1839–1841 CEReputable sourceWell documented
Rediscovering the Maya
On the timeline · around 1839–1841 CE ·
What happened
In 1839–41 the American explorer John Lloyd Stephens and the artist Frederick Catherwood hacked through the jungle to document ruined Maya cities. Catherwood's stunning drawings stunned the world and launched the modern study of the Maya.
Why it matters
Their expeditions revealed to the world that the Americas had been home to a great literate civilization — reshaping how the ancient New World was understood.