Augustus Le Plongeon

Augustus Le Plongeon (1825-1908) was an archaeologist who was the first to excavate the Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza in Yucatán, Central America. He wrote a lengthy history of Mayan culture, going so far as to propose a theory that Mayans had founded Ancient Egypt, a theory which has since been discredited by the scientific community.

Theories and later career

By the 1880s, while other Mayanists fully accepted that the Maya post-dated Egypt, Le Plongeon refused to yield to the new findings. He stood by his years of field and archival studies, and challenged those he considered "armchair" archaeologists to debate the issues. But the chronology and evidence against cultural diffusion was overwhelming, and he very quickly found himself ignored, his theories condemned to the fringe of the new profession.

Related Topics:
1880s - Chronology - Cultural diffusion

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He was never fully recognized for his work in the Yucatán, but his over five hundred photos still remain an important contribution to American archaeology. Augustus spent the remainder of his life in Brooklyn, New York, writing about the connections between Maya and Egypt and defending himself against detractors. Augustus Le Plongeon died in Brooklyn in 1908 at the age of eighty-three; Alice followed in 1910 at the age of fifty-nine.

Related Topics:
Brooklyn, New York - 1908 - 1910

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