The Blood of Kings: A New Interpretation of Maya Art Author(s): Linda Schele and Mary Ellen Miller Source: Archaeology, Vol. 39, No. 3 (May/June 1986), pp. 60-63 Published by: Archaeological Institute of America Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/41730354 Accessed: 09-07-2015 15:41 UTC

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This content downloaded from 128.83.205.78 on Thu, 09 Jul 2015 15:41:15 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions ARCHAEOLOGY NEWS

The Blood of A New Kings: Interpretation of Art by Linda Schele and Mary Ellen Miller Maya Americanpublic has beenfas- rescuedfrom prehistoric oblivion their narycarved bone froma cache in Tem- cinatedby theancient Maya ever kings,titles, battles, and rituals.In the ple 11 foundin the 1930s.Joining these The since ConstantineRafinesque's past 25 yearsongoing archaeological in- piecesare stonereliefs, jades, shells,fig- speculationsabout their writing system vestigationand the deciphermentof urines,and paintedand carvedpottery appearedin theSaturday Evening Post theirhieroglyphics and imagerysystem vessels that have been chosenfor two in 1827 and JohnLloyd Stephensand have transformedour understanding of reasons.First, they are objects of ex- FrederickCatherwood published their Maya history.To emphasizethis new traordinaryquality that reach out dra- enormouslypopular travel account in awarenessof the Maya as a historical maticallyto themodern viewer; second, 1841.Flourishing in thetropical forests people,and in honorof the Sesquicen- each objectcarries cultural information of the Yucatanpeninsula between 150 tennialanniversary of Ifexas,the Kim- thatprovides a keyto thehistory, ritual b.c. and a.D. 900, the Maya wereseen bell Art Museum in Fort Worthhas lifeand worldview of the ancient Maya. by past researchersand the public as organizeda major exhibitionof Maya The new interpretationof Maya art illiteratefarmers who tendedmilpas of art called The Blood of Kings: a New presentedin theexhibit is based on the maize and aloof calendarpriests who Interpretationof Maya Art. pioneeringwork of Maya scholarsTati- watchedthe stars in an endlessprogres- For the firsttime, a majorpublic ex- ana Proskouriakoffand HeinrichBer- sionof time. hibitionof Maya artwill present objects lin, who provedin 1959 and 1960 that But in factthe Maya werethe first of unparalleledbeauty and refinement thecontents of the Maya inscriptions are Americansto havea writtenhistory that to reconstructnot only the personal his- historical.The processof decipherment torybut also the religiousand world thattheir discoveries began has acceler- viewsof the Maya. Theseobjects, which ated dramaticallyand is still in prog- span Maya culturalhistory from 900 ress today,yielding detailed dynastic B.c. to A.D. 900, are coveredwith im- historiesof the rulersof manymajor ageryand writingthat speak eloquently sites,such as PiedrasNegras, Quirigua, of a bygoneworld. It was a worldof ,, and . In ad- heroicdeeds of kingsand warriorsfor- dition,the demonstrationby Michael gottenby theirdescendants and lost to Coe ofYale Universitythat the mythol- worldhistory, but also of ritualsand ogyrecorded in the postconquest Quiche religiousbeliefs, many of which survive Maya Popul Vuhis also foundon pot- amongthe Maya oftoday. teryof the Classic Maya periodwas a The Blood of Kings includesover a significantstep towardunderstanding hundredobjects gathered from the great Maya imagery.Finally, recent excava- museumsof the United States, Great tions of Preclassic sites in the Maya Britain,the Netherlands, and Honduras. Lowlandshave foreveraltered our per- Almostall of the materialtaken to the ceptionof earlyMaya historyand the BritishMuseum by AlfredP. Maudslay, riseof civilizationin the region.In the includingall six Yaxchilanlintels and new understandingreaped from these most of the materialfrom Copan, now complementaryapproaches, the Maya, returnsto theAmericas for the first time whohad beenmuted by theirstatus as since the late nineteenthcentury. The a prehistoricalcivilization, have found a finestobjects excavated by Thomas voicethat speaks eloquently and power- Gannand givento theBritish Museum fullyto peopleof the twentieth century. and to the Museum of the American Indianin NewYork are also reunitedfor Maya imagery the firsttime. From the Rikjsmuseum Since the foremostproblem facing voorVolhenkunde in Leiden,the Nether- people unfamiliarwith Maya art is