Scholars

Scholars of the Maya past, in the field today and before. Checked November 6, 2026. Back to Topics.

Each name links to the page that confirms where the person works or when they died. Lines marked to verify come from an old or thin source. Most are archaeologists. A few read the inscriptions or study the art, and the field leans on them.

94 people.

• Edwin Román Ramírez. South of Tikal Archaeological Project. PhD, UT Austin, 2017. Tinker Visiting Professor at UT Austin, 2025 to 2026. El Zotz and the lands south of Tikal. Co-organizer of the 2026 Mesoamerica Meetings on Tikal. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico del Sur de Tikal (PAST), director. Working today. Guatemala. Source
• Tomás Barrientos. Universidad del Valle de Guatemala. PhD, Vanderbilt, 2014. La Corona and Cancuen. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico La Corona, co-director. Working today. Guatemala. Source
• Bárbara Arroyo. Rescatando Kaminaljuyú project. Director of the Rescatando Kaminaljuyú project. Kaminaljuyu and the Pacific coast. Field project, Rescatando Kaminaljuyú, director. Working today. Guatemala. Source
• Héctor Escobedo. PACUNAM. Former Minister of Culture. PhD, Vanderbilt, 2006. Piedras Negras, Dos Pilas, Kaminaljuyu. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico El Perú-Waka’, co-director. Project role to verify. Current post to verify. Working today. Guatemala. Source
• Liwy Grazioso Sierra. Independent. Guatemalan archaeologist. Left the post of Minister of Culture in 2026. Heritage work in Guatemala. No field project found yet. Working today. Guatemala. Source
• Oswaldo Chinchilla Mazariegos. Yale University. Born in Guatemala. PhD, Vanderbilt, 1996. Cotzumalhuapa, Maya art and myth. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico Cotzumalguapa, director. Working today. United States. Source
• Erik Velásquez García. UNAM. Instituto de Investigaciones Estéticas. Maya writing, codices, and art. No field project found yet. Working today. Mexico. Source
• Mercedes de la Garza. UNAM. Centro de Estudios Mayas. Maya religion, art, and literature. No field project found yet. To verify with a UNAM page. Working today. Mexico. Source
• Adriana Velázquez Morlet. INAH. Tulum and sites in Quintana Roo and Yucatán. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico Kohunlich, field director. Project role to verify. To verify. Working today. Mexico. Source
• Arnoldo González Cruz. INAH. Palenque and the tomb of the Red Queen. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico Palenque, head. To verify. Working today. Mexico. Source
• Ramón Carrasco Vargas. INAH. Former head of work at Calakmul. Calakmul and the Chiik Nahb murals. Field project, Calakmul, head of the site. Project role to verify. Working today. Mexico. Source
• Leticia Vargas de la Peña. INAH. Ek’ Balam. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico Ek’ Balam, co-director. To verify. Working today. Mexico. Source
• Albert Davletshin. Universidad Veracruzana. PhD, Russian State University for the Humanities, 2003. Maya writing and the languages of Veracruz. No field project found yet. Working today. Mexico. Source
• Ricardo Agurcia Fasquelle. Asociación Copán. The Rosalila temple at Copan. Field project, Asociación Copán, head. Working today. Honduras. Source
• Jaime Awe. Northern Arizona University. Born in Belize. PhD, London, 1992. Cahal Pech, Xunantunich, Actun Tunichil Muknal. Field project, Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance Project (BVAR), director. Current post to verify. Working today. United States. Source
• John Morris. NICH Institute of Archaeology. Heritage care in Belize. No field project found yet. To verify. Working today. Belize. Source
• David Stuart. University of Texas at Austin. Director of the Mesoamerica Center. Maya writing, Copan, Palenque, San Bartolo. Field project, San Bartolo-Xultun Regional Archaeological Project, epigrapher. Working today. United States. Source
• Stephen Houston. Brown University. Piedras Negras, El Zotz, Maya writing and court life. Field project, El Zotz project, adviser. Project role to verify. Working today. United States. Source
• Simon Martin. Penn Museum. Also the University of Pennsylvania. Maya kings and politics, Calakmul and the Kaanul kings. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico Ucanal, epigrapher. Working today. United States. Source
• Takeshi Inomata. University of Arizona. Regents Professor. Aguateca, Ceibal, Aguada Fénix. Field project, Middle Usumacinta Archaeological Project. Project role to verify. Working today. United States. Source
