Studies in Central American Picture-Writing First Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1879-80, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1881, pages 205-245

An earnest scholar sets out in the late‑nineteenth century to untangle the mysteries of the stone carvings that still whisper from the ruins of Copán, Palenque and other Central‑American sites. Drawing on the earlier excavations of John L. Stephens and the sparse clues left by the Maya themselves, he treats the glyphs as a cipher, hoping that the same logical steps used to crack secret codes might reveal their hidden meaning.

The study proceeds methodically: first confirming whether the inscriptions share a common language, then deciding if they read horizontally or vertically, and finally probing whether the symbols function phonetically, ideographically or in a mixed, rebus‑like fashion. Throughout, the author resists fashionable but unproven theories, insisting on cautious, evidence‑based conclusions. Richly illustrated plates compare signs from different sites, offering listeners a vivid visual guide to the puzzling marks.

For anyone fascinated by the early attempts to decode an ancient script, the work offers a clear, thoughtful glimpse into the painstaking process of scholarly deduction, set against the backdrop of the Maya world’s enduring art and architecture.