In 2010, archaeologist David Stuart and colleagues ran into a painted chamber at Xultun, a Maya relic in modern-day Guatemala. Then the team noticed that the many mathematical and astronomical formulas appeared to be attributed to someone—an individual whose name has now been identified. In a paper published today in Antiquity, the research team reports the first-ever known Maya mathematician-astronomer, Saktahnwaax (“White-Chested Fox”), who likely lived around 800 CE. According to the paper, an inscription on the chamber’s wall read “so says Saktahnwaax,” which suggests that either the person themselves or someone else “signed” the work, attributing the formulas to Saktahnwaax. In addition to the purported scientist’s name, the team also shared a never-before-seen formula demonstrating the Maya’s “unique and elegant” understanding of time and astronomy, Stuart, of the University of Texas in Austin, told Gizmodo. Signature of a Maya mathematician-astronomer. On the right is a drawing by Stuart replicating the image. © Stuart et al., 2026 The Maya were “very keen observers of nature, and they were always looking at patterns and connections (like any scientist),” said Stuart, the paper’s first author. “This is the first named scientist from the pre-Columbian Americas. I think it’s incredibly important that the Maya be seen as a culture that was immersed in scientific inquiry and in a sophisticated way.”