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[MUSIC PLAYING]

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NARRATOR: Many centuries ago
in Central America, the Maya

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built cities full of secrets.

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Why was this temple built
on the edge of a cliff?

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What purpose did it serve?

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What strange rights were enacted
in this underground chamber?

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And what dire penalty
was paid by the players

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of this ancient ball game?

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Mysteries from the files
of Arthur C. Clarke,

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author of "2001" and inventor
of the communication satellite,

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now in retreat in Sri Lanka,
he ponders the riddles

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of this and other world's.

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[MUSIC PLAYING WITH HORNS]

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In the 19th century,
a journey like this

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was often a voyage of discovery.

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In many places, the jungle
we are sailing through

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is dark and impenetrable,
and every explorer

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wondered what
ruins and treasures

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lay in it's steamy heart.

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Here in Sri Lanka, two huge
ancient cities were discovered,

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but perhaps the
most remarkable find

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of that golden age was made
in a jungle thousands of miles

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from here.

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From Central
America came reports

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of a forgotten civilization
skilled in writing,

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sculptor, and astronomy.

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These people, the Maya,
were also the builders

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of spectacular monuments.

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Today, more than a century
later, the mysteries they left

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are still being unraveled.

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[MUSIC PLAYING]

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NARRATOR: It's towers, palaces,
and pinnacles still engulfed

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by the jungle, Tikal is
just one of the vast cities

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from which the Maya run
their mighty empire.

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They held sway over vast
tracts of Central America,

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in modern Mexico, Belize,
Guatemala, and Honduras.

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Century's before invaders from
the old world reached here,

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much of the Maya
civilization had perished.

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But ancient stories give
a few tantalizing clues

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to the glories of it's past.

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[SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE]

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NARRATOR: These men are the
Guardians of one of the Maya's

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most treasured traditions.

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Great plazas dominate
the landscapes

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of the ancient cities.

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They are ball courts.

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But the game here
was more than sport.

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A hallowed ritual, it's
outcome was literally

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a matter of life and death.

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These men play just like
that ancestors depicted

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on ancient Maya pottery.

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[MUSIC PLAYING]

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NARRATOR: They strike the heavy
rubber ball not with their feet

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but with their hips.

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The ancient rules were
endlessly complicated.

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By analyzing the clues,
archaeologist Nicholas Hellmuth

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of Cocoa, Florida has
pieced together many details

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of the ancient game.

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But he still has
countless questions.

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DR. NICHOLAS HELLMUTH:
We'd like to know how often

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they played, who played, why.

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There must have been
different levels of games.

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And why are the courts so large?

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It must have been extremely
important to them.

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NARRATOR: Hellmuth believes
the goal is with the rings

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on each side of the court.

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DR. NICHOLAS HELLMUTH: It's
very difficult to make a goal.

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Points we're gained and
lost in other manners.

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But the ring was a grand slam.

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If you got the ball
through the ring,

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you got to get the jewelry
of everybody in the audience.

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But the audience have
the right to flee.

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We know that because
the Spanish saw the game

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and made notes on it.

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[SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE]

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There are some suggestions
there was a gladiatorial aspect

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that people were
captured in battle

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and brought into the court
and had to fight it out,

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either against the
home team or possibly

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even two teams of gladiators.

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It was definitely
more than a game

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because the court was
considered a temple.

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And of course, at the end of
the game, one or more people

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the team was sacrificed.

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It was literally a
game to the death.

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NARRATOR: To Hellmuth
Maya art poses

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one last unanswered question.

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Players of the past
are shown wearing

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a strange yoke-like
belt around their waist.

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Often found new ball courts,
no one knows for sure

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what the stone yokes were for.

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Hellmuth decided to conduct
a weighty experiment.

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DR. NICHOLAS HELLMUTH: Well,
I believe that these were

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actually worn in the game,
not just in ceremonies,

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because the art shows us.

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And the best way to demonstrate
that is put a yoke on.

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They are heavy,
but they balance.

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That's the important thing.

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They balance perfectly,
and they don't

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require any type of attachment.

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They fit on sideways.

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That's the correct
way to fit on.

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It's not comfortable at all.

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You can make all the movements.

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You can get down, move up, and
it stays on the whole time.

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The biggest problem would be
the position, down on the court

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floor, because they
have to go down and then

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get back up very quickly.

