DOCSLIB.ORG

CRÓNICAS Mesoamericanas Tomo I CRONICAS MESOAMERICANAS (TOMO I) © 2008 Universidad Mesoamericana ISBN: 978-99922-846-9-8 Primera Edición, 2008

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

CRÓNICAS MESOAMEricanas TOMO I CRONICAS MESOAMERICANAS (TOMO I) © 2008 Universidad Mesoamericana ISBN: 978-99922-846-9-8 Primera Edición, 2008 Consejo Directivo: Félix Javier Serrano Ursúa, Jorge Rubén Calderón González, Claudia María Hernández de Dighero, Carlos Enrique Chian Rodríguez, Ana Cristina Estrada Quintero, Luis Roberto Villalobos Quesada, Emilio Enrique Conde Goicolea. Editor: Horacio Cabezas Carcache. Traducción de textos mayas-quichés: Marlini Son, Candelaria Dominga López Ixcoy, Robert Carmack, James L. Mondloch, Ruud van Akkeren y Hugo Fidel Sacor. Revisor de estilo: Pedro Luis Alonso. Editorial responsable: Editorial Galería Guatemala. Consejo Editorial: Estuardo Cuestas Morales, Egemberto Alvergue Oliveros, Carlos Enrique Zea Flores, María Olga Granai de Zoller, Mario Estuardo Montes Granai. Diseño y diagramación: QUELSA. Ilustraciones en acuarela: Victor Manuel Aragón. Fotografía proporcionada por Fundación Herencia Cultural Guatemalteca, Fototeca de Justin Kerr de su catálogo Maya Vase Database y Fototeca de Fundación G&T Continental (páginas 119,134,140). Impresión: Tinta y Papel Derechos reservados. La reproducción total o parcial de esta obra sólo podrá hacerse con autorización escrita de la Universidad Mesoamericana. http://www.umes.edu.gt 40 Calle, 10-01, Zona 8, Guatemala, C. A. CRÓNICAS MESOAMEricanas TOMO I CONTENIDO PRÓLOGO 9 FÉLIX JAVIER SERRANO URSÚA INTRODUCCIÓN 11 HORACIO CABEZAS CARCACHE CÓDICES mayas Y MEXICANOS 17 TOMÁS BARRIENTOS Y MARION POPENOE DE HATCH Crónicas DE YAXKUKUL Y CHAC Xulub CHEN 31 ERNESTO VARGAS PACHECO CRÓNICA DE CHAC XULUB CHEN 44 TÍTULO DE LOS SEÑORES DE Sacapulas 59 RUUD VAN AKKEREN HISTORIA DE SU ORIGEN Y VENIDA DE SUS PADRES EN LAS TIERRAS DEL QUICHÉ. 78 PARTE I. FRAGMENTO QUIChé [K’iChe’] 88 TÍTULO DE CAGCOH [KAQKOJ] 93 ENNIO BOSSÚ TESTAMENTO Y TÍTULO DE LOS ANTECESORES DE 100 LOS SEÑORES DE CAGCOH SAN CRISTÓBAL VERAPAZ. HISTORIA QUICHÉ DE DON JUAN DE TORRES 107 J. DANIEL CONTRERAS HISTORIA QUIChé [K’iChe’] de DON JUAN DE TORRES 113 TESTAMENTO DE LOS XpanTzay 129 DE TECPÁN GUATEMALA MATILDE IVIC DE MONTERROSO TESTAMENTO DE LOS XPANTZAY 132 RABINAL ACHÍ O DANZA DEL TUN 141 HUGO FIDEL SACOR Q. RABINAL ACHÍ WEPU XAJOJ TUN 148 RABINAL ACHÍ O DANZA DEL TUN TÍTULO DE XILOTEPEQUE 155 HORACIO CABEZAS CARCACHE TRASUNTO DE UN TÍTULO DE LOS DEL PUEBLO 160 DE SAN MARTÍN XILOTEPEQUE LIENZO DE TLAXCALA 165 HORACIO CABEZAS CARCACHE BIBLIOgrafÍA 179 ÍNDICE ANALÍTICO 199 PRÓLOGO La obra Mesoamérica abrió la colección Estudios sobre los materiales que trabajan. Marlini Son y Candelaria Mesoamericanos, auspiciada por la Universidad Mesoamericana Dominga López Ixcoy actualizaron las versiones mayenses de las de Guatemala. Los especialistas en la materia le brindaron una crónicas indígenas, conforme a las normas de la Academia de acogida favorable por la visión panorámica que ofrece de la Lenguas Mayas de Guatemala, a excepción de los trabajos cultura mesoamericana. realizados por Robert Carmack, James L. Mondloch, Ruud van Proseguimos la tarea de investigación con dos volúmenes, Akkeren y Hugo Fidel Sacor. que denominamos Crónicas Mesoamericanas I y II. Dejamos Deseo agradecer al Consejo Directivo de la Universidad incluso abierta la posibilidad de continuación con otros estudios Mesoamericana, que ve con simpatía esta iniciativa y la apoya en sobre el mismo tema. Ambas publicaciones están dedicadas a todo sentido. Asimismo expreso mi gratitud a Horacio Cabezas, crónicas menores de Guatemala, que son las menos conocidas y que elaboró el proyecto y lo coordinó en su fase de investigación analizadas. Por eso el lector no encontrará en estas obras ningún y publicación. Mi reconocimiento a la Fundación G&T artículo específico sobre el Popol Vuh o El Memorial de Sololá. Continental, que acoge la obra entre sus publicaciones y al En la Introducción de Crónicas Mesoamericanas I, apoyo, interés y dedicación de su Directora Ejecutiva Thelma Horacio Cabezas, sintetiza los contenidos fundamentales que Castillo. Muchas gracias a Luis y Silvia Quel, que cuidaron la abordan estos escritos que son objeto de análisis: Tula y diagramación y siempre estuvieron disponibles y abiertos a migraciones, conquista del Altiplano y Costa Sur, dinastías cualquier sugerencia que pudiera mejorar la publicación; a gobernantes, tierras comunales, alianzas matrimoniales, Víctor Manuel Aragón, por la elaboración de un buen número de música y danza y conquista española El propósito fundamental acuarelas para ilustrar la obra; a Justin Kerr que nos permitió nuestro es contribuir a un mayor conocimiento de la cultura utilizar varias fotografías de su catálogo Maya Vase Database y mesoamericana en todos sus aspectos. a Pedro Luis Alonso, por la revisión