Between about 800 and 950 AD, the great city-states of the southern Maya lowlands in Guatemala, Belize and the Yucatan, such as Tikal, Calakmul, Copan and Palenque, were abandoned one after another, and the population fell by as much as 90 per cent. The last dated monument at Tikal was set up in 869. Evidence from lake sediments and cave stalagmites points to a series of severe droughts, and warfare, deforestation, soil exhaustion and the failure of kings to deliver prosperity probably made things worse. Maya culture continued in the northern Yucatan, with Chichen Itza and Uxmal, and survives in millions of Maya people today.
Before and after
- 849 CEBirth of Alfred the Great
- 850 CEOrigins of Chan Chan
- 850 CEConstruction of Prambanan Temple
- 850 CEDeath of Muḥammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi
- from c. 850s to 950sThe Classic Maya collapse
- c. 850sGunpowder is invented in China
- 859 CEFounding of University of al-Qarawiyyin
- 860 CEConstruction of Alamut Castle
- from 861 CE to 1003Saffarid dynasty
More in Civilizations & archaeology
- 537 CEConstruction of Hagia Sophia
- 778 CEConstruction of Kiyomizu-dera
- 802 CEConstruction of Angkor Wat
- from 29 July 1299 to 17 November 1922Ottoman Empire
- 1373Construction of Leaning Tower of Pisa
- 1460Construction of Topkapı Palace
The era
This moment belongs to the Medieval world (500 CE to 1500 CE), kingdoms, faiths and trade routes. You can also browse everything in the 9th century.