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But I think if
they were trained,

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and I think if they
were going to lose

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their head if they didn't do
it, I think they could do it.

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NARRATOR: But in a local
market, a different theory

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is under investigation.

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Archaeologist, Reina De
Vries has enlisted the help

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of a Mexican leather worker
hoping to show that her idea is

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the most practical.

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Inspiration struck
at an exhibition

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in her native Holland.

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RENIA DE VRIES: When I took
my husband to the museum,

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to the ballgame exposition,
I told him about the theories

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which exist about stone
yokes, and I told him

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that many people think they were
actually worn during the game.

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And then he said, but when
they use leather nowadays,

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why can't it be
possible that the stone

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yokes were molds to make leather
belts to use in the ball game.

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NARRATOR: Reina
suggests that the Maya

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used wet leather tightly
molded around the yokes.

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Once dried in the
sun, the leather

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would hold the
design of the yoke

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and could be stuffed with
sawdust and sewn into shape.

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RENIA DE VRIES:
I think a leather

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yoke will be better, because
a stone yoke is very heavy.

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Their weight is between
20 and 30 kilos,

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and it's really very heavy
to play that in a very

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active and agile ball game.

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[SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE]

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NARRATOR: A slim line volunteer
puts Hellmuth's theory

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to a practical test.

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Yes, he thinks that,
especially if you became

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accustomed to using
that, you could

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hit the ball much
further using a yoke,

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and that's the
purpose of the yoke.

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That's why it's stone.

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That's why it has to be heavy.

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NARRATOR: So far so good
for Hellmuth, but Reina

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has high hopes for
her leather version.

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RENIA DE VRIES: I'm really
very pleased with this yoke,

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with this copy, because it
took exactly the same form

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as the stone yoke.

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It even has the reliefs
exactly as the original mold.

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It's much lighter than the
stone yoke, but it's tough.

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It's hard.

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NARRATOR: Only the
players can tell

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if Reina's idea is a winner.

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[SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE]

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NARRATOR: Just a few
hits and the leather

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is dented out of shape.

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[SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE]

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He says if it's maybe
too soft, not hard enough

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to hit the ball far.

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NARRATOR: So which yoke
does the team prefer?

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[SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE]

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He says he is
imaging that maybe

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the stone will hit faster.

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[MUSIC PLAYING]

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ARTHUR C. CLARKE: Knowing the
popularity of human sacrifice

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in ancient South America,
one wonders what happened

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to the losers in this game.

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There's even a theory
that the winners

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were eager to be sacrificed
so that they could go

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straight to the Mayan heaven.

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I'm happy to offer
either version

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to any TV station,
which is losing

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ratings on its sports coverage.

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Well, it wasn't too difficult
to discover the purpose

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of the ball courts,
but much more puzzling

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are the curiously
shaped pits scattered

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throughout the Mayan cities.

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NARRATOR: The pits are
known as chuntules.

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At Tikal they're found
all around the edge

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of the majestic ruins concealed
by the encroaching jungle.

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[MUSIC PLAYING]

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[BIRDS CHIRPING]

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NARRATOR: Deep in the tropical
forest, ethnobotonist Bill

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Litzinger from Arizona
believes he knows why the Maya

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dug these mysterious holes.

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[MUSIC PLAYING]

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NARRATOR: His Guatemalan
guides have directed

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him to a classic chuntules.

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[MUSIC PLAYING]

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NARRATOR: Clearly man made,
the pits seemed to have

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been designed with a purpose.

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WILLIAM LITZINGER: A chuntule is
a hole that the ancient Maya's

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made around their dwellings.

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Generally they're
about two meters

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deep and the chambers,
maybe a meter to a meter

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and a half high inside.

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NARRATOR: Most people
believe that the chuntules

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were storehouses
for food hoarded

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against times of famine.

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But they are hot, humid,
and popular with bats.

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Litzinger has his doubts.

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WILLIAM LITZINGER:
When we do find them,

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we often find four
or five at one house,

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and then the surrounding
houses have none.

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And that doesn't really seem
to make much sense when you're

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thinking about storing food.

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You'd think every house
would have its own storage.

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Some people think they were
used for trash or latrines,

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but none of these ideas are
supported with good evidence.