del estilo. Los colaboradores, personas de reconocida competencia, ofrecen una visión global de las Crónicas, Danzas y Lienzos, y FÉLIX JAVIER Serrano URSÚA realizan algunas anotaciones, en algunos casos bastante amplias Rector 9 INTRODUCCIÓN La Universidad Mesoamericana ha podido editar el libro fue el Abate Étienne Brasseur de Bourbourg, quien fue el Crónicas Mesoamericanas gracias al decidido apoyo académico primero en traducir al francés y publicar el Popol Vuh, el brindado por Robert Carmack, James L. Mondloch, Ruud van Memorial de Tecpán Atitlán (Memorial de Sololá) y el Akkeren, Florine Asselberg, Ennio María Bossú, Ernesto Vargas Rabinal Achí. La difusión de tales libros despertó en numerosos Pacheco, Marion Popenoe de Hatch, J. Daniel Contreras, Tomás académicos el interés por la cultura mesoamericana. Con el Barrientos, Matilde Ivic de Monterroso, Oswaldo Chinchilla, pasar del tiempo, muchos documentos fueron adquiridos por Francis Polo Sifontes y Hugo Fidel Sacor. Las introducciones a coleccionistas como William Edmond Gates, quien en 1924 las diferentes crónicas que conforman esta antología fueron vendió a la Biblioteca del Middle American Research Institute, realizadas respectivamente por los académicos arriba citados. de la Universidad de Tulane (Estados Unidos) alrededor de Una de las motivaciones principales que estuvo siempre 1,800 documentos; y en 1936, otro buen número de presente durante la elaboración de esta antología fue la documentos a Robert Garret, los que se encuentran en la necesidad de reunir crónicas indígenas dispersas en ediciones actualidad en el Museo Peabody, de la Universidad de Yale difíciles de conseguir. Esperamos que este esfuerzo permita en (Estados Unidos). un corto tiempo elaborar una edición popular para beneficio de En Guatemala, José A. Villacorta, Heinrich Berlin, Adrián la comunidad educativa, en especial de los maestros y de la Recinos y Mario Crespo fueron los pioneros en la localización y juventud de las áreas más pobres. divulgación de crónicas indígenas. El primero publicó Códices Durante la segunda mitad del siglo XIX, etnógrafos europeos Mayas (1930), el Manuscrito de Chichicastenango -Popol y de Estados Unidos se dieron a la tarea de localizar crónicas de Vuh- (con la colaboración de Flavio Rodas Noriega) y el la época colonial, en archivos nacionales, eclesiásticos y Memorial de Tecpán Atitlán o Anales de los Cakchiqueles municipales de México y América Central, con información (1944). Berlin localizó en el Archivo General de Centro América sobre el pasado prehispánico y el impacto provocado por la algunas crónicas que publicó en la revista Antropología e conquista española. Al retorno a sus países de origen, llevaron Historia de Guatemala. Las ediciones hechas por Recinos del consigo casi todo lo que localizaron. El pionero de tal actividad Popol Vuh (1947) y el Memorial de Sololá (1950) han sido las 11 HORACIO CABEZAS que mayor divulgación han tenido y las que más han sido en códices, lienzos, estelas, esculturas, murales y vasos citadas por historiadores, antropólogos y arqueólogos del ceremoniales. Esto ha permitido el conocimiento de los pasado mesoamericano. También publicó en 1957 un conjunto enfrentamientos habidos entre comunidades y la imposición de siete crónicas que localizó en diversos archivos. Por su parte, de tributos a los vencidos, así como las alianzas matrimoniales Mario Crespo dio a conocer crónicas menores en su trabajo de y los sistemas de sucesión gubernamental. Sobre el particular, tesis Algunos títulos indígenas del Archivo del Gobierno de en el Libro X de la Década Cuarta de la Historia general de los Guatemala. Sin embargo, Robert M. Carmack es el que localizó hechos de los castellanos en las Islas y Tierra Firme de el Mar y dio a conocer el mayor número de crónicas indígenas, por Océano, Antonio de Herrera, Cronista Mayor del Emperador medio de su tesis doctoral The Documentary Sources, Ecology Felipe II, escribió: and Culture History of the Prehispanic Quiche-Maya of Conservaban las naciones de Nueva España, la Highland Guatemala (1965). Además, descubrió que algunas memoria de sus antiguallas: En Yucatán, y en Honduras, comunidades indígenas conservan celosamente manuscritos había unos libros de hojas, encuadernados, en que coloniales, como el Título de los Señores de Totonicapán y el tenían los indios la distribución de sus tiempos, y Título Yax, que le permitieron fotografiar, traducir y publicar. conocimiento de las plantas, y animales, y otras cosas Por lo general, las crónicas indígenas son documentos de la naturales. época colonial que, con base en tradiciones históricas En la Provincia de México, tenían su librería, prehispánicas, escribanos indígenas redactaron en sus propios historias y calendarios, con que pintaban; las que tenían idiomas, pero por medio de caracteres latinos.
Recommended publications
  • Ancient Maya Afterlife Iconography: Traveling Between Worlds

