Calakmul in Sight

History and Archaeology of an Ancient Maya City

Calakmul in Sight
History and Archaeology of an Ancient Maya City

Kai Delvendahl

To my parents

Published by: unas letras industria editorial Calle 64 No. 560 x 71 y 73 Centro Histrico, Mrida, Yucatn Mxico www.unasletras.com First Edition, October 2008 ISBN 978-970-9709-15-5 Printed and bound in Mxico Copyright 2008 by Kai Delvendahl Contact: calakmul.insight@gmail.com All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, xerography, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author.

In Memory of Pierre Robert Colas (1976-2008)

Content

Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chapter 1. Geographical and Geopolitical Location . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chapter 2. History of Calakmul and the Kaan Dynasty . . . . . . . . . . . Chapter 3. Rediscovery and Exploration 1931-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . Chapter 4. A Quick Calakmul Site Scan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chapter 5. Description of the Site and its Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Main Plaza and Around . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Grand Acropolis or West Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Other Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chapter 6. Palaces and Court Culture at Calakmul . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Epilogue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

13 15 19 27 63 71 79 83 106 135 149 169 171

Preface

n order to satisfy the assumed needs of growing numbers of visiting tourists each year, archaeological exploration in the Maya Lowlands struggles increasingly to balance real scientific investigation and mere scenic exposition of the architectural remains. Ideally both, scientific investigation and popular exhibition, complement each other, but more often than not the former is suppressed for the sake of the latter. State and/or private funds dictate what structures can or cannot be exposed, and regulate the schedule of intervention, following a pre-designed plan to open a given site to the general public. Excavations are done with the expectation of outstanding discoveries which are not so much happened upon but desperately searched for. While tourist orientated commercial archaeology with amply excavated and elaborately reconstructed ancient Maya ruins has created an economic impact which has long been recognized and exploited, the wider educational aspect of the archaeological remains for a better understanding of the prehispanic past and its inclusion as part of world history has seemingly been reduced to secondary importance. Even if archaeological investigation at many major Maya sites has become primarily a means to attract a larger crowd of visitors, it is astonishing how little is done to inform the general interested public who travels to these sites about archaeological procedures, new developments, recent discoveries, and interpretations. The interested reader must either arduously research difficult to access academic compilations or be content with the limited information of shallow national and international magazines or the sign boards within each site. While the reasons are certainly manifold, in part the lack of communication with a wider audience must be blamed on the disinterest of archaeologists themselves, who, as Jeremy Sabloff puts it in a recent publication, are more often content to talk to fellow colleagues and not reach out to the public at large (Sabloff 2008: 104). Public reception, of course, based on a variety of factors, is far too diverse to reach and satisfy all. As for Calakmul, some visitors might just want to stroll through a remote Maya site to absorb nature and

a general feeling of an extraordinary place; for others it is enough to marvel at the impressive remains without the need to know about them. But many people do want to make sense out of what they are seeing and seek a deeper understanding. The intention of this contribution is to narrow the gap between the scientific and the popular for one particular site and provide information for exactly this latter group: the interested visitor with a certain background in Maya culture, the ones you sometimes encounter at the archaeological sites, asking intriguing questions - the ideal public to whom the endeavor of scientific archaeological exploration should be directed. While doing the research and throughout the process of writing this book I received support and intellectual input from a number of people to whom I want to express my deepest gratitude. Most of all I want to thank my wife, Valeria Garca Vierna, not only for her enlightening comments, criticism, and suggestions, but for her adorable energy and her inexhaustible support in all that matters in life. I am indebted to Harriet Riggs, Dan Griffin, and Lloyd Anderson for taking the time and trouble to revise, correct, and refine the first draft of this text. In addition, Dan Griffin kindly provided me with the 1933 reprints of the original Lundell and Morley reports. I also highly appreciate the hard work of the editor, Eugenia Montalvn Coln. It was a gratifying experience to participate in the design of the book and to have had the opportunity of the final decision. During my investigation at Calakmul from 2000-2003, I received assistance from the Proyecto Arqueolgico Calakmul, directed by Ramn Carrasco Vargas, and from several of the projects collaborators, especial ly Sylviane Boucher, Sara Dzul, Simon Martin, and Omar Rodrguez. I also would like to acknowledge the comments from Ernesto Vargas Pacheco, Linda Manzanilla Nam, Mara del Carmen Valverde Valds, and Mercedes de la Garza on an earlier, Spanish version, which found its way into my Ph. D. dissertation. Honor to whom honor is due, this book is dedicated to my parents, Heinz and Doris Delvendahl, who, through their constant support, made my choices possible and thus gave me the patience to finish my projects. I also would like to dedicate this book to the memory of a friend and colleague, Pierre Robert Colas, whose untimely death is mourned by many. He was a great scholar and a true inspiration.

Introduction
uring the first millennium of the present era, a large number of more or less independent political entities spread over a region today known as the Maya Lowlands, which includes the modern states of Yucatan, Campeche, Quintana Roo, Tabasco, and the eastern parts of Chiapas in Mexico, the northern half of Guatemala, all Belize, as well as the western fringes of Honduras. The Maya Lowlands form the easternmost extreme of a cultural area referred to as Mesoamerica which encompasses all the different territories settled by prehispanic High Cultures of North and Central America from the early Mokaya and Olmec (about 1800-500 BC) through the city states of Teotihuacn, Monte Albn, and El Tajn (200 BC-700 AD), to the Mexica or Aztec, which were conquered by the Spaniards under Hernn Corts in 1521. Even though a certain sequence in the flourishing and climaxing of the different mesoamerican cultures is apparent, most of them overlap temporally: Later Olmec culture has been shown to have influenced early Maya cultural expressions, while a profound direct or indirect (symbolic) Teotihuacn influence is manifest in several Maya Lowland cities for at least 400 years from 378 AD until around 750. Those influences were not unilateral: Maya artistic style and expressions turned up in Mexican Highland sites such as Xochicalco or Cacaxtla at around 600-700 AD, indicating a dynamic interchange and absorption of foreign cultural ideas. Prehispanic Maya culture spanned more than 2500 years, from the early beginnings of monumental architecture around 1000 BC until the creeping conquest of their lands by the Spaniards in the XVI and XVII Century. The last independent Maya kingdom of Noh Petn (Tayasal) in northern Guatemala was not subdued until 1679. During these 2500 years the rest of Mesoamerica experienced the downfall of the so-called Olmec culture in the modern states of Veracruz and Tabasco (Mexico), the rise and fall of the cities of Teotihuacn and Monte Albn in the Highlands of the modern states of Mexico and Oaxaca,
INTRODUCTION 15

14

the rise and fall of the Aztec capital of Tenochttlan (today buried under Mexico City), as well as the introduction and embedding of Spanish traditions. Researchers engaged in the study of prehispanic mesoamerican cultures distinguish different time periods within these 2500 years: The Early Preclassic (roughly 1800-900 BC), the Middle Preclassic (900-300 BC), the Late Preclassic (300 BC-250 AD), the Early Classic (250-600 AD), the Late Classic (600-910 AD), the Early Postclassic (910-1300 AD, and the Late Postclassic (1300-1517 AD), which is followed by the Contact and the Colonial Period. Some Mayanists prefer an even more refined segregation and differentiate a Protoclassic (50-250 AD), and a Terminal Classic (800-1000 AD), as well as a early and late Middle Preclassic, early, middle and late Late Preclassic, and so on. All of the Maya Lowlands were more or less densely settled by 1000 BC, but it was not until around 600 BC that urban settlements of significant size with monumental architecture emerged. The largest of these early urban settlements in extension and construction volume concentrated in the Central Maya Lowlands, especially in the El Mirador Basin in northern Guatemala, where some of the most impressive Maya architecture of all prehispanic times was built around 250 BC. For unknown reasons several of these early cities were abandoned in the I Century AD while others continued to flourish. By the Early Classic, Maya culture had developed to its fullest. Maya hieroglyphic writing, with its roots in the Late Preclassic around 400 BC, had fully developed, recording dates and events of political, ritual, and mythic significance, thus permitting much deeper insights into various aspects of life in the Maya Lowlands during the IV through X Century. Some important information the glyphic records provide is on political constellations. By the late V Century through the early VIII Century most kingdoms of significant size were directly or indirectly integrated into a sensitive, ever shifting, network of alliances, headed by two powerful dynasties: the Yax Mutal dynasty of Tikal and the Kaan dynasty which resided in Dzibanch and then, during its most influential times, in Calakmul. While alliances were forged through intersite marriages, joint celebrations of important events, and combined military campaigns, members of the opposing parties were engaged in constant warfare. The breakdown of this fragile power balance in the mid-VIII Century brought dramatic changes to the Maya Lowlands, which resulted in growing chaos and the fragmentation of the ancient alliances.
16 INTRODUCTION

Former vassals of the same overlord declared their independence and waged expansionist wars against each other, while newly declared holy kings were quickly absorbed in a spiral of increasing violence. By the IX Century warfare had reached disastrous proportions. The glyphic inscriptions on stone monuments give testimony of a dramatic escalation of armed conflicts which absorbed much of the population and culminated as one major contributing factor in what is known as the Maya Collapse: over a span of roughly 130 years between 780 and 909 AD almost all Classic Maya city states in the Southern Maya Lowlands stopped erecting public monuments and were abandoned shortly after. By the XI Century population had basically vanished or had departed from this region, which is to the present day one of the most sparsely populated areas of the Maya World. It is assumed that during the Classic period (250-900 AD) the largest centers of the Maya Lowlands, such as Tikal, Calakmul, and Caracol had between 35,000 and 50,000 inhabitants, or more. The whole area was probably populated by several million. Even though the roughly 50 identifiable city states never formed a unified empire, they shared a common cultural belief system and a socio-political organization in which the common people, around 90% of the population, were ruled by an elite minority, which oversaw by and large all political, economic, and religious affairs and was headed by a kuhul ajaw, a divine ruler, who was perceived as a direct descendant of the dynasties founders or even of the gods themselves. Calakmul, referred to as Uxtetuun, Three Stones, and Chiik Nahb in the ancient inscriptions, was most likely the largest of all Classic Maya cities, and, therefore, during this time probably the second biggest urban dwelling in all the Americas after Teotihuacn. With early beginning as remote as the Middle Preclassic, around 800 BC, Calakmul was, together with Nakb, Wakna, and El Mirador, one of the principal cities of the Late Preclassic (300 BC-250 AD), when some of the most impressive structures visible at the site today, such as the immense Structure II, were built. Despite continuous construction during the Early Classic (250-600 AD) the sites history of this period is little known, due to the almost total absence of monumental inscriptions referring to Calakmul before 623 AD. From 630 until around 740 AD the city seems to have been under the rule of the mighty Kaan dynasty. The first 65 years of this period, under the rule of the most powerful of Maya kings, Yuknoom Cheen II and his son Yuknoom Yichaak Kahk, can be regarded as the peak of Calakmul influence
INTRODUCTION 17

in the Southern Lowlands. Never before and never after did a Maya city control such an extensive network of allies and tributaries, which brought an enormous influx of wealth and unprecedented growth to Calakmul, discernible in the archaeological and epigraphic record. However, the glorious times were not going to last. A series of unfortunate military expeditions and the loss of two consecutive rulers at the hand of their archenemy, Tikal, led to a decline of the citys wider political importance after 740. While internally the semblance of power and wealth was sustained about half a century longer, Calakmul was finally seized by the vortex of events of the turbulent Terminal Classic, culminating in the desertion of the royal institutions by 909 AD and the subsequent gradual abandonment of the city during the following decades of the X Century. Rediscovered in 1931, it has been only in the past 25 years that the events involving Calakmul and the Kaan dynasty have been reconstructed from archaeological and epigraphic sources.

Geographical and Geopolitical Location

Chapter 1

he archaeological site of Calakmul is situated in the southeast of the present state of Campeche in eastern Mexico, approximately 32 kilometers (20 miles) north of the frontier with Guatemala, in the very center of the southern section of the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve.

Map of the Maya area showing the principle sites (modified from Eggebrecht et al. 1993:42)

18 INTRODUCTION

GEOGRAPHICAL AND GEOPOLITICAL LOCATION 19

At present this natural reserve, established in 1989 by Mexican presidential decree and added in 1993 to UNESCOs international system of biosphere reserves, has an extension of 725,185 hectares (7,252 km2), which makes it the biggest natural reserve of tropical forest on Mexican soil, covering almost 13% of the State of Campeche (Ericson et al. 1999; Nations 2006: 164). Climate in Calakmul can be classified as sub-humid with temperatures reaching up to 30 Celsius between April and June while dropping to just over 10 C in December-January (average for the year is 24 C). The average annual rainfall is about 1,600 mm and peaks between July and October, with less precipitation from November to January, and virtually no rain from February through May. Vegetation presents a combination of mid-high tropical rainforest and semi-deciduous tropical dry forest (selva subperennifolia), which is typical for most of the Yucatan Peninsula. Tree-sizes generally range between 15 to 30 m in height, while some species, such as mahogany or spanish cedar, may reach up to 45 m or higher (see Carrasco et al. 1998b: 12). As is typical for tropical forests the biodiversity is immense (including over 1600 species of vascular plants, 60 species of amphibians and reptiles, at least 235 species of migrant and resident birds, and approximately 94 mammal species), making the Calakmul Biosphere, today as in the past, one of the richest ecological zones in this part of the world (cf. Nations 2006: 166). The most common trees in and around Calakmul are: Manilkara zapota (Zapote, Chicle Tree), Bursera simaruba (Chach, Gumbo Limbo), Brosimum alicastrum (Ramn, Breadnut), Swietenia macrophilla (Caoba, Mahogany), Cedrela odorata (Cedro, Spanish Cedar), Ficus cotinifolia (Higuera americana, Strangler Fig), Vitex gaumeri (Barrabs, Fiddlewood), Ceiba pentandra (Ceiba, Pochota), Pouteria zapota (Mamey), Castillea elastica (Hule), Lonchocarpus castilloi (Machiche, Balch, Black Cabbage-Bark), Platymiscium yucatanum (Granadillo, Heartwood), Cryosophila Argentea (Caimito), Orbignya cohune (Palma corozo, Corozo palm), Metopium brownei (Chechem negro, Black Poison Wood), Lonchocarpus yucatanensis (Balch), Protium copal (Copal), Sabal yapa (Palma, Thatch Palm), Cholrophora tinctoria (Mora, Fustic Tree). All of these species, and many other wild plants, were exploited in multiple ways by the ancient Maya: the fruits were eaten, the plants and roots ground into medicines or used in dyeing, the resin was burned as incense or turned into latex for various uses, the wood utilized for burning, for house construction, or sculpted into works of art (cf. Pennington and Sarukhn 2005; Schlesinger 2004).
20 GEOGRAPHICAL AND GEOPOLITICAL LOCATION