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NARRATOR: An expert in
brewing and wine making,

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Litzinger believes
the Maya make a virtue

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of the chuntules
fettered atmosphere

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and used them as
fermenting chambers.

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Following an ancient recipe, he
hopes to brew Mayan honey wine.

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WILLIAM LITZINGER: We'll
put it into the water.

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I think that's good.

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A couple of handfuls
of these flowers, this

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is hibiscus flower.

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We'll put plenty in there.

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Now I'm going to add the
yeast, which I've already

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mixed up in some water here.

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I'm using a lot of yeast
just to give it a good start.

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NARRATOR: LItzinger
is risking his health

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in the name of silence.

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The bats that
inhabit the chuntules

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can cause serious disease.

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And a face mask is
his only protection.

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00:12:36,011 --> 00:12:36,710
You OK?

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00:12:36,710 --> 00:12:45,680


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NARRATOR: The wine is
left overnight to ferment

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in the chuntules murky depths.

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[MUSIC PLAYING]

259
00:12:52,205 --> 00:12:53,167


260
00:12:53,167 --> 00:12:56,534
[CRICKETS CHIRPING]

261
00:12:56,534 --> 00:12:58,939
[BIRDS CHIRPING]

262
00:12:58,939 --> 00:13:01,140


263
00:13:01,140 --> 00:13:03,561
NARRATOR: Next morning,
happy hour comes early.

264
00:13:03,561 --> 00:13:08,962


265
00:13:08,962 --> 00:13:11,908
[SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE]

266
00:13:11,908 --> 00:13:20,260


267
00:13:20,260 --> 00:13:22,950
WILLIAM LITZINGER:
Well, it looks good.

268
00:13:22,950 --> 00:13:26,670
And I think we had
good success, and I

269
00:13:26,670 --> 00:13:29,055
think really the proof
is in the tasting,

270
00:13:29,055 --> 00:13:31,586
so why don't I just
give it at taste.

271
00:13:31,586 --> 00:13:34,502
[INSECT NOISES]

272
00:13:34,502 --> 00:13:40,820


273
00:13:40,820 --> 00:13:42,290
Mm.

274
00:13:42,290 --> 00:13:43,400
It's good.

275
00:13:43,400 --> 00:13:46,170
It's got a nice acrid flavor,
a little bit of flavor

276
00:13:46,170 --> 00:13:50,850
from the flower, and it's
very slightly alcoholic.

277
00:13:50,850 --> 00:13:53,950
I think it's and excellent
possibility that Maya were

278
00:13:53,950 --> 00:13:55,688
making wine in the chuntules.

279
00:13:55,688 --> 00:13:58,592


280
00:13:58,592 --> 00:14:01,720
[BIRDS CHIRPING]

281
00:14:01,720 --> 00:14:03,700
ARTHUR C. CLARKE: Unlike
most ancient peoples,

282
00:14:03,700 --> 00:14:06,610
the Maya left masses
of writing and covered

283
00:14:06,610 --> 00:14:09,040
their cities with inscriptions.

284
00:14:09,040 --> 00:14:11,210
If we could only
read all of them,

285
00:14:11,210 --> 00:14:14,180
we would have the answers
to many mysteries.

286
00:14:14,180 --> 00:14:17,250
One of the key breakthroughs
in cracking the Mayan code

287
00:14:17,250 --> 00:14:20,190
has come from a
unique culmination

288
00:14:20,190 --> 00:14:22,305
of archaeology and gastronomy.

289
00:14:22,305 --> 00:14:30,250


290
00:14:30,250 --> 00:14:32,230
NARRATOR: Archaeologist,
David Stuart

291
00:14:32,230 --> 00:14:35,530
is on the last leg of a journey
from Harvard, Massachusetts

292
00:14:35,530 --> 00:14:38,050
to one of his favorite
places in Central America.

293
00:14:38,050 --> 00:14:44,200


294
00:14:44,200 --> 00:14:49,100
Hidden away in northern Honduras
is the ruin City of Copan.

295
00:14:49,100 --> 00:14:51,380
These stones tell
tales of its heyday

296
00:14:51,380 --> 00:14:55,610
1300 years ago, mute
witnesses to Central

297
00:14:55,610 --> 00:14:58,190
America's golden age.

