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Ritual Practices: Ch'ulel "Soul" Glyph (Age and Origin Unknown)

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Ritual Practices: Ch'ulel "Soul" Glyph (Age and Origin Unknown)

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The Maya’s relationship with the past can be characterized in part by the concept of ch’ulel¸ a vital and everlasting ancestral essence believed to be contained in stelae and other ritual objects (such as incensarios) that connected the Maya to their ancestors during ritual events. Ch’ulel is considered an extra-somatic energy—existing as a spiritual force that is essential for life, emotion, and memory—but also residing in the heart of an individual. If parts of the ch’ulel are missing, it is believed that sickness will occur as a result (Cecil and Pugh, 2018). Ch’ulel is also present in the belief system of the contemporary Maya; for instance, Maya in Santiago Atitlán, Guatemala, perform a deer and jaguar dance to honor the mythical deities and ancestral spirits, the latter of which are believed to live on in the blood of their descendants (Cecil and Pugh, 2018).

The glyph for ch’ul, or k’ul, is pictured; it is derived from the previously discussed form ch’ulel and can also be stylized as ch’ujul, k’ujul, ch’uhul, k’uhul. Although the original ch’ulel has broad religious synonyms such as “soul”, “holiness”, “divinity”, and “spirituality”, the ch’ul derivatives are more explicit: “sacred”, “holy”, “divine”. The six circular components that comprise the main structure of the glyph are, based on the ritual essence of the ch’ulel, believed to represent drops of blood, water, or incense pellets (Montgomery). It is possible that they also represent jade beads. It is intriguing to note that the ability to invoke ch’ulel does not appear limited to divine rulers or the Maya elite, as other religious rites may have been—instead, the ability to honor one’s ancestors through ritual appears to have transcended notions of wealth and class, demonstrating a shared religious worldview across diverse social strata.

Image retrieved from: http://research.famsi.org/montgomery_dictionary/mt_entry.php?id=197&lsearch=ch%27&search=

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Dance: Yaxchilan Stela 11 Drawn by Linda Schele June 4, 746 AD

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Dance: Yaxchilan Stela 11 Drawn by Linda Schele June 4, 746 AD

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The text that is whited out at the bottom of the image records a dance by the father of Bird Jaguar IV, Itzamnah B’ahlam II (Looper, 2009). He ruled Yaxchilan from 681 to 741. The ancient king holds a flapstaff in his right hand while facing his son. The flapstaff a staff made of wood that has a cloth tied along its length, The cloth is decorated with woven designs and flapped openings cut in the Maya “wind” sign (Grube, 1992). It is associated with the summer solstice dates and the name of the flagstaff is spelled “ha-sa-wa CHAN” (Grube, 1992). This costume that is also worn during this dance highlights the role of the kind as a warrior.  The reverse side of this stela shows the Bird Jaguar dressed as the rain and lightning god Chahk (Looper, 2009). This ritual and dance shows the beginning of a transfer of power between father and son. It is seen that this Stela gathers inspiration from other Stelae that have happened prior to this but it is first to see a pair of performers instead of a singular one (Looper, 2009). These were installed inside each of the main three doorways, the number “three” being significant because of the triad of patron gods at Palenque (Looper, 2009). Also a triad of sacred hearthstones and the tripartite cosmos, divided into sky, earth and underworld (Looper, 2009).
Image from: http://ancientamericas.org/collection/aa010608

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Dance: Musician Figural Whistle, Guatemala Dancer (600/800 AD)

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Dance: Musician Figural Whistle, Guatemala Dancer (600/800 AD)

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From the late Classic period the image depicts a dance flute figure playing a drum that he is holding against his left shoulder (Taube, 2009). His attire is a loin cloth, rope work, leg bands and a plumed headdress. A flute produces wind which is very important in Maya culture since not only does it carry music, but it also is the vehicle for rain clouds. In the cycle of maize as it is very important for the rains to come otherwise there will not be an abundance of food (Taube, 2009). This can be a homage to a figure that dances and plays music for a rain bringing performance. The striking of the drum may denote thunder which further exemplifies the reasoning for it to be a rain bringing performance. It is analogized as music made from a cosmic scale since the drums represent thunder. It can be seen as the performance is to bring about storms in benefit of the fields. With the combination of the flute and the drums, the wind brings in the storms, and the storms are strong enough to cause lightning which in turn creates the thunderous sound (Taube, 2009).
Image from: https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/dancer-musician-figural-whistle-maya-culture-guatemala-highlands/uAEI3ESb6SgO3g

