The Ancient Maya Book Found In Germany

This ancient Maya manuscript, which details complex astronomical predictions, was lost for centuries before being discovered in a German library. It was long considered the oldest book in the Americas.

Researchers once thought this codex was the absolute oldest surviving book from the Americas, though it has since been dethroned by another document. Despite its name, it has no actual history in Dresden; it was simply rediscovered there after vanishing for years. The pages are packed with high-level math, predicting eclipses and planetary movements with incredible precision. It remains one of the most important windows into the sophisticated intellectual life of the ancient Maya.