298
00:14:58,190 --> 00:15:01,680
Carved lettering called
glyphs is everywhere.

299
00:15:01,680 --> 00:15:05,105
These messages from the Maya
have laid unread for centuries.

300
00:15:05,105 --> 00:15:09,710


301
00:15:09,710 --> 00:15:12,790
Copan's most famous symbol is a
history book written in glyphs.

302
00:15:12,790 --> 00:15:15,340


303
00:15:15,340 --> 00:15:18,150
Carved in stone, the
hieroglyphic staircase holds

304
00:15:18,150 --> 00:15:21,284
the secrets of a civilization.

305
00:15:21,284 --> 00:15:23,250
DR. DAVID STUART: You know the
hieroglyphic stairway is one

306
00:15:23,250 --> 00:15:26,400
of the most amazing monuments,
I think, from the ancient world,

307
00:15:26,400 --> 00:15:30,100
because every step has an
inscription that gives us some

308
00:15:30,100 --> 00:15:32,731
of the history of Copan,
information about the kings

309
00:15:32,731 --> 00:15:33,430
and their lives.

310
00:15:33,430 --> 00:15:35,230
So it's an extremely
important monument

311
00:15:35,230 --> 00:15:37,770
for understanding
something about the world

312
00:15:37,770 --> 00:15:40,470
here at Copan in ancient times.

313
00:15:40,470 --> 00:15:42,960
There are signs that
are very pictorial that

314
00:15:42,960 --> 00:15:46,400
are representing animals
and faces and body parts.

315
00:15:46,400 --> 00:15:50,170
And they combine together
to spell words, essentially.

316
00:15:50,170 --> 00:15:52,550
Over the years it's
been a great challenge

317
00:15:52,550 --> 00:15:53,990
deciphering Maya glyphs.

318
00:15:53,990 --> 00:15:56,650
First of all, it doesn't look
quite like a writing system

319
00:15:56,650 --> 00:15:57,790
that we're used.

320
00:15:57,790 --> 00:16:00,590
I think it's taken a long
time for specialists to really

321
00:16:00,590 --> 00:16:04,580
understand the nuances and
the system behind this really

322
00:16:04,580 --> 00:16:06,070
incredible way of writing.

323
00:16:06,070 --> 00:16:08,040
So I think it's going to
take generations still

324
00:16:08,040 --> 00:16:10,340
to understand most
of what we find

325
00:16:10,340 --> 00:16:11,550
here at Copan and other sites.

326
00:16:11,550 --> 00:16:14,190


327
00:16:14,190 --> 00:16:16,630
NARRATOR: In the modern
bustle of Guatemala City,

328
00:16:16,630 --> 00:16:18,950
Stuart came across a
clue which may speed

329
00:16:18,950 --> 00:16:20,205
up his quest for understanding.

330
00:16:20,205 --> 00:16:24,600


331
00:16:24,600 --> 00:16:27,630
The city's museum houses
a unique treasure found

332
00:16:27,630 --> 00:16:29,178
in the tomb of a Mayan noble.

333
00:16:29,178 --> 00:16:32,050


334
00:16:32,050 --> 00:16:36,540
This simple pot is adorned
with cryptic glyphs.

335
00:16:36,540 --> 00:16:39,060
Besides its special
decoration, the pot

336
00:16:39,060 --> 00:16:41,170
has another claim to fame.

337
00:16:41,170 --> 00:16:44,300
It is the first known
example of a screw top jar.

338
00:16:44,300 --> 00:16:47,216
[MUSIC PLAYING]

339
00:16:47,216 --> 00:16:51,684


340
00:16:51,684 --> 00:16:52,950
DR. DAVID STUART:
The glyph that first

341
00:16:52,950 --> 00:16:55,780
caught my eye was one
over here on the lid,

342
00:16:55,780 --> 00:16:57,550
which is seen right here.

343
00:16:57,550 --> 00:17:01,020
And this is a glyph that we
find all sorts of Maya vessels

344
00:17:01,020 --> 00:17:03,930
that basically says,
his drinking cup.

345
00:17:03,930 --> 00:17:06,819
But in this case they added
some extra information,

346
00:17:06,819 --> 00:17:09,240
because as we read
around the lid,

347
00:17:09,240 --> 00:17:11,349
we find here that
it's beginning to give

348
00:17:11,349 --> 00:17:13,916
us the recipe of the contents.