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Communicating Object : Censer Stand with the Head of the Jaguar God of the Underworld Pre Columbian. A.D. 690-720 - Chiapas, Mexico

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Communicating Object : Censer Stand with the Head of the Jaguar God of the Underworld Pre Columbian. A.D. 690-720 - Chiapas, Mexico

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The ceramic free standing censer from Palenque depicts the head of the jaguar god of the underworld, and the bottom head decipicts a maize god head. The censor tubular shape represents a symbolic movement through the cosmos. Within ancient Maya ideologies exists the cosmovision, which refers to a worldview of forces and stories associated with ancestors who created and in which the possibility for renewal and maintenance depends on. “The Mesoamerican worldviews included a strong sense of parallelism between the celestial, supernatural forces of the cosmos, macrocosmos, and the biological, animal, social, and human patterns of life on earth microcosmos”(Carrasco, 2014, p. 15) The ceramic censer is from Palenque, an important ancient Maya city state. Censers were often used as an important element in ceremonial life and ritual paraphernalia, also used to regard great respect and represent divine beings. In other words, ceramic censers were vital objects that connected communities to beings. “The makeup of Mesoamerican nonhumans does not fit our Western concepts of gods, deities, demons, and ghosts existing in other worlds or dimensions, passing through supernatural portals into the natural world”(Astro-Aguilera, 2009, p. 175). Even though the act of worshiping requires respect, Maya respectful veneration cannot be correctly labeled as worship that meets Western definitions. The Maya worldview involved not only constant communication with ancestral beings, but a specific view of the living and the concept of death that is very different from Western views. In fact “evidence that an individual’s life continued is found in Maya monumental art, in burials, and in the K’iche’ Mayan Popol Vuh . Death was no bar to the continuity of Classic Maya personhood. There is an abundance of Mesoamerican non humans interacting with humans”(Astro-Aguilera, 2009, p.162). Communicating objects, like ceramic censers, were not necessarily worshipped for representing a god, but rather represented an existing relationship of communication between beings.

Images from: https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/censer-stand-with-the-head-of-the-jaguar-god-of-the-underworld-precolumbian/pwEk0gt2jcQ6bA

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Drinking cup depicting the dancing maize god. Created 650-850 AD and found in Guatemala. It can be seen on this drinking cup a depiction of the dancing maize god. This cup was likely used to drink cocoa during times of abundance. It can be seen that the maize god is adorned in feathers showing that he is avian like. As stated earlier this brings them closer to likening themselves to be seen as celestial figures. This feathered dance garb was obtained by the god through the defeat of the Principal Bird deity (Taube, 2009). It can also be seen that there is a bird to the left of the god’s face which is something that is seen in each of the world trees in the Popol vuh. These constitute the early directional forms of Hunahpu. The bird next to the dancing god may symbolize the relation between growing corn to birds due to green maize leaves looking like the plumes of the male quetzal. The bird seems to be engaging in dance with the maize god and is part of the ritual that is going on. As with the vessel of the dancing lords it looks like there is a dwarf depicted in this drinking cup as well. Symbolizing a similar thing where they lead the soul of the maize god or the ruler to the domain of the dead and prepare them for resurrection back into the royal lineage (Taube, 2009). It is a common theme within these images that the dance goes hand in hand with being led to the domain of the dead. Once again following the life cycle that maize follows through its seasons.
Image from: https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/drinking-cup-depicting-the-dancing-maize-god/uwF2pp48giutSg

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Dance: Vessel of the dancing lords, (750/800 AD), Found in the Vicinity of Naranjo, Peten region, Guatemala