All of southern Campeche, as well as the northern Petn region of Guatemala, is traversed by marshy depressions which usually fill with water during rainy season but dry out completely during the rest of the year. Today these bajos hold water only after unusual long and prolonged rains from July through September/October, but it seems possible that during the Classic these slight depressions formed permanent swampy lakes, overgrown with vegetation (especially the logwood tree [Haematoxylum campechianum]), but still navigable by small dug-out canoes all year round, forming thus an intricate network of intersite waterways which were used for commerce and communication. For ecological and constructive reasons, the banks of these shallow lakes were preferred ground for early settlements providing fertile soil, drinking water, marine animals such as fish, turtle and small alligators, as well as abundant raw material for wattle-and-daub residences (Harrison 1977, 1999: 45). One huge depression known as El Laberinto, over 24 kilometers (15 miles) long in a northwest-southeast direction and over 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) wide in its central section, extends to the west, south and southeast of Calakmul, surrounding the site on three sides. Besides the huge city of Calakmul, several other smaller, probably secondary sites are situated in the jungles around the banks of this depression, such as Multn, Balakbal, Altamira and Pared de los Reyes. The scale and proximity of these smaller sites to Calakmul suggest that they were subordinates to the latter (Marcus 1973). Around Calakmul wildlife abounds. However, today it is highly unusual to encounter more than the most common species in or on the way to the archaeological site. Groups of howler monkeys (Alouatta pigra) and spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) are still a familiar sight, as are ocellated turkeys (Agriocharis ocellata) and other species of birds (the motmot, Momotus momota, the crested guan, Penelope p. purpurascens, or the plain chachalaca, Ortalis vetula), and, at night, bats (Artibeus jamaicensis, Desmodus rotundus). Different kinds of frogs (Rhinophrynus dorsalis, Bufo valliceps, Bufo marinus, Leptodactylus labialis, Leptodactylus elanonotus, Hypopachus variolosus, Triprion petasatus, Agalychnis callidryas, Smilisca baudini, Scinax staufferi, Hyla loquax, Hyla microcephala), and smaller reptiles such as lizards (Anolis spp, Sceloporus spp, Mabuya brachypoda) are equally frequent. Snakes, especially the highly poisonous coral snake (Micrurus diastema) and the fer-de-lance viper (Bothrops asper), scorpions (Coleonyx elegans) and tarantulas (Brachypelma vagans) are often unearthed by archaeologists, as they tend to hide between the debris of fallen structures, but otherwise are seldom seen. Occasionally a herd of
GEOGRAPHICAL AND GEOPOLITICAL LOCATION 21

collared peccaries (Tayassu tajacu) might roam through the ruins, or a toucan (Ramphastos sulfuratus) might fly over the crests of the trees, and it is even less common to happen upon a single white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), a hairy porcupine (Coendou mexicanus), a paca (Agouti paca, tepezcuintle), a family of coatimundi (Nasua narica), or one or several agoutis (Dasyprocta punctata). Moreleti crocodiles (Crocodylus moreleti) are reported to inhabit the aguadas and every now and then might cross the path leading into the site to get from one central water reservoir to the other, but only tales are heard of weasel cats (Herpailurus yagouaroundi), margays (Leopardus wiedii), ocelots (Leopardus pardalis) and jaguars (Panthera onca) sneaking through the camps of the forest guards (cf. Schlesinger 20011). All of these species, and many more, were an important and integral part of the ancient Mayas real and spiritual life as is attested, among other sources, in thousands of representations on Early and Late Classic ceramics. They were at the same time hunted and venerated. Some, as the jaguar, but also certain species of birds, such as the lovely cotinga (Cotinga amabilis), and fish (especially the catfish) were symbols of rulership. That animal protein formed an important ingredient of the diet of the ancient dwellers at Calakmul has been demonstrated in a preliminary osteological study (Tejada et al. 2001). However, the higher amount of animal protein in bones from elite context seems to indicate that the consumption of meat was largely restricted to, and therefore a privilege of, the ruling class. Architecturally Calakmul shares features with sites such as Tikal, Uaxactn, Naranjo, Yaxh and other Classic cities of the Central Maya Lowlands, and can be included in what is called the Petn stylistic tradition (Andrews 1975: 25; Miller 1999: 22-35). This style is characterized by elevated pyramidal platforms and thick-walled superstructures with very limited interior space. Roofs are massive and often visually elevated by huge elaborate roofcombs. Plazas are large and contrast harmonically with the mass of construction surrounding them. Outside decoration is considered austere compared to other cities such as Copn in western Honduras or Palenque in Chiapas, even though remains of fallen stucco fragments corresponding to exterior facades, as well as elaborated friezes and mural paintings on several substructures in Calakmul reflect what probably was once a colorful and richly ornamented city.
1 See also: Instituto Nacional de Ecologa (2000) Programa de manejo de la Reserva de la Bisfera de Calakmul, Mxico. http://www.conanp.gob.mx/anp/programas_manejo/calakmul.pdf

Structures I and II of Calakmul (Photo by the author)

In the late sixties German Mayanist Thomas Barthel (1968a, 1968b), based on earlier insights by Heinrich Berlin (1958) and derived from a concept then known from ethnohistoric and ethnographic sources, proposed a quatrefoil political universe oriented towards the cardinal directions for the Classic Maya. Starting from interpretations of the inscriptions of Stela A in Copn and Stela 10 from Seibal, Barthel proposed four major cities as capitals of wider political spheres: Copn, Tikal, the snake-head polity (later identified as Calakmul) and Palenque as in the case of Stela A, and Seibal, Tikal, the snake-head polity and a site which uses the T503, Ik (Wind) emblem glyph (recently identified as Motul de San Jos near Tikal) as in the case of Stela 10. Barthel interpreted the substitution of Copn and Palenque by Seibal and Motul de San Jos as a sign of disintegration of the Southern Maya Lowlands, initiating at the periphery and culminating in the abandonment of the majority of all the Classic Maya cities in the VIII through X Century. Even though he did not directly identify Calakmul as the seat of the snake-head polity, he correctly assumed the people of the snake lived in the northern quadrant of the Classic Maya area, possibly in southern Campeche (Barthel 1968a: 192). Amplifying this concept in the seventies, Joyce Marcus (1973, 1976) proposed that Calakmul was one of the four regional capitals of the
GEOGRAPHICAL AND GEOPOLITICAL LOCATION 23

22 GEOGRAPHICAL AND GEOPOLITICAL LOCATION

Maya Lowlands in the Late Classic, surrounded by smaller subordinate sites, which were encircled by even smaller dependencies. The sites proposed as subordinates to Calakmul were Oxpemul in the north, La Mueca in the northeast, Altamira in the southeast, Naachtn in the south, Uxul in the southwest and Sasilha in the west (see Marcus 1973, 1976: Fig. 27). Based on this model, Marcus proposed a four-tiered hierarchy between Classic Maya Lowland sites, headed by a regional capital. Epigraphic studies in recent years have dramatically changed the perception of political organization in the Maya Lowlands (Grube 2004, 2007; Grube and Martin 1998a, 1998b, 2000; Martin 1994; Martin and Grube 1994, 1995, 2000, 2008). As has been noted in the past (especially Marcus 1976) there are two Classic Maya cities which are mentioned more often in the inscriptions of other sites than others: one features as its emblem glyph a headband knotted around a head seen from behind, which reads Mutal and corresponds to the kingdom or the dynasty of Tikal; the other shows the head of a snake, reads Kaan and refers to the dynasty which at the height of its power resided in Calakmul.

Political constellations in the mid-VII Century (Martin and Grube 2008: 21)

Thanks to the decipherment of glyphic expressions of possession and rank it was possible to detect that the rulers of these two dynasties were never mentioned in a position of inferiority but instead either as supervising, sanctioning or being present in ritual affairs or else in context of warfare: attacking, burning, bringing down the flint and shield (subduing). These recent decipherments resulted in a model, first proposed by Simon Martin and Nikolai Grube in an article in 1995, in which Tikal and Calakmul were the two superstates of the Lowlands, controlling a wide network of allies in a hegemonic system (Grube and Martin 2000; Martin and Grube 1995, 2000, 2008). The allies of Calakmul included cities such as Los Alacranes (in southeastern Campeche, Mexico), Caracol (situated in modern western Belize), temporarily Naranjo, La Corona (the famed Site Q), Dos Pilas, Piedras Negras, El Per, Cancun (all located in different areas in northern Guatemala), Yaxchiln, Moral-Reforma and Yokop (in eastern Chiapas, Tabasco, and Campeche, Mexico, respectively), to name just a few. Most of these cities were evenly distributed around Tikal, probably effectively complicating Tikals interaction with other, more distant, regions. Tikal for its part had strong ties to such powerful and illustrious allies as Copn (in modern western Honduras) and Palenque (in Chiapas, Mexico) on the far east and west fringes of the Maya World, as well as to Yaxh, temporarily Naranjo, and Uaxactn to the east and north, and to the lesser known and smaller cities of Ucanal and Motul de San Jos to the southeast and southwest of Tikal. Such alliances were forged primarily through personal relations, such as marriage and shared interests, while others were forced through overthrow and domination. They include the payment of tributes in form of goods and labor, military and logistic help, as well as other kinds of services. The overlords certainly demanded in most cases a convenient succession of bloodline, assured by marrying daughters from the capital royal court to rulers or successors to the thrones of the subordinate sites. As attested in several inscriptions, they also ordered adolescents of the subordinate royal family to do service at the metropolitan court, in part, it seems, to hold them as political hostages. Emissaries of the most important allies might have lived as permanent representatives in one of the multiple palace complexes in the city centers of Tikal and Calakmul.

24 GEOGRAPHICAL AND GEOPOLITICAL LOCATION

GEOGRAPHICAL AND GEOPOLITICAL LOCATION 25

History of Calakmul and the Kaan Dynasty

he history of the site of Calakmul is inextricably linked with the growth and climax of the well known Kaan (Snake) dynasty, for which Calakmul served as the main capital for at least 105 years during its heyday between roughly 630 and 736 AD. Therefore it is important to view the development of both simultaneously. However, other characters were engaged as well, making the history of Calakmul one of the Maya Classics most complex chronicles. Recent investigations, for instance, revealed early and late involvements of the rulers of a hitherto unknown dynasty which used the representation of a bat head as the main sign of their emblem glyph, and which in some illdefined way struggled for quite some time with the Kaan dynasty over domination of the Uxtetuun/Chiik Nahb-polity. Unfortunately, most of Calakmuls Early Classic history is obscured by the almost complete absence of early inscriptions and the little that is known from written sources is often not compatible with the archaeological record. Terminal Classic information on Calakmul is equally meager, due to the Kaan dynastys almost complete disappearance from public records after 740 and the poor preservation of the few standing stelae erected in Calakmul after that time. As a result, much of the fragmentary information on hand has posed more questions than answers, a sometimes frustrating, but at the same time stimulating side effect of a dynamic field of research. The two disciplines which contributed most to our knowledge on Calakmul, archaeology and epigraphy, are very much in progress, with new data and new interpretations coming to light in a constant flow. Therefore every historical reconstruction must be seen as preliminary (for archaeological and epigraphic information on Calakmul see, among others: Boucher and Dzul 1998; Boucher and Palomo 2000a, 2000b; Boucher and Quiones 2007; Braswell et al. 2005; Carrasco 1996-2005; Carrasco and Bojalil 2005; Carrasco and Boucher
HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 27

Chapter 2

1994; Carrasco and Coln 2005; Carrasco and Rodrguez 2003, 2005; Carrasco and Vzquez 2007; Carrasco et al. 1997-2003; Delvendahl 2002-2005; Domnguez 2004; Domnguez et al. 1997, 2002; Florey and Folan 1999; Folan 1985-1999; Folan et al. 2000, 2001a, 2001b; Gallegos 2001; Garca and Carrasco 2007; Grube 2004, 2005, 2007; Grube and Martin 1998a, 1998b, 2000; Marcus 1973, 1976, 1987; Martin 19932005; Martin and Grube 1994-2008; May Hau et al. 1990; Morley 1933, 1970; Nieves and Nieto 1995; Pincemin 1994; Pincemin et al. 1998; Reyes 2006; Rivet 1932; Rodrguez 2000, 2003, 2007; Ruppert and Denison 1943; Tokovinine 2007; Tunesi 2007; Velsquez 2004, 2005; Velsquez and Palln 2006; Wlfel 2007; Zapata 1985). Assuming that the quantity and distribution of ceramics reflect the intensity of human occupation, it can be stated that Calakmul had a continuous occupation for almost 1900 years from the Middle Preclassic (900-300 BC) to the Terminal Classic (800-1000 AD). There seems to have survived a reduced but still active occupation during the Early Postclassic (1000-1200 AD), descendants dwelling in the former glorious structures and building simpler constructions within the patios of the older palaces. Sporadic visits, probably for ritual purposes, have been attested as late as early colonial times (Boucher and Dzul 1998). The temporality of the material suggests for Calakmul a similar evolution as for comparable Central Lowland cities such as Tikal, with the earliest settlement, a small wattle-and-daub village, being on the banks of the El Laberinto swamp. The transition of Calakmul from a small village-type settlement to a significant town probably took place in the second half of the Middle Preclassic, during a three hundred year period between 600 and 300 BC. This transition is clearly represented in an increase of a specific ceramic complex known scientifically as Zihnal, whose type variation Tierra Mojada Negativo had a wide distribution at that time and has been reported from several contemporaneous sites all over the Central Lowlands, such as Nakb, Uaxactn, Tikal, and Altar de Sacrificios (Boucher and Dzul 1998). Substructure Sub II-C, an enormous platform with seven to nine structures enclosing a 4,900 m2 precinct composed of two courtyards, detected in 1997 within Structure II and gradually exposed in the following years, is one of the citys earliest constructions so far excavated and therefore represents one of the earliest stages of architectural expression in a public space in that city (Carrasco 2000, 2001; Carrasco and Coln 2005; Rodrguez 2003, 2007). Of the se28 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

ven to nine structures (six to eight around the two courtyards, one -the smallest- connecting the two areas) three have been detected so far, the others are assumed based on Maya-typical symmetry of space. The construction of Sub II-C, as dated by radiocarbon C14 analysis, supposably took place between 390 and 250 BC, at the very transition of the Middle Preclassic to the Late Preclassic. The northernmost building of the platform, Sub II-C-1, approximately 48 meters long and 14 meters tall, represents the access to the sacred space. The central stairway which leads to this structure is flanked by two oversized Olmec-style influenced deity masks, with down turned mouth and slightly inclined almond shaped eyes. Next to the masks are giant earrings topped by three foiled corn leaves and a circular element probably representing a cut conch.

Olmec-style mask on the north side of the platform of Structure Sub II-C-1 (Photo by the author)

The superstructure itself features a 20 m long by 3.5 m high frieze of thick red and black painted stucco, representing God Chaak floating between two supernatural birds. The scene is surrounded by a sky band which forms the body of a two-headed cosmic crocodile, also known
HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 29

as the sky monster, and shows similarities to features on monuments of Izapa, a Preclassic site on the pacific fringes of southern Chiapas, of Abaj Takalik in southern Guatemala, as well as to a stucco covered basement in Nakb (Simon Martin 2004: pers. com.; see also Lowe 2000). Given the similarities of the frieze to these monuments, as well as the likeness of the stucco masks on the base to Olmec features in the murals of San Bartolo, a more recent date than 390-250 BC can be assumed for the elaboration of these ornaments, or even for the construction of the building, probably around 100 BC. The scene of Chaak floating between supernatural birds seems to illustrate a particular moment of a common and widespread narration with considerable time depth. As Simon Martin has pointed out (2004: pers. com.) a similar event is depicted about 550 years after the construction of Sub II-C-1 on a stucco panel on the walls of Copns Margarita Structure inside the Copn Acropolis, dated to 450 AD. The access to the inner courtyard itself is via a comparatively wide central passageway topped by a round arch, instead of the typical corbelled vault the Maya used to build. A rounded arch (without the usual keystone) is a very rare feature in Maya architecture. The only

Stuccoed rounded arch of the central structure of the subcomplex Sub II-C (Photo by the author)

other round arch so far reported from that region has been found a few miles east of Calakmul in La Mueca (Ruppert and Denison 1943; Hohmann 2005) and is of much smaller proportions. However, in the five structure complex of Sub II-C at least two buildings, the north and the central structure, present rounded arch passageways which were originally covered with smoothed stucco and, at least in the north structure, painted with black hands and graffiti of a warrior. As is indicated by the size, elaboration, and location of this ritual complex, a hierarchical political system, probably headed by a kuhul ajaw, a sacred or holy lord, seems to have been in place by at least 100 BC. Most of the impressive central structures, such as Structure I, IV, V, VI, and VII had their beginnings in the Late Preclassic (300 BC-250 AD), one, Structure II, was raised already by the end of the Preclassic to an elevation of some 45 m. It seems that by this time the center of Calakmul was densely settled as indicated not only by data from the structures immediately around the Central Plaza but also from groups at a certain distance, such as the Chan Chiich-Complex northeast of the sites center or the so-called West Group or Grand Acropolis Group, a huge palace complex to the west of the Central Square. Late Middle Preclassic and Late Preclassic ceramics found in excavations inside the latter were associated with early architectural remains, presumably a low platform (Delvendahl 2003, 2005). It has been suggested, that Nakb had en extension of some 50 hectares by 600 BC (Clark and Hansen 2001: 15) and it can be assumed that Calakmul had reached similar proportions by at least the Late Preclassic. At the end of the Preclassic some of the most powerful cities in the Central Lowlands, such as Nakb, El Mirador, Uaxactn, Seibal, Cerros and others were abandoned, some only temporarily, in a process closely paralleling the collapse of the Classic Maya cities about 700 years later. However, the Preclassic collapse was not as absolute as its Terminal Classic equivalent. Several cities, including ones in the same geographical region, such as Tikal and Calakmul, obviously took advantage of the downfall of their once-dominant neighbors and flourished into the leading powers in the Southern Maya Lowlands. As the archaeological record indicates, Calakmul shows an uninterrupted building program throughout the Early Classic. Most of the structures excavated in the core city present Early Classic additions. The whole front of Structure II, for example, exposed to the visitor today, with its four giant, once stuccoed, zoomorphic masks on both sides of the
HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 31