lands,the most famous Maya jade now simplyto recognizeits imagery,the ex- known,the Leiden Plaque, has traveled hibitionis designedto helpvisitors un- withthe beautifullintel from La Pasa- derstandwhat they are seeing.Objects dita, a subsidiarysite across the Usa- aredocumented so thateach builds upon macinta River fromYaxchilan. The the understandingof the other,culmi- InstitutoHondureno de Antropologiae natingin whatwill be a dramaticand Historiahas loanedthe central ballcourt enlighteningjourney into the worldof markerfrom Copan and an extraordi- the ancientMaya. The exhibitionis or- ganizedinto eight themes concerned with ThisMaya kingof the Late Classicperiod the most importantrituals and events wearsa specialwarrior costume in cere- in the lives of Maya rulers.The first moniescelebrating the end of the katun, a theme,"The RoyalPerson," focuses on 20-yearperiod of the . the sacred costumesof kings and the

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This content downloaded from 128.83.205.78 on Thu, 09 Jul 2015 15:41:15 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions (Left)The lord with a penitent'srope 11, the great architecturalmonument self-sacrificethrough penis and tongue aroundhis neckcuts his penis in the of Yax-Pac, one of the last kings of mutilation.The functionof this ritual bloodlettingrite central to Maya religious Copan. The theme begins with three was twofold:to achievevisions, sym- thought. Height , 19 centimeters.(Center) Middle Preclassicbowls of Olmec de- bolizedas greatrearing serpents, that Thisgreenstone Late Preclassicmask of signfound in burialsat Copan datedat tothe Maya were the means of contacting a god was notdesigned to be worn.The 900 b.c. These early bowls are joined thegods and theancestral dead, and to eyeswere once inlaid , probablywith shell by an Olmecpectoral from Dumbarton nourishthe gods so thatthey might con- and obsidianpupils. Height , 32.2centi- Oaks,recarved around 50 B.c. bya Late tinue to sustainthe universe.Two se- meters.(Right) In a bloodlettingrite, PreclassicMaya rulerto display him- ries of lintelsfrom Yaxchilan - Shield- Lady Xoc, wifeof Shield- Jaguar, pulls a selfin a seatedportrait together with a Jaguar'sLintels 24 and 25 and Bird- thorn-linedrope through her mutilated text recordinghis accession as ruler. Jaguar'sLintels 15, 16,and 17,all from tongue. This inscriptionis the earliest deci- the BritishMuseum - are featuredin pheredaccession text knownin Preco- this theme.Preserved in magnificent objectsthey used in rituals.By seeing lumbian American.The magnificent condition,Lintels 24 and 25, like the the actual elementsof costume- such Leiden Plaque, whichrecords the sec- Leiden Plaque, are widelyadmired as as earflares,pectorals, belts, masks, and ondknown accession and the third oldest greatmasterpieces of the Maya art.The necklaces-the visitor becomes familiar LowlandMaya date(a.D. 320),was once HaubergStela, now the earliestdated withthe Maya sense of wealth and beauty partof the royal belt of an EarlyClassic Lowland stela known(a.D. 199), also andlearns to see theobjects that appear Maya ruler.Finally, the cosmologyof depictsthe same vision rite, demonstrat- in the paintedand carved imageryof accessionand the functionof kingship ingthat bloodletting was thefirst ritual Maya art. The functionof these cos- in Maya thoughtare exploredthrough to havebeen portrayed in publicart by tumeelements and ritualobjects was the symbolismof Tfemple11, dedicated theLowland Maya. In thesame section is notmerely decorative: they also encoded by Yax-Pacat Copan in a.D. 775. an unusualcarved bowl from San Agustin crucial informationabout the people The thirdtheme, "Courtly Life," ex- Acasacuastlan (loaned by the Muse- whoused them- theirstatus, privilege, ploresthe activitiesof the Maya court um of the AmericanIndian, New York religiousintent, and politicalfunction. and the interactionsof the king with City),an EarlyClassic bowl that shows Amongthe objectsin "The Royal Per- his peers and subordinates,especially theSun God creating the cosmos through son" sectionare a reliefpanel of an El the rankof cahal, the equivalentof a the visionrite. Equally impressivefor Cayo womanfrom the ClevelandMu- territorialgovernor. Piedras Negras Lin- its aestheticrefinement and its cultural seumof Art; an extraordinaryfigurine tel 2, fromthe PeabodyMuseum of Ar- messageis a Late Preclassicstone mug of a Late Classic rulerdressed in an