This fascinating book reveals the history of how pre-Hispanic artifacts were smuggled into the United States and reconceptualized as works of art.

By the mid-twentieth century, ancient Mexican artifacts had undergone a striking transformation. Once dismissed as anthropological curiosities, sought after more for their ethnographic value than aesthetic merit, they had become prized artworks that were prominently displayed in major US museums, featured in advertisements and Hollywood films, and shown adorning the homes of celebrities.

At the center of this shift was Earl Stendahl, a savvy Los Angeles art dealer who played a pivotal role in shaping public and institutional perceptions of these objects. Through strategic marketing and a keen eye for opportunity, he repositioned these artifacts, selling them to an elite clientele that included movie stars, wealthy collectors, and museum curators. In doing so, he helped define a new canon of “ancient American art.”

Beneath this glamorous facade, however, lies a darker narrative of the looting, smuggling, and forgery that fueled this midcentury craze, exposing how the desire for authenticity and prestige often came at the expense of ethical collecting practices and cultural heritage. This book brings together art history, museum studies, and the politics of the antiquities trade, offering both a social history and a critical examination of how ancient Mexico’s past was sold in twentieth-century America.

This volume is published to accompany an exhibition on view at the Getty Research Institute at the Getty Center from June 23 to October 18, 2026.

Una exploración profunda de la historia, la autenticación y la relevancia moderna del Códice Maya de México, el libro más antiguo del continente americano.

Los antiguos escribas mayas registraban profecías y observaciones astronómicas en las páginas de libros pintados. Aunque la mayoría se perdieron por el desgaste del paso del tiempo o porque fueron destruidos, se sabía que tres códices mayas prehispánicos habían sobrevivido. Sin embargo, en la década de 1960 apareció en México, en circunstancias misteriosas, un cuarto libro diferente a los demás. Después de cincuenta años de debate sobre su autenticidad, investigaciones recientes con análisis científicos e histórico-artísticos de vanguardia, determinaron que el Códice Maya de México (antes conocido como Códice Grolier) es, de hecho, el libro más antiguo del continente americano: al menos doscientos años más antiguo que los demás.
 
Este volumen ofrece una introducción multifacética a la creación, el descubrimiento, la interpretación y la autenticación científica del Códice Maya de México. Además, un facsímil a todo color y una guía de la iconografía página por página hacen que un amplio público pueda acceder al códice. Otros temas incluyen los usos y la importancia de los libros sagrados en Mesoamérica, el papel de la astronomía en las antiguas sociedades mayas y la continua relevancia del códice para las comunidades mayas contemporáneas.
 
La publicación de este volumen acompaña la exposición que se exhibirá en el J. Paul Getty Museum ubicado en el Getty Center del 18 de octubre de 2022 al 15 de enero de 2023.

An in-depth exploration of the history, authentication, and modern relevance of Códice Maya de México, the oldest surviving book of the Americas.
 
Ancient Maya scribes recorded prophecies and astronomical observations on the pages of painted books. Although most were lost to decay or destruction, three pre-Hispanic Maya codices were known to have survived, when, in the 1960s, a fourth book that differed from the others appeared in Mexico under mysterious circumstances. After fifty years of debate over its authenticity, recent investigations using cutting-edge scientific and art historical analyses determined that Códice Maya de México (formerly known as Grolier Codex) is in fact the oldest surviving book of the Americas, predating all others by at least two hundred years.
 
This volume provides a multifaceted introduction to the creation, discovery, interpretation, and scientific authentication of Códice Maya de México. In addition, a full-color facsimile and a page-by-page guide to the iconography make the codex accessible to a wide audience. Additional topics include the uses and importance of sacred books in Mesoamerica, the role of astronomy in ancient Maya societies, and the codex's continued relevance to contemporary Maya communities.
 
This volume is published to accompany an exhibition on view at the J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Center from October 18, 2022, to January 15, 2023.
 

An in-depth exploration of the history, authentication, and modern relevance of Códice Maya de México, the oldest surviving book of the Americas.
 
Ancient Maya scribes recorded prophecies and astronomical observations on the pages of painted books. Although most were lost to decay or destruction, three pre-Hispanic Maya codices were known to have survived, when, in the 1960s, a fourth book that differed from the others appeared in Mexico under mysterious circumstances. After fifty years of debate over its authenticity, recent investigations using cutting-edge scientific and art historical analyses determined that Códice Maya de México (formerly known as Grolier Codex) is in fact the oldest surviving book of the Americas, predating all others by at least two hundred years.
 
This volume provides a multifaceted introduction to the creation, discovery, interpretation, and scientific authentication of Códice Maya de México. In addition, a full-color facsimile and a page-by-page guide to the iconography make the codex accessible to a wide audience. Additional topics include the uses and importance of sacred books in Mesoamerica, the role of astronomy in ancient Maya societies, and the codex's continued relevance to contemporary Maya communities.
 
This volume is published to accompany an exhibition on view at the J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Center from October 18, 2022, to January 15, 2023.

This abundantly illustrated volume is the first to explore the painted pottery of the ancient Greek, Moche, and Maya cultures side by side.

Satyrs and sphinxes, violent legumes, and a dancing maize deity figure in the stories painted on the pottery produced by the ancient Greek, Moche, and Maya cultures, respectively. Picture Worlds is the first book to examine the elaborately decorated terracotta vessels of these three distinct civilizations. Although the cultures were separated by space and time, they all employed pottery as a way to tell stories, explain the world, and illustrate core myths and beliefs. Each of these painted pots is a picture world. But why did these communities reach for pottery as a primary method of visual communication? How were the vessels produced and used? In this book, experts offer introductions to the civilizations, exploring these foundational questions and examining the painted imagery. Readers will be rewarded with a better understanding of each of these ancient societies, fascinating insights into their cultural commonalities and differences, and fresh perspectives on image making and storytelling, practices that remain vibrant to this day.

This volume is published to accompany an exhibition on view at the J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Villa from April 10 to July 29, 2024, and at the Michael C. Carlos Museum at Emory University from September 14 to December 15, 2024.