30 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

central stairway, dates basically to the Early Classic, constructed sometime in the V Century and built over in a similar style towards the end of the VI Century (Rodriguez 2003). Calakmuls written history as preserved in stone monuments goes back to 431 AD (8.19.15.12.18. 13 Ben 6 (8) Mol in the Maya Longcount), a retrospective date from Stela 114 which was found buried in a small vaulted room close to the base of Structure II and which was dedicated in 435 (9.0.0.0.0; Martin 1998: 80; Pincemin et al. 1998). The text of this stela has not been deciphered entirely but it seems to be referring to the katuun (twenty year) anniversary of a 411 AD accession of a king whose name is mentioned but illegible. It is important to note, though, that the accompanying emblem glyph has as its main sign not the head of a snake, as used in the texts of monuments dating between 631 and 741 AD, but the head of a bat (Martin 2005: 5). The text also names an inferior lord who is using the Lord of Chiik Nahb title, Chiik Nahb, as mentioned, being one of Calakmuls ancient names and/or a name of an important precinct within the city. However, the missing kuhul (sacred or holy)-prefix, seems to imply that Calakmul was governed at that time by a subordinate ajaw, lord, under the auspices of a superior king, a kuhul ajaw, a sacred lord, of the Bat realm (Ibid; see also Grube 2005: 96). Because of rough contemporaneity it has been speculated that one of the named characters might be the person who was buried in a luxurious tomb underneath Room 6 of Structure III (Folan et al. 2001b, Pincemin 1994; Pincemin et al. 1998). However, since no inscriptions were found with the corpse this assumption remains open to question. At present, Stela 114 of 435 AD and Stela 43 of 514 AD are the only stone monuments discovered at Calakmul which date to the Early and Middle Classic up to 623 (Stelae 28 & 29). This is an astonishing fact given the sites apparent early importance and the Maya tradition of erecting dated stelae since at least 292 AD (Tikal, Stela 29), more than 330 years before the practice seems to take hold at Calakmul. In part this absence might be explained by the citys turbulent history throughout most of the Early and Late Classic, which seems to have included occupation of at least two and maybe up to three different ruling parties. Many monuments might have been smashed to pieces by competing parties and buried in construction fill or in special deposits, or else mutilated beyond recognition or reused. Several might have been transported to outlying sites in the environs were they were resculptered and have since deteriorated (see Martin 2000b for
32 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

that kind of monument movement in Tikal). The already mentioned inferior quality of stone in the Calakmul area, which make most of the inscriptions on the more than 120 stelae of the site unreadable, is yet another major obstacle in obtaining useful information. Others, which were in good condition when first discovered, have been looted since, especially in the decade of the 60s. All stelae in front of Structure I, for example, most of which date to the Late Classic (first decades of the VIII Century), were chain-sawed to small pieces by looters, leaving just some of the lateral inscriptions in place. The reconstruction of the history of Calakmul and the Kaan dynasty therefore relies heavily on inscriptions from other Classic cities and, to a lesser extent, on texts and images painted on other media, especially on ceramics (Grube 2004, 2005, 2007; Grube and Martin 1998a, 1998b, 2000; Martin 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2004, 2005; Martin and Grube 1994, 1995, 2000, 2008; Velsquez 2004, 2005). Within the ceramics, a small collection of 12 Late Classic (around 700 AD) codex-style type, so-called Dynastic Vases exhibit long texts exclusively dealing with the royal succession of the Kaan, Snake dynasty. Codex-style vases got their name from a fine black on cream or yellow painting style, which is reminiscent of the drawing styles of prehispanic codices, especially of the so-called Dresden Codex. Unfortunately, these vases have an especially high value on the art-market and are therefore very much sought after by looters. Most of the finest pieces of codex-style ceramics are from unknown archaeological context and are presently in private or in museum collections. Since most archaeologically excavated codex-style vases have been reported from digs in Nakb and El Mirador in northern Guatemala, it was generally assumed that codex-style is a painting technique peculiar to the El Mirador Basin and that all codex-style vases known come from that region (see for instance Domnguez 2004: 140; Grube 2004: 123; Grube and Gaida 2006: 157; MacLeod and Reents-Budet 1994: 153-156; ReentsBudet et al. 1997. Michael Coe [1978: 28] had previously proposed Calakmul as the site of origin, based of the presence of the Snake emblem glyph on various codex-style vases). The El Mirador Basin provenance seemed to be corroborated by chemical analysis which proved that codex-style pottery was crafted from local clay (Ronald Bishop 2003 & 2007: pers. com.; Reents-Budet et al. 1997) and by the incredible amount of looting that the sites in this area had experienced. However, in the 2001-2003 field season of the current Calakmul Archaeological Project significant quantities of codex-style
HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 33

ceramics were unearthed during excavations south of Structure XX inside the Grand Acropolis palace group, including several fragments of a thirteenth Dynastic Vase, which was apparently painted by the same hand as some of the known Dynastic Vases (Delvendahl 2002, 2003, 2005; Garca and Carrasco 2006; Simon Martin 2004: pers. com). This had led to the assumption that Calakmul might have been one of several manufacturers and distributors (or Calakmul artists the painters) of codex-style ceramics (Delvendahl 2005: 435-437), a supposition which might still hold, despite the more recent information that samples taken from some of the ceramics of Structure XX have shown a similar chemical profile to codex-style pottery of the Nakb production (Ronald Bishop 2007: pers. com). The twelve known full glyphic codex-style type Dynastic Vases list between 10 and 19 king names one after the other, each name followed by the Snake emblem glyph (Martin 1997). The dates are highlighted and the action described as cham kawiil, grasping the kawiil-[scepter] (Martin 1997: 855), a clear statement of accession to power. The sequences start with the name of a character dubbed Skyraiser who is supposed to be the lineage founder and who is also mentioned on a 580 AD inscription from El Resbaln Hieroglyphic Stairway 3, where he is related to a 7.0.16.14.? Long Count date, corresponding to 377 BC, all the way back to the transition of the Middle Preclassic to the Late Preclassic (Grube 2004). Unfortunately, not all of the listed names are known from stone monuments and, just as most of the best preserved codex-style ceramics, not one of the twelve Dynastic Vases was found in archaeological context. Therefore, there has been some debate whether the Dynastic Vases record a historic succession of snake-kings or might represent a sequence of kings invoked from mythical past and places, maybe to underscore a current legitimation to rule (Martin 1997; Reents-Budet et al. 1997). It had been suggested that the sequence might register names of ancient kings from Preclassic times, when the Kaan dynasty might have resided in one of the huge southern cities, such as El Mirador (Grube 2004; Grube and Gaida 2006: 156; Reents-Budet et al. 1997). The question remains whether some of the codex-style ceramics and Dynastic Vases were painted at Calakmul. The estimated period when codex-style pottery was crafted and painted (roughly 670-730 AD) does at least coincide with the time that the Snake emblem glyph was related to Calakmul (through the VII to the mid VIII Century). It is also noteworthy that one of the most common titles on codex-style
34 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

Fragments of two codex-style vases from a trash deposit south of Structure XX. They feature the kuhul chatahn winik, sacred man of chatahn-title, a not yet clearly understood designation. Fragments are not to scale (Photos by the author)

vases, kuhul chatahn winik, holy man of Chatahn, which is very rare on stone monuments, appears on at least three stelae in Calakmul, namely on the early Stela 43 from 514 AD, and as a scribal title on Stelae 51 and 89, both from 731 and commissioned by Yuknoom Took Kawiil, the last ruler who erected monuments featuring the Snake emblem glyph at Calakmul. The not well understood chatahn winik title has been considered to refer to the mythic heartland of the El Mirador Basin, more specifically to Nakb, largely based on the aforementioned (and maybe outdated) exclusive relation of codex-style ceramics to the Mirador region (Grube 2004; Reenst-Budet et al. 1997; Martin 2005; see also Wlfel 2007: 33). It has also been suggested that the term might name a much larger realm, possibly including the whole northern Central Lowlands, including Calakmul and other sites in southern Campeche (see Grube 2003). However, both theories are highly speculative. Given the present evidence there is no clear indication why the chatahn-title should refer to the El Mirador region or why the Preclassic Kaan kings should have resided in El Mirador. By at least the Late Preclassic Calakmul was a major Maya city in its own right and might just as well have been the original Kaan seat of power (the 377 BC date mentioned above for the lineage founder Skyraiser actually would fit perfectly with the beginnings of monumental architecture at Calakmul). At least it might have been until the early V Century, when the intrusion of the Bat dynasty seems to have had a profound impact on Calakmul history and a completely different picture emerges. The historically known sequence of kings related to the dynasty of Kaan and/or the city of Calakmul stretches over 400 years from Yuknoom Cheen I, who governed around 500 AD to Aj Took, the
HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 35

last registered ruler, who governed Calakmul in its final days and erected the last dated stela in 909 in front of Structure XIV (Martin 1998, 2000, 2005; Martin and Grube 2008). As was noticed a few years ago, the first mention of the Kaan dynasty chiseled in stone comes from outside Calakmul, from a site called Dzibanch, some 117 kilometers (72 miles) northeast of Calakmul (Martin and Grube 2000: 103). Inscriptions on a series of steps relate of the conquest of a number of smaller cities in the vicinity of Dzibanch and name Yuknoom Cheen I, sacred ruler of the Kaan dynasty (Velsquez 2004). Unfortunately it is not certain if these conquests are attributed to Yuknoom Cheen I or if the text refers to the conquest of vassals of Yuknoom Cheen, which, of course, would make a huge difference (Martin and Grube 2000: 103). For the moment scholars tend to incline to the former interpretation (Grube 2004; Martin 2004, 2005; Martin and Grube 2008: 103; Velsquez 2004: 83-85). Even though the dates are not secure either, these events seem to have taken place towards the end of the V Century AD. Given these first examples of stone-inscriptions featuring the Snake emblem glyph it has been suggested that the Early Classic Kaan dynasty resided at Dzibanch and only moved to Calakmul sometime after 600 AD (Grube 2004, 2005; Martin 2005; Martin and Grube 2008: 102; Velazquez 2005). Unfortunately, as in many cases, the Classic inscriptions suggest (i.e. lead to interpret) what had happened, without elucidating why or how a given event progressed. Calakmul had been an impressive city already for about a thousand years by 600, surely bigger in size than Dzibanch and without doubt the seat of a powerful dynasty itself at that time, as mentioned, probably somehow related to the Bat-realm. One is left to wonder how and why a sudden shift of the Kaan dynasty from Dzibanch to Calakmul should have taken place, especially at a time of supreme power of the Kaan dynasty after decisive defeats of Tikal in 562 and Palenque in 599 AD. Why would the Kaan kings have left Dzibanch when it was their original home - for strategic reasons as Martin (2005: 7) suggests? Why should they move to Calakmul - for symbolic reasons (Ibid.)? How did the then resident Calakmul ruling class react to these events? In the light of the limited data available it is clearly difficult to firmly establish the historic events involving the city of Calakmul up to 631, the first secure date that links an event to a ruler who used the Snake emblem glyph and actually resided in Calakmul. Even though hotly contested by archaeologists working in Calakmul it is likely that all
36 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

the events recorded in the inscriptions of different cities of the Maya Lowlands involving Kaan rulers up to at least 600 AD do not refer to Calakmul but to Dzibanch or maybe even a third, so far not identified, city. One of the more recent interpretations suggests the city of Calakmul as the seat of the Snake Kaan dynasty for just over 105 years, from 631 to about 736 AD, or slightly thereafter. This period has been called the era of three kings (Martin 2005: 7), referring to the rulers Yuknoom Cheen II, Yuknoom Yichaak Kahk and Yuknoom Took Kawiil. Another recent article suggests that also Yuknoom Tooks successor, Wamaw Kawiil, who probably ruled for several years around and after 736, should be included in the list of kings who used the Snake emblem glyph and resided at Calakmul, as he is mentioned in two inscriptions from different sites with the Chiik Nahb toponym (in Quirigu) and the Snake emblem glyph (in Hix Witz; see Tunesi 2007). What is even more disturbing is that there is so little information on the Kaan kings before 500 AD. If the Kaan dynasty was so mighty that some scholars do even consider them to be the original residents of El Mirador, why are there so little pre-500 AD references? Or were the Snake people the original residents of Calakmul before 400 AD and expelled by the Bat dynasts? One tentative explanation for these rather confusing but fascinating changing constellations might lie in what Simon Martin (2005) has called shifting political identities: If the emblem glyphs refer to the names of dynasties or royal houses instead of defined physical spaces (cities or kingdoms), as was generally assumed in the more recent past, and if the dynasties or royal houses are not necessarily linked firmly and eternally to one physical space but can move their capital as they move their court, then a given city such as Calakmul can be associated over time with different dynasties using different emblem glyphs. However, this proposal only offers an explanation for the occurrence of different dynasties at one and the same place. It does not shed light on the dynamics behind these movements, which seem to contain all the components which characterize most of the history of the Classic: warfare, conquest, exile. In few words, resuming the above and anticipating some of the historical processes outlined in more detail below, at least two scenarios based on the information of Stela 114 and other monuments are theoretically conceivable: 1. Calakmul (Uxtetuun/Chiik Nahb) was conquered sometime around 400 AD by the Bat dynasty, and its ruling lineage,
HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 37

the Kaan dynasty, exiled or retreated to Dzibanch where they stayed for almost 200 years. All early monuments erected by the Kaan dynasty were moved, destroyed, reused or mutilated beyond recognition by the followers of the Bat-kings. Having gathered forces and powerful allies during the V and VI Century (including Caracol and Naranjo), around 600 AD the Kaan dynasty returned to Calakmul, reconquered the city and expelled the Bat-kings, which for their part sought refuge in the northern realms (maybe Oxpemul?), but stayed under rigid dominion of the Kaan dynasts. All monuments erected by the Bat dynasts were destroyed or moved to other places, some, as Stela 114, were ritually burned and interred. The bat lords stayed at Oxpemul where they did not (have the right to?) erect any monuments and/or did not dare to do so until after the 695 AD defeat of Calakmul by Tikal and encouraged by continuing signs of vanishing Kaan power (in 731 AD). In at least two of these monuments (Oxpemul Stela 7 and Stela 12) they reclaim Uxtetuun as rightfully theirs. After some 130 years of initially highly successful (600-690 AD) but increasingly complex and difficult rule (690-740 AD) which resulted in a series of unfortunate military campaigns, the Kaan dynasts were finally expelled once more from Calakmul by the returning Bat-kings shortly before the mid-VIII Century. This defeat was decisive and the long lasting Kaan dynasty erased. 2. Another version is that Calakmul and its local Chiik Nahb-lineage was conquered in the early V Century by the Bat dynasty, which destroyed or removed all preexisting monuments. Around 600 they, in turn, were expelled by the newly arriving Kaan kings. The Kaan dynasty had hitherto lived in El Mirador (in the Late Preclassic) and Dzibanch (in the Early Classic). After some highly successful wars against several kingdoms in the Maya Lowlands, they opted for strategic and symbolic reasons to make Calakmul their capital. All monuments erected during the Bat reign were destroyed, removed and/or reused, some, as Stela 114, ritually burned and interred. The Bat lords were exiled to Oxpemul where they did not (have the right to?) erect any monuments and/ or did not dare to do so until after the 695 AD defeat of
38 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

Calakmul by Tikal, encouraged by continuing signs of vanishing Kaan power (in 731). After some 130 years in exile they re-conquered Calakmul from an already weakened Kaan dynasty and erased their lineage. At the time of this writing the problem is far from settled and the above-mentioned sequences of events probably far from the truth. A Bat emblem glyph on a monument dating to 731 (Stela 52), undoubt edly erected during the reign of Yuknoom Took Kawiil (Grube 2005: 97), further confuses the picture and somehow seems to indicate even a late comtemporaneity of the Snake and Bat emblem glyphs at Calakmul. For the moment one has to await further epigraphic discoveries. The unearthing of a few pre-630 AD or post-736 AD monuments featuring the Snake emblem glyph hidden in the rubble of later constructions or in some special deposit at Calakmul might again change, or indeed corroborate, the scenarios presented above. Be that as it may, the uncertain political situation before 630 and after 740 AD is important to keep in mind while reviewing the following preliminary reconstruction of historic events around the Kaan dynasty and the city of Uxtetuun and Chiik Nahb, as Calakmul an its surrounding realm were known in the Classic. After the first references to the Snake king Yuknoom Cheen I in Dzibanch the increasing political influence of the Kaan dynasty is deducible from an inscription from Naranjo dating to 546 AD, which refers to the ascension of twelve year old Aj Wosal, kuhul Saal [Naranjo] ajaw. This action was supervised, u-chabhi, and probably arranged by Kaltuun Hix, one of the most influential early Kaan rulers. The intervention into the internal affairs of other cities became a common feature of later Kaan politics, especially during a 194 year period in the late Early Classic and in the Late Classic, where the supremacy of that dynasty, then residing at Calakmul, was expressed in more than 50 inscriptions of at least 16 important cities in the Maya Lowlands (Grube and Martin 1998a, 2000; Martin 2001, 2005; Martin and Grube 2008). In most cases these expressions are statements of hierarchy such as y-ajaw, his ruler or better his overlord, such as in: Bajlaj Chan Kawiil, sacred king of Dos Pilas, his (over-) lord is Yuknoom Cheen II, sacred king of Calakmul, stated on Dos Pilas Hieroglyphic Stairway 4 in 684. Another expression was u-chabhi or u-kabjiiy, under the auspices of or under the supervision of , as in: Chan Ahk Wi, ajaw of
HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 39

