A jade necklace from Guatemala

PARIS— The ancient civilization of the Maya has fascinated outsiders since the times of the first European explorers, and one of the most comprehensive exhibitions on this very organized society has just opened at the Musée du Quai Branly. With over 160 Maya objects, "Maya: From Dawn to Twilight" is informed by the latest archeological research. Exhibition curator Juan Carlos Meléndez Mollinedo said in a statement that this is the first time since the 1960s that France has hosted such a large collection from Guatemala — the perfect occasion to survey the major discoveries of the past 40 years and to highlight the most recent interpretations of this fascinating culture.

The Maya lived in modern-day Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, and southern Mexico. The exhibition's initial ambition was to examine the discoveries made in Guatemala's Mirador Basin since 2003 by Richard D. Hansen (the Basin has been called the cradle of Maya civilization and has been nominated for consideration as a UNESCO World Heritagesite). Then theGuatemala Archeological and Ethnological Museum agreed to loan several key works from its collection, and the show expanded its scope, establishing a complete chronological narrative of Maya civilization from before 2,000 B.C. through the 16th century, divided into its three major eras: pre-classical, classical, and post-classical.

The Maya had a very structured society, and the affirmation of elite status took place through elaborate sets of objects and ornaments. At the entrance to the exhibition, a stone plaque shows a dancing king in rich clothing and a headdress, perhaps celebrating a victory over an enemy. The appearance of ceramics is itself a demonstration of power, since the first decorated containers were restricted to the privileged class. Likewise, sumptuous jade jewels were worn only by the nobility. Jade was associated with the center of the world, fertility, and water, and was worn by wealthy members of Maya society even in the tomb. In fact, some of the jade jewelry shown here was much too heavy to be worn comfortably, and was intended only for the dead.

The exhibition also presents several objects from everyday life, decorated in a skillful and refined style. While death is a recurring theme, the Maya were also fascinated by vital energy, youth, and beauty, as seen in the maize god, whose features, sculpted in stone or jade, defined the aesthetic standard. One of the most powerful pieces in the show is a mosaic of Akan, the god of death, seen as a mother-of-pearl skeleton with haunting eyes. This harmful god was also used to illustrate the consequences of excessive drinking. Intimately connected to daily life, the art of the Maya placed the human being at the heart of a cosmic order that had to be respected.

For the Maya, time had multiple dimensions, as seen in the calendars on view. They established various calendar cycles to predict the future, plan rites and rituals, and also, on a more practical level, to choose the right moment for planting, hunting, or engaging in warfare. War was at the center of the organization of Maya cities, which sought to dominate trade through diplomatic alliances or through rivalry, as several weapons of flint attest.

The Musée du Quai Branly's exhibition comes at an opportune time, since a show of Maya jade masks from Mexico at Paris's Pinacothèquewas canceled in February — a casualty of a diplomatic feud between Mexico and France that caused the "Year of Mexico" in France to be called off.

A ceramic figure representing an elevated personage from Guatemala

A mosaic of shellfish representing the god of the dead

A jade plaque from Guatemala

A head of a Mayan god from Guatemala