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Dance: Vessel of the dancing lords, (750/800 AD), Found in the Vicinity of Naranjo, Peten region, Guatemala

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This vessel follows the story of the Popol Vuh, in the notion that gods were able to succeed in creating human life out of maize. It follows the death and resurrection of the maize god which is likened to the life cycle of corn from a seed to the full stock. This depicts a Maya ruler in maize god garb. The ruler has a rack of feathers, heraldic beasts, and emblems. The feathers signify that they are partly avian and therefore connecting them to being celestial in their minds(Taube, 2009). Likened to the maize plants swaying in the wind, the god dances to the rhythm of the wind which can be likened to the rhythm of life (Taube, 2009). The rulers' dancing relates to their royal life and the beauty that comes with that lifestyle. It also shows their vast wealth and them being always in good health(Taube, 2009). To distinguish between different dances costumes and their objects were different(Grube 1992).The image also depicts a dwarf which is in the company of the ruler and in Maya culture they are viewed as beings that have a strong spiritual connection to the earth as well as the underworld. In this case it may be signifying that it is a rite of passage for the souls of the ones that have passed into the domain of the underworld. Identical to the life cycle of maize and how it sprouts again the cycle of nature, the souls of the royals will be reborn to once again take their rightful place within their lineage.
Image from: https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/vessel-of-the-dancing-lords/mQE0oNW4WX4PsA

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Ritual Practices: Spolia Architecture and Repurposed Stela 4 - Zacpeten, Guatemala, Terminal Classic Period (Age Unknown)

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Ritual Practices: Spolia Architecture and Repurposed Stela 4 - Zacpeten, Guatemala, Terminal Classic Period (Age Unknown)

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Spolia is a process that refers to the re-use or re-appropriation of older building materials in new construction; although this is most commonly noted in medieval Europe, the Maya engaged in spoliation during the late Classic and Postclassic periods. This was most notably achieved by constructing Postclassic buildings directly on top of existing Classic structures, particularly for ceremonial buildings or the residences of Maya elite. However, rather than building over the stone stelae, altars, and other sculptures, these Classic works were reset as stelae or built into the outward-facing walls of newly-constructed Postclassic structures. This use of Classic stelae and other glyphic works in Postclassic architecture was believed to represent an attempt to preserve the innate spiritual power (mana) that resided in the building (Cecil and Pugh, 2018). In contrast to offering ritual items in hidden caches, historical items reused through spolia were placed on display as a constant public reminder of the Maya’s indispensable relationship with the past.

The stela pictured (Structure 601, Stela 4) has been placed on its side and incorporated into a lower-terrace wall, an obvious example of repurposed building materials that defines the spolia method or architecture. The carving depicts a lone individual wearing a large headdress and feathered ornament, but further details have been lost to weathering. Shockingly, roughly 60% of the temples’ facing (outer surfaces) at Zacpeten are composed of stone that was reclaimed from Preclassic and Classic structures (Cecil and Pugh, 2018). Some geographic variation is also present in the methods used to repurpose older building materials: in Zacpeten and Topoxte (both part of the Kowoj region), monuments were placed in walls, as pictured; in Tayasal (belonging the Itza region), they were placed upright and used as standing stelae (Cecil and Pugh, 2018).

Image retrieved from: https://www.itzaarchaeology.com/zacpeten-structure-601/zacpeten-str-601-east-wall-stela-4-photo-timothy-pugh/

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This object is the royal belt ornament, it was found in Guatemala and it dates to (400/500 AD).

It is a jade ornament that is elegantly decorated. It was originally part of a royal costume that consisted of three of these ornaments. Jade is related to rulership, wealth, maize, and embodies the Maya conception of wind and the breath soul (Taube, 2005). One of the sides is the portrait of a Maya ruler who is dressed in a costume that would be worn during inauguration. The dark spots that can be seen on his face represent Hunahpu, one of the Hero Twins from the Popol Vuh. He is depicted wearing a jaguar skin shirt with a royal belt. There is a mask that references death as well. Chac the rain god is within this image as well, signifying part of the maize cycle of life which requires the rains to sprout and grow. The royals would likely be wearing this kind of garb during their  elaborate dances. The figure's headgear also incorporates a skull, jade beads, and a jester god mask. The jester god represents the avian aspect composed of the head of the Principal Bird deity (Taube, 2009). This is an example of how elaborate the costumes may get during the dancing rituals that the Maya elite would partake in. It is important to understand that it was a dance that only the elite would be able to partake in as they were seen as beings that were bestowed with that privilege. This privilege was bestowed by Hunahpu the original Maize god and they were following in his footsteps.