Cancuen, chumwan ti ajawlel, was seated into lordship, ukabjiiy, under the auspices of , Yuknoom Cheen II, sacred king of Calakmul, stated on the Cancuen panel, referring to an event in 677 (Kistler 2004). Yet another acknowledgement of superiority was y-ichnal, in the company of (probably similar to under the supervision of ) as in: Kinich Balam, he takes the Kawiil [scepter] (power) y-ichnal, in the company of ??? (probably Yuknoom Cheen II), sacred king of Calakmul as on El Peru Stela 33 (Grube and Martin 1998a; Martin and Grube 2008). In all of the more than fifty statements Calakmul was named as superior. Just as Kaltuun Hix, none of the next Kaan rulers, Sky Witness (>561-572 AD), Yax ?-Yopaat (>573 AD>), Scroll Serpent (better: Hiss of the Serpent, 579-611 AD>), Yuknoom Ti Chan (>619 AD>), and Tajoom Ukakb Kahk (622-630 AD) are mentioned in Calakmul monuments. It is possible that the last of these might have already resided in Calakmul but the name captions and emblem glyphs of two contemporary stelae from Calakmul, Stela 28 and 29, dedicated in 623, are not preserved (Martin 2005: 6-7; Martin and Grube 2008: 106). During the reign of Sky Witness the Kaan dynasty went to war with Tikal in 562 AD. This event was recorded on Altar 21 of Caracol and described as a Star War, the most ferocious type of warfare, including probably a direct attack on the city. For a long time it was assumed that Caracol, a huge site in modern southwestern Belize, was responsible for the attacks and the subsequent sacrifice of Tikals ruler Wak Chan Kawiil (see, for example, Schele and Freidel 1990: 173). However, it has become clear recently that the leading agent was the Kaan dynasty (Grube and Martin 1998a), back then probably governing the site of Dzibanch. Prior to that date, Caracol had been a long time subordinate to Tikal and was previously raided by Tikal in 556 in a chak, to decapitate, to chop up event. It seems that in the 562 counterattack Caracol, with the help of the Snake dynasty, was able to shake off the yoke of forced subjugation, allying itself with a more congenial associate. In texts referring to later campaigns Caracol is always mentioned as one of Kaans closest allies, including in the period when the dynasty resided at Calakmul. While the Kaan rulers at Dzibanch became the leading power in the Southern Lowlands, Tikal entered a period of stagnation with few, if any, monuments erected at the site during a lapse of 130 years. This period of time is widely known as the hiatus, and has been regarded in older literature as a general phenomenon connected to the decline of the mighty metropolis of Teotihuacn in the Mexican Highlands.
40 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

The so-called hiatus has traditionally marked the transition from Early Classic to Late Classic. Although it is now known that it was a rather local incident, there are certain undeniable differences between the Early and the Late Classic manifested especially in a gradual refinement of the arts, leading to a much more expressive and realistic art style, but also in a boost in construction, comparable only to the Late Preclassic, as well as in an increase of public monument erection whose inscriptions and representations paint an increasingly violent picture of the epoch. In a accelerated process of disintegration, also labeled balkanization by some investigators (see Dunham 1988a, 1988b), which intensified particularly during the VII through IX Century of the Late Classic, a multitude of smaller city-states claimed sacred rulership and their own emblem glyph, competing against each other for regional dominion (cf. Grube 2007). The decades following the defeat of Tikal in 562, under the reigns of Yax?- Yopaat and Scroll Serpent, were marked by continuous war fare aiming to consolidate and amplify the power of the Kaan dynasty. Two attacks against Palenque, located at a distance of over 250 kilometers (155 miles) to the southwest, in 599 and 611 AD led not only to the total destruction of the Palenque city center, but to the slaughter of most members of the royal family and the resulting interruption of the ruling bloodline. Of course, Palenque at that time was not quite the same as in later years. Most of todays visible structures and monuments at Palenque date to the Late Classic after 620 AD. The Palace, for instance, was little more than a few rather crude structures known today as Subterraneans. Partly perhaps, the little evidence of early structures at Palenque can be traced to the ferocious Kaan warriors razing of the citys center. The inscriptions inside the much later Temple of the Inscriptions (built around 680 AD) at Palenque register the 611 AD event with the following words: chak-ah lakam-ha 4 Ix 7 Uo u-chabhi u-neh-chan kuhul-kaan-ajaw Lakamha [Palenque] was chopped up on 4 Ix 7 Uo [Short Count Calendar date corresponding to the 4th of April 611], U Neh Chan [Scroll Serpent] divine Kaan ruler was in charge (after Stuart 1998: 9). The text goes on in a pitiful tone saty kuhul ixik, satay ajaw, lost is the divine lady, lost is the lord and informs that certain important rituals were not performed in that time (Martin and Grube 2008: 161). The accession four years later in 615 of twelve year old Kinich Janaab Pakal to the throne of Palenque must be seen as a direct result of these events.

HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 41

From the epigraphic record it can be assumed that the Kaan dynastys relocation to Calakmul took place during the reign of Scroll Serpent, possibly shortly before, or during the first Palenque campaign in 599. Even though it is difficult to imagine the dynamics behind such a process, it is certain that Scroll Serpents accession to the throne in 579 AD is mentioned on Calakmul Stela 33, commissioned by Yuknoom Cheen II in 657, and on Stela 8, dedicated in 721 by Yuknoom Took Kawiil, relating to events which by then were 128 years in the past (Martin 2005). Even though this is no proof that Scroll Serpent was already residing at Calakmul, his descendants who did use the city as their capital felt clearly a particularly strong tie to that specific king. It might be, therefore, that he was the ONE who brought dramatic changes to the dynasty, rather than Yuknoom Head and/or Yuknoom Cheen II (Yuknoom Head being probably a pre-accession name of Yuknoom Cheen) as was previously assumed (see Martin 2005; Tokovinine 2007: 20). Seen in temporal perspective, it is just about 25 years between the death of Scroll Serpent (611 AD) and the accession of Yuknoom Cheen II (636 AD) who seems to have been already well established at Calakmul, being named as a kaanal ajaw ta uxte tuun aj chik nahb, a kaanal lord at Uxtetuun (Three Stones), he from Chiik Nahb (Calakmul) in a context of events taking place some five years before his accession to the throne. This reference to Yuknoom Head/Yuknoom Cheen II can be found on the Naranjo Stairway, dedicated in 642, but referring to an important defeat of Naranjo eleven years earlier in 631. The emphasis in the text on Yuknoom Cheens provenance distinguishes him from the then ruling Kaan king Tajoom Ukab Kahk, who is mentioned in the same narrative (Tokovinine 2007: 20; see also Martin 2005: 3; Martin and Grube 2008: 106). This has been interpreted as evidence that Yuknoom Head/Yuknoom Cheen was considered the first Kaan lord who lived at Calakmul (Tokovine 2007), but it makes more sense to take it as an indication that he was the first king born at Calakmul (in September 11, 600 AD, during the reign of Scroll Serpent). Maybe it was the fact that he was the first ruler to be born at Calakmul that made him also equivalent to a lineage founder in the eyes of his successors, as attested in several later inscriptions. However, beside the possibility that they already resided in the city, neither Scroll Serpents successor, the rather short-lived ruler Yuknoom Ti Chan, nor the next, Tajoom Ukab Kahk, who reigned for eight years until 630, are mentioned in Calakmul texts, even though
42 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

one stela pair, Stela 28 and 29, datable to 623 AD, falls into the reign of the second. Most of the references to these two rulers come from the dynastys most faithful ally, Uxwitza (Three Hill Water), Caracol. The king of this large and powerful kingdom, Kan II, who was installed in office u-kabjiiy under the supervision of Yuknoom Ti Chan in 619, was especially concerned to stress his bonds with the Snake dynasty. In the monuments he erected during his long, 40 year term, he describes events in which both Kaan kings assisted and even evokes one of the dynastys mythic figures, Skyraiser, possibly the name of the lineage founder (Martin and Grube 2008: 92). In Stela 22 and on several altars of Caracol the accession of Tajoom Ukab Kahk in 622 is mentioned, as is a gift received from this king in 627 and his death in 630 AD (Ibid: 91). Monuments attributed to Kan II of Caracol also mention two wars fought by Yuknoom Head, the first lord who is connected directly to Uxtetuun and Chiik Nahb.

Stelae 28 and 29 on the north side of Structure V (Photo by the author)

HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 43

As mentioned above, it was proposed recently that Yuknoom Head was the pre-accession name of Yuknoom Cheen II, also known as Yuknoom the Great, the most successful and longest reigning ruler of that city who took power in 636 AD. In May and August of 626 and in December of 631 Caracol and the Kaan rulers, by that time residing in Calakmul, launched a series of attacks against Naranjo and against an unidentified site, called Ko-bent Cauac, under Naranjo dominion. It seems that Naranjo, an impressively densely settled urban site located in the extreme east of modern northern Guatemala, was an unstable ally. Loyal during the first years of the reign of Aj Wosal who was installed under the supervision of Kaan king Kaltuun Hix in 546 AD, it constantly rebelled during his successors reigns, especially warring against much closer Caracol (about 40 km [25 miles] away). This most surely led to the 626 and 631 AD campaigns against Naranjo, the first of which were conducted mainly by Caracol itself. The December 631 attack, on the other hand, was clearly under Calakmul control, directed by Yuknoom Head, possibly the young later ruler Yuknoom Cheen II. It was another Star War-event, a type of war which generally brought major destruction to the attacked site and often ended only with the death of the ruler and the fall of the ruling dynasty. In the case of the 631 war, the punishment for the Naranjo ruler Sak Chuwen was for a long time assumed to have been especially cruel: according to the inscriptions he was kuxaj, tortured or eaten, which might imply that he was first tortured and then ritually eaten (Martin and Grube 2000: 72). Extensive tortures and exhibitions of captives were common among the Classic Maya and are attested both in text and representation. However, recent interpretations suggest that in this particular context kuxaj forms part of the Naranjo rulers name phrase, which was possibly something like Kuxaj Chan Ahk, Turtle is the eating/biting in the Sky, or Kuxaj Chan Kihnich, Sun God is the eating/ biting in the Sky (Tokovinine 2007). He was the 36th ruler in line, direct successor of Aj Wosal, and responsible for at least three rebellions against Caracol which finally led to the Calakmul/Caracol co-directed battle is 631. In light of this interpretation the outcome of the 631 war seems less decisive than was once thought. Especially considering the fact that a new and no less volatile ruler was on the Naranjo throne by at least 644 (Martin and Grube 2008: 72) leading to another series of wars against Caracol up to 680 AD.
44 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

Nonetheless, shortly after the defeat of Naranjo an increase of prosperity can be observed at Calakmul, manifested primarily in a boom of building activity as well as in an augment of stelae erection, some of them several meters high. Archaeological evidence and artifact analysis have shown, for instance, that most of the sites inner core buildings experienced major structural alterations during the first half of the Late Classic, especially during the VII Century. Given the quantity of Early Classic ceramics found on the actual soil surface of the 17 palace courts of the Grand Acropolis Group (most of it probably originating from the construction fill of the structures and the latest floor layers), it can be assumed that the majority of the groups up to 80 structures were built, over-constructed or at least greatly expanded towards the end of the Early Classic and during the first Century of the Late Classic (600-700 AD). This period corresponds perfectly to the presence of the Kaan dynasty at Calakmul and the citys most triumphant days during the reign of Yuknoom Cheen II. During the fifty year reign of Yuknoom Cheen II at least 18 of the 102 stelae dating to the Late Classic were erected in Calakmul (Boucher and Dzul 1998: 128; Martin and Grube 2008: 108). Unfortunately all are in such poor condition that no visual rendering of the king can be discerned. Only two portraits have survived to this day, one on one side of a small vessel today in a Swiss Museum (see Prager 2004) where he is depicted as an ancestor in a so-called ancestor cartouche. The glyphic caption naming him reads: baah ti lajuun ajaw waxak yaxkin yuknoom cheen, or his self as 10 Ajaw 8 Yaxkin [a calendar date most probably corresponding to June 26, AD 672] Yuknoom Cheen (Ibid: 35). The other portrait that survived is a jade mask which was found in 1997 in the tomb of Yuknoom Cheens son, Yuknoom Yichaak Kahk, inside Structure II. Of course the mask had decomposed into hundreds of pieces over the 1300 years after it was buried on the chest of Yichaak Kahk, but the jade-plaque surface has been painstakingly reassembled (Garca 2004, 2007) and is now on exhibition in the Baluarte San Miguel Museum in Campeche. On both sides of the mask were short glyphic texts, painted in red on a thin stucco layer. The text on the right side reads u baah, his self, his rendering yuknoom cheen, identifying the mask clearly as this rulers portrayal (Martin and Grube 2008: 109).

HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 45

Facial mask of Yuknoom Cheen II, found in Yichaak Kahks tomb in substructure Sub II-B (Tomb 4), after restoration. Below the small inscription naming Yichaak Kahks father Yuknoom Cheen II (Photos courtesy of Valeria Garca Vierna)

Yuknoom Cheen was without doubt the most influential ruler of its time and was so venerated by his successors that he was even given the status equivalent to a dynastic founder in several inscriptions (Martin 2005: 8). The reign of this governor can be classified as the zenith of Calakmuls history and the supremacy of the Kaan dynasty. Never before and never after was a Maya kingdom so respected and feared with its authority and control reaching to the farthest
46 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

corners of the Southern Lowlands. By now Calakmul was the second biggest and second most powerful urban dwelling in the Americas, outshone only by distant Teotihuacn in the Mexican Highlands. Calakmuls traditional archenemy Tikal was literally surrounded by vassals and allies of the snake-head polity and it can be assumed that a flow of material wealth poured into Calakmul all through the VII Century. Tribute in the form of corn, chocolate, beans, animals, conch, cloth, fur, feathers, jade, obsidian, etc. was surely collected in huge quantities and stored in numerous, so far unidentified, storerooms in the city. Building materials and workforce must have been in constant flow, facilitating any major construction project undertaken in that period. Even some of the monuments were probably ordered as tribute (or given to Calakmul as gifts?) as one can deduce from the material of Stela 9, a basalt stone which was brought from the far away Maya Mountains in modern Southern Belize. Sometime around 646, after a series of hard to reconstruct internal problems somehow related to the 562 AD defeat and the ensuing hiatus period at Tikal, a fraction of this citys nobility under Tikal prince Bajlaj Chan Kawiil, the probable (half-) brother of later Tikal king Nuun U Jol Chaak, broke off, left their native land, and established a new kingdom to the west, claiming the same Mutal dynasty emblem glyph as the Tikal rulers used. This new kingdom, established on a preexisting site known today as Dos Pilas and located in western Guatemala in the so-called Petexbatn region, was attacked by Yuknoom Cheen II in 650 AD, forcing Bajlaj Chan Kawill first to flee to Aguateca and then to ally itself with the Calakmul overlord (Grube 2007: 56; Guenter 2003; Martin and Grube 2008: 56). Just about seven years later, in January 657, both launched an attack against Tikal, an event which was remembered on the Dos Pilas Hieroglyphic Stairway as a Star War against Mutal, u-kabjiiy under the supervision of Yuknoom Cheen II, kuhul kaan ajaw, sacred Calakmul king (Martin 1994: 3). It was assumed for several years that as a result of this war, the first after almost a hundred years of tense calm between those two giants, Tikals supreme ruler, Nuun U Jol Chaak, had to abandon his home and went into exile to different cities, among others Palenque, where an inscription names him in 659 in the company of Kinich Janaab Pakal (Martin and Grube 2000: 42). Now it seems more likely that the person mentioned is a namesake from some other city, possibly Santa Elena
HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 47

