Popol Vuh

The Popol Vuh Museum is located on the campus of the Francisco Marroquin. Along with the Museo Ixchel one of the country’s most impressive museums is the Museo Popol Vuh which has an excellent collection of Maya artifacts and contemporary folk art. In 1997, the Popol Vuh Museum opened the doors to its new installations in the Cultural Complex of the Francisco Marroquín University, Here, more than 400 archaeological and colonial treasures are on permanent display. A visit to Museum is like a walk through time. The exhibit galleries are organized chronologically beginning with the preclassic, Classic and Postclassic periods of the ancient Maya, followed by the colonial era.

The introductory gallery which precedes the chronological exhibit provides an overview of Mesoamerica and displays temporary exhibits. Each of the four historical eras is introduced with information aboutthe events and developments that marked each period as well a map identifying important sites. The preclassic gallery contains the oldest portery pieces of the Museum's collection some of which date back more than 3,000 years. This area also features stone sculptures made in Guatemala's highlands and Southern Coast berween 300 B.C, and A.D. 250.

The largest area of the permanent exhibir is dedicated to the Classic period. It was during this time that the ancient Maya reached the pinnacle of their artistic sensibility and writing. The polychrome ceramics from this period, embellished with illustrative scenes, intricate decorative motifs and writing, are what most people readily identify ad representative of ancient Maya civilization. The Postclassic gallery features an exact replica of the Dresden Codex and the well-known collection of large and miniature funerary urns. The colonial room houses religious art, including detailed silver work, paintings and sculptured images of saints, which were all made in Guatemala during the XVII and XVIII centuries.

The Popol Vuh Museum is a private, nonprofit, scientific institution supported by its own funds and generous donations. Its objectives are to recover, preserve, investigate and exhibit samples of Guatemala´s rich artistic past. The Museum was founded by Jorge and Ella Castillo who 20 years ago donated most of the collection of archaeological and colonial pieces which today are the basis of the Popol Vuh Museum, Cince then, other private collectors have also made significant contributions.