H. Braakhuis Artificers of the Days: Functions of the Howler Monkey Gods Among the Mayas
H. Braakhuis Artificers of the days: Functions of the howler monkey gods among the Mayas In: Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde 143 (1987), no: 1, Leiden, 25-53 This PDF-file was downloaded from http://www.kitlv-journals.nl Downloaded from Brill.com10/01/2021 08:43:37PM via free access H. E. M. BRAAKHUIS ARTIFICERS OF THE DAYS: FUNCTIONS OF THE HOWLER MONKEY GODS AMONG THE MAY AS* Car j'installe, par la science, L'hymne des coeurs spirituels En 1'oeuvre de ma patience, Atlas, herbiers et rituels. (Mallarmé, ProsepourDes Esseintes) 1. INTRODUCTION In his study entitled 'Supernatural Patrons of Maya Scribes and Artists', M. D. Coe has been able to establish that the gods Hun Batz and Hun Choven, 'One Howler Monkey' and 'One Artisan', repeatedly occur as the subjects of funerary vase representations, dating from the Late Classic period (600-900 A.D.) of Mayan civilization. An important sixteenth-century Quiché-Mayan source, the Popol Vuh, presents these deities as the malicious elder stepbrothers of its heroes, Hunahpu, 'One Blowgunner', and his companion Xbalanque. In accordance with some of their functions in the Popol Vuh, the simians, or figures substituted for them, are depicted in the acts of writing and carving. In 1981, the article of M. D. Coe was followed by a chapter on scribes in the catalogue raisonné of codex-style vase paintings published by F. Robicsek and D. M. Hales. Although adding quite a few pictures of Howler Monkeys and other writing and carving gods, the authors did not present any new points of view but stayed within the confines of Coe's earlier explanations.
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