Image from: https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/royal-belt-ornament/GwGw5_aN6gCUNA

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Ritual Practices: Residential   Cache Offering - La Caldera, Belize, Late Classic Period (750-850 C.E.)

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Ritual Practices: Residential   Cache Offering - La Caldera, Belize, Late Classic Period (750-850 C.E.)

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The Maya placed offerings of ritual materials known as caches to consecrate physical spaces and imbue the locations with supernatural meaning. Caches typically included some form of vessel, such as a bowl, filled with prized objects such as pieces of flint and obsidian, obsidian blades, pieces of carved or polished jadeite, marine shells, and animal bone (Kunen et al., 2002). Overall, caches can belong to several related related categories: dedicatory, terminal, and burial. Although there is some discussion about whether Maya ritual caches are independent from items placed with bodies during burials, it is generally accepted that the use of ritual caches existed on an arbitrary continuum; small amounts of human bones are often found in caches that have not been used for primary burials.

Dedicatory caches were typically placed in a newly constructed building to confer sanctity to the structure; these often included whole, intact items and vessels such as vases. In contrast, terminal caches were placed to mark the abandonment or destruction of a structure; these offerings consisted of smashing or burning ritual objects and scattering the resulting pieces at the site. This process is believed to be representative of a cyclical process of life, death, decay, and rebirth (Kunen et al., 2002).

The current example reflects a dedicatory cache discovered under a residential structure at the Maya site of La Caldera (in northwestern Belize). The whole bone and shell objects pictured were discovered in a pit that had been carved into the bedrock foundation of a Late/Terminal Classic home (constructed between 750 and 850 C.E.). Along with other items not pictured, the bone needles, beads, and shell ornaments were arranged in a formation that invoked the four directions of the natural world, according to the Maya. The bedrock pit was also oriented in a manner that referenced the north and east, the first directions to be marked with tree growth in some versions of the Maya creation story (Kunen et al., 2002).

Image retrieved from: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/ancient-mesoamerica/article/abs/pits-and-bones-identifying-maya-ritual-behavior-in-the-archaeological-record/6C407EF68CB6985B99DA721CAA7E76B7 (requires academic login)

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Communicating Object: Head of Maize  God 715 CE - Honduras

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Communicating Object: Head of Maize  God 715 CE - Honduras

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This Maya sculpture is a head of the maize god made of volcanic tuff in the Late Classic Period, which once adorned a temple in Copan. Daily efforts for the Maya centered around cultivation, maize being an essential factor for the success and survival of Mesoamerican civilizations.

The stone head of the maize god is depicted as a beautiful young man with closed eyes and his long hair is similar to those of maize leaves. The importance of maize in Mesoamerica can simply not be overlooked, maize connects in various ways to the ancient worldview of the Maya and creation stories. “The earliest ruling institutions incorporated themes of cosmological order; sun, water, and maize deities; the agricultural cycle; and ancestor veneration”(Estrada-Belli, 2006, p. 57). The significance of the maize god is even more clearly represented through its connections to rulership, rulers were often portrayed evoking the maize god. In fact rulers in maize god costumes were “one of the most commonly impersonated beings in Classic Maya dance, with the sumptuous costumes of quetzal plumes and jade alluding to the verdant growth of the maize plant" (Taube 2001a: 306). Meaning that beliefs emphasized not only maize as an essential resource and the need of ceremonial practices to ensure successful cultivation, but successful communication to gods and supernatural beings. The reciprocal veneration of beings like the maize god can be used to examine the meaning of ancient artifacts associated with agricultural rituals. Therefore, the maize god artifacts were ritual objects that the Maya may have considered to be “live” objects. The significance of communicating objects can also be analyzed during a practice that was known as activation, where Maya priests would engage in “summoning and tethering particular non-corpororal beings into specific objects''(Astro-Aguilera, 2009, p. 173). Non-human entities, categorized as gods, were seen as pre-contact Maya ancestral beings who communicated with the living.

