ThePARIJournal A quarterly publication of the Ancient Cultures Institute Volume XVI, No. 2, Fall 2015 In This Issue: For Love of the Game: For Love of the The Ballplayer Panels of Tipan Chen Uitz Game: The Ballplayer Panels of in Light of Late Classic Athletic Hegemony Tipan Chen Uitz in Light of Late Classic CHRISTOPHE HELMKE Athletic Hegemony University of Copenhagen by CHRISTOPHER R. ANDRES Christophe Helmke Michigan State University Christopher R. Andres Shawn G. Morton and SHAWN G. MORTON University of Calgary Gabriel D. Wrobel PAGES 1-30 GABRIEL D. WROBEL Michigan State University • The Maya Goddess One of the principal motifs of ancient Maya ballplayers are found preferentially at of Painting, iconography concerns the ballgame that sites that show some kind of interconnec- Writing, and was practiced both locally and through- tion and a greater degree of affinity to the Decorated Textiles out Mesoamerica. The pervasiveness of kings of the Snake-head dynasty that had ballgame iconography in the Maya area its seat at Calakmul in the Late Classic (see by has been recognized for some time and Martin 2005). This then is the idea that is Timothy W. Knowlton has been the subject of several pioneering proposed in this paper, and by reviewing PAGES 31-41 and insightful studies, including those some salient examples from a selection • of Stephen Houston (1983), Linda Schele of sites in the Maya lowlands, we hope The Further and Mary Miller (1986:241-264), Nicholas to make it clear that the commemoration Adventures of Merle Hellmuth (1987), Mary Miller and Stephen of ballgame engagements wherein local (continued) Houston (1987; see also Miller 1989), rulers confront their overlord are charac- by Marvin Cohodas (1991), Linda Schele and teristic of the political rhetoric that was Merle Greene David Freidel (1991; see also Freidel et al. fostered by the vassals of the Snake-head Robertson 1993:337-391), and Jeff Kowalski (1989; see kings. The basis of such rhetoric stems also Kowalski and Fash 1991) to name a from what we might call the “athletic he- PAGES 42-44 few. Considering the number of ballcourts gemonism” of the Snake-head kings, much known throughout the Maya area, as well akin to the performance of hegemons in Marc Zender Editor as the many material correlates of the the Olympic games of ancient Greece or [email protected] ballgame, including stone effigies of the the more eccentric and hubristic Roman protective gear worn by ballplayers (e.g., emperors who performed as gladiators Joel Skidmore Shook and Marquis 1996), it is clear that (e.g., Scarre 1995; Golden 1998; Kyle 2007). Associate Editor the ballgame was of paramount impor- The predilection of these monuments to [email protected] tance to the pageantry, rituals, and public commemorate ties of vassalage and fealty performance of ancient Maya rulers. As finds some support in the composition as The PARI Journal 202 Edgewood Avenue such, the number of representations of well as the pairing of text and image on San Francisco, CA 94117 the ballgame in iconography should come the panels of Tipan, which we will de- 415-664-8889 as no surprise (e.g., Schele and Miller scribe, below. To conclude, we discuss the [email protected] 1986:241-264; Boot 2014). In contextualis- possible connections that the ruling elite ing the newfound ballplayer panels of of Tipan once maintained with neighbor- Electronic version available at: Tipan Chen Uitz (Figure 1)—discovered ing polities, in particular Naranjo, and www.precolumbia.org/ during the 2015 season of excavations what these findings imply for patterns of pari/journal/1602 at the site—we came to the realization greater networks of allegiances with the that monuments depicting ballgames or Snake-head kings. Before this, however, ISSN 1531-5398 The PARI Journal 16(2):1-30 © 2015 Ancient Cultures Institute 1 Helmke et al. Ek Balam Oxpemul Calakmul El Palmar Uxul Naachtun Palenque La Corona El Peru Tikal Baking Pot Naranjo Tipan Chen Uitz Zapote Bobal Xunantunich Tonina Yaxchilan El Kinel El Reinado Ucanal Caracol Bonampak Dos Pilas Naj Tunich Cancuen Quirigua Copan Figure 1. Map of the Maya area showing the location of Tipan Chen Uitz and other archaeological sites mentioned in the text (courtesy of Precolumbia Mesoweb Press). 2 For Love of the Game Grid North Roaring Creek Works, Belize True North Central Belize Archaeological Survey Magnetic North CHAAC MOOL HA Base Map: E755(D.O.S.4499) Sheet 24 1 32’ Compiled from maps by C. Helmke, J. González, K. Andres, and S Morton Je’reftheel 33’ ? 