Michele Bernatz explains Mayan beliefs in 2012 context
 Dr. Michele Bernatz |
In a talk entitled “2012: Ancient Mayan Prophecy or New-Age Hysteria?”, Assistant Professor of Art History Dr. Michele Bernatz will offer SUNY Fredonia a scholarly perspective on the doomsday scenarios currently hyped in mass media and examine whether these predictions have any basis in the reality of ancient Mayan thought.
This talk will be the first of the semester-long Department of Arts and Humanities Brown Bag Lecture series.
According to ancient Mayan inscriptions, December 2012 will bring the end of the 5,125-year cycle of the Mayan Long Count calendar, leading some to believe this date may mark either the beginning of a new era or the end of the world.
Dr. Bernatz will explore whether the Maya really did link such doomsday scenarios to the ending of their calendar by explaining how the Maya envisioned time and by summarizing the issues that trigger end-of-the-world predictions. Her talk will compare our modern-day understanding of planetary movements with the accuracy of Maya astronomy. She will conclude her talk with a review of contemporary concerns in relation to ancient predictions and suggest ways in which the Maya might have protected themselves from an impending doom.
This 30-minute presentation and discussion will take place on Wednesday, Feb. 3 at noon in Williams Center room S-104 and is free and open to all campus and community members. The program will be followed by refreshments.
Dr. Bernatz is an assistant professor of art history. She obtained her Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin and specializes in the study of Maya art and culture.
Stephen Komp, associate professor in the Department of Visual Arts and New Media, will introduce Dr. Bernatz.
For more information regarding this program or the Arts and Humanities Brown Bag Lecture Series, contact Series Director Natalie Gerber by email or by phone at 716-673-3855.
The Brown Bag Lectures, sponsored by the College of Arts and Humanities, feature new creative and scholarly work by SUNY Fredonia faculty and are held on the first Wednesday of the month, October through May. Each program is free and all campus and community members are welcome.
