THE FIVE SUNS: A SACRED HISTORY OF MEXICO

 

58 minutes

Country: USA/Latin America

Year: 1996

Language: English

 

Overview:

The animator who created “Popol Vuh” has taken authentic images from ancient Maya ceramics and turned them into a retelling of the Maya creation myth. The story tells how Quetzalcoatl and Tezcatlipoca create heaven and earth, journey to the underworld to create humans and find sustenance for them, and finally create the sun and the moon.

 

Previewing Activities

  • What do you know about Mayan culture?
  • Most cultures or faiths have a creation story, have you heard the Mayan Creation story?
  • What have you heard about the Popol Vuh?

 

Post-viewing Activities

  • How many attempts did it take the “gods” before they worked together to create the earth?
  • How did the “gods” create humans, and where did they have to go to get what they needed?
  • Where was the food or corn hidden, and how did the people get it?

 

Class Projects

  • Make a collage of Mayan artwork related to creation and the Popol Vuh.

 

How to Borrow this Video:

The videos owned by the UNC-Duke Consortium in Latin American and Caribbean Studies are housed in the Outreach Office of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  They are lent free of charge.  For information on films and reservations, please visit http://isa.unc.edu/film/films_main.asp.