349
00:17:13,916 --> 00:17:15,349
This first time that
you can see over here,

350
00:17:15,349 --> 00:17:18,470
this comb-like element
was first recorded

351
00:17:18,470 --> 00:17:20,700
by the Spanish back
in 16th century

352
00:17:20,700 --> 00:17:22,730
and that is the syllable cah.

353
00:17:22,730 --> 00:17:24,859
A little detective
work in recent years

354
00:17:24,859 --> 00:17:28,520
has shown that the
cah sign, this comb,

355
00:17:28,520 --> 00:17:30,500
can also be written
in the form of fish.

356
00:17:30,500 --> 00:17:34,840
So we read both of these as the
same sound, cah cah, and then

357
00:17:34,840 --> 00:17:38,510
the last time below it, right
here we know from other lines

358
00:17:38,510 --> 00:17:40,460
of evidence is pronounced wah.

359
00:17:40,460 --> 00:17:43,394
So together its cah cah wah.

360
00:17:43,394 --> 00:17:45,874
[MUSIC PLAYING]

361
00:17:45,874 --> 00:17:49,850


362
00:17:49,850 --> 00:17:53,450
NARRATOR: Stuart's new cah cah
was the Mayan work for cocoa.

363
00:17:53,450 --> 00:17:56,770
He also knew the one place
he could find confirmation,

364
00:17:56,770 --> 00:17:57,970
chocolate town USA.

365
00:17:57,970 --> 00:18:00,590


366
00:18:00,590 --> 00:18:04,330
Hershey's senior research
chemist is Jeffrey Hurst.

367
00:18:04,330 --> 00:18:05,680
DR. JEFFREY HURST: I
was really excited.

368
00:18:05,680 --> 00:18:07,620
I mean this is really
a neat opportunity.

369
00:18:07,620 --> 00:18:10,880
They look to us
to help determine

370
00:18:10,880 --> 00:18:13,640
if, in fact, this material that
they found inside was cocoa.

371
00:18:13,640 --> 00:18:21,300


372
00:18:21,300 --> 00:18:23,430
NARRATOR: Stuart sent
Hurst scraping he

373
00:18:23,430 --> 00:18:25,100
found at the bottom of the pot.

374
00:18:25,100 --> 00:18:28,864


375
00:18:28,864 --> 00:18:30,030
DR. JEFFREY HURST:
I opened the box

376
00:18:30,030 --> 00:18:32,460
and found a number
of vials of material

377
00:18:32,460 --> 00:18:35,542
that surely didn't resemble
cocoa to me from my first look.

378
00:18:35,542 --> 00:18:38,780


379
00:18:38,780 --> 00:18:40,070
NARRATOR: The
anonymous brown powder

380
00:18:40,070 --> 00:18:42,260
was subjected to
a battery of tests

381
00:18:42,260 --> 00:18:43,525
to determine its composition.

382
00:18:43,525 --> 00:18:47,798


383
00:18:47,798 --> 00:18:51,235
[MUSIC PLAYING]

384
00:18:51,235 --> 00:18:52,220


385
00:18:52,220 --> 00:18:55,760
NARRATOR: Two ingredients
unique to chocolate showed up.

386
00:18:55,760 --> 00:18:58,180
Stuart's hunch had been spot on.

387
00:18:58,180 --> 00:19:01,714
The pot has indeed
contained Mayan cocoa.

388
00:19:01,714 --> 00:19:03,180
DR. JEFFREY HURST: It's
a sample that nobody

389
00:19:03,180 --> 00:19:05,940
had touch for 1,100 years,
or something close to that.

390
00:19:05,940 --> 00:19:07,300
I was excited.

391
00:19:07,300 --> 00:19:09,990
It was neat, but I was honored
also to be able to participate

392
00:19:09,990 --> 00:19:11,735
as part of the project team.