(Martin 2004: pers. com.), and that Nuun U Jol Chaak remained in Tikal and somehow submitted to Yuknoom Cheen, as he is said to be present together with Bajlaj Chan Kawiil at a childhood ceremony for Calakmul heir Yuknoom Yichaak Kahk sometime between 657 and 662 AD in the city of Yaxh (Guenter 2003: 3; Martin and Grube 2008: 42). A few years later though, in 672, Tikal attacked Dos Pilas, probably in vengeance for the assistance they had given Calakmul 15 years earlier and maybe to settle some other outstanding scores from earlier times. Nuun U Jol Chaaks triumph over Dos Pilas forced Bajlal Chan Kawiil to flee and to seek refuge in Chaak Naah, some unidentified smaller town of the region. Nuun U Jol Chaak went after him, burned that site in 673, and had Bajlaj Chan on the run again, this time escaping to Hix Witz, Jaguar Hill (today known as Zapote Bobal; see Guenter 2003: 3; Martin and Grube 2008: 57). Hix Witz seems to have been another of Calakmuls allies as it mentions one of Calakmuls later kings, Wamaw Kawiil, as superior in 736 AD (Tunesi 2007). Learning of his allys troubles, Yuknoom Cheen finally intervened in 677 and defeated Nuun U Jol Chaak at a site called Pulil, forcing him to withdraw. The decisive battle took place two years later, in 679 AD, with a counterattack launched by Dos Pilas, probably in accord with Calakmul. Even though it seems likely that Nuun U Jol Chaak died as a consequence of this attack, his ultimate fate remains unknown (Guenter 2003; Martin and Grube 2008: 42 & 56-57 & 108-109). The Southern Lowlands were experiencing troubled times with a series of wars going on in which Calakmul played a major role. However, there were also moments of celebration, as the same year, 679 AD, Yuknoom Cheen married his daughter to the king of La Corona (another of his daughters was married to the El Per ruler Kinich Bahlam). Her arrival in La Corona on 9.12.6.16.17, 11 Kaban 10 Zotz, was commemorated on several monuments from that city. Four years later her son Janaab was born, titled at various times emphatically as the Grandson of Yuknoom Cheen, elevating this parentage apparently above the descent from his father, the La Corona ruler. This seems to be a clear sign of the devotion and respect towards the higher ranking ruler from the metropolis of Calakmul, but it has also been taken as a possible indication that the La Corona monuments were actually made by Calakmul artists (Stanley Guenter 2008: pers. com.). A year after the Yuknoom Cheens daughter married into the La Corona dynasty, in 680, Caracol was again attacked and defeated by
48 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

Naranjo. In Maya warfare defeat generally did not mean permanent occupation, but subordination and tribute payment. Of course, not being conquered and permanently occupied always provided a chance to fight back and regain the former status. However, the counterattack launched on Naranjo by Caracol and Calakmul that very same year seems to have been so devastating that the ruler Kahk Skull Chan Chaak and the whole upper stratum of the Naranjo nobility were slain and never heard of again. It seems that finally, after some 65 years of constant provocation, Calakmul and Caracol drew a rather drastic line, finishing off the whole ruling lineage. Instead, Calakmul installed a daughter of the ruler of Dos Pilas, Balaj Chan Kawiil, as queen of Naranjo. She is known as Lady Six Sky, Ix-6 Chan-?-Ajaw, and was one of the very few queens in the history of the Southern Maya Lowlands. Her installation into office created a new royal line in Naranjo, bonded to Calakmul. Her son, Kahk Tiliw Chan Chaak, was born a few years after she acceded and together they reigned for some 46 years (Martin and Grube 2008: 74-77). During the latter half of the VII Century Calakmuls supremacy was felt intensely in the Southern Maya Lowlands, as the written records on public monuments of various major cities attest. Yuknoom Cheen supervised the accessions of new rulers in El Per to the west of Tikal, in Moral to the northeast of Palenque, as well as in Cancun, some 230 km (143 miles) south of Calakmul, actively controlling far remote areas. In Cancun the rulers of Calakmul supervised the accession of three successive governors, two of them installed by Yuknoom Cheen in 656 and 677 AD (Martin and Grube 2008: 20). The same year 677 saw the presence of Yuknoom Cheen in La Corona, a site to the southeast of Calakmul, where he participated in an incense scattering event with the local ruler Kinich Yook. Even the powerful site of Piedras Negras seems to have fallen under Calakmuls spell in that time, as is suggested by a panel of unknown providence that seems to have adorned one of the buildings of a smaller site subordinate to Piedras Negras, dated to 685. It describes the adorning of someone or something, supervised by a lord carrying an aj baak, he of Captives title, probably some kind of emissary or general, who is described as being in the service of the Calakmul ruler Yuknoom Cheen (Martin and Grube 2008: 109 & 144). Its known that Yuknoom Cheen died in 686, but so far no trace of his last resting place has been found. At Calakmul, Stelae Nos. 9, 13, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 75, 77, 79, 85, 86, 87, 93 and 94 are associated
HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 49

with him, exhibiting either his name or dedication dates that fall within his reign. Ten of these stelae are found within the Great Plaza, standing in front of Structure IV (Stela 9, 13) and especially around tiny Structure V (Stelae 30-37). Others are found in front of Structure XV (Stelae 75, 77, 79) in the Southeast Court of the Grand Acropolis and three in front of the small Structure XVIII (Stelae 85-87), a mound which, strangely enough, has not been excavated so far, located to the northwest of Structure II. Structure V, which exhibits the largest number of stelae related to Yuknoom Cheen, clearly was of enormous importance, but it seems not to be his funerary monument. It was proposed that this structure was dedicated as late as 623 AD (the dates exhibited on Stelae 28 & 29; see Marcus 1987: 33), but excavations revealed that the building sequence is much longer and goes back into the Late Preclassic with various modifications in the Early and Late Classic (Carrasco 1998b: 84-85; Rodrguez 2000: 26-27). Surely Yuknoom Cheen did his share, but he did not choose to be buried there. Neither was Structure XV his funerary monument, even though three crypts have been discovered, one central on the main east-west axis, and two lateral ones. The largest contained the remains of an important noble woman who died around 656, as indicated by C14 dates, maybe Yuknoom Cheens mother or, more probably, his wife (Garca and Schneider 1996, 2002). Structure XVIII might be a likely candidate, even though of small proportions, but has not been tackled yet. The other strong possibility is that his remains are buried somewhere undiscovered yet in Structure II, as was later his son. Yuknoom Yichaak Kahk, Claw of Fire (also known as Jaguar Paw), was born on October 6, AD 649, so he was 36 when his father died in 686. Raised probably within the walls of the largest palace in the Maya Lowlands, the so-called Grand Acropolis Group (Grupo Gran Acrpolis), it seems that he had a powerful position in politics already some years before his fathers death at age 85, as he is mentioned in various monuments before actually taking the throne. On Stela 9, for example, he is mentioned in 662 at age thirteen with name and full royal title. As such it seems possible that it was Yichaak Kahk who was the real protagonist of Calakmuls battles taking place during the seventies and eighties of the VII Century, when his father was already of advanced age (Martin and Grube 2008: 110). His enthronement in Chiik Nahb was celebrated in the inscriptions of El Per and Dos Pilas and, given his fathers exalted reputation, must have been a major event in the Southern Maya Lowlands.
50 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

Calakmul was at the height of its power when Yichaak Kahk took the Kawiil-Scepter and tied the headband of rulership around his head, but archenemy Tikal had also seen the accession of a new, strong ruler, named Jasaw Chan Kawiil I, in 682 AD. Strangely enough, as in other instances (for example in Naranjo as described above), the Kaan dynasts who had defeated Tikal in 562, 657 and 679 AD had failed to install a dynasty-loyal ruler on Tikals throne. One could imagine that somehow it should have been possible to have ordered another Dos Pilas heir since, after all, they were of Tikal descent, to take over Tikals state affairs in the aftermath of 679 AD. But apparently Tikals internal nobility was so numerous and mighty that such an undertaking was doomed to fail and, even if considered, was never carried out. With disastrous consequences. In August 695 fate turned against Calakmul and the sacred Kaan king Yuknoom Yichaak Kahk was defeated by Jasaw Chan Kawiil I, kuhul Mutul ajaw. That the tide had turned can be glimpsed from a painted scene on a ceramic vessel presumably from Tikal, dating some years earlier, to 691 AD (Kerr n.d.a., K5453). In that representation one sees two Calakmul emissaries kneeling before enthroned king Jasaw Chan Kawiil I in his curtain adorned palace, apparently offering tribute in form of cloth, feathers and cacao. Glyphs on a bundle in front of the throne specify ox pih, three pih or three units of 8000 of cacao beans, indicating that the represented goods in the scene are symbolic of a much larger quan-

Historical palace scene from a Late Classic vase, showing an emissary from Calakmul paying tribute to Jasaw Chan Kawiil of Tikal, ca. 691 AD (K5453, Justin Kerr)

HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 51

tity. It might be that this representation just expressed Tikals wishful thinking at that time, but there can be no doubt that Tikal had regained much of its former strength only a few years after Jasaw Chan Kawiil took the throne. Yichaak Kahks fate has not been resolved satisfactorily as of yet. For many years it was assumed that he was taken captive by Jasaw Chan Kawiil in the 695 AD war, and later sacrificed. An inscription which suggests this version of events can be found on Tikal Lintel 1 in Temple I and on a stucco tableau from Structure 5D-57 in the Central Acropolis of Tikal (Harrison 1999: 130; Martin and Grube 1994: 14, 2008: 45; Schele and Freidel 1990: 205; Schele and Mathews 1998: 86). On Lintel 1 in Temple I, Jasaw Chan Kawiil is represented sitting on a throne which stands on a wooden palanquin, a war trophy captured from Yichaak Kahk. Behind him towers a supernatural jaguar of oversized proportions called nuun balam chaaknal in the inscription and which probably was one of Yichaak Kahks tutelary deities carried into war with him. The passage referring to the defeat is not too extensive. It simply reads jubuy u took pakal Yichaak Kak, it was brought down the flint and shield of Yichaak Kahk, refer Tikal Lintel 1 with the expression ring to the downing of the weapons jubuy u took pakal Yichaak Kahk, and insignia of the Calakmul king. it was brought down the flint and The date given corresponds to the shield of Yichaak Kahk (Martin and Grube 2000: 45) 5th of August 695. Further on the text relates to ceremonies carried out at Tikal, including the presentation of the palanquin, probably to be understood as an extension of Yichaak Kahks royal throne, a blood sacrifice and a dedication of something not further specified (Harrison 1999: 133). The stucco tableau on Structure 5D-57 in the Central
52 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

Acropolis, Tikals main palace, shows Jasaw Chan Kawiil standing over a bound prisoner which was formerly thought to be Yichaak Kahk (Schele and Mathews 1998: 86). It is not clear though, if the caption of the very fragmented text naming the king refers to the captive. It is possible that the prisoner is actually one of Yichaak Kahks nobles or maybe even a member of the nobility of an ally of Calakmul (Martin and Grube 2008: 45). Another version of events has emerged more recently based on excavations directed by Ramn Carrasco in 1997 in Substructure II-B of Structure II in Calakmul where three richly adorned tombs were discovered. Tomb 4 contained the remains of a male resting on a wooden barrow. Simon Martin suggested the possibility that the corpse was actually lying inside a kind of enormous wooden sarcophagus, 2.20 m long by 0.9 m wide and 1.20 m high. According to Martin, the upper surface of the coffin was adorned with glyphs carved in high relief which left imprints on the mud-plaster that covered the sarcophagus as the wood deteriorated (Martin 2004: pers. com; see also Martin and Grube 2008: 111). However, given the exceptionally good preservation of other perishable materials found in the tomb (cloth, palm, seeds, etc.) it is hard to believe that no traces of this massive wooden construction have survived (Valeria Garca 2008: pers. com.).

The tomb of Yichaak Kahk, as reconstructed in the Baluarte de San Miguel Museum in Campeche. The plate in the back on the right features his name, u-lak Yuknoom Yichaak Kahk (Photo by the author)

HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 53

The corpse of Yichaak Kahk was wrapped in resin-impregnated cloth and was originally adorned with an impressive jade mosaic feather headdress, a wide jade/conch pectoral and a jade/conch belt. He had a jade mosaic mask lying on his chest and several pieces of the finest ceramics placed around his body. One of the polychrome plates, today exhibited in a reconstruction of the tomb in the Baluarte San Miguel Museum in Campeche, shows an inscription which identifies it as property, his plate, of Yichaak Kahk, u-lak Yuknoom Yichaak Kahk. This evidence as well as a related offering of several jaguar paws alluding to his name, one of which, decorated with jade incrustations, was actually placed close to his right hand, strongly suggests the corpse to be the remains of Yuknoom Yichaak Kahk (Boucher and Palomo 2000a; Carrasco 1999b; Carrasco et al. 1999a; Garca and Granados 2000; Martin 2000a: 42; Martin and Grube 2008: 111; Valeria Garca 2005 & 2008: pers. com). So how, where, and when did Yuknoom Yichaak Kahk die? Some investigators believe that the captive referred to in the Tikal texts was an uncle of the king or some other high level nobleman, and that Yichaak died coincidentally that very same year, maybe by injuries inflicted during the Tikal war, or that he even lived on until 702 when he was interred in Tomb No. 4 (Carrasco et al. 1997). Others contend that the very same year Calakmul was defeated by Tikal, Yichaak Kahk died and a new, rather short-lived ruler, known by the name of Split Earth was installed, maybe as a puppet ruler controlled by Tikal, before Yuknoom Took Kawiil took power a few years later (Martin and Grube 2008: 111). It is conceivable that Yichaak Kahk actually died on the battlefield or even was sacrificed in Tikal, but was allowed to be buried at home, in honor of a great king. The recovery of the bodies or bones of fallen or sacrificed rulers might have been a mutual agreement between warring parties. Astonishingly, a fate closely paralleling Yichaak Kahks might have also befallen his successor Yuknoom Took Kawiil who was taken captive by Tikal some 40 years later, sometime between 731 and 736 AD (early 735 is probable), as alluded to on Tikal Altar 9. His tomb in Calakmul has not been identified yet, but, based on the richness of the grave offerings and age of death as indicated by the osteological remains, Tomb 1 of Structure VII, dated to around 750, might be a prime candidate. After Calakmuls defeat by Tikal a decline of the Kaan dynastys foreign relations is notable. There are only a handful of mentions in54 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

volving rulers using the Snake emblem glyph in the inscriptions of other cities in the Maya Lowlands in the decades after 695 and only two references can securely be placed after the reign of Wamaw Kawiil, ending around 740 AD (Martin 2005; Tunesi 2007). The few that fall into the forty year span between the defeat by Tikal in 695 and 736 AD mostly come from Calakmuls closest allies El Per, Naranjo, and Dos Pilas. In the latter a noble emissary from Calakmul oversees a puberty ritual sometime between 729 and 740 (probably pre-735 AD). In Panel 19 from Dos Pilas this noble can be seen standing directly behind the young Dos Pilas heir. An associated inscription refers to him as the guardian or maybe master of the prince (Martin and Grube 2008: 61; Miller and Martin 2004: 26). At that time Yuknoom Took Kawiil, also known as Scroll-head Kawiil, was king at Calakmul. He was the last of the Kaan dynasts who erected monuments in Calakmul itself bearing the Snake emblem glyph. Strange as it may seem, it appears that with his death, some time in or around 735, or by the latest with the death of his successor Wamaw Kawiil a few years later, the Kaan dynasty came to an end. Not only did the Snake emblem glyph, which was so present for around 250 years, disappear at Calakmul, but from Late Classic Lowland inscriptions in general. In Calakmul, Yuknoom Took Kawiil was responsible for the largest number of monuments erected and for some of the finest stelae preserved, all made from stone which had to be imported from distant places. This seems to indicate that even though Calakmul was reduced from its former affluence, some foreign relations were still functioning. At least 21 stelae can be attributed to this ruler (Stelae No. 1, 7, 8, 23, 24, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, and 89), most of them standing before Structure I (Stelae Nos. 51-55), Structure II (Stelae Nos. 38-42), Structure VI (Stelae Nos. 23 and 24) and Structure XVI (Stelae Nos. 70-74). It seems reasonable to also assign Stela 6769 in front of the northern side of the basement of Structure XVI to this ruler, augmenting the number dedicated by him to at least 24. The best preserved of these, erected in front of Structure I, were still discovered in situ by Cyrus Lundell and Sylvanus Morley in 1931 and 1932. Unfortunately, all have been stolen by looters since, especially during the decade of the 60s, and were acquired by museums and private collections around the world. One, Stela 51 dating to 731, is now on display at the National Museum in Mexico-City. It shows Yuknoom Took Kawiil with
HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 55

