Week 9: The Lost Cities of the Jungle Part II – Chiapas

Palenque (3/5/08)

            A day after we arrived in the state of Chiapas, we wandered amongst the ruins of Palenque which are now surrounded by rainforest. The origins date back to the Early to Middle Pre-Classic, but little architectural evidence aside from the Forgotten Temple (aka Templo Olvidado, which was constructed in 200 BC) exists to prove this. Palenque means “fortress” in Spanish, but its Mayan name was Lakam Ha, or “Big Water”. That name fits the nature of the site, as there are 10 months of rain and 26 creeks along with 18 aqueducts were found here. Like its rival Calakmul, Palenque had sufficient water to channel unlike the sites in the Yucatán state. Palenque has an architectural style of its own, so categorizing Palenque would be difficult. Some of the tombs within included those of a high-ranking captive from Calakmul which was covered in jade pieces, and the Temple of the Red Queen was the tomb of the great king Hanab Pakal’s mother or wife and the body was covered in cinnabar.

Pakal was one of the greatest rulers of Palenque, who started his reign at the age of 12 in 615 AD and ruled for 68 more years until his death. His rule deviated from the royal bloodline since he acquired the royalty from his mother. The construction or renovation of many buildings such as the Temple of the Inscriptions (bearing over 620 inscriptions and nine levels representing Xibalba) and El Palacio took place under Pakal. The inscriptions focus on his birth, death, and connection to the deities. His tomb, which now resides in a museum a short distance from the ruins after Alberto Ruz Lhulier’s discovery in 1952, bears an image of Pakal descending from the heavens to Xibalba, and rising as the Maize God in front of the sacred ceiba tree. The sarcophagus also contained many pieces of jade and stucco masks. Pakal’s tomb serves as a great example of political manipulation, as he tried to build himself as a figure attaining demigod status. His son, Kan Balam, continued what his father started and eventually inserted himself into the mythological and political imagery. Other buildings that Kan Balam contributed to were the Temple of the Sun (representing warfare, death, captives, the jaguar and the sun), the Temple of the Cross (representing the celestial realm, the ceiba and double-headed serpent), and the Temple of the Foliated Cross (representing earth, life, and maize). The change in the royal lineage represented a golden era in Palenque’s history.

Palenque was one of the most impressive and beautiful Mayan sites. The buildings and inscriptions were vivid and ornate, and unlike the other sites we visited. It was interesting to see how far leaders like Pakal went to legitimize themselves through the use of inscriptions. This site stands like a jewel in the middle of the tropical forest.

http://s268.photobucket.com/albums/jj35/jonroth/Mexico/Chiapas/Palenque/

Bonampak (3/6/08)

            A day after visiting Palenque, we traveled to Bonampak after settling into the nearby La Selva Lacandón reserve. This is a smaller site in comparison to the larger cities such as Palenque, Yaxchilán, and Calakmul. Sylvanus Morley came up with the name Bonampak while unsuccessfully finding a Mayan word to refer to the murals. The city dates back to 200 AD, though the peak took place in the Late Classic. At one time in 746, Bonampak and Yaxchilán and subjugated the metropolis of Lacanhá, which is 10 km away. One of the greatest leaders of Bonampak was Chaan Muan II (776-792 AD), who was credited with major constructions such as that of Stelae 1 through 3 in the Great Plaza and Acropolis. On Stela 1, there is an image of Chaan Muan II with the Maize God and the witz (mountain) monster, representing potential attempts at legitimization. The second and third stelae represent his mother and wife and his captives respectively. The largest building is Structure I which has an extensive yet unfinished collection of murals. The murals were incomplete after Yaxchilán’s conquest of this smaller city. The first room on the left depicts the heir designation process. The middle room represents war and the prisoners that were beaten and had their fingernails torn out after defeat. The last room displays celebration of the birth of Chaan Muan II’s son, who never came to power later in life. Even though they were slightly faded, they still maintained their red and blue pigments. The murals were able to last as long as they have because of a layer of calcium carbonate, but the removal of such material made the paint more sensitive to light. While Bonampak was small compared to other sites, this city seemed to compensate for size with its artistic aspects.

http://s268.photobucket.com/albums/jj35/jonroth/Mexico/Chiapas/La%20Selva%20Lacandon/Bonampak/

Yaxchilán (3/7/08)

            Yaxchilán was the final Mayan site we visited. Like Palenque, Yaxchilán was completely surrounded by forest but the buildings were more spread out than at the former. There were many stelae similar to Calakmul but unlike Palenque, and some of the structures had elaborate roof combs. The city reached its peak in the Classic Period and was abandoned by 900 AD, and was frequently at war with other states. There is an extensive assortment of lintels throughout the structures and stelae of Yaxchilán, many of which were constructed under two major rulers, Itzam-na Balam II and his son Bird Jaguar IV. Itzam-na Balam II was responsible for the formation of the Ballcourt between 742 and 746 AD as well as other buildings in the Gran Plaza. However, many of the inscriptions we found seemed to place an equally or heavier emphasis on Bird Jaguar IV. Edificio 12 had as many as 8 lintels with hieroglyphics, though all except for three are in the Museum of Anthropology in Mérida and in a British museum. Some of the lintels, such as Lintel 10 in Edificio 10, are not completely translated. In the same building, Lintel 30 depicts Bird Jaguar IV trying to establish his own link to the god Kawill, and Lintel 31 possibly shows him undergoing a fire ceremony to prove his worth. Many of the lintels display this leader as having seized 20 captives in his rule. He also tried to establish a connection to the sun god in Stela II, and is depicted as collaborating with a lesser noble (or sajal) in Lintels 2 and 3 in Structure 33 and Stela 1. This boils down to a similar trend seen in Palenque with Pakal and Kan Balam and Yuknoom the Great in Calakmul, which is one of legitimization leading to propaganda by boosting ones’ image.

http://s268.photobucket.com/albums/jj35/jonroth/Mexico/Chiapas/La%20Selva%20Lacandon/Yaxchilan/