解析：选C。C细节理解题。根据第二段的“It is in San Bartolo, an ancient Mayan place that became famous in 2001 when archaeologists found a buried room that contained colorful wall paintings, or murals.”可知，这座金字塔(Las Pinturas)位于圣巴托罗，于2001年出名，因为当时考古学家在里面发现了一个被埋在地下的房间，里面有五颜六色的壁画。故选C。

3.According to David Stuart, the mural _________.

A suddenly fell to earth

B did not fall off naturally

C still had the value of reuse

D got missing during the rebuilding

解析：选B。B推理判断题。根据第四段的“He said the wall was torn down when the ancient workers were building the newer space that became the pyramid.”可知，他说这堵墙是在古代工人建造更新的地方(金字塔)的时候被拆除的，由此说明该壁画并不是自然脱落的。故选B。

4.Which of the following statements about the Mayan calendar is TRUE?

A It has no similarity to the current calendar.

B It was widely used in many Mayan communities.

C It was born because of the religious ceremonies.

D It has played an important part in Mayan culture.

解析：选D。D推理判断题。根据最后一段的“The calendar is thought to be one of the top achievements of Mayan culture.”可知，该历法被认为是玛雅文化的最高成就之一，由此说明它是玛雅文化的重要组成部分。故选D。