Maya Decipherment: Ideas on Ancient Maya Writing and Iconography, Jun 15, 2017
This paper reviews recent archaeological and epigraphic discoveries to propose the decipherment o... more This paper reviews recent archaeological and epigraphic discoveries to propose the decipherment of the Classic Maya logogram PAAT “crested lizard, basilisk”. Lowland Mayan languages provide several supportive glosses (especially Ch'orti' aj pat “lizard” and Yucatec ah pach “lagarto coronado con cresta y macho”). We also propose that this animal's name stems ultimately from *paat, the widespread Mayan term for "back". We note that the basilisk was evidently a favored subject for noble anthroponyms, appearing in the names of lords of La Corona and Bonampak/Lacanha, among a few others, and the basilisk itself appears with some frequency in sacrificial and feasting scenes in Maya iconography.
Aquí presentamos el descubrimiento de una banca jeroglífica esculpida del sitio maya de Ixtutz, P... more Aquí presentamos el descubrimiento de una banca jeroglífica esculpida del sitio maya de Ixtutz, Petén, Guatemala. Analizamos la inscripción jeroglífica en la banca y discutimos la historia del objecto en el contexto de su producción, su desmantelamiento y reutilización subsecuente, y la remoción de unas piezas del sitio. Mostramos que dos bloques inscritos de caliza, uno de ellos en una colección privada en Bruselas y el otro en el Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, California, pertenecen al mismo trono, y llamamos para su repatriación voluntaria a Guatemala.
Aquí presentamos el descubrimiento de una banca jeroglífica esculpida del sitio maya de Ixtutz, P... more Aquí presentamos el descubrimiento de una banca jeroglífica esculpida del sitio maya de Ixtutz, Petén, Guatemala. Analizamos la inscripción jeroglífica en la banca y discutimos la historia del objecto en el contexto de su producción, su desmantelamiento y reutilización subsecuente, y la remoción de unas piezas del sitio. Mostramos que dos bloques inscritos de caliza, uno de ellos en una colección privada en Bruselas y el otro en el Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, California, pertenecen al mismo trono, y llamamos para su repatriación voluntaria a Guatemala. We present here the discovery of a sculptured hieroglyphic throne from the Maya site of Ixtutz, Petén, Guatemala. We analyze the hieroglyphic inscription on the throne and discuss the history of the object in the context of its production, its subsequent dismantling and reuse, and the removal of some pieces from the site. We show that two inscribed limestone blocks, one in a private collection in Brussels and the ot...
Lidar reveals the presence of a precinct at the Classic Maya city of Tikal that probably reproduc... more Lidar reveals the presence of a precinct at the Classic Maya city of Tikal that probably reproduces the Ciudadela and Temple of the Feathered Serpent at the imperial capital of Teotihuacan.
Parmi les systemes d’ecriture mixtes, logo-phonetiques, se distinguent les ecritures hieroglyphi... more Parmi les systemes d’ecriture mixtes, logo-phonetiques, se distinguent les ecritures hieroglyphiques. Afin de determiner ce qui fait le propre de celles-ci, nous considerons les deux grandes traditions, historiquement independantes, d’ecriture hieroglyphique : maya et egyptienne. Les ecritures hieroglyphiques se caracterisent par leur pictorialite, maintenue a travers le temps, et par des signes dont les formes ne sont pas reductibles a une combinaison de lignes ou de traits (ni, donc, a des polices typographiques). Ces ecritures sont etroitement integrees a une culture esthetique plus large et constituent un mode de communication visuelle dense et encyclopedique. Les pratiques, dans lesquelles on reconnait des metadiscours implicites, impliquent des ideologies de l’ecriture hieroglyphique fondamentalement differentes de celles d’instrumentalite et de transparence, souvent associees a l’ecriture alphabetique. Les signes hieroglyphiques ne sont pas seulement vecteurs de valeurs linguistiques : ils sont eux-memes des entites inviolables, suggerant une ontologie et une capacite d’action specifiques. De maniere inherente, l’ecriture hieroglyphique est excessive, tant sur le plan visuel que semantique – une dimension qui peut etre diversement accentuee selon les contextes. A la fois ouvertes et exclusives, les deux traditions d’ecriture hieroglyphique se sont developpees pendant des millenaires dans des societes diverses et en mutation, en un lien indissociable avec leurs cultures esthetiques et visions du monde de ces societes.
