Earliest evidence of Maya calendar found inside Guatemalan pyramid

Academics now believe other sites will find examples from even earlier than 200 BC, Sam Hancock writes

Two mural fragments dating back to between 200 and 300 BC bear evidence for the earliest use of the Maya calendar (Reuters)

Mural fragments from between 200 and 300 BC with remnants of a “Seven Deer” glyph on them have been found inside the ruins of a pyramid in Guatemala.

The discovery marks the earliest-known use of the Maya calendar, an historical system created from movements of the sun, moon and planets which was based on a ritual cycle of 260 named days.

Until now, the earliest definitive Maya calendar notation dated to the first century BC.