    Ancient Maya Afterlife Iconography: Traveling Between Worlds

    University of Central Florida STARS Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019 2006 Ancient Maya Afterlife Iconography: Traveling Between Worlds Mosley Dianna Wilson University of Central Florida Part of the Anthropology Commons Find similar works at: https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd University of Central Florida Libraries http://library.ucf.edu This Masters Thesis (Open Access) is brought to you for free and open access by STARS. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019 by an authorized administrator of STARS. For more information, please contact [email protected]. STARS Citation Wilson, Mosley Dianna, "Ancient Maya Afterlife Iconography: Traveling Between Worlds" (2006). Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019. 853. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd/853 ANCIENT MAYA AFTERLIFE ICONOGRAPHY: TRAVELING BETWEEN WORLDS by DIANNA WILSON MOSLEY B.A. University of Central Florida, 2000 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in the Department of Liberal Studies in the College of Graduate Studies at the University of Central Florida Orlando, Florida Summer Term 2006 i ABSTRACT The ancient Maya afterlife is a rich and voluminous topic. Unfortunately, much of the material currently utilized for interpretations about the ancient Maya comes from publications written after contact by the Spanish or from artifacts with no context, likely looted items. Both sources of information can be problematic and can skew interpretations. Cosmological tales documented after the Spanish invasion show evidence of the religious conversion that was underway. Noncontextual artifacts are often altered in order to make them more marketable. An example of an iconographic theme that is incorporated into the surviving media of the ancient Maya, but that is not mentioned in ethnographically-recorded myths or represented in the iconography from most noncontextual objects, are the “travelers”: a group of gods, humans, and animals who occupy a unique niche in the ancient Maya cosmology.
  • Metaphors of Relative Elevation, Position and Ranking in Popol Vuh