Scribal reception and status among the Classic Maya drew on subtle skills and playful games. But ... more Scribal reception and status among the Classic Maya drew on subtle skills and playful games. But it also rested on an evident understanding that scribes (or sculptors) and their provincial patrons needed to obey their superiors. Certain clues indicate that the producers of script existed within established obligations of tribute, for written memorials as well. Elsewhere, myths provide enduring templates for humanity, and that was no less true for the Classic Maya. Historical figures merged with mythic scribes, and, to judge from unusual texts and images, the powers of the literate could be neutralized by physical replacement or even the threat of execution.
Lowland Maya civilization flourished in the tropical region of the Yucatan peninsula and environs... more Lowland Maya civilization flourished in the tropical region of the Yucatan peninsula and environs for more than 2500 years (~1000 BCE to 1500 CE). Known for its sophistication in writing, art, architecture, astronomy, and mathematics, Maya civilization still poses questions about the nature of its cities and surrounding populations because of its location in an inaccessible forest. In 2016, an aerial lidar survey across 2144 square kilometers of northern Guatemala mapped natural terrain and archaeological features over several distinct areas. We present results from these data, revealing interconnected urban settlement and landscapes with extensive infrastructural development. Studied through a joint international effort of interdisciplinary teams sharing protocols, this lidar survey compels a reevaluation of Maya demography, agriculture, and political economy and suggests future avenues of field research.
Lowland Maya civilization flourished in the tropical region of the Yucatan peninsula and environs... more Lowland Maya civilization flourished in the tropical region of the Yucatan peninsula and environs for more than 2500 years (~1000 BCE to 1500 CE). Known for its sophistication in writing, art, architecture, astronomy, and mathematics, Maya civilization still poses questions about the nature of its cities and surrounding populations because of its location in an inaccessible forest. In 2016, an aerial lidar survey across 2144 square kilometers of northern Guatemala mapped natural terrain and archaeological features over several distinct areas. We present results from these data, revealing interconnected urban settlement and landscapes with extensive infrastructural development. Studied through a joint international effort of interdisciplinary teams sharing protocols, this lidar survey compels a reevaluation of Maya demography, agriculture, and political economy and suggests future avenues of field research.
Prologue Chapter One. Seeing Color Sensing Color Theorizing Color in the West Comparative Theorie... more Prologue Chapter One. Seeing Color Sensing Color Theorizing Color in the West Comparative Theories of Color Colorizing Mesoamerica A Book on Maya Color Chapter Two. Naming Color Simplex Terms Complex Terms Organization of Colors Maya Color Terms Red White Black Yellow Yax Maya Terminology Chapter Three. Making Color Prime Colorants Feathers Flowers Shells Spondylus Mother-of-Pearl and Pearl Stones Jade Nonjade Greenstones Obsidian Turquoise Reflective Stones: Pyrite, Hematite, and Mica Translucent Stones Manufactured Colorants Dyes Pigments and Paints Blacks Whites Reds, Yellows, and Browns Blues and Greens Ceramics: A Special Case Making Maya Color Chapter Four. Using Color Approaches and Limitations The Preclassic and Early Classic: Colors of the Earth Red, Black, and White The Late Preclassic: New Colors The Early Classic: Tradition and Retrenchment Color Use in the Preclassic and Early Classic The Late Early Classic and the Rise of Maya Blue Experiments in Ceramics The Invention of Maya Blue Architectural Color The Conservative Colors of Death Color Use in the Late Early Classic The Late Classic: Naturalism and Its Dissenters The Naturalistic Revolution Color and Dimension Rejections of Polychromy Color Use in the Late Classic The Terminal Classic: Rupture and Reinventions The Postclassic: The Colors of the Gods Early Postclassic: Five Basic Colors Late Postclassic: The "International Style" The "Blue-and-Black Style" Color Contrasts Color Use in the Postclassic Using Color Epilogue: A History of Maya Color Appendix: Dyes and Organic Colorants of the Maya and Aztecs Bibliography Index
Part I. Setting: 1. Introduction 2. Sociality 3. Beginnings 4. The Classic period Part II. Social... more Part I. Setting: 1. Introduction 2. Sociality 3. Beginnings 4. The Classic period Part II. Social Actors: 5. Kings and queens, courts and palaces 6. Nobles 7. Gods, supernaturals, and ancestors 8. Farmers 9. Craftspeople and traders 10. End of an era Epilogue.