Image from:
https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/head-of-maize-god-unknown/pAHvPWe428-8ww

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Communicating Object:  Effigy Vessel 600/800 - Oaxaca, Mexico

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Communicating Object:  Effigy Vessel 600/800 - Oaxaca, Mexico

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This figure is thought to represent a Zapotec god, Cocijo, the figure holds a maize plant in both hands. The standing figure is from Oaxaca Mexico, a type of clay effigy vessel that holds offerings and is often placed in tombs. The Zapotec civilization associated Cocijo with rain and fertility, effigies are seen all over Mesoamerica as important artifacts with varying meanings to each region. The ancient worldviews and the importance of communicating objects were labeled as Maya gods by the Spaniards and directly associated with demons. Spain’s attempt to force Chritianity in Mesoamerica involved a successful widespread distorted narrative that falsely confirmed the use of communicating objects as “the Devil himself deceiving the Native Americas through their oracle”(Astro-Aguilera, 2009, p. 166). Mesoamerican worldviews are so far from Western ideologies that even till this day “scholars use the terms god and deity to describe the subjects of Maya worship, impersonation, and emulation, but these beings were not discrete, separate entities in the way we think of Greek or Roman gods”(Astro-Aguilera, 2009, p. 181). Therefore what we know as Maya gods were really known to the Maya as pre-contact Maya deities, and were “literally called ‘elder brother,’ ‘second brother,’ and ‘our grandmother”(Astro-Aguilera, 2009, p. 173). Understanding Mesoamerican beliefs and relationships with ancestors and ancestral-like nonhuman beings, such as the effigy vessel of Cocijo, was most likely seen as a ritual object concerning a concept of prosperity. Cocijo, labeled as the god of rain, is directly associated with maize god creating sustenance. They are known as forest lords who control the cornfields, and therefore a relationship with them is necessary for survival. The Mesoamerican cosmology can be described as beliefs in reciprocation with beings directly linked to agricultural cycles, revealing a relationship of dependency, where communication through things like objects is vital.

Image from:
https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/effigy-vessel-unknown/pwEsmSOn0fTyLw

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Communicating Object: Vasija  Effigie 0600/0900 -    Petén, Guatemala 

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Communicating Object: Vasija  Effigie 0600/0900 -    Petén, Guatemala 

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This artifact is categorized as a vessel and was found in the archaeological ruins of Uaxactun. The vessel depicts a character coming out, a winkle-shape vessel, that has features of an elderly man. The vessel is shaped in a shell-like shape, shells are often represented by Maya as associating to Earth, the Underworld, or death, but can also represent water, life, and birth. The effigy contains the face of an old man that has a polished red surface, contrasting the shiny orange vessel. The effigy vessel could possibly have belonged to a family, the old man representing a deceased family member. The Maya placed great importance in keeping constant connection with ancestors and centered their lives around relationships with ancestral beings through practices. The significance of communication was facilitated through varying methods, a popular one being objects associated with deceased family members or supernatural beings. “The ancient Maya had, and some of their descendants continued to have, a personal relationship with their living ancestors via communicating objects”(Astro-Aguilera, 2009, p. 160). These objects represented the idea of living ancestors, the relationships and ancestors were kept alive through practices that involved constant communication. The significance of communicating objects can further be examined through the ancient Maya ideologies of death, or life after death. In fact the boundaries between ancestors and the living are suggested to be permeable, boundaries can be best understood as porous and inseparable. A current event and practice that stems from this ancient Maya world view can be associated with the popular Day of the Dead in Mexico. A celebration known as Todos Santos by the Mixtec community is a ceremonial honoring that “reconfirms links with the supernatural world and ensures the existence of supportive contacts”( Bade, p. 18). These celebrations do not only nurture the identity of the community, but demonstrate traditional interactions with nonhumans via communicating objects.