unusual curly long hair and an impressive, long feather cape, standing on a miserable captive crouching under his feet. In his hand he holds the Kawiil-scepter as a sign of rulership and a censer bag is dangling from his right wrist. Another one, Stela 52 of the same date, now in a private collection in Mexico, shows him with a Kawiil-scepter in one hand and a small round shield in the other (Velsquez and Palln 2006: 355). A third, Stela 89, located today in a museum in Germany, shows Yuknoom Took Kawiil dancing, with a Kawiil-scepter and an incense bag in one hand and a shield in the other, facing a dwarf (Castro 2007: 225). Another possible portrait of this ruler was found on a painted polychrome ceramic, excavated in 2001 south of Structure XX. The accompanying glyphs, most certainly part of a PSS (Primary Standard Sequence) identify Yuknoom Took Kawiil as owner of the vase by the Scroll-head Kawiil variation of his name, which was usually used on references from outside of Calakmul (Delvendahl 2003, 2005: 436; Pierre Robert Colas 2003: pers. com.; Simon Martin 2003: pers. com). However, since the vase was found fragmented and incomplete it is not certain that the person represented, shown with so-called deitymarkings is really the named ruler himself. Even though the construction activity at Calakmul seemed to have been uninterrupted after the 695 AD defeat and the erection of a huge number of stelae for the end of the 15th Katuun in 731 might even give the impression of prosperity, in foreign politics Calakmuls power was waning. A monument in Tonin on the southwestern fringes of the Maya world, registers the capture of a noble from Calakmul some time between 716 and 723 AD. Even though the exact historical context is unclear, the text says aj chiik nahb y-et Kinich Kahk, He of Chiik Nahb (one of Calakmuls names) is the prisoner of Kinich Kahk (ruler of Tonin) (Martin 2000b: 176; Martin and Grube 2008: 184). The fact that apparently no ruler was involved (as can be derived from the simple expression he of Chiik Nahb), as well as the impressive distance between the two sites (more than 265 km, some 166 miles) might point to an auxiliary involvement of Calakmul in aid for some closer-by ally, maybe Pomoy or Sak Tzi. The context is even more confusing given that Tonin was a long term rival of Palenque, with which they had been in a decisive war a few years earlier in 711, taking the Palenque ruler Kan Joy Chitam II as a prisoner. Palenque, as an ally of Tikal, of course was also an old enemy of Calakmul and one should therefore assume that Tonin would have been a close ally of the Kaan kings.
56 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

Imminent danger was even closer as former subordinate Oxpemul, a satellite site to the north of Calakmul, started to erect its first stelae at precisely 731 AD, featuring the Bat emblem glyph and claiming the Uxtetuun toponym (on Stelae Nos. 7 & 12) by naming its ruler Uxtetuun kaloomte, an exalted title formerly reserved for Calakmul kings (Martin and Grube 2008: 115). This had been interpreted as a sign that the Oxpemul ruler was a close kin to Yuknoom Took Kawiil (Grube 2005), but it might just as well be seen as first signs of an insurrection of the Bat-people against their former overlords. A Bat emblem glyph reappears at Calakmul as early as 731, on the side of Stela 52 erected by Yuknoom Took Kawiil, as if this ruler had to give concessions to a dynasty which was firmly under the thumb of his predecessors. Probably in early 735 Calakmul was attacked by Tikal and it might well be that Yuknoom Took Kawiil was taken captive at this event. Altar 9 in Tikal, dedicated by Yikin Chan Kawiil around that time, shows a prisoner who is bound and lying face down and in an accompanying, rather damaged text is probably identified as the Calakmul ruler (Grube 2007: 57; Martin 2005: 7; Martin and Grube 2008: 113). However, as has been outlined in the case of his predecessor Yichaak Kahk, the fact that he is shown as a bound prisoner on a Tikal monument does not necessarily mean that Yuknoom Took was not buried in Calakmul. The extremely luxurious Tomb 1 of Structure VII, roughly dated to around 750 AD but not fixed to any specific ruler for lack of associated inscriptions, could have been his final resting place. In this case one of Calakmuls most emblematic jade masks, discovered in this tomb in 1984 by the University of Campeche Project, might be his portrayal. Another conceivable possibility is that Took Kawiil was buried in some as yet undiscovered tomb in Structure I, the structure which features several of his most masterly carved stelae. Shortly after Yuknoom Took Kawiils death a monument from Quirigu records the participation of a Calakmul king in a ceremony and stela erection by Kahk Tiliw Chan Yopaat, ruler of that small settlement in the southeastern extreme of the Southern Lowlands. Strangely, the Calakmul ruler who participated in that event, Wamaw Kawiil, is not linked to a Snake emblem glyph but in the inscription referred to as holy lord of Chiik Nahb, one of Calakmuls proper names (Martin and Grube 2008: 114 & 219). Therefore it had been supposed that while he was Yuknoom Tooks successor he was not of the Kaan dynasty which had apparently been eclipsed with Yuknoom Tooks death (Martin 2005: 8).
HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 57

However, in a recently described monument from a private collection which originated possibly from Hix Witz, Jaguar Hill in western Guatemala, Wamaw Kawiil is mentioned as a Kaan lord with a full Snake emblem glyph followed by a kaloomte title (Tunesi 2007). This discovery leads to the assumption that Wamaw Kawiil, who ruled Calakmul for several years after 736, maybe even up to sometime

Monument from Hix Witz in western Guatemala. Wamaw Kawiil is mentioned as a Kaan lord with a full Snake emblem glyph followed by a kaloomte title (Photo and drawing by Raphael Tunesi, taken from Tunesi 2007: 15)

between 741 and 751 AD (as can be inferred from a suggestion by Martin and Grube 2008: 114), and not Yuknoom Took, must be regarded as the last Kaan lord. In the Hix Witz panel Wamaw Kawiil is seen playing ball with the local ruler Janaab Ti O, who acknowledges him through the kaloomte title as an overlord, proving that some of the foreign connections Calakmul had established still functioned some time after Yuknoom Tooks death and that Wamaw Kawiil was not some puppet king installed by Tikal (Tunesi 2007: 19). The context of the Quirigu inscription seems to point in the same direction, as it is implying a later involvement of Calakmul in Quirgus overthrow of close neighbor Copn, Tikals long time ally, in 738. The attack was a devastating blow to Copn and resulted in the beheading, chak, of one of its most prestigious rulers, Waxaklajuun Ubaah Kawiil (also known as 18 Rabbit). Just how Calakmul within a few years time first suffered a terrible defeat by Tikal and then had a ruler participate in a ceremony in far away Quirigu which resulted in a war overthrowing a powerful ally of Tikal is difficult to imagine. The involvement in Quirigus 738 AD campaign against Copn might have been something already planned years in advance during Yuknoom Tooks final years. The final attack against Copn, possibly postponed because of the 735 AD Tikal war which finally led to Yuknoom Tooks death, might be seen then as a sort of vengeance for the earlier defeat. As one event leads to the other, Tikals response to the overthrow of its ally seems to have been directed likewise against Calakmuls closest vassals, attacking and defeating El Per in 743, and Naranjo in 744 AD. The fact that no further counterstrike from Calakmul is recorded is reflective of its diminished powers. Lintel 3 of Temple IV and Stela 5 of Tikal give testimony of the victories over these cities in which the rulers were taken prisoners, tortured and sacrificed. After the Tikal, Quirigu and Hix Witz inscriptions from 736 AD there are presently only two more monuments known which mention Calakmul and/or the Kaan dynasty: Altar 3 of Altar de los Reyes in southeastern Campeche, dating probably to around 800 AD (Grube 2003, 2004; Sprajc 2003; Sprajc and Cossio 2003), and Stela 10 of Seibal in northwestern Guatemala, dating to 849 (Martin and Grube 2008: 115). The two inscriptions are similar in that they list a series of emblem glyphs referring somehow to the most important seats of dynasties as considered by the city where the monuments were created. The upper face of Altar 3 of Altar de los Reyes shows a ruler sitting on a throne
HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 59

58 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

and exhibits the expression kuhul kab, uxlajun ?, sacred lands, thirteen [sacred lands] (Grube 2003, 2004: 122). Inscribed around its side, the altar registers a total of 13 emblem glyphs, probably the names of the ruling dynasties of the 13 sacred lands which the upper inscription refers to, among them the Kaan dynasty, the Mutal dynasty of Tikal, the Baak dynasty of Palenque, and those of Edzn and Motul de San Jos, followed by the expression are the royal thrones of (Grube 2003). Unfortunately, no individual kings names are stated. Stela 10 of Seibal from 849 lists four dynasties (of Seibal, Tikal, Kaan, and Motul de San Jos) and the respective rulers who apparently joined to witness the 10.1.0.0.0 Katuun-ending at Seibal. The Kaan ruler is named Chan Pet (Martin and Grube 2008: 115). However, the context is uncertain and given their late dedication dates it is more than doubtful on both monuments that the Kaan emblem glyph still was referring to the actual city of Calakmul. To the contrary, it seems that around 740 AD, in the aftermath of the above described defeats by Tikal, during a time of general weakness, the Kaan dynasty was once more expelled from Calakmul, where the people of the bat made a sudden re-emergence. As was said, the Bat emblem glyph reappears on Calakmul Stela 52 dating to 731 and again on Steale 59 and 62, two monuments dating to 741 and 751 AD, once standing on either sides of Structure XIV, probably the access to the Grand Acropolis. Unfortunately these monuments, as most dating to post-731 AD, are in rather poor condition, Stela 62 even seems to have been left unfinished, and names are hard to make out. On Stela 62 a variant of the name of the deity known as Waterlily-Serpent seems to refer to the ruler, otherwise just labeled as Ruler Z (Martin 2005: 5), but little is known about him. More recently the name has been read as Great Serpent and it has been suggested that Stela 62 might have once been paired with Stela 88, on the stairway of Structure XIII (Martin and Grube 2008: 115). As the Kaan dynasty largely disappears from the public record after 736 and the later Calakmul monuments are mostly in bad condition and/or poorly executed, the historic information for the last 170 years of Calakmul occupation up to 909 AD is meager indeed. Construction in the site center seems to be largely limited to the amplification or modification of existing structures without altering the general appearance. Evidence for an excessively growing population which even affected the elite stratum might be glimpsed from the intent of creating
60 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

separate rooms through the (for that time typical) reduction of interior spaces by construction of thin partition walls, often hastily erected of rough unworked stones. It seems that in the difficult times of the Terminal Classic even the mighty Calakmul elite had to suffer austerities and constrictions. Signs of inner strains, evoked through pressures on the ruling class by an increasing complex and demanding society, can also be deduced from the increasing restriction of accesses to formerly public or semi-public buildings by complete blocking or partly reducing doorways. One of the last known rulers, Bolon Kawiil, seems to have been in charge shortly after 751 and was apparently still reigning some twenty years later when he erected a pair of tall stelae east of Structure XIII (Stelae Nos. 57 & 58), celebrating the completion of 9.17.0.0.0 in 771. On a stone block recovered from the fill of the stairway of Structure XIII, he is using the title chi [ku]-NAHB-AJAW, Holy Lord of Chiik Nahb, while on the stelae pair no emblem glyph is mentioned (Martin 2005: 6). Notwithstanding, given the above outlined historic events, it might very well be that he was of the Bat dynasty. By this time Classic Maya culture was slowly declining, the kuhul ajawlel, the divine kingship that held society together, crumbling. Several major Maya cities, such as Pomon, Palenque, Bonampak, Aguateca, Yaxh, and others, erected their last dated monuments in the final decades of the VIII Century. In an exceedingly violent environment worn down by constantly warring entities and suffering, just as in the Late Preclassic, from overpopulation and food-shortage, one city after the other was depopulated and abandoned. Seen as a whole this was a slow process, stretching over at least 130 years (roughly from 780 to 910 AD), and not the sudden collapse as it often envisioned. Even though the cities were left in ruins, the population did not disappear, but was probably reduced and diffused in the surrounding woodlands in search for suitable soil. Some smaller cities, such as Tayasal, an island-town on Lake Petn-Itz or settlements in the Laguna Miramar region of the Lacandon Forest even survived without any breakdown. However, the so-called Classic Maya Collapse was all encompassing, taking into account that even outlying cities such as Tonin, Chincultik or Quirigu were caught by the events. The ruler who erected the last dated monument in Calakmul was Aj Took, He of Flint, in 909. This stela (No. 61, standing on the western stairway of Structure XIV) is, together with a monument from Tonin and another one from Izimt, one of the last sculptures known from the Southern Maya Lowlands bearing a date. By then the city of
HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY 61

Calakmul was probably only a shadow of its former glory. An even later but undated monument, Stela 50 in front of Structure I, displays a very crude rendering of a standing dwarf-like ruler with a spear in his right hand, which almost ridicules the high achievements of Late Classic Maya art. Shortly after, during the X and XI Century, apparently common people were occupying the abandoned temples and palaces, erecting rudimentary structures within the courtyards of Structure XVI, for instance, and overbuilding the steep terraced platforms of the northern front with a simple crude stairway for easier access (Campaa 1998: 60; Delvendahl 2002, 2005). Ritual ceramics from the Early Postclassic give evidence that the site was occupied for several decades after the elite vanished, and was later on visited sporadically by pilgrims. Since then and until today, the Southern Maya Lowlands have never been as densely settled as in the Late and Terminal Classic. When Hernn Corts passed through the Southern Lowlands on his expedition to Honduras in 1524/25, most of the Classic cities had been abandoned for more than 600 years, but were probably living on in the memories and fantasies of those who happened to come upon them. During the first contacts with the Spaniards, southern Campeche and northern Petn was inhabited by the Cehaches. Not one of the Spanish expeditions into the Petn during the next centuries seems to have passed through Calakmul (see Jones 1998; Morley 1938).