    Metaphors of Relative Elevation, Position and Ranking in Popol Vuh

    METAPHORS OF RELATIVE ELEVATION, POSITION AND RANKING IN POPOL VUH Nathaniel TARN and Martin PRECHTEL Rutgers University This paper is an account of work very much in progress on the textual analysis of Popol V uh, and is one study among others (since this theme is attracting a number of students today) of inter-con­ nections and mutual illuminations between Popol Vuh and the con­ temporary ethnographic record in Highland Guatemala and Chiapas. For some considerable time now Popol Vuh has been considered as the major extant text of the Mesoamerican literary traditions, and as one of the most remarkable of all human creation stories, both for its beauty and for the complexity of its cosmological and mythical messages. While it may or may not have had a hieroglyphic original, the present alphabetic version of Po pol V uh wars written down some­ where between 1545 and 1558 by an anonymous member of the Cavek lineage of the Quiche Maya of Guatemala. This lineage had been a ruling house until it fell to the Spaniards in 1524. The manu­ script was copied by Francisco de Ximenez, a Spanish priest, some 150 years later. While there are references to Christianity in the text, these are few and it is generally regarded as one of the purest extant accounts of prehispanic Maya world-view. At the end of the hook, what we call mythical history shades into the historical history of the Quiche, so that the hook can serve as an illustration of the extent to which these two kinds of history are not held a,part by Maya generally.
  • The Toltec Invasion and Chichen Itza

    The Toltec Invasion and Chichen Itza

    Other titles of interest published by Thames & Hudson include: Breaking the Maya Code Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs Angkor and the Khmer Civilization India: A Short History The Incas The Aztecs See our websites www.thamesandhudson.com www.thamesandhudsonusa.com 7 THE POSTCLASSIC By the close of the tenth century AD the destiny of the once proud and independent Maya had, at least in northern Yucatan, fallen into the hands of grim warriors from the highlands of central Mexico, where a new order of men had replaced the supposedly more intellectual rulers of Classic times. We know a good deal about the events that led to the conquest of Yucatan by these foreigners, and the subsequent replacement of their state by a resurgent but already decadent Maya culture, for we have entered into a kind of history, albeit far more shaky than that which was recorded on the monuments of the Classic Period. The traditional annals of the peoples of Yucatan, and also of the Guatemalan highlanders, transcribed into Spanish letters early in Colonial times, apparently reach back as far as the beginning of the Postclassic era and are very important sources. But such annals should be used with much caution, whether they come to us from Bishop Landa himself, from statements made by the native nobility, or from native lawsuits and land claims. These are often confused and often self-contradictory, not least because native lineages seem to have deliberately falsified their own histories for political reasons. Our richest (and most treacherous) sources are the K’atun Prophecies of Yucatan, contained in the “Books of Chilam Balam,” which derive their name from a Maya savant said to have predicted the arrival of the Spaniards from the east.
  • Panthéon Maya

    Panthéon Maya

    Liste des divinités et des démons de la mythologie des mayas. Les noms sont tirés du Popol Vuh des Mayas Quichés, des livres de Chilam Balam et de Diego de Landa ainsi que des divers codex. Divinité Dieu Déesse Démon Monstre Animal Humain AB KIN XOC Dieu de poésie. ACAN Dieu des boissons fermentées et de l'ivresse. ACANTUN Quatre démons associés à une couleur et à un point cardinal. Ils sont présents lors du nouvel an maya et lors des cérémonies de sculpture des statues. ACAT Dieu des tatouages. AH CHICUM EK Autre nom de Xamen Ek. AH CHUY KAKA Dieu de la guerre connu sous le nom du "destructeur de feu". AH CUN CAN Dieu de la guerre connu comme le "charmeur de serpents". AH KINCHIL Dieu solaire (voir Kinich Ahau). AHAU CHAMAHEZ Un des deux dieux de la médecine. AHMAKIQ Dieu de l'agriculture qui enferma le vent quand il menaçait de détruire les récoltes. AH MUNCEN CAB Dieu du miel et des abeilles sans dard; il est patron des apiculteurs. AH MUN Dieu du maïs et de la végétation. AH PEKU Dieu du Tonnerre. AH PUCH ou AH CIMI ou AH CIZIN Dieu de la Mort qui régnait sur le Metnal, le neuvième niveau de l'inframonde. AH RAXA LAC DMieu de lYa Terre.THOLOGICA.FR AH RAXA TZEL Dieu du ciel AH TABAI Dieu de la Chasse. AH UUC TICAB Dieu de la Terre. 1 AHAU CHAMAHEZ Dieu de la Médecine et de la Guérison. AHAU KIN voir Kinich Ahau. AHOACATI Dieu de la Fertilité AHTOLTECAT Dieu des orfèvres.
  • Bibliography