59’ Drafted by S. Morton and C. Helmke, 2015 0 500 1000m Contour Inverval: 40m Surface Site (location proximate) Laberinto de 240 Cave Site (location secure) 240 Cave Site (location proximate) las Tarantulas 240 k e e r C 200 g Yaxteel Ahau n Kabul i Midnight Terror r a TCU s.10 o ? TCU s.09 R Junction Cave Mark’s Cave 280 TCU s.01 Twin Caves ? Coo Mac Cauac Che TCU s.11 Tunichil Mucnal TIPAN CHEN UITZ CAHAL UITZ NA Slate Altar YAXBE Cueva del Camino 240 Uayazba Kab Nak Beh TCU280 s.15 TCU s.18 TCU s.14 Yaxhal Tun ? 240 TCU s.17 TCU s.12 Box Chhichh TCU s.19 TCU s.13 Cunul Otot TCU s.16 200 Zaatal Haa Nal Homlil Actun Yan Can Hethel 280 Kan Bab Holol 400 Figure 2. The regional setting of Tipan Chen Uitz in the Roaring Creek Works, as the central hub of a network of causeways connecting to a variety of satellite sites (map by Shawn Morton and Christophe Helmke). we will present some background on the archaeologi- (Figure 2). In relation to modern settlements, the site of cal research that has been conducted at Tipan by the Tipan is located just 17 km south of Belmopan, the capital Central Belize Archaeological Survey (CBAS), as well as of Belize. Yet despite this proximity, the site was not for- information concerning the discovery and context of the mally reported to the authorities until 2009. Rumors of ballgame panels. the site’s existence were already heard in the area in 1999, but it took another decade before archaeologists sought Tipan Chen Uitz and the CBAS it out and located it (Andres et al. 2010). At that juncture, investigations at Tipan emerged as a major component The archaeological site of Tipan Chen Uitz is located of the CBAS project that since has investigated a series in the rugged karstic area known as the Roaring Creek of surface and cave sites in the area (e.g., Andres et al. Works, which is defined by the drainages of the Caves 2011a; Wrobel et al. 2012). Building upon the efforts of Branch to the east and the Roaring Creek to the west the Western Belize Regional Caves Project that operated 3 Helmke et al. 2 N 3 4 N D-6 D-7 D-11 D-2 D D-3 A-19 A-3 E-9 E-8 E-7 A-18 A-11 A-14 C-2 A-2 C-1 A-7 A-10 A-15 E E-3 A A-1 A-9 E-1 E-2 A-4 A-13 B-3 B-1 A-17 A-5 C WS-1 E-4 A-6 A-16 B C-3 F-3 C-5 B-2 F2 B-5 F-4 E-5 F-1 B-6 B-7 G B-11 F B-8 F-13 F-5 F-7 F-6 F-12 A-18 A-3 F-15 F-8 F-11 F-14 A-2 F-10 Mon. 4 A-7 Tipan Chen Uitz Mon. 3 Belize, C.A. A-1 Central Belize Archaeological Survey Map by Jason J. González Mon. 2 A-4 Mon. 1 0 100m A-5 SS A-17 Figure 3. The monumental epicenter of Tipan Chen Uitz. The inset A-6 provides a close-up of the axial stair of Str. A-1, with the find spots of the carved monuments indicated (map by Jason González; inset by Christophe Helmke and Christopher Andres). in the Roaring Creek Valley between 1997 and 2001 (e.g., central places, known also as minor centers and major Awe 1998, 1999; Awe and Helmke 1998, 2007; Conlon centers, respectively (Willey et al. 1965; Ashmore 1981; and Ehret 1999), members of the CBAS project have González and Howell 2011; Helmke and Awe 2012). subsequently expanded archaeological reconnaissance The civic-ceremonial center of Tipan Chen Uitz is in this understudied karstic zone, identifying a variety of particular relevance to our program of research, and of surface sites as well as caves and rockshelters that is estimated—based upon a variety of criteria, includ- were of clear importance to the region’s pre-Hispanic ing the number of buildings and their sizes, courtyard inhabitants (Awe and Helmke 2015; Awe et al. 1998; counts, the total surface area covered by monumental Helmke 2009; Helmke and Wrobel 2012; Morton 2010, architecture, and the range of building types pres- 2015; Wrobel et al. 2013). Surface sites recorded to date ent—to be among the five largest ancient Maya sites in range in size from so-called isolated housemounds, to Belize (Andres et al. 2014; González and Howell 2011). patio-focused residential clusters known as plazuelas, In addition to its size and architectural complexity, to large conglomerations of monumental architecture Tipan is distinguished by its connection to a number that can be classed as secondary centers and first-order of surrounding minor centers via an extensive system 4 For Love of the Game of causeways, or sacbeob as they are locally known in in particular, with examples reported from several sites Yukatek Maya (Figure 2).