Dresden Codex

Dresden Codex, one of the few collections of pre-Columbian Maya hieroglyphic texts known to have survived the book burnings by the Spanish clergy during the 16th century (others include the Madrid, Paris, and Grolier codices). The Dresden Codex is thought to date from the 11th or 12th century. It contains astronomical calculations—eclipse-prediction tables, the synodical period of Venus—of exceptional accuracy. These figures have given the Maya a strong reputation as astronomers. The codex was acquired by the Saxon State Library, Dresden, Saxony, and was published by Edward King, Viscount Kingsborough, in Antiquities of Mexico (1830–48). King erroneously attributed the codex to the Aztecs. The first scientific edition of the Dresden Codex was made by Ernst Förstemann (Leipzig, 1880).