62 HISTORY OF CALAKMUL AND THE KAAN DYNASTY

Rediscovery and Exploration 1931-2007

alakmul was already known some time before its rediscovery in 1931 to chicleros (locals who collect natural gum from the Manilkara zapota, Chicle Tree) and sporadic visitors, as is attested by graffiti left in Structure III, the only building which was not completely overgrown since the abandonment of the city in the X and XI Century. The earliest of these post-abandonment records dates to January 1926, others are from December 1927 and May 1928 (Ruppert and Denison 1943: 13). It was most likely chicleros who, in December 1931, led the American biologist Cyrus Longworth Lundell, who was then working for the Mexican Exploitation Company, to the site. Lundell had set out in fall 1931 from Champotn to Jurez and from there to Tuxpea (where he stayed for five months from October 1931February 1932) with the purpose of studying the flora, especially in its ethnobotanical and economic aspects, but also in the hope of locating any Maya ruins that might be buried in the jungle (Lundell 1933: 147). Driven by a years-old desire to find out what lay to the northward of Uaxactn, and to the southward of the well exploited sites of Yucatan (Ibid: 151), on the 27th of December Lundell and a helper traveled to Conhuas (Viejo) and from there south via Ro Desempeo to Central Buenfil, the local chicle station of Don Francisco Buenfil, the largest private chicle contractor in Mexico. From there they followed the directions of the local administrator, Don Manuel Osorno, to the site. Even if Lundell was not the first person to sight the ruins, since he was the one who made the existence of the ancient city known to the world, the rediscovery of Calakmul is generally attributed to him. Lundell is also credited with officially baptizing the site as Calakmul, meaning in Maya: ca (two), lac (adjacent), mul (artificial mounds or pyramids), the site of the two adjacent mounds (Lundell 1933; Morley 1933: 30; Rivet 1932; Ruppert and Denison 1943: 13). However, it can be assumed that this was the very name the chicleros used to describe to him the place with its prominent landmarks Structures I and II.
REDISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 1931-2007 63

Chapter 3

During his three day visit, Lundell took pictures and drew a rather square, preliminary map of the central core of the site, indicating the 62 stelae he had located there. The structures he considered important enough to be included in his map were Structures I and II (both of which he estimated as being 160 feet high), Structures III, IV, V, VI, VII (this last estimated as being 75 feet high), and IX, as well as Structures XIII (estimated as being 65 feet high), XIV, XV, and XVI. As others before him he probably camped in Structure III, where he left a prominent mark on one of the door jambs, still visible today, in form of a deep scratched inscription, reading: C. L. Lundell 12/ 29/ 31

Cyrus Lundells graffiti from 1931 on one of the inner doorjambs of Structure III (Photo by the author)

In March the next year, Lundell traveled to Chichn Itz, where he knew eminent Mayanist Sylvanus G. Morley was working, to inform him of his discoveries. Morley, then the leading epigraphist of his time with the ambition to catalog all known initial series of Maya inscriptions, immediately organized an expedition financed by the Carnegie Institution of Washington and approved by the Department of Prehispanic Monuments of Mexico. The First Campeche Expedition was joined by Morley himself as director, his wife Frances, Karl Ruppert
64 REDISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 1931-2007

as an archaeologist, John Bolles as architect and surveyor, Gustav Stromsvik, an engineer, who later on became legendarily famous for his archaeological works in Copn, and two Maya helpers from Chichn Itz. The whole trip was recorded in Sylvanus Morleys diaries and later published (Morley 1970; see also Morley 1933) and therefore is easy to reconstruct. They set out from Chichn Itz on April 3rd, 1932, and arrived seven days later, April 9th, by train, automobile, truck and mule, via Campeche, San Dimas, La Gloria, Tanche, El Tumbo, Ro Desempeo, and Central Buenfil, at around midday at Calakmul. They put up camp in the Main Plaza and immediately went to work, checking out some of the nearby monuments, first of all the well preserved Stela 9. The next day was dedicated entirely to a complete reconnaissance of the central core, chopping their way north through the scrub towards Structure VII, then over to Structure IV in the east (Structure D according to Morley), crossing the Main Plaza west to Structure VI (F) and, by passing over it, entering what is now known as the Plaza of the Jaguar (Plaza del Jaguar) just west of the Main Plaza, all the way following the sequence of monuments Lundell had established. From there, they kept on moving west, towards the complex now known as Grand Acropolis, which they entered via Structure XIV (I) in the northeast. Then they moved north, inspecting some stelae north of Structure X, turned west and probably climbed Structure XIII (the high Pyramid M according to Morley 1970: 154). From there, they chopped along south and eventually came onto the ball court, Structure XI (K), moving from there over to Structure XVI (P), where they inspected numerous stelae most of which were already recorded by Lundell. From there, they returned to the Grand Plaza passing by the north side of Structure XVII (Structure O according to Morley), where they recorded Stela 80. And that was just the morning tour. In the afternoon, Karl Ruppert and Gustav Stromsvik climbed Structure II, from where Stromsvik spotted El Mirador, discovered just several years before in 1914, far on the horizon to the southwest. Later they found their way over to Structure I, where they marveled at the huge altars, in Morleys words the biggest round stones he had ever seen (Morley 1970: 155). Some of the stelae in front of Structure I were still standing, others had fallen face down, and Morley and his crew dedicated much time in the next days to erect one of Calakmuls most beautiful monuments, Stela 51 (Ibid: 162). From Structure I they chopped their way north to Structure III, where they discovered the
REDISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 1931-2007 65

graffiti scratched on the wall from previous visitors. Time to remember Lundell, from whose preliminary map Morley surely profited greatly:
What a man. All day long he tramped through this bush with his map in hand to make it easy for us. We have checked him almost pace by pace and every time found him right. We have every convenience for camp comfort, a half a dozen men besides ourselves to cut the bush, and I suspect he had very little comfort. He did a splendid thing, and I deeply appreciate his fine spirit of generosity and love of scientific truth which prompted him to call this matter to the Institutions attention. I know we can do this great site justice, and we will see that he gets credit for his discovery (Morley 1970: 155)

On this day and during the next two weeks Morleys party stayed in Calakmul, they discovered another 41 stelae increasing the total to 103 (Morley 1933: 32, 1970: 163). While Morley, Stromsvik, and Ruppert dedicated their time to the search and discovery of new monuments and initial series, John Bolles elaborated in only eleven days (April 11April 21) a detailed map of the center of Calakmul, which to this day, despite later efforts by subsequent projects, represents the most reliable plan available (first published in Morley 1933, later in Ruppert and Denison 1943, Plate 61). It includes all the buildings around the Main Plaza, Structures I and III in the southeast, as well as all structures of the Grand Acropolis in the west and the so-called Small Acropolis in the east. Taking into account the conditions under which he labored and the limited time he had at disposal, his work is stunningly accurate and even though falling short in certain areas, is still the best chart for general orientation. After this initial Campeche Expedition the Carnegie Institution sent another three missions to the south of Campeche and the north of the Petn, in 1933, 1934, and 1938, resulting in a detailed description of parts of Calakmul and its monuments, as well as other important sites in the vicinity, namely Becn, Ro Bec, La Mueca, Naachtn, Oxpemul, Balakbal, Pared de los Reyes, and Uxul, among others. The outcome of these expeditions were some years later published in Ruppert and Denisons classic Archaeological Reconnaissance in Campeche, Quintana Roo, and Petn (Ruppert and Denison 1943). Strangely enough, in spite the sites importance as attested by Morley, no further archaeological investigations were carried out in the next almost fifty years and Calakmul was largely ignored by decades of future Mayanists (with isolated exceptions, see Flannery 1972;
66 REDISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 1931-2007

Marcus 1973, 1976). Instead looters took advantage of the remote location of Calakmul, sawing off most of the better preserved stelae in the decades of the sixties and seventies, and digging great holes into several of the structures. One immense looters trench, which exposed the high corbelled vault of a narrow stuccoed room, can still be seen on the west side of the Structure XVI complex, close to the northwest corner. As a direct result of these recent lootings, the site was briefly visited in 1966 by archaeologist Ral Pavn Abreu to remove beautiful One of the most destructive looters trenches in Stela 9 to Campeche for the Calakmul core area: exposed stuccoed vault on the west side of the Structure XVI complex safekeeping (today on display (Photo by the author) at the Baluarte de San Miguel Museum) and in 1975 by epigraphist Eric von Euw with the aim of recording all the surviving inscriptions of the monuments still in place. In 1981 a small expedition, headed by archaeologist Peter Schmidt, did a first delimitation of the archaeological site (Carrasco et al. 1994: 8-9; Carrasco and Rodrguez 2003, 2005). It was not until 1982 that some serious archaeological work was reconsidered. The Calakmul Project was initiated under the direction of Dr. William J. Folan of the Center for Social and Historic Investigations (Centro de Investigaciones Histricas y Sociales, CIHS) of the Autonomous Campeche University (Universidad Autnoma de Campeche, UAC) and had as one of its specific goals the complete mapping of all the structures and cultural remains within a 30 km2 zone, including an analysis of the settlement pattern. Other objectives were to explore several structures within the sites core (mainly Structures I, II, III and VII) by partial excavation to define their antiquity and different phases of architectural development, as well as a study of the activities that took place on, or within, the excavated buildings. During the CIHS/
REDISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 1931-2007 67

University of Campeches twelve years of exploration at Calakmul (1982-1994) several amazing discoveries were made, among them numerous lavishly furnished tombs in Structures II, III, and VII, where three of the sites five total full facial jade masks were recovered. In 1989 the area surrounding the archaeological site was declared a Biosphere Reserve, in large part thanks to the Projects initiatives since the very beginning of their work at Calakmul (see Braswell et al. 2005; Domnguez 2004; Domnguez et al. 1997, 2002; Fletcher and Gann 1995; Fletcher et al. 2001; Florey and Folan 1999; Folan 1985, 1992, 1994, 1995, 1999; Folan et al. 1995, 2000, 2001a, 2001b, 2007; Gallegos 1990, 2001; Gallegos et al. 2005; Marcus 1987; May Hau et al. 1990; Pincemin 1994; Pincemin et al. 1998; Zapata 1985, among others). Political correctness in todays scientific circles generally seems to impede critique with the consequence that once-stated results are often repeated without corroboration and, through reiteration, gradually legitimized (see for instance Webster 2001: 134). However, a few words of criticism are in order given the CIHS-UAC Projects rather sobering and often confusing results (based largely on personal observation; but see also Carrasco 1998b: 83-84). The map, elaborated during seven years or 87 months as proclaimed (Folan et al. 2001a: 17, 2001b: 223), records 6345 structures and cultural vestiges, including platforms and/or terraces with or without superstructures, remains of vaulted and unvaulted structures, altars, chultunes, supposed stone fences, and quarries (see Fletcher et al. 2001: 48; Folan 1999: 73; May Hau et al. 1990). Unfortunately, its precision falls terribly short in almost all aspects, making it useless for all but the most general investigation. Distributions and orientations of structures and the dimensions of structures and plazas are erroneous even close to the sites Main Plaza. In the so-called Grand Acropolis Group, a palace complex in the western part of the Grand Acropolis, which was quite accurately drawn by John Bolles in 1932, almost all the courtyards are depicted in wrong dimensions, as can be easily verified even by the untrained eye. Whole structures are missing while others, nonexistent, are indicated. If the flaws are so overwhelming close to the sites center, one is just left to wonder how inaccurate the map is in areas further away. Of course, studies resulting from the mapping, such as settlement surveys or the study of sacbeoob (the white roads of the Maya), have to be taken with caution, too (for instance Fletcher and Gann 1995; Fletcher et al. 2001: 56-57; Folan et al. 1995). The supposed sacbeoob in Calakmul, for instance, were assumed by vague indications on satellite
68 REDISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 1931-2007

pictures only, but never attested and investigated archaeologically on the ground. Most of these ceremonial roads seem to start nowhere and end nowhere, but are supposed to connect Calakmul with El Mirador and other sites in the Mirador Basin (Folan et al. 1995: 281; Fletcher et al. 2001: 59). The same lack of accuracy and methodology, so important in archaeological investigation, was also apparent in the explorations of Structures I, II, III, and VII and is generally reflected in the projects publications (see, for instance, Folan et al. 2000, 2001b, 2007). These shortcomings finally resulted in the intervention and substitution of the CIHS/University of Campeche project by INAH2. The following Archaeological Project of the Calakmul Biosphere (Proyecto Arqueolgico de la Bisfera de Calakmul), later renamed as Calakmul Archaeological Project (Proyecto Arqueolgico Calakmul, PAC) was initiated by the State Government of Campeche and INAH and integrated as a part of the much larger National Program of Special Archaeological Projects (Programa Nacional de Proyectos Especiales de Arqueologa) which started in 1993 (Carrasco and Boucher 1994; Carrasco et al. 1994). The project was envisioned as a regional study encompassing archaeological investigations at the sites of Calakmul, Balamk and Nadzcaan, the latter two located at 3 km and 11 km north of the Federal Highway Mex 186 near Conhuas. However, despite the projects integrative intentions, most of the funds in the subsequent 14 years undoubtedly went to explorations and excavations in Calakmul, which turned into one of the most prestigious archaeological projects in the Maya area. Under the direction of archaeologist Ramn Carrasco Vargas ever since, excavations and restorations/reconstruction of most of the structures in the citys center have been undertaken: Structures I, II, IV, V, VI, VII around and close to the Main Plaza; Structures XI, XIII, XIII-A, XIV, XV, XVII in the eastern part of the Grand Acropolis; Structures XIX, XX, and the Kinich Pak group including the Utsiaal Caan and Wau Ajaw Nah or House of the 6 Ajaw residential complexes in the western part of the Grand Acropolis; several structures of the so-called North-, or Chiik Nahb Acropolis, the Northeast Group, and the Chan Chich residential complex, as well as some smaller residential groups east of the Northeast Group. During these explorations some truly transcendental discoveries were being made, such as the royal tomb of Late Classic ruler Yichaak Kahk, the early Late Preclassic
2 Instituto Nacional de Antropologa e Historia, the National Institute of Anthropology and History which is, among other tasks, responsible for all prehispanic remains.

REDISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 1931-2007 69

Substructure Sub II-C, or more recently the outstanding mural paintings of the Chiik Nahb Acropolis (see lvarez 1998, 1999; Boucher and Dzul 1998; Boucher and Palomo 2000a, 2000b; Campaa 1998; Carrasco 1996-2007; Carrasco and Bojalil 2005; Carrasco and Boucher 1994; Carrasco and Coln 2005; Carrasco and Rodrguez 2003, 2005; Carrasco and Vzquez 2007; Carrasco et al. 1997-2003; Delvendahl 2001-2005; Garca and Carrasco 2006; Garca and Granados 2000; Garca and Schneider 1996, 2000; Gonzlez 1999a, 1999b; Reyes 2006; Rodrguez 2000-2007). In 2002 Calakmul was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, guaranteeing an additional flow of funds. The main reasons for its inclusion were given as follows:
The many commemorative stelae at Calakmul are outstanding examples of Maya art, which throw much light on the political and spiritual development of the city. [] With a single site Calakmul displays an exceptionally well preserved series of monuments and open spaces representative of Maya architectural, artistic, and urban development over a period of twelve centuries. [] The political and spiritual way of life of the Maya cities of the Tierras Bajas region is admirably demonstrated by the impressive remains of Calakmul. [] Calakmul is an outstanding example of a significant phase in human settlement and the development of architecture (whc.unesco.org)

A Quick Calakmul Site Scan

alakmul is situated in the southeast of the modern state of Campeche in eastern Mexico, at 18 06 21 latitude north and 89 48 37 longitude west, approximately 32 kilometers (20 miles) north of the frontier with Guatemala. From Mrida, the most common access route is going south via Campeche and Champotn to Francisco Escrcega, then turning east onto Federal Highway Mex 186, in the direction of Xpujil, and driving east until reaching the village of Conhuas, close to the ruins of Balamk, after about 93 kilometers (58 miles). Less than a kilometer east of Conhuas a smaller road leads straight south, 65 kilometers (40 miles) through an ever denser forest to the site. An alternative, more adventurous but far more beautiful route to travel from Mrida or Campeche to Calakmul is via Hopelchen and Dzibalchen east of Campeche on Camp 269, passing close to the ruins of Tabasqueo and Hochob, and then on a little trafficked route south via Ucum, Xmaben, and Zoh Laguna to Xpujil. This route is exciting, riding right through the heart of the Peninsula, as remote as one can get in the Yucatan. But of course it is sometimes tricky, too, to be remote and far away from possible help. There are no gas stations on this road between Hopelchen and Xpujil, for instance, and pavement is not always in the best condition, particularly toward the end of the rainy season when potholes abound. From Xpujil it is another 50 km (31 miles) to the west, passing close to the archaeological sites of Becn and Chicann before reaching the junction which leads towards Calakmul. Either way it is about a 7 to 8 hour drive from Mrida and 5-6 hours from Campeche, a far cry from the four day trip of Morley and his party in 1932. The traveler coming from the Caribbean has to drive south on Federal Highway Mex 370, passing through Tulum, Felipe Carrillo Puerto, and

Chapter 4

At present, Calakmul is designated to become one of the most important tourist destinations in the State of Campeche, comparable in importance to Palenque in Chiapas or Tikal in Northern Guatemala. While not yet as accessible as these or other sites, it already receives about 60% of the INAH budget for archaeological exploration and site management on the state level in Campeche, while the rest is divided among projects such as Balamk, Edzna, El Tigre, Jaina, Santa Rosa Xtampak, and others. Of course, uncovering more and more structures presents manifold problems at present and will be even more challenging in the future. As was mentioned, the stone in the Calakmul area is of inferior quality, leading to relatively quick deterioration when exposed to the elements and to growing numbers of tourists. Preservation of the sites fantastic structures should be a main concern in the years to come.