Image from: https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/vasija-efigie-unknown/iQEoL6VALCkDyQ

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In ancient cultures around the world, divine kingship often emerged as societies transitioned from hunter-gatherers to settled agriculturalists (Johnson, 34). For the Maya, the maize plant served as the foundation of their culture. Maize was the “giving plant” and the very essence of life. The role of Maya leaders and kings was to act as an intermediary between the human community and the supernatural realm to ensure the abundance of harvests and to manage the wealth for the well-being of their society (Johnson, 35).

When Maya kings dressed as gods and spiritual beings during ritual performances, they assumed the Identities of these supernatural beings and were believed to even wield divine powers (Johnson, 35). The Maya believed that some deities, such as the Maize God, played a critical role during the creation of the cosmos. Kings defended their political sovereignty through these creation stories, such as the Popol Vuh, and religion would become the source political power.

We can see archaeological evidence for the relationship between Maya kings and the Maize God through numerous stelae found around the Maya area. One Example in this exhibit is the Copan Stela H. This stela dates back to the Late Classic Period and was discovered at the Copan Maya Ruin, located in Wester Honduras. This Maya site lays in the Copan Valley and functioned as the political, civil, and religious center of the area. This Stela depicts the Maya King, Waxaklahun Ubah K'awil, and describes him as having a relatively long and productive reign, however, little of him is known simply because his texts say so little of historical value. Most likely, his reign had little issues and the region prospered during his time, but nothing particularly noteworthy took place (Peabody Museum). The Stela depicts Waxaklahun Ubah K'awi as the Maize God.

Image from:
Heyworth, Robin. "The Stelae of Copán - An Evolution of Art & Religion." 20 Oct. 2016. Web. 20 Nov. 2020.

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Maya kings reigned over a cosmological domain comprising three vertical levels—the celestial upperworld, the earthly middle world, and the watery underworld.  Maya kings used architecture to replicate the topography of the universe.  This aided in reinstating a king’s right to rule by demonstrating that they had the powers over nature, since they could replicate the topography of the land. One prime example of this is, is the Pyramid of the Sun, located in Central Mexico at the Teotihuacan Ruins site.  The Pyramid of the Sun is a massive pyramid which reflects the landscape behind it. Teotihuacan is believed to have been founded c. 150 BC, and the city thrived for about 750 years.  Throughout the temple’s excavations many religious artifacts have been found, proving that the pyramid had religious importance for the city, such as many obsidian dolls (Millon, 376). The 1970’s excavation discovered an artificial, hand dug cave, which led to the center of the temple. Inside, the founding lineages were found, which reinstates the Teotihuacan’s Kings’ right to rule.

Image from:
Heyworth, Robin. "Teotihuacan's Pyramid of the Sun and The Orion Mystery." 23 Apr. 2018. Web. 21 Nov. 2020.

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Maya Kings even went as far as to create a union between time and kinship itself. In his article, “Time, Kingship, and the Maya Universe,” Simon Martin states, “By at least the Classic period the ideals and performance of rulership were fully integrated within the time-ordered universe. Each major station in the Long Count necessarily falls on the Sacred Round day called Ajaw "Lord," and rulers could depict themselves within the distinctive roundels of day-signs, making their role in personifying the day explicit. Among the traditional diviners who use the Sacred Round today, days are reverently referred to as "sir" and considered to be noble people,” (Martin, 20).  Thus, when we see the portrait of a ruler on a stone monument celebrating the end of a major cycle, we are seeing the very embodiment of time. Chronology was not something external to rulership; together they served as complementary dimensions of sacred authority. This further shows how divine Maya Kings really were. This image is a rendered drawing of the Sacred Round day 9 Ajaw. It is depicted as a portrait of a ruling Maya King which shows his embodiment of the day meaning “Lord,” like Martin describes.