393
00:19:11,735 --> 00:19:14,525
[MUSIC PLAYING]

394
00:19:14,525 --> 00:19:16,010


395
00:19:16,010 --> 00:19:17,210
DR. DAVID STUART:
Reading the glyphs

396
00:19:17,210 --> 00:19:21,350
and being able to decipher them
is, i think, a real key to so

397
00:19:21,350 --> 00:19:23,520
many aspects of
Maya civilization,

398
00:19:23,520 --> 00:19:25,950
not only reading the history,
the names and dates, which

399
00:19:25,950 --> 00:19:29,190
is kind of a dry aspect
of it, but also we

400
00:19:29,190 --> 00:19:33,800
can learn so much about Maya
religion, Maya ritual behavior,

401
00:19:33,800 --> 00:19:36,250
their society at large.

402
00:19:36,250 --> 00:19:37,350
Not just about
the kings, they're

403
00:19:37,350 --> 00:19:38,970
talking about bigger
issues and bigger

404
00:19:38,970 --> 00:19:40,710
questions that concerned them.

405
00:19:40,710 --> 00:19:43,140
And what's so important is
that it's their own voice.

406
00:19:43,140 --> 00:19:46,257
We're really bridging
the gap of 1,500 years

407
00:19:46,257 --> 00:19:47,390
listening to what
they have to say

408
00:19:47,390 --> 00:19:48,550
about their own civilization.

409
00:19:48,550 --> 00:19:50,005
[MUSIC PLAYING]

410
00:19:50,005 --> 00:19:52,915
[BIRDS CHIRPING]

411
00:19:52,915 --> 00:20:01,660


412
00:20:01,660 --> 00:20:04,015
[SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE]

413
00:20:04,015 --> 00:20:06,320


414
00:20:06,320 --> 00:20:08,890
What a strange but
fruitful alliance

415
00:20:08,890 --> 00:20:11,640
of scientific
disciplines, and that

416
00:20:11,640 --> 00:20:15,040
seems to be the trick for
solving Mayan mysteries.

417
00:20:15,040 --> 00:20:17,780
Here's how a sailor
and an archaeologist

418
00:20:17,780 --> 00:20:20,490
succeeded in casting
light upon another.

419
00:20:20,490 --> 00:20:25,900


420
00:20:25,900 --> 00:20:28,080
NARRATOR: One of Mexico's
most dazzling beaches

421
00:20:28,080 --> 00:20:31,970
lies beside the ruined
Mayan city of Tulum.

422
00:20:31,970 --> 00:20:34,100
Walled in on three sides
and protected by the sea

423
00:20:34,100 --> 00:20:36,860
on the fourth,
Tulum was a fortress

424
00:20:36,860 --> 00:20:39,970
dominated by one building,
the Castillo perched

425
00:20:39,970 --> 00:20:41,880
right on the cliff edge.

426
00:20:41,880 --> 00:20:47,077
What was it for wondered
local seaman Michael Creamer

427
00:20:47,077 --> 00:20:48,410
MICHAEL CREAMER: I
was taking a swim out

428
00:20:48,410 --> 00:20:50,810
in front of the
Castillo at Tulum,

429
00:20:50,810 --> 00:20:54,890
and I noticed that it had a
pair windows facing seawards.

430
00:20:54,890 --> 00:20:58,450
One is square, let's say about
45 x 45 cm and the other one

431
00:20:58,450 --> 00:20:59,950
was long and narrow.

432
00:20:59,950 --> 00:21:01,660
They were absolutely
distinct, different,

433
00:21:01,660 --> 00:21:03,840
and I couldn't believe
that was an accident

434
00:21:03,840 --> 00:21:05,390
or sloppy workmanship
and there must

435
00:21:05,390 --> 00:21:07,580
have been a reason for that.

436
00:21:07,580 --> 00:21:09,840
The other thing about the
upper windows at Tulum

437
00:21:09,840 --> 00:21:11,590
is the walls are quite thick.

438
00:21:11,590 --> 00:21:14,450
And what this does is any
light that might be behind

439
00:21:14,450 --> 00:21:16,880
them is now in a column.

440
00:21:16,880 --> 00:21:20,310
And when you pass
by that column,

441
00:21:20,310 --> 00:21:21,520
the light is completely cut off.

442
00:21:21,520 --> 00:21:24,810
It's like looking
through a tube.

443
00:21:24,810 --> 00:21:28,200
NARRATOR: Creamer considered
the Castillo's position.

444
00:21:28,200 --> 00:21:30,340
Offshore lies a
deadly reef whose

445
00:21:30,340 --> 00:21:33,670
sharp corals lie only
inches beneath the surface.

