Life In The Ancient Mayan Empire Was Unbelievably Strange

Life In The Ancient Mayan Empire Was Unbelievably Strange

Shannon Quinn - February 21, 2023

Life In The Ancient Mayan Empire Was Unbelievably Strange
Mayans used to modify their noses to make them larger. Credit: Reddit

Big Noses Were All the Rage

You might not think the Mayans, of all people, would have much to relate to with midwestern farmers. But it turns out the Maya may have had an unhealthy fixation with corn. They believed that the gods had fashioned them from corn. So they effectively saw the long, slender nature of corn as the highest form of beauty. Ergo, they were very much enamored by long, slender faces. Hence the tendency for head binding and elongation of the skull. Examination of Mayan skulls showed that 90% of them were artificially elongated. Modern beauty standards seem to prefer smaller noses, but the Maya preferred large and prominent ones. So much so, that many even wore artificial nose bridges. You will find an example of the ideal Mayan man in depictions of their Maize God, Yum Kaax.

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