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Communicating Object: Olmec stone mask 900 BC-400 BC Gulf Coast area, Mexico

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Communicating Object: Olmec stone mask 900 BC-400 BC Gulf Coast area, Mexico

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This mask is of serpentine, a dark green stone, that would have been made by skilled Olmec craftspeople using hand tools. This artifact is described as a mask that was worn as a pendant around the neck. The purpose of this artifact is thought to give a new identity, of either a god or an ancestor, to the wearer. In order to understand the importance of communicating objects in Mesoamerica, we must understand a history of ideologies that is very different from the Western’s view. The ancient world views of communication through objects was an archaic tradition that continued, and was vital, throughout different Mesoamerican periods. An example is the Maya, who kept close physical distance with ancestors by either having miniature shrines within a household or had them buried under house floors. We see the maintenance of strong relationships and a concept of remaining ever present, just like the Olmec’s with this mask and its meaning to the wearer, the “ancient Maya families, elite or non elite, centered their religious practices on the veneration of prominent ancestors”(Astor-Aguilera, 2009, p. 164). The constant emphasis of communicative relationships with ancestors was a practice that was completely misunderstood and distorted by the Spaniards, who quickly labeled it as idolatry. Despite the severe consequences of maintaining this practice, the Maya continued communication with descendants through various methods even after Spanish contact. Interestingly enough the head, like the Olmec stone mask, had a particular importance. The “carved images of heads represented the ongoing significance and presence of revered ancestors”(Astor-Aguilera, 2009, p. 169). Taking into consideration the Spanish presence in Mesoamerica, and the aggressive methods of forcing conversion to Christianity, keeping contact with ancestors was crucial to colonial Maya. Although whole cultures were largely centered on relationships with ancestral beings way before colonialism, to the colonial Maya it was of extreme significance during ongoing periods of attempted cultural destruction. Through objects with varying meanings to the owner and region, such as head figures, “ancestors retained vital connections with their living descendants”(Astor-Aguilera, 2009, p.168).

Image from: https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/olmec-stone-mask/uQFBUViHc0FK2Q

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In his book, “LIGHTNING SKY, RAIN, AND THE MAIZE GOD: The Ideology of Pre-Classic Maya Rulers at Cival, Peten, Guatemala,” Francisco Estrada-Belli explains how Late Pre-Classic monumental sculptures and murals provide metaphors for the ancestral patrons of the emerging dynasties. Estrada states how such artistic depictions provide an, “ideological program of the earliest ruling institutions, incorporating themes of cosmological order; sun, water, and maize deities; the agricultural cycle; and ancestor veneration,” (Estrada-Belli, 60). Maya kings, wearing jade ornaments and feathered headdresses representing different gods, offered sacrifices to the deities who governed the incoming time cycle (Kowalski). They did so to ensure good harvests and prosperity for the people they ruled. Such rituals were performed in large plazas within capital cities. By performing such rituals, Maya kings showed the people that their right to rule was supported by their ability to renew and maintain the divinely created order of time and space (Kowalski). This image is known as the Holmul Dancer, and it was a painting theme that was popular in Maya Art and dates back to c.675-750.

Image from:
http://users.misericordia.edu/davies/maya/dancers1.htm

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Divine Kingship: Connections to Ancestors and Social Inequality

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Divine Kingship: Connections to Ancestors and Social Inequality

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Ancient Maya lineages at all social levels created symbolic linkages to their ancestors in the form of funerary and other ritual practices, in order to maintain rights to the important resources that such linkages bestowed to the living (Walling, 523). These often could have been as simple as a household burial with few grave goods, to a large temple and plaza complexes with elaborate funerary architecture, genealogical inscriptions and monumental art, such as the Pyramid of the Sun, mentioned previously. People were buried beneath the floors of their houses, their mouths filled with food and a jade bead, accompanied by the things they loved while alive (Coe, 234). These funerary practices reflect a centuries long effort by the pre-Hispanic maya to legitimize their connection to the ancestors and preserve entitlements to land, water, and other forms of property (Walling, 524). Differential claims of association to ancestors resulted in unequal access to resources and social inequality within ancient Maya descent groups. This what aided early chiefs rise to kingship, they showed their family ties with creation stories such as the Popol Vuh.