• Daniela Triadan. University of Arizona. Aguateca, Ceibal, Aguada Fénix. Field project, Middle Usumacinta Archaeological Project. Project role to verify. Working today. United States. Source
• Marcello Canuto. Tulane University. Director of the Middle American Research Institute. PhD, Penn, 2002. La Corona, the El Paraíso valley near Copan. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico La Corona, co-director. Working today. United States. Source
• Francisco Estrada-Belli. Tulane University. Holmul and lidar survey. Field project, Holmul Archaeological Project, director. Working today. United States. Source
• Marc Zender. Tulane University. Maya writing and language. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico de Comalcalco, epigrapher. Project role to verify. Working today. United States. Source
• Patricia McAnany. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Maya heritage programs with communities, colonial Yucatán. Field project, InHerit, Indigenous Heritage Passed to Present, co-founder. Working today. United States. Source
• Arlen Chase. University of Houston. Caracol, Belize. The tomb of Caracol’s first king, found in 2025. Field project, Caracol Archaeological Project, co-director. Working today. United States. Source
• Diane Chase. University of Houston. Caracol and Santa Rita Corozal, Belize. Field project, Caracol Archaeological Project, co-director. Working today. United States. Source
• Anabel Ford. UC Santa Barbara. Meso American Research Center. El Pilar and the Maya forest garden. Field project, El Pilar, MesoAmerican Research Center, director. Project role to verify. Working today. United States. Source
• Lisa Lucero. University of Illinois. Urbana-Champaign. The Cara Blanca pools and Valley of Peace, Belize. Field project, Valley of Peace Archaeology Project, director. Working today. United States. Source
• Heather Hurst. Skidmore College. The San Bartolo and Xultun murals. Field project, San Bartolo-Xultun Regional Archaeological Project, director. Working today. United States. Source
• William Fash. Harvard University. Copan, and work at Teotihuacan. Field project, Plaza of the Columns Complex Project, Teotihuacan, co-director. Working today. United States. Source
• Barbara Fash. Peabody Museum, Harvard. Director of the Maya Corpus Program. Copan sculpture and the Corpus of Maya Hieroglyphic Inscriptions. Field project, Maya Corpus Program, Peabody Museum, director. Working today. United States. Source
• Thomas Garrison. University of Texas at Austin. Lidar, El Zotz, the land around Tikal. Field project, El Zotz and Biotopo San Miguel la Palotada, director. Project role to verify. Working today. United States. Source
• Marilyn Masson. University at Albany. PhD, Texas, 1993. Mayapan and colonial Maya towns. Field project, Economic Foundations of Mayapán Project, co-director. Working today. United States. Source
• Cynthia Robin. Northwestern University. Chan, a farming community in Belize. Field project, Chan Project, director. Working today. United States. Source
• Sarah Jackson. University of Colorado Boulder. Dean. Maya court life in texts and objects. Field project, Say Kah Project, co-director. Working today. United States. Source
• Andrew Scherer. Brown University. Piedras Negras, Yaxchilan, the Usumacinta, human remains. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico Busiljá-Chocoljá, co-director. Working today. United States. Source
• Charles Golden. Brandeis University. The Usumacinta and Sak Tz’i’. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico Busiljá-Chocoljá, co-founder. Working today. United States. Source
• Alexandre Tokovinine. University of Alabama. Maya writing, Holmul. Field project, Atlas Epigráfico de Petén. Project role to verify. Working today. United States. Source
• Richard Hansen. University of Utah. Adjunct. FARES foundation. El Mirador and the Mirador Basin. Field project, Mirador Basin Project, director. To verify with a university page. Working today. United States. Source
• Mary Miller. Getty Research Institute. Director from 2019. PhD, Yale, 1981. The Bonampak murals and Maya art. Field project, Bonampak Documentation Project, leader. Project role to verify. Current post to verify. Working today. United States. Source
• Karl Taube. UC Riverside. PhD, Yale, 1988. Maya and Mesoamerican images and gods, San Bartolo. Field project, Proyecto San Bartolo, iconographer. Project role to verify. To verify with a university page. Working today. United States. Source