    Bibliography

    Bibliography Many books were read and researched in the compilation of Binford, L. R, 1983, Working at Archaeology. Academic Press, The Encyclopedic Dictionary of Archaeology: New York. Binford, L. R, and Binford, S. R (eds.), 1968, New Perspectives in American Museum of Natural History, 1993, The First Humans. Archaeology. Aldine, Chicago. HarperSanFrancisco, San Francisco. Braidwood, R 1.,1960, Archaeologists and What They Do. Franklin American Museum of Natural History, 1993, People of the Stone Watts, New York. Age. HarperSanFrancisco, San Francisco. Branigan, Keith (ed.), 1982, The Atlas ofArchaeology. St. Martin's, American Museum of Natural History, 1994, New World and Pacific New York. Civilizations. HarperSanFrancisco, San Francisco. Bray, w., and Tump, D., 1972, Penguin Dictionary ofArchaeology. American Museum of Natural History, 1994, Old World Civiliza­ Penguin, New York. tions. HarperSanFrancisco, San Francisco. Brennan, L., 1973, Beginner's Guide to Archaeology. Stackpole Ashmore, w., and Sharer, R. J., 1988, Discovering Our Past: A Brief Books, Harrisburg, PA. Introduction to Archaeology. Mayfield, Mountain View, CA. Broderick, M., and Morton, A. A., 1924, A Concise Dictionary of Atkinson, R J. C., 1985, Field Archaeology, 2d ed. Hyperion, New Egyptian Archaeology. Ares Publishers, Chicago. York. Brothwell, D., 1963, Digging Up Bones: The Excavation, Treatment Bacon, E. (ed.), 1976, The Great Archaeologists. Bobbs-Merrill, and Study ofHuman Skeletal Remains. British Museum, London. New York. Brothwell, D., and Higgs, E. (eds.), 1969, Science in Archaeology, Bahn, P., 1993, Collins Dictionary of Archaeology. ABC-CLIO, 2d ed. Thames and Hudson, London. Santa Barbara, CA. Budge, E. A. Wallis, 1929, The Rosetta Stone. Dover, New York. Bahn, P.
  • The Significance of Copper Bells in the Maya Lowlands from Their

    The Significance of Copper Bells in the Maya Lowlands from Their

    The significance of Copper bells in the Maya Lowlands On the cover: 12 bells unearthed at Lamanai, including complete, flattened and miscast specimens. From Simmons and Shugar 2013: 141 The significance of Copper bells in the Maya Lowlands - from their appearance in the Late Terminal Classic period to the current day - Arthur Heimann Master Thesis S2468077 Prof. Dr. P.A.I.H. Degryse Archaeology of the Americas Leiden University, Faculty of Archaeology (1084TCTY-F-1920ARCH) Leiden, 16/12/2019 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................... 5 1.1. Subject of The Thesis ................................................................................................................... 6 1.2. Research Question........................................................................................................................ 7 2. MAYA SOCIETY ........................................................................................................................... 10 2.1. Maya Geography.......................................................................................................................... 10 2.2. Maya Chronology ........................................................................................................................ 13 2.2.1. Preclassic ............................................................................................................................................................. 13 2.2.2.
  • Huehuetenango Y La Sierra De Los Cuchumatanes