chaeologyand Ethnology,depicts young fromDumbarton Oaks depictingtwo Vi- elaborateroyal costume from the Kimbell lords who came fromBonampak and sion Serpents undulatingacross its Art Museum; a huge jade JesterGod Yaxchilanto participatein a ritualcon- outersurface. An exceptionalfigurine fromthe Utah Museumof Fine Arts;a ductedby Ruler2 at PiedrasNegras. A loanedby the American Museum of Nat- Late Preclassicjade maskthat had lain seriesof figurines illustrates some of the ural Historydepicts a Maya noble in unrecognizedin thevaults of the British domesticactivities of women,such as theact ofpenis mutilation. Museumsince the late nineteenthcen- weaving,and severalworks feature the The fifththeme, "War and Captive tury;and fromDumbarton Oaks, a very patrongods and activitiesof scribes. Sacrifice,"concentrates on the sacrifice earlyjade celt that was once part of a Maize agricultureis celebratedby the of captivestaken in battleand on the royalbelt. beautifulYoung Maize God fromCopan state of war that existed constantly In "Kingshipand the Rite of Acces- Temple22, nowin thecollections of the amongmany Maya cities.The modern sion,"the second theme, the institution BritishMuseum. myththat the Maya werea peace-loving, of kingship,is exploredfrom the earli- "Bloodlettingand the VisionQuest," gentlepeople who only tended their mil- estappearance of stratified society in the is, perhaps,the most exotic of the eight pas and followedthe stars has fallen Copan Valley(ca. 900 B.c.) to Temple themes,since it investigatesthe roleof witha thunderouscrash. On Yaxchilan

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This content downloaded from 128.83.205.78 on Thu, 09 Jul 2015 15:41:15 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions (Left)A shroudedman sits on a scaffold Lintel 16 Bird-Jaguar is shownstand- Maya metaphorof deathwas couched chairabove the bowl that will collect his ing overa battlecaptive; on Lintel41 in the mythsof the Hero Twins'con- blood. His faceis markedwith the image he preparesfor the battlein whichhe frontationwith the Lords of Xibalba, ofa humanskull, perhaps in preparation willtake his captiveJeweled-Skull, who theirname for "hell." The journeyafter forabattle. Height, 15.4 centimeters. was made famousby Proskouriakoff's deathis tracedfrom the initial fall into (Center)The polychrome ceramic vase studyof Yaxchilan history. Both lintels the Underworldto the confrontation depictsthe ball game, a sportplayed by come fromthe BritishMuseum to ad- withthe Lord of Death. One of the most mostof the societies of ancient Meso - join a wall panel fromthe KimbellArt outstandingobjects in theexhibition is america.Height, 20.5 centimeters. Museumthat shows a cahal,who ruled an eccentricflint from the Dallas Mu- (Right)The lid of this Early Classic the subordinatesite of Laxtunichfor seum of Art, depictingthe fallat the footedbowl, of terracotta with poly- Shield-JaguarII (Bird-Jaguar's son), instantof death as the dive of the Ce- chrome,is in theshape of a cormorant. preparingto disposeof captives brought lestial Monsterinto the Underworld beforehim by his Ah Kin. Figurinesof withthe soul of the deceased on its back. warriorshave been chosento showdif- A numberof objectsdepict the- smelly ferentkinds of battle gear and thoseof inhabitantsof Xibalba, including a three- captivesto demonstratein devastatingly dimensionaldepiction of the God of Zero realisticdetail the horrifyingfate of froma Copan temple,loaned by the thosetaken in battle. ClevelandMuseum of Art. Maya poly- The "Ballgame,"the subject of the chromepottery showing the Hero Twins sixth theme,was both a sport and a confrontingthe Lords of Death was reg- ritualactivity of great importancein ularlyincluded in burials,perhaps to whichcaptives of the highest ranks, usu- give guidance to the deceased as he ally kings,were sacrificed. The famous began his journeyto the Underworld. centermarker from the Copan ballcourt, The mostbeautiful and famedof these whichcomes from Honduras, shows, for vessels is the codex-stylepot fromthe example, 18-Rabbit, the Copan ruler Art Museum of PrincetonUniversity capturedby Cauac-Skyof Quirigua,as showingtwo scenes- God L in his Pal- theball in playbetween Hun-Ahau, one ace withfive loving ladies and a rabbit of the Hero Twinsof Popol Vuh fame, scribe,and thesacrifice of the bystander and a lordof the Underworld,the God bythe Hero Twins. Another codex-style of the NumberZero. Otherobjects