• Kenichiro Tsukamoto. UC Riverside. Born in Japan. El Palmar, Campeche. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico El Palmar, co-director. To verify. Working today. United States. Source
• Dorie Reents-Budet. Smithsonian. National Museum of Natural History. PhD, UT Austin. Classic Maya painted pottery. Wrote the 2012 Walters catalogue. Field project, Maya Ceramics Project, Smithsonian, art historian. Working today. United States. Source
• Joyce Marcus. University of Michigan. Maya emblem glyphs, and the Zapotec of Oaxaca. Field project, San José Mogote, Oaxaca, co-director. Project role to verify. Working today. United States. Source
• Kathryn Reese-Taylor. University of Calgary. Naachtun and Yaxnohcah. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico Bajo El Laberinto. Project role to verify. Working today. Canada. Source
• William Saturno. Boston University. Last listed at Boston University. The San Bartolo murals and Xultun. Field project, San Bartolo-Xultun Regional Archaeological Project, former director. Project role to verify. Current post to verify. Working today. United States. Source
• Nikolai Grube. University of Bonn. Maya writing, Uxul. Field project, Text Database and Dictionary of Classic Mayan, Bonn, director. Working today. Germany. Source
• Christophe Helmke. University of Copenhagen. PhD, London, 2009. Maya and Teotihuacan writing, caves in Belize. Field project, Maya Research Program, Tulix Mul, epigrapher. Working today. Denmark. Source
• Elizabeth Graham. University College London. Lamanai and Marco Gonzalez, Belize. Field project, Lamanai Archaeology Project, principal investigator. Working today. United Kingdom. Source
• Ana García Barrios. Universidad Rey Juan Carlos. PhD, 2008. Calakmul inscriptions and the rain god Chaahk. Field project, Water in the visual rhetoric of the Palace at Palenque, lead researcher. Working today. Spain. Source
• Cristina Vidal Lorenzo. Universitat de València. La Blanca in the Petén, and conservation. Field project, Proyecto La Blanca, scientific director. Working today. Spain. Source
• Philippe Nondédéo. CNRS. PhD, Paris I, 2001. Naachtun and the Río Bec region. Field project, Proyecto Petén-Norte Naachtun, director. Working today. France. Source
• Jarosław Źrałka. Jagiellonian University. Nakum in the Petén. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico Nakum, co-director. Working today. Poland. Source
• Ivan Šprajc. ZRC SAZU. PhD, UNAM, 1997. Survey in southeastern Campeche, sky and calendar. Field project, Archaeological Reconnaissance in Southeastern Campeche, director. Working today. Slovenia. Source
• Harri Kettunen. University of Helsinki. Maya writing and the Wayeb handbooks. No field project found yet. Current post to verify. Working today. Finland. Source
• Dmitri Beliaev. Knorozov Center. Russian State University for the Humanities. Maya writing, the Guatemala highlands. Field project, Atlas Epigráfico de Petén. Project role to verify. Working today. Russia. Source
• Kazuo Aoyama. Ibaraki University. Stone tools at Aguateca, Copan, and Ceibal. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico Ceibal-Petexbatun. Project role to verify. Working today. Japan. Source
• Arthur Demarest. Vanderbilt University. Emeritus. PhD, Harvard. Cancuen, Dos Pilas, the Petexbatun. Field project, Cancuen Regional Archaeological Project, director. Retired. United States. Source
• Rosemary Joyce. UC Berkeley. Emerita. The Ulua valley in Honduras. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico Los Naranjos, Honduras, co-director. Retired. United States. Source
• Jeremy Sabloff. University of Pennsylvania. Penn, emeritus. Santa Fe Institute. PhD, Harvard, 1969. Seibal, Cozumel, Sayil. Field project, Sayil, Yucatán, investigator. Project role to verify. Retired. United States. Source
• Norman Hammond. Boston University. Emeritus, UK. Cuello, Lubaantun, Nohmul, La Milpa in Belize. Field project, La Milpa Archaeological Project, director. Retired. United States. Source
• Peter Mathews. La Trobe University. Retired 2011. PhD, Yale. Emblem glyphs, Palenque, Naachtun. Field project, Naachtun Archaeology Project, co-director. Retired. Australia. Source
• David Freidel. Washington University in St. Louis. Emeritus. PhD, Harvard, 1976. Cerros, Yaxuna, El Perú-Waka’. Field project, Proyecto Arqueológico El Perú-Waka’, co-director. Retired. United States. Source
• Andrés Ciudad Ruiz. Universidad Complutense Madrid. Machaquilá and the Guatemala highlands. Field project, Machaquila project. Project role to verify. Status to verify. Retired. Spain. Source
• Teobert Maler. Peabody Museum, Harvard. Died 1917. Photographs of Usumacinta and Petén sites for the Peabody Museum. Remembered. Mexico. Source