Los mayas tenian practicas que recuerdan mucho al mundo moderno en lo que se refiere a la varieda... more Los mayas tenian practicas que recuerdan mucho al mundo moderno en lo que se refiere a la variedad de modalidades de vida amorosa, pero tambien otras que nos parecen absolutamente distintas. La identidad sexual era mas fluida y las representaciones de esa fluidez a veces eran francas y abiertas; otras, discretas, ocultan mucho mas de lo que muestran.
Death happens once to any organism, which lives and expires, not to be reborn unless by miracle. ... more Death happens once to any organism, which lives and expires, not to be reborn unless by miracle. Whether writing systems ‘die’, finally so, was the question posed from various angles in a recent paper by the author and two colleagues, John Baines and Jerrold Cooper (Houston et al. 2003). The topic had seemed overlooked, so our essay probed the twisting fate of writing systems in extremis. We came to the conclusion that diminished functions of script, linkages to obsolete knowledge with which a script had become identified, and the physical expiration of script-users from the effects of war or disease led systematically to the obsolescence of certain writing systems. Most defunct scripts were replaced by writing systems regarde —at least at the time—as facilitators of a wider variety of uses. Histories differed: a few scripts, such as cuneiform and Egyptian hieroglyphs, enjoyed long ‘lives’, decrepit only after three millennia; others, such as Rongorongo, travelled along much shorter paths.
Maya Decipherment: Ideas on Ancient Maya Writing and Iconography, Jun 15, 2017
This paper reviews recent archaeological and epigraphic discoveries to propose the decipherment o... more This paper reviews recent archaeological and epigraphic discoveries to propose the decipherment of the Classic Maya logogram PAAT “crested lizard, basilisk”. Lowland Mayan languages provide several supportive glosses (especially Ch'orti' aj pat “lizard” and Yucatec ah pach “lagarto coronado con cresta y macho”). We also propose that this animal's name stems ultimately from *paat, the widespread Mayan term for "back". We note that the basilisk was evidently a favored subject for noble anthroponyms, appearing in the names of lords of La Corona and Bonampak/Lacanha, among a few others, and the basilisk itself appears with some frequency in sacrificial and feasting scenes in Maya iconography.
Aquí presentamos el descubrimiento de una banca jeroglífica esculpida del sitio maya de Ixtutz, P... more Aquí presentamos el descubrimiento de una banca jeroglífica esculpida del sitio maya de Ixtutz, Petén, Guatemala. Analizamos la inscripción jeroglífica en la banca y discutimos la historia del objecto en el contexto de su producción, su desmantelamiento y reutilización subsecuente, y la remoción de unas piezas del sitio. Mostramos que dos bloques inscritos de caliza, uno de ellos en una colección privada en Bruselas y el otro en el Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, California, pertenecen al mismo trono, y llamamos para su repatriación voluntaria a Guatemala.
Aquí presentamos el descubrimiento de una banca jeroglífica esculpida del sitio maya de Ixtutz, P... more Aquí presentamos el descubrimiento de una banca jeroglífica esculpida del sitio maya de Ixtutz, Petén, Guatemala. Analizamos la inscripción jeroglífica en la banca y discutimos la historia del objecto en el contexto de su producción, su desmantelamiento y reutilización subsecuente, y la remoción de unas piezas del sitio. Mostramos que dos bloques inscritos de caliza, uno de ellos en una colección privada en Bruselas y el otro en el Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, California, pertenecen al mismo trono, y llamamos para su repatriación voluntaria a Guatemala. We present here the discovery of a sculptured hieroglyphic throne from the Maya site of Ixtutz, Petén, Guatemala. We analyze the hieroglyphic inscription on the throne and discuss the history of the object in the context of its production, its subsequent dismantling and reuse, and the removal of some pieces from the site. We show that two inscribed limestone blocks, one in a private collection in Brussels and the ot...
