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THE JAGUARS of ALTAR Q, Copan, HONDURAS: FAUNAL ANALYSIS, ARCHAEOLOGY, and ECOLOGY

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THE JAGUARS of ALTAR Q, Copan, HONDURAS: FAUNAL ANALYSIS, ARCHAEOLOGY, and ECOLOGY \\inl~r:!:OlIO THE JAGUARS OF ALTAR Q, COpAN, HONDURAS: FAUNAL ANALYSIS, ARCHAEOLOGY, AND ECOLOGY DIANE1\. BALUNGER Ofllll/~ \/,4" Nor/II 7i.'.\n:' /-Im/lfl Cn)"c 51/.~klll Dq!IJrllllcJlI nf P1Iy:>icnl Mt'dicilll' rllld 1~1'I/Illlilill/ti(l1l LIT 501l1/1'1'1'~/1"'" Ml'diml emll'l" Dallll:', TX JI::f-:FREY STOM l'ER ColIl'S" (~r Lllkl' COIIIII.ll Gmy.~ll/kc, II \lJ~TR,\CI.-.\n l'\(",1\,II;ll(l ,11 COp,1I1, H"ndm'b, ,I I ,lk Cl.h~ie \1.1~.1 ~itl" 1\'1'''II,'d Ill<' rjlll,11 (",ldll' "I b'111l·... III ,II 11.',1,.1 (,IUrlv"n bi;.: (",11,. ,1",,,"cj,lh'd with \Iloll" Q <;\'I\'r,11 uf IhL' l.lf).~,. r,ll:> "erl' idel1liik,d ,1'" j,I~U.tr. ('Jlllthem 1!ll"1. I'n'l imlll;lry ,In<1l~ ,.i:- "hUII"'d th,ll !h~ ,111 illl,ll,. \\'~r,· 111 ~{'od 11<',11111 ,Il thl' Ii m..· o( lill'ir d,·,nh,.. All b,1! "Ill' \\"'r,' ,ldult". 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II \ .1 1111 j"\IIll' d lric/(' ;ldllll... d,lIh I'.l ....... vmhl,';.:;l·. L,'", \·I·nt,lil,. d,' 1,1 qu~'u,' d~' I.· ... oi,.,·<1U" .1 ,1("1I11p,I).';11L; I,·... "'~t1wnt" dl"~ ch,lt" ~r"nd ",....(I(IL;... ,11,·, I,' nypl d.e,.I"" .1I1iIl1l'.1l1'" il \ 0111 d'·I1.\ I'd;I,·... "llt"I"l",'I1l,'nb til' I" dt'll" ,,"'i,'I1 .... 111"1/ ,.1'. I.,.,. <lllll'lJr... 1lllleonrlll" '1"t' Ct· Il'd,'"! 1-',,,,, I",,.,.ibk· 1'1)111' I,· l.l;.:;lIolr,. fin' "btilll'r d.llh k \",1 II.·l' ek C, '1',111 ~,.He~· 'Il"" ,I,· ... (I 'lIt f.l int,·... d'!.'n\"in '11111111'Il!. 224 BALLINGER and STOMPER Vol. 20, No.2 INTRODUCTION The discovery of an offertory cache of feline bones yielded an exciting glimpse of ancient Maya ritual behavior to archaeologists. Feline bones fmed the masonry crypt to the east of Altar Q at Copan, Honduras, an altar whose sides bear high relief portraits of the sixtccn ruters of Copan's Classic Period dynasty. The cache at the foot of Allar Q contained the remains of at least fourteen large felines, two macaws, and the tail fans of seven other birds. This is a report of the discovery and preliminary analysis of the offertory complex associated with Altar Q and Struc­ ture lQL 16 in the Acropolis area of the Main Group. Jeffrey Stamper, then a graduate student under the supervision of Dr. William Fash, the Director of the Copan Acropolis Archaeological Project instituted under the auspices of the government of Honduras, excavated the offertory complex in 1988. The offering consisted of a scaled crypt containing the remains of at least 14 large felines, including Pallthera onca, and macaws (Am sp.) associated with a stone altar on a low, round platform that was placed on the central axis of the western side of Structure 10L 16 in the Main Group at Copan. Until now, the evidence that large felines were involved in Maya ritual has consisted ofskeletons ofsingle animals and portions of skeletons of cats buried in ritual contexts (pohI1983, 1990). Landa (Tozzer 1941) discussed animal sacrifices stating that animals were used in rituals and were sacrificed. They were presented to the gods either alive or not, sometimes dismembered but also whole (Tozzer 1941). The cache at Copan is the largest cache of felid,\(' bones discovered by Maya archaeologists to date. JAGUAR SYMBOLISM Maya art and iconography are rich with depictions of jaguars. The same is true of other Mesoamerican civilizations. Copan, Palenque, Uxmal, and Ttkal are among the lowland Maya sites where jaguars are featured prominently (Morley, Brainerd, and