These two images however, come from a common person’s household burial dating back to the Late Classic Period, and were excavated in Tikal.

Images from:
A. Haviland, .William"Prehistoric Settlement at Tikal, Guatemala" Expedition Magazine 7.3 (1965): n. pag. Expedition Magazine. Penn Museum, 1965 Web. 21 Nov 2020 <http://www.penn.museum/sites/expedition/?p=990>

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Ritual Practices: Effigy Incense Burner - Kaminaljuyú, Guatemala, Early Classic Period (200-500 C.E.)

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Ritual Practices: Effigy Incense Burner - Kaminaljuyú, Guatemala, Early Classic Period (200-500 C.E.)

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Incense burners, or incensarios, were commonly used in Maya ritual ceremonies. Most often, they have been found near altars, shrines, temples, and some high-ranking residential structures. Along with chants and invocations, the Maya burnt gums, copal (tree resin), and other organic materials to invoke or acknowledge the supernatural powers of ancestors and deities alike. Generally, incense burning was led by a ritual specialist; depending on the context, this individual could have been a divine ruler, a social elite, or the person who found the object, if it had been discarded by someone from an earlier date (Cecil and Pugh, 2018).

Although incensarios take many forms, effigy incense burners represent an especially intriguing aspect of ritual incense burning. Whereas more basic incensarios comprised small cups, bowls, and vases, effigy incense burners were created as physical manifestations of saints, deities, or other important figures, such as ancestors (Cecil and Pugh, 2018).

The effigy incensario pictured here was found at the city of Kaminaljuyú (located near to modern-day Guatemala City, Guatemala) and is believed to have been constructed between 200 and 500 C.E., during the Early Classic Period. The seated figure is split into upper and lower halves, and cutouts for smoke to be released can be seen in the eyes, mouth, and on top of the head of the figure. Although the identity of the person depicted is a mystery, they are heavily outfitted in intricately-carved jade jewelry, including ear spools, a necklace and pendant, and a floral headdress. The abundance of jade jewelry suggests that this ceramic piece was created after the likeness of an important ruler or deity.

Image retrieved from: https://sketchfab.com/3d-models/incensario-from-kaminaljuyu-2d7c6ee5446d4a219a4a80148512ccfb

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Ritual Practices: Lintel 24 Bloodletting Ritual Scene - Yaxchilán, Mexico, Late Classic Period (723-726 C.E.)

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Ritual Practices: Lintel 24 Bloodletting Ritual Scene - Yaxchilán, Mexico, Late Classic Period (723-726 C.E.)

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Limestone lintels such as the one pictured were often featured above the exterior doorways of Maya structures. This particular lintel, found in Yaxchilán (near modern day Chiapas, Mexico), depicts a bloodletting ritual. The scene features the king of Yaxchilán, Itzamnaaj Bahlen III (also known as Shield Jaguar the Great), and his wife, Lady K'ab'al Xook. Most intriguingly, Lady K'ab'al Xook is seen pulling what appears to be a thorned rope through a hole in her tongue, allowing blood to fall onto an open codex (books that contained the Maya’s written history).

Bloodletting was central to Maya religious practices beginning during the Late Preclassic period (roughly 400 B.C.E. to 250 C.E.) and beyond. In addition to other forms of religious offering-- such as ritual sacrifice, heart removal, and decapitation-- bloodletting was a prominent part of rulership and public rituals alike; dedication of life and blood to supernatural beings was used to ensure cosmic order, success in battle, rain for growing crops, and to dedicate architectural constructions (Munson et al., 2014; Stemp, 2016). During bloodletting rituals, the Maya cut and pierced their bodies, particularly the cheeks, lips, tongue, ears, arms, legs, and penis; this was achieved using a variety of objects such as bone shards, thorns, blades of obsidian or flint, and stingray spines (Munson et al., 2014; Stemp, 2016). For Maya rulers, bloodletting was also viewed as a divine duty; shedding blood followed examples found in the Maya creation story, the Popol Vuh, which reinforced the celestial likeness of Maya rulers and the supernatural deities.

Image retrieved from: https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/E_Am1923-Maud-4