    Huehuetenango Y La Sierra De Los Cuchumatanes

    LAS LECTURAS MÚltIPLES DE UNA FRONTERA: HUEHUETENANGO Y LA SIERRA DE LOS CUCHUMATANES Alejandro J. Garay Herrera Instituto de Investigaciones Históricas, Antropológicas y Arqueológicas Escuela de Historia, Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala ¡Oh cielo de mi Patria! ¡Oh caros horizontes! ¡Oh ya dormidos montes la noche ya os cubrió!: adiós, oh mis amigos, dormid, dormid en calma, que las brumas en la alma, ¡ay, ay! las llevo yo . JUAN DIÉGUEZ OLAVERRI (1813-1866) Canto a los Cuchumatanes (fragmento) Resumen: En este artículo se pretende analizar la región de Huehuetenango en general, y la Sierra de los Cuchumatanes en particular, como una zona de múl- tiples transformaciones e identidades que se traslapan entre sí a lo largo del tiempo y el espacio . Al realizar diversas lecturas (históricas, culturales, lingüísti- cas) de esta región, se constata que el concepto de frontera se puede aplicar en diferentes formas y momentos a este espacio geográfico, y no solo en referen- cia a la moderna frontera política que marca los límites entre dos estados sobe- ranos, como son Guatemala y México . Palabras clave: Huehuetenango, Frontera, Cultura, Historia, Lingüística, Maya, Los Cuchumatanes . Abstract: In this article it is expected to show the Huehuetenango region, in gen- eral, and Los Cuchumatanes mountain range, in particular, as a zone of multiple transformations and identities that overlap between themselves, thru time and space . By making diverse «lectures» or «readings» (historical, cultural, linguistic) of this region it’s shown that the frontier concept can be applied in different forms and times to this geographical space, and do not only refers to the modern political frontier that marks the limits of two sovereign states, as Guatemala and Mexico .
  • Maya Writing Comprehension Questions

    Maya Writing Comprehension Questions

    Maya Writing The Maya were one of the five ancient civilisations to have Although all the ancient Maya people shared the same culture, the Maya people from different cities independently developed a fully-fledged writing system. The and villages had their own distinct customs, clothing and language. This meant that there was not earliest examples of Maya writing were found in San Bartolo, one single Mayan language. There are over 800 Maya glyphs, but we can only decipher around Guatemala and date to as far back as 300 BC. 400 of them at the moment. The Maya people used a hieroglyphic writing system. Hieroglyphic Examples of Maya writing have been found carved in wood, on pottery, on stone monuments and writing consisted of signs or symbols called hieroglyphs or glyphs in codices (books). In addition to this, writing has also been found on lintels in their temples as well. for short. The glyphs in Maya writing were either logograms (which represent words), or syllabograms (which represent a unit of sound). The syllabograms would then be combined Codices written by Maya priests and scholars contained within a single glyph block and read together to create a word. information about astronomy, religion and gods. However, only As the Maya often had several syllabograms to represent the four known copies have survived to date. In 1562, a Catholic same sound, people could be creative when writing and choose priest called Diego de Landa ordered the mass burning of a different syllabograms to build up words. It seems that the Maya number of Maya codices, condemning them as a work of the preferred to vary how they spelt words within the same piece of devil.
  • On the Origin of the Different Mayan Calendars Thomas Chanier

    On the Origin of the Different Mayan Calendars Thomas Chanier

    On the origin of the different Mayan Calendars Thomas Chanier To cite this version: Thomas Chanier. On the origin of the different Mayan Calendars. 2014. hal-01018037v1 HAL Id: hal-01018037 https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01018037v1 Submitted on 3 Jul 2014 (v1), last revised 14 Jan 2015 (v3) HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. On the origin of the different Mayan Calendars T. Chanier∗1 1 Department of Physics, University of Namur, rue de Bruxelles 61, B-5000 Namur, Belgium The Maya were known for their astronomical proficiency. Whereas Mayan mathematics were based on a vigesimal system, they used a different base when dealing with long periods of time, the Long Count Calendar (LCC), composed of different Long Count Periods: the Tun of 360 days, the Katun of 7200 days and the Baktun of 144000 days. There were three other calendars used in addition to the LCC: a civil year Haab’ of 365 days, a religious year Tzolk’in of 260 days and a 3276- day cycle (combination of the 819-day Kawil cycle and 4 colors-directions). Based on astronomical arguments, we propose here an explanation of the origin of the LCC, the Tzolk’in and the 3276-day cycle.
  • Physical Expression of Sacred Space Among the Ancient Maya