446
00:21:33,670 --> 00:21:35,980
For sailors it's an
accident waiting to happen.

447
00:21:35,980 --> 00:21:39,170
[MUSIC PLAYING]

448
00:21:39,170 --> 00:21:40,950
MICHAEL CREAMER: You could
easily swamp the boat,

449
00:21:40,950 --> 00:21:44,020
drown the passengers, lose
the cargo, crash on the reef,

450
00:21:44,020 --> 00:21:46,520
and I don't think even the
bravest and intrepid Mayan

451
00:21:46,520 --> 00:21:49,390
navigator wound want to go
through that reef opening

452
00:21:49,390 --> 00:21:52,740
without some kind of guide.

453
00:21:52,740 --> 00:21:56,080
NARRATOR: There is only one
safe passage from reed to shore,

454
00:21:56,080 --> 00:21:58,380
but at deck level the
dark clumps of coral

455
00:21:58,380 --> 00:22:00,680
are hard to see.

456
00:22:00,680 --> 00:22:05,350
Creamer believes the reef
in the Castillo are linked.

457
00:22:05,350 --> 00:22:08,060
In the daytime the sun
shines through two gaps

458
00:22:08,060 --> 00:22:10,170
in the temple's
stonework directly

459
00:22:10,170 --> 00:22:12,860
opposite the reef's
safe entrance.

460
00:22:12,860 --> 00:22:14,900
Creamer's hunch is
that the windows

461
00:22:14,900 --> 00:22:18,500
were used after dark, that the
temple doubled as a lighthouse.

462
00:22:18,500 --> 00:22:21,660


463
00:22:21,660 --> 00:22:25,040
Unsure Creamer's wife Greta,
a Mexican archaeologist,

464
00:22:25,040 --> 00:22:27,900
Pilar Luna will be
lighthouse keepers.

465
00:22:27,900 --> 00:22:30,530
We need to take a look
at these at the next buoy.

466
00:22:30,530 --> 00:22:33,650
I'll be able to what this
looks like in this coral.

467
00:22:33,650 --> 00:22:36,560
NARRATOR: The lamps carried into
the Castillo's upper chamber

468
00:22:36,560 --> 00:22:39,132
will simulate Mayan fire.

469
00:22:39,132 --> 00:22:41,537
[MUSIC PLAYING]

470
00:22:41,537 --> 00:22:46,840


471
00:22:46,840 --> 00:22:48,860
MICHAEL CREAMER: OK, OK.
we're in good position now.

472
00:22:48,860 --> 00:22:50,300
Please turn the
lights on, Pilar.

473
00:22:50,300 --> 00:22:51,959
Please turn the lights on.
-OK.

474
00:22:51,959 --> 00:22:57,030


475
00:22:57,030 --> 00:22:59,700
NARRATOR: Creamer's idea is
that the design of the windows

476
00:22:59,700 --> 00:23:01,631
was carefully calculated.

477
00:23:01,631 --> 00:23:04,610
He expects that both
lights can be seen together

478
00:23:04,610 --> 00:23:07,276
only when it's saved to turn.

479
00:23:07,276 --> 00:23:09,990
MICHAEL CREAMER: Now a a
Mayan canoe of the year 1000

480
00:23:09,990 --> 00:23:12,630
would be looking at
the Castillo and hoping

481
00:23:12,630 --> 00:23:14,820
that somebody had remembered
to turn on the lights.

482
00:23:14,820 --> 00:23:17,720
As we approach, we'll
first see a light

483
00:23:17,720 --> 00:23:20,160
showing up in the north
window, in that wider

484
00:23:20,160 --> 00:23:21,753
window I talked about.

485
00:23:21,753 --> 00:23:25,910
And then when the light begins
to appear in the second window,

486
00:23:25,910 --> 00:23:27,210
then we know we're
in the safe channel.

487
00:23:27,210 --> 00:23:28,927
That's the moment
to make the turn.

488
00:23:28,927 --> 00:23:31,445
Just coming up now
in the wide window.

489
00:23:31,445 --> 00:23:33,034
Can you see it?

490
00:23:33,034 --> 00:23:37,240
OK, well, just a minute
the next window will appear

491
00:23:37,240 --> 00:23:40,290
and it will be time to put those
oars and paddles in the water

492
00:23:40,290 --> 00:23:41,620
and make your turn.

