A stuccoed stone skull of a Maya god associated with maize has been discovered by archaeologists from the Instituto Nacional de Antropologa e Historia (INAH).
The team was excavating near the Usumacinta River in the Mexican state of Chiapas, in the Maya city-state of Palenque.
Palenque, also known as Lakamha in the Itza language (meaning “Flat-Place-River”), is well recognized for its Maya-style architecture, sculpture, roof combs, and bas-relief sculptures.
The crew was working on restoration as part of a Department of State for Cultural Preservation-funded initiative. The archaeologists discovered a receptacle containing a severed stucco head deposited in a small pond while removing fill from a hallway between House B and House F in the palace complex.
The head is 45 centimeters in length, 16 centimeters in width, and 22 centimeters in height. It was positioned east-west, maybe to symbolize the genesis of the maize plant with the first rays of the sun.
According to the researchers, the artifact dates from the Mayan civilization’s late classic period, which spans the years 700 to 850 AD.
The scholars believe that this atmosphere was designed to resemble the gateway to the Maya underworld. The Maya believed that the universe was divided into three parts: heaven, earth, and the underworld, with sacred sites like caves and cenotes serving as portals to Xibalba, a subterranean realm controlled by the Maya death gods and their assistants.
The Maya would have placed the sculpture, which was initially intended as a severed head, on a tripod (evidenced by the discovery of a pottery tripod) and positioned it east-west to symbolize the birth of the corn plant with the first rays of the sun.
Similar iconography can be seen at Late Classic (AD 600-850) and Early Classic (AD 150-600) sites across the Tikal region, as well as in images of deities with severed heads in the Dresden and Madrid codices.
“The discovery allows us to further understand how the ancient Maya of Palenque relived the mythical passage about the birth, death and resurrection of the maize deity,” said INAH Chiapas Centre researcher Arnoldo González Cruz.
Image Credit: Getty
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