About the author
Martin Brennan is known for research connecting ancient monuments to astronomy and symbolic communication, working across Mesoamerican and Irish material. His book The Stones of Time: Calendars, Sundials, and Stone Chambers of Ancient Ireland, published by Inner Traditions in 1994, describes his study of the roughly five-thousand-year-old stone chambers and standing stones of pre-Celtic Ireland, including his observation, with a research partner, of a beam of light entering the central chamber at Newgrange at midwinter sunrise and illuminating a carved symbol. His other book, The Hidden Maya: A New Understanding of Maya Glyphs, published by Bear & Company in 1998, applies a comparative method, drawing on Plains Indian hand-sign communication, to propose readings of Maya inscriptions. Both books share an interest in decoding symbolic systems left by ancient cultures, treating archaeological sites and glyphs as encoded messages to be worked out rather than only studied as artifacts.
📖 Where to start with Martin Brennan
💬 What our editors say about Martin Brennan's books
“Brennan’s work is a rigorous examination of megalithic astronomy, appealing strictly to those with patience for dense observational analysis. It does NOT suit readers seeking mystical narratives or romanticized Druidic lore…”
Esoterica Books editorial team, Occult literature desk · on The Stones of Time: Calendars, Sundials, and Stone Chambers of Ancient Ireland (Original)
“Brennan’s methodology is undeniably bold, yet it may frustrate readers who demand strict peer-reviewed rigor or traditional epigraphic analysis. Scholars entrenched in mainstream Mayan studies will likely reject the comparative…”
Esoterica Books editorial team, Occult literature desk · on The Hidden Maya: A New Understanding of Maya Glyphs