493
00:23:41,620 --> 00:23:43,179
Here we go.
There we are.

494
00:23:43,179 --> 00:23:44,770
Now we're in it.

495
00:23:44,770 --> 00:23:45,660
We're in the channel.

496
00:23:45,660 --> 00:23:47,975
Now you can also
see that the day

497
00:23:47,975 --> 00:23:49,904
signals are still functioning
with a little sunset

498
00:23:49,904 --> 00:23:53,200
behind them.
I believe you can see that.

499
00:23:53,200 --> 00:23:56,340
NARRATOR: But the acid test
comes in the dark of night.

500
00:23:56,340 --> 00:23:58,620
Creamer hopes the lights
in the two windows

501
00:23:58,620 --> 00:24:00,900
can be trusted to
guide him to shore.

502
00:24:00,900 --> 00:24:02,250
MICHAEL CREAMER: Here we come.

503
00:24:02,250 --> 00:24:05,290
Now we hope this works because
this is going through the reef.

504
00:24:05,290 --> 00:24:06,320
Here we go.

505
00:24:06,320 --> 00:24:07,250
Ready.

506
00:24:07,250 --> 00:24:09,370
Here it comes.

507
00:24:09,370 --> 00:24:10,440
OK, go.

508
00:24:10,440 --> 00:24:13,100
Make your turn now, Javier.
Very good.

509
00:24:13,100 --> 00:24:14,920
Now you see how the lights
are equally brilliant?

510
00:24:14,920 --> 00:24:16,470
Keep them exactly like that.

511
00:24:16,470 --> 00:24:19,760


512
00:24:19,760 --> 00:24:20,995
Very good, OK.

513
00:24:20,995 --> 00:24:22,410
You're right on it,
right on the money.

514
00:24:22,410 --> 00:24:24,760
Very good.

515
00:24:24,760 --> 00:24:26,960
OK. you see those
two lights still.

516
00:24:26,960 --> 00:24:29,811
OK, same intensity,
that's perfect, perfect.

517
00:24:29,811 --> 00:24:36,580
OK.
[MUSIC PLAYING]

518
00:24:36,580 --> 00:24:37,480
OK we're through the reef.

519
00:24:37,480 --> 00:24:39,120
We can safely head
for the beach now.

520
00:24:39,120 --> 00:24:39,850
We're through it all.

521
00:24:39,850 --> 00:24:43,720
There's nothing that
can hurt the boat now.

522
00:24:43,720 --> 00:24:45,050
I feel great about
this evening's work.

523
00:24:45,050 --> 00:24:46,590
I think we did a great job.

524
00:24:46,590 --> 00:24:49,000
As far as I'm concerned,
we absolutely proved it.

525
00:24:49,000 --> 00:24:50,750
The windows were
not an accident.

526
00:24:50,750 --> 00:24:52,250
They are different
shapes for a reason.

527
00:24:52,250 --> 00:24:54,170
The Mayans did a great
job in engineering.

528
00:24:54,170 --> 00:24:56,018
I suppose they were
great seamen too.

529
00:24:56,018 --> 00:25:00,410


530
00:25:00,410 --> 00:25:02,820
ARTHUR C. CLARKE: I've long
been interested in the Maya, not

531
00:25:02,820 --> 00:25:04,900
least because they
may have crafted

532
00:25:04,900 --> 00:25:09,300
the extraordinary crystal skull,
which watches over our series.

533
00:25:09,300 --> 00:25:11,900
But for all its glories,
the Mayan civilization

534
00:25:11,900 --> 00:25:13,900
suddenly collapsed.

535
00:25:13,900 --> 00:25:16,900
It's great cities were
swallowed up by the jungle.

536
00:25:16,900 --> 00:25:17,720
Why did it happen?

537
00:25:17,720 --> 00:25:20,360
Well, I can give
you a simple answer.

538
00:25:20,360 --> 00:25:21,620
Nobody knows.

539
00:25:21,620 --> 00:25:23,870
And that's the greatest
of all the mysteries

540
00:25:23,870 --> 00:25:27,230
left us by the Maya.

541
00:25:27,230 --> 00:25:30,280
[MUSIC PLAYING]

542
00:25:30,280 --> 00:26:01,300