    Physical Expression of Sacred Space Among the Ancient Maya

    Trinity University Digital Commons @ Trinity Sociology & Anthropology Faculty Research Sociology and Anthropology Department 1-2004 Models of Cosmic Order: Physical Expression of Sacred Space Among the Ancient Maya Jennifer P. Mathews Trinity University, [email protected] J. F. Garber Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.trinity.edu/socanthro_faculty Part of the Anthropology Commons, and the Sociology Commons Repository Citation Mathews, J. P., & Garber, J. F. (2004). Models of cosmic order: Physical expression of sacred space among the ancient Maya. Ancient Mesoamerica, 15(1), 49-59. doi: 10.1017/S0956536104151031 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Sociology and Anthropology Department at Digital Commons @ Trinity. It has been accepted for inclusion in Sociology & Anthropology Faculty Research by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Trinity. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Ancient Mesoamerica, 15 (2004), 49–59 Copyright © 2004 Cambridge University Press. Printed in the U.S.A. DOI: 10.1017/S0956536104151031 MODELS OF COSMIC ORDER Physical expression of sacred space among the ancient Maya Jennifer P. Mathewsa and James F. Garberb aDepartment of Sociology and Anthropology, Trinity University, One Trinity Place, San Antonio, TX 78212, USA bDepartment of Anthropology, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX 78666, USA Abstract The archaeological record, as well as written texts, oral traditions, and iconographic representations, express the Maya perception of cosmic order, including the concepts of quadripartite division and layered cosmos. The ritual act of portioning and layering created spatial order and was used to organize everything from the heavens to the layout of altars.
  • The Mayan Gods: an Explanation from the Structures of Thought

    The Mayan Gods: an Explanation from the Structures of Thought

    Journal of Historical Archaeology & Anthropological Sciences Review Article Open Access The Mayan gods: an explanation from the structures of thought Abstract Volume 3 Issue 1 - 2018 This article explains the existence of the Classic and Post-classic Mayan gods through Laura Ibarra García the cognitive structure through which the Maya perceived and interpreted their world. Universidad de Guadalajara, Mexico This structure is none other than that built by every member of the human species during its early ontogenesis to interact with the outer world: the structure of action. Correspondence: Laura Ibarra García, Centro Universitario When this scheme is applied to the world’s interpretation, the phenomena in it and de Ciencias Sociales, Mexico, Tel 523336404456, the world as a whole appears as manifestations of a force that lies behind or within Email [email protected] all of them and which are perceived similarly to human subjects. This scheme, which finds application in the Mayan worldview, helps to understand the personality and Received: August 30, 2017 | Published: February 09, 2018 character of figures such as the solar god, the rain god, the sky god, the jaguar god and the gods of Venus. The application of the cognitive schema as driving logic also helps to understand the Maya established relationships between some animals, such as the jaguar and the rattlesnake and the highest deities. The study is part of the pioneering work that seeks to integrate the study of cognition development throughout history to the understanding of the historical and cultural manifestations of our country, especially of the Pre-Hispanic cultures.
  • By ROBERT L. RANDS

    By ROBERT L. RANDS

    SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION Bureau of American Ethnology BuUetin 157 Anthropological Papers, No. 48 Some ManifestatioDs of Water in Mesoamerican Art By ROBERT L. RANDS 265 1 CONTENTS PAGE Introduction 27 The better established occurrences of water 273 Types of associations 273 The Maya codices 277 The Mexican codices 280 Aztec and Teotihuacdn murals, sculptures, and ceramics 285 Summary 291 The proposed identifications of water 292 Artistic approach to the identifications 292 Non-Maya murals, sculptures, and ceramics 293 Maya murals, sculptures, and ceramics 298 General considerations 298 Highest probability (A) 302 Probability B : paraphernalia and secondary associations 315 Probability B : fang, tongue, or water (?) 320 Artistic typology and miscellany 322 Water and the water lily 330 Conclusions 333 Appendix A. Nonartistic data and current reconstructions 342 Direct water associations : physiological data 342 Water from container 344 Water from mouth 348 Water from eye 348 Water from breast 350 Water from between legs 350 Water from body (pores ?) 350 Water from hand 352 Water from other object held in hand 354 Waterlike design from head 355 Glyph in water 365 Object in water 359 Tlaloc 359 Anthropomorphic Long-nosed God 359 Female water deity 369 Black god (M, B) 360 Miscellaneous anthropomorphic figures 360 Frog 360 Serpent 361 Jaguar (ocelot) 361 Bird 363 Miscellaneous animal 363 Serpentine-saurian monster 364 Detached rear head of monster 364 Other grotesque head, face 365 267 268 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [Bull. 157 Appendix A. Nonartistic data and current reconstructions—Con. page Death, misfortune, destruction _. 365 Water descending on surface water 365 Water descending on figure 366 The bending-over rainmaker 366 The sky monster and its affiliates 366 Balanced water and vegetation 367 Summary 367 Appendix B.