Sharer 1983; Spinden 1975; Toner and Glover 1910). Spinden (1975) considered them second only to the snake in symbolic importance to the Maya. Cae (1972) pointed out the links between rulers and jaguars and the separation of king and commoner in native Mesoamerican religions. He further remarked on the antiquity of the jaguar as il religious icon and its ties to Mesoamerican reli­ gions and the ruling lineage (Cae 1972). Images of jaguars frequently decorate ceramics recovered from Maya sites, appearing on a variety of vessels. On these, men often wear clothes with jaguar markings or jaguar pelts (Spinden 1975: 149). Many times jaguar symbolism is part ofa ritual or religious context on vessels, such as one from Altar deSacrificios. On this vessel, the ruler ofYaxchilan is dressed in jaguar skin trousers, milts made of jaguar paws complete with claws, and a jaguar headdress. A second figure in jaguar regalia is near that has the arms, hands, tail and feet of the jaguar on a human body (Saunders 1989: 146). The jaguarepitomized two different kinds of strength to the Maya. The jaguar motif was associated with the underworld and its supernatural power and also with physical strength. The association with physical strength derived from the Winter 2000 JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY 225 fact that jaguars arc powerful, nocturnal hunters. Ideas of the supernatural power of the jaguar arose from the early totemic tradition of Mesoamerica and the jaguar nagllal's (spiritual co~essence) relationship to the shaman's power. Possession of supernatural power and physical strength was important to Maya rulers because their political power rested on their ability to act as a priestly bridge between the ancestors, the underworld, and the living world (Schele and Freidel 1990). Maya artists juxtaposed rulers and warriors with jaguar symbolism in art. Strength and prowess of combat were required of both the ruler and the warrior but especially of the ruler. A fearsome beast of the tropical forest, the jaguar per­ sonified a dual symbolism: control ofthe supernatural, a necessary power for Maya kings, and the physical prowess needed by the successful warrior (Saunders 1989; Hassig 1985). Mesoamerican cultures from Dlmec to Aztec revered the jaguar. The Dime<: associated jaguars with shamanic power and filled their art with images of were· jaguars. TheAztecs linked the jaguar to war, sacrifice, and royalty (Saunders 1989: 150; Hassig 1985). Furthermore, they associated jaguars with jade, rain, and fertil­ ity (Sawlders 1989). At the time of the Spanish conquest, Aztec (Mexica) traders routinely transported pelts and live animals from outlying parts of the empire to the capital. Pictures of both live animals and pelts appear on trade and tribute lists of goods moving from Soconusco, the colonial province located on the coastal plain of the state of Chiapas, Mexico, to the Aztec Empire (Voorhies 1989). Relicts of this symbolism are found today in remote areas of Central America, Mexico, and South America. Jaguar symbolism is most visible in masks and cer­ emonies performed in isolated villages. Wearing a jaguar mask transforms the wearer into a new creature that combines animaL human, and supernatural quali­ ties (Saunders 1989). Thus, the jaguar is an ancient and potent symbol permeating native cultures of Mexico, Central, and South America. ARCHAEOLOGY As part of the first season'swork of the Copan Acropolis Archaeological Project, William Fash conducted preliminary investigations of Structure lOL-16 and the adjacent Plaza areas in 1988 (Fash 1991; Agl.lrcia, Stone and Stomper 1989).
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