Lidar reveals the presence of a precinct at the Classic Maya city of Tikal that probably reproduc... more Lidar reveals the presence of a precinct at the Classic Maya city of Tikal that probably reproduces the Ciudadela and Temple of the Feathered Serpent at the imperial capital of Teotihuacan.
Parmi les systemes d’ecriture mixtes, logo-phonetiques, se distinguent les ecritures hieroglyphi... more Parmi les systemes d’ecriture mixtes, logo-phonetiques, se distinguent les ecritures hieroglyphiques. Afin de determiner ce qui fait le propre de celles-ci, nous considerons les deux grandes traditions, historiquement independantes, d’ecriture hieroglyphique : maya et egyptienne. Les ecritures hieroglyphiques se caracterisent par leur pictorialite, maintenue a travers le temps, et par des signes dont les formes ne sont pas reductibles a une combinaison de lignes ou de traits (ni, donc, a des polices typographiques). Ces ecritures sont etroitement integrees a une culture esthetique plus large et constituent un mode de communication visuelle dense et encyclopedique. Les pratiques, dans lesquelles on reconnait des metadiscours implicites, impliquent des ideologies de l’ecriture hieroglyphique fondamentalement differentes de celles d’instrumentalite et de transparence, souvent associees a l’ecriture alphabetique. Les signes hieroglyphiques ne sont pas seulement vecteurs de valeurs linguistiques : ils sont eux-memes des entites inviolables, suggerant une ontologie et une capacite d’action specifiques. De maniere inherente, l’ecriture hieroglyphique est excessive, tant sur le plan visuel que semantique – une dimension qui peut etre diversement accentuee selon les contextes. A la fois ouvertes et exclusives, les deux traditions d’ecriture hieroglyphique se sont developpees pendant des millenaires dans des societes diverses et en mutation, en un lien indissociable avec leurs cultures esthetiques et visions du monde de ces societes.
Scribal reception and status among the Classic Maya drew on subtle skills and playful games. But ... more Scribal reception and status among the Classic Maya drew on subtle skills and playful games. But it also rested on an evident understanding that scribes (or sculptors) and their provincial patrons needed to obey their superiors. Certain clues indicate that the producers of script existed within established obligations of tribute, for written memorials as well. Elsewhere, myths provide enduring templates for humanity, and that was no less true for the Classic Maya. Historical figures merged with mythic scribes, and, to judge from unusual texts and images, the powers of the literate could be neutralized by physical replacement or even the threat of execution.
Lowland Maya civilization flourished in the tropical region of the Yucatan peninsula and environs... more Lowland Maya civilization flourished in the tropical region of the Yucatan peninsula and environs for more than 2500 years (~1000 BCE to 1500 CE). Known for its sophistication in writing, art, architecture, astronomy, and mathematics, Maya civilization still poses questions about the nature of its cities and surrounding populations because of its location in an inaccessible forest. In 2016, an aerial lidar survey across 2144 square kilometers of northern Guatemala mapped natural terrain and archaeological features over several distinct areas. We present results from these data, revealing interconnected urban settlement and landscapes with extensive infrastructural development. Studied through a joint international effort of interdisciplinary teams sharing protocols, this lidar survey compels a reevaluation of Maya demography, agriculture, and political economy and suggests future avenues of field research.
Lowland Maya civilization flourished in the tropical region of the Yucatan peninsula and environs... more Lowland Maya civilization flourished in the tropical region of the Yucatan peninsula and environs for more than 2500 years (~1000 BCE to 1500 CE). Known for its sophistication in writing, art, architecture, astronomy, and mathematics, Maya civilization still poses questions about the nature of its cities and surrounding populations because of its location in an inaccessible forest. In 2016, an aerial lidar survey across 2144 square kilometers of northern Guatemala mapped natural terrain and archaeological features over several distinct areas. We present results from these data, revealing interconnected urban settlement and landscapes with extensive infrastructural development. Studied through a joint international effort of interdisciplinary teams sharing protocols, this lidar survey compels a reevaluation of Maya demography, agriculture, and political economy and suggests future avenues of field research.
