Drawing by Frederick Catherwood of the Nunnery complex at Uxmal
The agents of the Catholic Church wrote detailed accounts of the Maya, in support of their efforts at evangelisation, and absorption of the Maya into the Spanish Empire.This was followed by various Spanish priests and colonial officials who left descriptions of ruins they visited in Yucatán and Central America.In 1839 American traveller and writer John Lloyd Stephens set out to visit a number of Maya sites with English architect and draftsman Frederick CatherwoodTheir illustrated accounts of the ruins sparked strong popular interest, and brought the Maya to the attention of the world.The later 19th century saw the recording and recovery of ethnohistoric accounts of the Maya, and the first steps in deciphering Maya hieroglyphs.