de- pot,from the MetropolitanMuseum of pict the ballgamebeing played against Art,depicts the sacrificialdance of the stairsrather than in ballcourts,and the Hero Twins beforea Death God. A use of portablecourt markers so that carvedpot fromthe KimbellArt Mu- thegame could be playedanywhere. seumshows a conversationbetween the Hero Twins just beforeor afterthey The Maya way of death dancedfor the Lords of Death. "Death and the Journeythrough The finaltheme, "Cosmos and King- Xibalba," the sevenththeme, investi- ship,"examines the interaction between gates Maya beliefsabout death. The Maya definitionsof the cosmos, the in- stitutionof kingship, the function of rit- Thiscaptive, eviscerated and scalped,is ual, and the imageryplaced on ritual about to be burnedalive in thesacrificial objects.The themefocuses on an excep- ritualthat was thefate of those taken pris- tionalincised drawing executed on a cy- onerin battle.Height, 13.6 centimeters. lindricalvessel loaned by theAmerican

This content downloaded from 128.83.205.78 on Thu, 09 Jul 2015 15:41:15 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions (Above)This bone is carvedwith the intoindividual entries but, in thespirit (Above)This Late Classicstone head imageof the ruler Xac-Pac> who is named of the exhibition,it examinesin detail ofthe God ofZero was once part of the in thetext below, being attended by a the beliefsand historyof the Maya as architecturalstructure of a building. youngwoman , probably his wife.(Above, theywere recorded in art. Heighty 102.7 centimeters. right)The famous Leiden plaque is a jade The Blood of Kings bringstogether celtshowing a Maya kingon hisacces- manyof the mostfamous Maya art ob- sionday standing before a sacrificialvic- jects known,in one ofthe most extraor- tim.21.7 by8.6 centimeters. dinaryassemblages of Maya artever to be madeavailable outside of and Museumof NaturalHistory. Too com- .These objectscan be appre- plex and shallowto be perceivedeasily ciatedfor their power and beautyalone, bya humanviewer, the image addresses but moreimportant, we hope visitors thegods and transformsa mundane clay willleave the exhibitionwith the reali- containerinto a sacredobject through zationthat Shield-Jaguar, Bird- J aguar, whichthe power of the bloodletting rite Pacai, Yax-Pac,and the otherkings of was focused.The sceneportrays the vi- Maya historyare to theNew World what sionexperience as it happened,not from Alexander,Tutankamen and Qin Shi theviewpoint of the humans participat- Huangdiare to theOld World.The writ- ing in the ritual,but as it occurredin ten historyof the Americasbegins not sacred space. The is in 1492when Columbus "discovered" the shownsurging out of the Underworld New World,but in 50 b.c., when the to be announcedby a god calledUc-Zip, Maya began to recordthe historyof who blows on a conch trumpet.In a theirkings for their descendants. Some fortuitouscoincidence, the face of this ofthose kings projected that their names god is executedon the large end of a wouldbe rememberedat theend ofthe conch shell trumpetloaned fromthe thirteenthperiod of 400 yearsin their Edwin PearlmanCollection. The Hero calendar(the 13thbaktun), which will Twinsare incisedon the same trumpet, occur in our year 2012, only 26 years one twinholding a VisionSerpent that fromnow. The Blood ofKings willopen emergesfrom within the shell itself. An- on May 17, 1986 (or 12.18.13.0.3 11 otherconch trumpet from the Kimbell Akbal 16 Uo in the Maya way of reck- ArtMuseum displays the portrait of an oningtime), and perhapsit willpartially ancestorcalled back by the visionrite, fulfillthe aspirations of those long dead whoclosely resembles the famous float- kings by once again celebratingtheir ingfigures on theearly stelae at Tikal. namesand theirdeeds. TheBlood of Kings: Dynasty and Rit- Followingits premierein FortWorth, ual inMaya Art,the exhibition publica- TheBlood ofKings will be shownat the tion,is lavishlyillustrated with color ClevelandMuseum of Art from October photographsby Justin Kerr. Most of the 8 to December14, 1986.□ potterywill be publishedin both still and roll-outphotographs, and hundreds of detaileddrawings present explana- (Right)The clay figurine shows the Young tionsof the imagery and decipherments Moon Goddessengaging in loveplay with of the inscriptions.The text is not a oneof the toothless gods ofMaya cos- traditionaldescriptive catalog divided mology.

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