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The Conversation USA

For the ancient Maya, cracked mirrors were a path to the world beyond

  • Written by James L. Fitzsimmons, Professor of Anthropology, Middlebury
imageThe Maya used mirrors as channels for supernatural communication. In this image, a supernatural creature speaks into a cracked, black mirror.K2929 from the Justin Kerr Maya archive, Dumbarton Oaks, Trustees for Harvard University, Washington, D.C., CC BY-SA

Some people fear that breaking a mirror can lead to seven years of misfortune. The history...

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