• Alfred Maudslay. British Museum. Died 1931. Photographs and casts of Copan, Quiriguá, and Yaxchilan. Remembered. United Kingdom. Source
• Sylvanus Morley. Carnegie Institution of Washington. 1883 to 1948. Chichen Itza and the survey of Maya inscriptions. Remembered. United States. Source
• Frans Blom. Tulane University. 1893 to 1963, also Na Bolom. Tulane expeditions in Chiapas and the Lacandon region. Remembered. Mexico. Source
• J. Eric S. Thompson. Carnegie Institution of Washington. Died 1975, Carnegie Institution. A catalog of Maya hieroglyphs, the calendar, Lubaantun. Remembered. United Kingdom. Source
• Linton Satterthwaite. Penn Museum. Died 1978. Piedras Negras and Caracol. Remembered. United States. Source
• Alberto Ruz Lhuillier. INAH. Died 1979, also UNAM. Palenque and the tomb of K’inich Janaab Pakal. Remembered. Mexico. Source
• Tatiana Proskouriakoff. Peabody Museum, Harvard. 1909 to 1985. Showed from Piedras Negras that the stelae tell the lives of kings. Remembered. United States. Source
• Heinrich Berlin. Independent. Died 1988. Emblem glyphs and the Palenque Triad. Remembered. Mexico. Source
• Gertrude Duby Blom. Na Bolom. 1901 to 1993. Photographs of the Lacandon Maya, and work to save the rainforest. Remembered. Mexico. Source
• Linda Schele. University of Texas at Austin. Died 1998. Palenque, decipherment, founder of the Maya Meetings. Remembered. United States. Source
• Floyd Lounsbury. Yale University. Died 1998. Palenque decipherment and the Maya calendar. Remembered. United States. Source
• Yuri Knorozov. Kunstkamera, Leningrad. Died 1999, Leningrad. The sound-based reading of Maya writing. Remembered. Russia. Source
• Edwin M. Shook. Carnegie Institution of Washington. 1911 to 2000, Carnegie Institution. First director of the Tikal Project, Kaminaljuyu. Field project, Tikal Project, Penn Museum, first director. Remembered. Guatemala. Source
• Gordon Willey. Harvard University. Died 2002. Settlement in the Belize Valley, Seibal, Copan. Remembered. United States. Source
• William R. Coe. Penn Museum. 1926 to 2009. Director of the Tikal Project, 1963 to 1970. Field project, Tikal Project, Penn Museum, director. Remembered. United States. Source
• Juan Pedro Laporte. Universidad de San Carlos. Died 2010. Mundo Perdido at Tikal, Uaxactun. Remembered. Guatemala. Source
• Juan Antonio Valdés. Universidad de San Carlos. Died 2011, also Museo Miraflores. Uaxactun, Tikal, Kaminaljuyu, Q’umarkaj. Remembered. Guatemala. Source
• Merle Greene Robertson. PARI. Died 2011. Rubbings of Palenque sculpture, the Mesa Redonda. Remembered. United States. Source
• Robert Sharer. Penn Museum. 1940 to 2012. The Early Acropolis at Copan, Quiriguá. Remembered. United States. Source
• T. Patrick Culbert. University of Arizona. 1930 to 2013. Tikal pottery, Bajo La Justa. Remembered. United States. Source
• George Stuart. National Geographic. Died 2014, also the Center for Maya Research. Maya maps, Research Reports on Ancient Maya Writing. Remembered. United States. Source
• Richard E. W. Adams. University of Texas at San Antonio. Died 2015. Río Azul, Tikal, Kinal. Remembered. United States. Source
• Ian Graham. Peabody Museum, Harvard. Died 2017, UK. Founder of the Corpus of Maya Hieroglyphic Inscriptions. Remembered. United States. Source
• Alfonso Lacadena. Universidad Complutense Madrid. Died 2018. Maya writing and grammar, the Wayeb workshops. Remembered. Spain. Source
• Elizabeth Benson. Dumbarton Oaks. Died 2018. Built the Pre-Columbian program and its conferences. Remembered. United States. Source
• Michael D. Coe. Yale University. Died 2019. The Olmec, Maya decipherment, Maya pottery. Remembered. United States. Source
• Wendy Ashmore. UC Riverside. Died 2019. Quiriguá, Xunantunich, how Maya towns were laid out. Remembered. United States. Source
• Guillermo Bernal Romero. UNAM. 1960 to 2021, Centro de Estudios Mayas. Palenque inscriptions, the K’an Tok panel, Temple XXI. Remembered. Mexico. Source

For people who have died, the sort for working or not lists them by the year they died. The country is where the person worked last, not always where they were born. No scholar from Honduras or El Salvador beyond Ricardo Agurcia turned up yet with a source.

Na Bolom

Na Bolom, the Blom house in San Cristóbal de las Casas, was the home of Frans Blom and Gertrude Duby Blom. They met in 1943 and bought the house in 1950. When she died in 1993, she left it to the Asociación Cultural Na Bolom, which keeps her photo archive. Source

Na Bolom →

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