Prologue Chapter One. Seeing Color Sensing Color Theorizing Color in the West Comparative Theorie... more Prologue Chapter One. Seeing Color Sensing Color Theorizing Color in the West Comparative Theories of Color Colorizing Mesoamerica A Book on Maya Color Chapter Two. Naming Color Simplex Terms Complex Terms Organization of Colors Maya Color Terms Red White Black Yellow Yax Maya Terminology Chapter Three. Making Color Prime Colorants Feathers Flowers Shells Spondylus Mother-of-Pearl and Pearl Stones Jade Nonjade Greenstones Obsidian Turquoise Reflective Stones: Pyrite, Hematite, and Mica Translucent Stones Manufactured Colorants Dyes Pigments and Paints Blacks Whites Reds, Yellows, and Browns Blues and Greens Ceramics: A Special Case Making Maya Color Chapter Four. Using Color Approaches and Limitations The Preclassic and Early Classic: Colors of the Earth Red, Black, and White The Late Preclassic: New Colors The Early Classic: Tradition and Retrenchment Color Use in the Preclassic and Early Classic The Late Early Classic and the Rise of Maya Blue Experiments in Ceramics The Invention of Maya Blue Architectural Color The Conservative Colors of Death Color Use in the Late Early Classic The Late Classic: Naturalism and Its Dissenters The Naturalistic Revolution Color and Dimension Rejections of Polychromy Color Use in the Late Classic The Terminal Classic: Rupture and Reinventions The Postclassic: The Colors of the Gods Early Postclassic: Five Basic Colors Late Postclassic: The "International Style" The "Blue-and-Black Style" Color Contrasts Color Use in the Postclassic Using Color Epilogue: A History of Maya Color Appendix: Dyes and Organic Colorants of the Maya and Aztecs Bibliography Index
Part I. Setting: 1. Introduction 2. Sociality 3. Beginnings 4. The Classic period Part II. Social... more Part I. Setting: 1. Introduction 2. Sociality 3. Beginnings 4. The Classic period Part II. Social Actors: 5. Kings and queens, courts and palaces 6. Nobles 7. Gods, supernaturals, and ancestors 8. Farmers 9. Craftspeople and traders 10. End of an era Epilogue.
Los mayas tenian practicas que recuerdan mucho al mundo moderno en lo que se refiere a la varieda... more Los mayas tenian practicas que recuerdan mucho al mundo moderno en lo que se refiere a la variedad de modalidades de vida amorosa, pero tambien otras que nos parecen absolutamente distintas. La identidad sexual era mas fluida y las representaciones de esa fluidez a veces eran francas y abiertas; otras, discretas, ocultan mucho mas de lo que muestran.
Death happens once to any organism, which lives and expires, not to be reborn unless by miracle. ... more Death happens once to any organism, which lives and expires, not to be reborn unless by miracle. Whether writing systems ‘die’, finally so, was the question posed from various angles in a recent paper by the author and two colleagues, John Baines and Jerrold Cooper (Houston et al. 2003). The topic had seemed overlooked, so our essay probed the twisting fate of writing systems in extremis. We came to the conclusion that diminished functions of script, linkages to obsolete knowledge with which a script had become identified, and the physical expiration of script-users from the effects of war or disease led systematically to the obsolescence of certain writing systems. Most defunct scripts were replaced by writing systems regarde —at least at the time—as facilitators of a wider variety of uses. Histories differed: a few scripts, such as cuneiform and Egyptian hieroglyphs, enjoyed long ‘lives’, decrepit only after three millennia; others, such as Rongorongo, travelled along much shorter paths.
, with support from the Neubauer Collegium for Culture and Society and the Center in Paris, both ... more , with support from the Neubauer Collegium for Culture and Society and the Center in Paris, both of that university. A separate presentation was made possible by my good colleagues Andréas Stauder and David Klotz, as part of a conference I organized with them in the eikones NCCR Iconic Criticism program at Universität Basel. John Bodel, Steve Chrisomalis, and Simon Martin were most helpful with comments and editorial suggestions, and John Baines contributed, at his usual rapid pacea better correspondent is hard to findtimely expertise on an Egyptian sculpture highlighted here. Claudia Brittenham and Sarah Newman gave the manuscript an especially close reading, and Mallory Matsumoto and Andrew Scherer supplied further good advice. Another version, given in a conference leading to this book, was co-organized with John Bodel and hosted by the Program in Early Cultures at Brown University. Sam Butler contributed with editorial help. Note that all European correlations with the Maya calendar are Julian dates, in the Martin-Skidmore correlation.
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