The Daily ItemSALEM – Immerse yourself in “The Fiery Sea” now through July 18 at the Peabody Essex Museum.More than 90 pieces of artwork, many which have never been exhibited publicly, offer insight into more than 1,000 years of Mayan culture.Curators for the exhibit are Daniel Finamore, who is the Russell W. Knight Curator of Maritime Art The exhibit reveals and interprets the importance of water to the Maya. Supernatural crocodiles breathe forth rain and cosmic battles between mythical beasts and deities unfold in this exhibit.At the height of its achievement between 300 and 900 AD, the Maya civilization spanned across Mexico and Central America. Their culture was advanced in mathematics, astronomy, architecture and art. The Mayans practiced a complex religion and used a refined pictorial writing system composed of more than 800 glyphs. The glyph for the sea, which translates literally as fiery pool, was not identified until the late 1980’s and it held the key to understanding the importance of the sea to the Maya.”Everywhere we went in Mexico and Central America, we consulted with Maya specialists, sharing with them our theory that the sea and water were actually central to the Maya, even those who lived far inland. Many artistic motifs actually called this out but no one recognized it before,” Finamore said. “These conversations inspired people to show us things that they otherwise wouldn’t have, objects recently excavated and never published that might fit the theme.”PEM Curator Lynda Roscoe Hartigan said the exhibit expands our understanding of the Maya.”Fiery Pool is revelatory on two important levels,” she said. “Its new interpretation moves us far beyond traditional views of the Maya as a land-based civilization. The show also reminds us that we are connected with an ancient, and yet still existing, civilization through the essential element of water.”The Peabody Essex Museum presents art and culture from New England and around the world. The museum campus features numerous parks, period gardens and 24 historic properties, including Yin Yu Tang, a 200-year-old house that is the only example of Chinese domestic architecture on display in the United States.If You Go?Museum admission is $15 for adults, $13 for seniors and $11 for students. Additional information is available at www.pem.org or by calling 978-745-9500.