70 REDISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 1931-2007

A QUICK CALAKMUL SITE SCAN 71

close to Laguna Bacalar, then turning west onto Federal Highway Mex 186, just west of Chetumal. Passing close to the impressive sites of Kohunlich and Dzibanch (one of the possible Kaan seats of power) it is about 90 kilometers (56 miles) to Xpujil, then another 50 km (31 miles) to the branch leading south to Calakmul. Coming from Palenque it is basically driving north to Francisco Escrcega and then east onto Mex 186 until passing Conhuas. From Cancun to Calakmul is an 8 to 9 hour drive, from Palenque it takes about six hours. All routes have interesting archaeological sites on their way or close by, such as: Uxmal, Kabah, Sayil, Edzn, Santa Rosa Xtampak, Tabasqueo, Hochob, Dzibilnocac, Kohunlich, Dzibanch, Kinichn, Xpuhil, Becn, Chicann, Balamk, Nadzcaan, to name just a few, so it is wise to plan ahead. Along the way, accommodations are best in Santa Elena, Campeche, Chetumal, Laguna Bacalar, and close to Chicann, but there are also small hotels or rustic cabaas in not-too-safe and therefore not recommended Escrcega, in the towns of Hopelchen, Zoh Laguna, Xpujil, as well as between Xpujil and Becn, and on the banks of Laguna Silvituc. Closer to the site lodgings are still surprisingly sparse. As of this moment, the visitor has to choose between some very rustic but not too expensive cabaas in Conhuas or a very nice but relatively expensive (120 USD) hotel just southeast of the junction which leads to Calakmul. But no doubt more accommodations are to spring up in the future. There is no shuttle or any kind of organized transport system into Calakmul from the closer villages or towns yet, as there is for example from Flores to Tikal. One has to take ones own car, rent a rather expensive taxi at Xpujil or hitchhike. There are no stores at the site either, so it is advisable to bring enough water to hydrate and something to eat. The village of Conhuas would be the last chance to stock up. Right at the junction leading down to Calakmul from Federal Highway Mex 186 a fee will have to be paid for the entrance to the National Park of the Calakmul Biosphere. The road is generally in good condition and can be traveled all year through. It is straight and wide at first but gets narrow and winding the closer one gets to the site. At about one third of the distance (Kilometer 20) one passes another gate where a park ranger takes note of the cars plate numbers. This is supposably to make sure that nobody gets lost. Further on one passes relatively close to the ruins of El Ramonal and Oxpemul and mounds can be spotted all along the way, especially during the second half of the trip. Surveys by the University of Campeche have detected over 52
72 A QUICK CALAKMUL SITE SCAN

The road to Calakmul, south of the junction (Photo by the author)

smaller sites on either side of the route, most of village or hamlet type (see Domnguez et al. 2002: 288 & Fig. 9). Closer to the site, trees get noticeably higher and the temperature drops a few degrees. Visibility is limited and speeding is not advisable as one never knows whos rushing out while ones driving in (or vice versa). Archaeologists who are familiar with the path tend to drive fast and cover the 65 kilometers in less than 45 minutes. With a rational average speed of around 50 km/h it might take around double that time to arrive safely at Calakmul. It is also wise to watch out for fallen trees or branches and for game or turtles crossing the path. Finally, it should be a rewarding experience to drive down into one of Mexicos biggest natural reserves. At the time of this writing (2008) the gate at Kilometer 20 is turned into the official site entrance, a complex which in the near future will house the ticket office, a souvenir shop, and maybe even a hotel, all surrounded by a huge parking lot, where one will have to park ones car. At certain intervals a Campeche-style tramway-bus will take the visitor the remaining 45 kilometers to the site. This surely implies some loss of time while one has to wait for the next departure, as no more than three or four trambusses will circulate back and forth between the site and the gate. It will, however, make the journey much safer for both the
A QUICK CALAKMUL SITE SCAN 73

traveler and the local fauna as the winding road to the archaeological site is not made for the visitor numbers expected in the future3. Arriving at what is today the sites entrance and what in the future will probably be the terminal of the trambus, one is still about three kilometers walking distance from the main structures around the Central Plaza. At the entrance another fee, this time for the visit of the archaeological site, is charged. One then sets out on a small path through the forest, getting a first hand impression of the environment. Small mounds spread all around attest that one is approaching what was once a densely settled urban city. However, the winding path can get long. In order to save energy for the site cores structures and the trek back it is recommendable not to lose too much time marveling at those minor vestiges. After a while one reaches a branch. Turning left leads to a small, partly excavated residential compound and then to the impressive Northeast Group. This is the first real highlight on the way to the Main Plaza with several monuments which were erected by ruler Yuknoom Yichaak Kahk. A plain stela, which may once have been painted, is standing centrally in the elongated gallery of the main superstructure, a rather unusual feature in the Maya area in general, but not uncommon at Calakmul. Following a small trail to the northwest, passing an ancient quarry, will lead the visitor to one of Calakmuls central aguadas, one of several artificial water reservoirs which provided drinking water for the city. The wooden houses to the right are what is left of the University of Campeche field camp and are now occupied by the sites guards. Turning left towards the southwest, a wider road, used by the archaeologists to get materials in and out, leads toward the Main Plaza. However, as if to fool the anticipating visitor, shortly before arriving at the Main Plaza, another small, signed path will guide the anticipating sightseer right back into the forest. Following it would mean to walk another kilometer or so through the forest, bypassing the central
3The numbers that INAH and the State Government seem to expect are open to question. Based on INAH statistics, visitor numbers have been relatively stable in the past five years (2003-2007), with over 20,980 visitors a year in 2004 and almost 17,000 in 2005 but only 15,515 in 2006 and 15,708 in 2007. The latter figure only slightly exceeds the five year average of 15,440 visitors (about 42 a day; cf. Garca et al. 2007). Clearly the whole infrastructure of the area must be improved to attract more tourism. While it can be safely assumed that Calakmul will never reach tourist numbers such as Chichn Itz or other easily accessible northern Maya sites, with a better infrastructure especially in transportation and lodging it might one day rival sites such as Palenque in Chiapas, Mexico, or Tikal in northern Guatemala.

area, just to get out either on the east side of Structure XIII of the Grand Acropolis or on the far western fringes of the same complex at the Great Wall near the Utsiaal Caan residential unit. Even though some interesting structures and groups are hidden along the path (for example the Chiik Nahb Acropolis with its fantastic, but not open to public, mural paintings) it is advisable to catch them on the way back. So, walking straight on one will finally emerge at the grand Main Plaza. To the right are Structures VIII and VII, to the left is Structure IV. The most logical way to scan the core would be from north to south, including the southeast, then to the west and finally back to the east. In short, the following sequence of visiting the structures makes most sense: Structures VIII, VII, IV, V, II, III, I, back to Structures II and V, then over to Structure VI, west to Structures XIV, XIII, XI, XV, XVII, XVI, and XX, as well as to the Great Wall and the residential compounds Utsiaal Caan and Casa del Seis Ajaw. Walk back east along the northern forest trail via the Chiik Nahb Acropolis.

Calakmuls central area as drawn by John Bolles in 1932 (Ruppert and Denison 1943, Plate 61)

To get oriented and have a better overview, climbing up Structure VII is a good option. From there one gets a magnificent view of Structure II over the treetops right across the Main Plaza and of Structure I
A QUICK CALAKMUL SITE SCAN 75

74 A QUICK CALAKMUL SITE SCAN

further in the southeast. Then walk down along Structure IV over to Structures V and II. The attraction to climb the tallest and most voluminous construction of Calakmul and one of the highest buildings ever assembled in the Maya world, Structure II, is almost impossible to resist. After all, this was probably the most important building of the most powerful city of the Southern Maya Lowlands during much of the Early and Late Classic, with a construction history that stretches back all the way to at least 250 BC. Besides, one gets rewarded with an unforgettable view towards the south, to Guatemala, where the peaks of the ruins of El Mirador on the southwestern horizon are difficult but possible to make out, as well as on Structure I in the southeast and on Structure VII across the Main Plaza, behind which the view reaches into the distance, towards the rolling hills of the north. From Structure II it would be logical to turn to the east and southeast, and pay a visit to palace-type Structure III and homage to Cyrus Lundells graffiti on one of the inner doorjambs. Unfortunately, this old 1931 graffiti has been overscratched by several recent ones, so that it is hard to make out today. Then walk on south to Structure I, along a path which has been embellished recently with some lined up decontextualized stelae. Structure I is the second tallest building of Calakmul and, therefore, another attraction to climb. On the upper terrace one finds a small temple, which is a lovely and generally very peaceful place to sit, facing an even better, undisturbed view to the south and an interesting perspective on Structure II to the northwest. To move on to the Grand Acropolis Complex or West Group, the visitor has to walk back to Structures II and V and then over to Structure VI, where one will find stelae in front of the stairway and on top of the upper terrace. Rounding its northern end, following the path which passes close to Structure VII, the visitor enters the so-called Plaza del Jaguar, an open space between Structure VI and Structure XIV, the latter forming the eastern entrance to the Grand Acropolis. Formerly, the path bypassed this structure on its northern side, but now the visitor has to climb Structure XIV and circulate through its two galleries, just as the ancient visitor would have, in order to penetrate the inner precinct. Once inside this vast, pretty unacropolis-like ambit, it makes sense to follow the same north-south-west circuit, starting with Structure XIII on the north, then walking down the ball court (Structure XI) towards Structures XV and XVII, and then back north along Structure XVI. While it is no longer allowed to climb on top
76 A QUICK CALAKMUL SITE SCAN

of the upper levels of Structure XIII, one can get a rare and amazing glimpse of Structure II from Structure XV. Rounding the northeast corner of Structure XVI and turning to the west, up to recently one would have stumbled upon the sculptural outcrop with deep reliefs of prisoners, which Morley believed in 1932 would create a great sensation at home (Morley 1970: 158). Unfortunately for todays vistor, this piece of bedrock artwork has been covered up again for better protection and only a sign indicates what hides underneath a stone-encircled area a few steps away. Anyway, it would have been difficult for the untrained eye to make something out on the dark stone, even though the traces of some of the captives are still visible. Further west the visitor will reach Structure XX, actually one of the entrances to a huge palace complex with 17 courtyards that stretches behind it. It is not advisable to enter this completely overgrown palace compound without a guide since it is pretty easy to get lost in it. Structure XX itself is one of the more recently excavated buildings at Calakmul and presents a series of very interesting architectonic features. The path leading towards the north brings one to the remains of the Great Wall, over six meters high, and to the residential complex Utsiaal Caan. The wall has been partly reconstructed, as only a small piece was still standing after over 1000 years of abandonment. The original piece, which was still untouched in 1997, gives an idea of the huge proportion of this enormous device which probably served more to delimit the inner sacred space than as a defensive measure. Meandering through the Utsiaal Caan residential unit towards the west will bring one to a path which leads to the small but appealing residential area known as Wau Ajaw Nah or Casa del Seis Ajaw (House of the Six Ajaw), named this way after a capstone with a 6 ajaw date incised on it. It is a beautiful and peaceful place to stretch out on one of the benches and listen to the sounds of the forest. It is presently the westernmost excavated structure, even though some stunning buildings and groups are hidden further west and south in the woods before monumental construction diminishes as one approaches the ancient outlines of the El Laberinto swamp.

A QUICK CALAKMUL SITE SCAN 77

Chapter 5
Description of the Site and its Structures
uring the Classic (250-909 AD) Calakmul was undoubtedly one of the largest settlements of the Southern Lowlands with a population estimated of at least 30,000 and maybe up to 50,000 residents. While the citys center surely was highly urbanized, extensive areas on the margins and outside the city were out of necessity used for agriculture. To feed a population of that magnitude, basically relying on slashand-burn milpa, maize field cultivation on a nine to fifteen year cycle, combined possibly with some other more intensive techniques such as raised field cultivation, an enormous amount of exploitable land in the surrounding area was required. The actual archaeological site has an extension of about 25 km2, but it can be assumed that the Classic metropolis stretched far beyond that, encompassing probably as much as 70 km2 or more. Tikal, for instance, has been estimated to cover over 120 km2 (see Carr and Hazard 1961) and it is plausible that Calakmul reached at least equal size. As was mentioned, of this area about 30 km2 have been preliminary mapped by the University of Campeche (UAC) project during the 1980s, registering around 6,367 structures and cultural vestiges, from which approximately 4,700 correspond to platforms with vaulted or unvaulted superstructures (May Hau et al. 1990). Unfortunately, there is a certain discrepancy in the scientific literature as to the real number of habitable structures (see Carrasco 1998b: 83) as well as to the problem of comtemporaneity, i.e. if all the detected structures were used at the same time or if they span different time periods. That, of course, would reflect directly upon population figures. Given that the El Laberinto swamp limits Calakmul to the west, south, and southeast, it can be assumed that the principal extension of the site was towards the north and east. However, the citys limits, if there existed anything like it in classical times, are unknown and

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 79

also would be nearly impossible to distinguish in the archaeological record. Continuous architectural remains have been reported up the swamps banks, approximately seven kilometers towards the southeast of Structure II (Agustn Anaya and Omar Rodrguez 2000: pers. com.). It can be assumed that extension towards the north and west was even beyond that distance. Taking the UAC map, so far the only existing chart that covers more that the central area, as approximately accurate, the density of occupation seemed to have been not excessively high outside of what can be considered the extensive site center, restricting the real urban impression basically to the inner precinct.

The 30 km2 extension of Calakmul, according to the CIHS-UAC map (May Hau et al. 1990, taken from Folan et al. 2001a: 21)

Open spaces of about 40,000 m2 (200 m by 200 m) are not uncommon between different buildings groups in the south and southeast of Calakmul, and are seemingly even more extensive in the east and northeast. Given the limitations of surrounding land it is possible that these intermediate spaces were used for some kind of household agriculture in form of gardens, orchards and small milpas, as is common in the so-called garden-cities of smaller Maya sites. However, it is likely that these spaces were once covered with low residential platforms and perishable structures which are difficult to recognize during the mapping process as they leave little surface trace (see Harrison 1999: 115, for data on Tikal). Occupation in the southwest seems to have been denser, possibly because of the proximity to the El Laberinto swamp. The area that can be labeled as the extensive site center of Calakmul covers no more than 3.5 km2 (roughly 2.5 km east-west by 1.5 km north-south), including the most densely settled area around the central core and the principal central water reservoirs (quadrants L28-O28, K29-O29, K30-O30 on the UAC map). The central core itself, around the originally four central plazas, covers approximately 2 km2 (2 km east-west by 1 km north-south). All the major groups exposed to the visitor today are located within this core area, from the Northeast Group in the east to the Grand Acropolis Group in the west, from the Chiik Nahb Acropolis in the north to Structure I in the south (quadrants L29-O29, L30-O30 on the UAC map). While the preceding chapter had the intention to propose a logical way to circulate within the ruins, the subsequent information will provide a more detailed description of the structures within the different sections of Calakmul. Ruppert and Denison in their 1943 publication distinguished five groups in the site core: the Southeast Group (Structure I, II, III), the Central Plaza (Structures IV-VIII), the West Group (Structures X-XVII), and the East and Northeast Groups (without numbers; see Ruppert and Denison 1943: 14-23). However, given the site layout and structure orientation it seems more convincing to include Structure II as the southernmost building of the Main Plaza, instead of grouping it with Structure I and III. Therefore, the following description will focus basically on two sections: the Main Plaza and around (including Structures I and III) and the Grand Acropolis or West Group. The description adopts the order of consecutive numbering which has been established by the different projects working in Calakmul since the First Carnegie Institution

80 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 81

The Main Plaza and Around

The Main Plaza is clearly the ceremonial heart and the most significant public sector of the city. Surprisingly, though, it is by far not the largest space in the center of Calakamul, as it is rather cramped between an open area between Structure IV and the Small Acropolis to the east and the immense so-called Plaza of the Jaguar to the west. Constituted of, and surrounded by, some of the tallest and most representative buildings -Structures II, IV, V, VI, VII, and VIIIand featuring a total of 47 stelae and 5 altars, the plaza has an extension of approximately 200 m north-south by 60 m east-west (12,000 m2) and could have accommodated easily up to 15,000 persons during important festivities, about half of the estimated population. The temples and administrative buildings on top of the stepped pyramidal platforms around the Main Plaza were of course much taller in the past than their ruined remnants today. Adding another 6 to 8 m of height, including a possible roof comb, comes, in most cases, close to The Main Plaza the original elevation. The plaza itself (detail of John Bolles map in Ruppert as well as the adjacent structures were and Denison 1943, Plate 61) once covered with a thick layer of stucco, and painted in bright red color, intermingled with nuances in yellow, white, green/blue and black. The stelae and altars were painted too, as can still be seen on some, providing a rather colorful image of the city. It can be assumed that, unlike today, the whole area was bare of trees, but parts of the structures and maybe even parts of the plaza itself were shaded with canopies. In total, the Main Plaza has to be visualized as a colorful, lively and, through its massiveness, slightly overwhelming space, impressive and intimidating at the same time. Structure II on the south end of the Main Plaza is the tallest and most voluminous construction of Calakmul and with an approximately

Calakmuls inner site core with the principal structures, according to John Bolles map from 1932 (taken from Folan et al. 2001a: 35)

Expedition and which can basically be credited to Karl Ruppert and John Denison (1943). In this scheme, the lower numbered structures (Structures I-VIII) are located around or close to the Main Plaza, while the higher numbered structures (Structures X-XX, with the exception of Structure XVIII) are part of the Grand Acropolis to the west. Outlying groups generally are known by specific names, such as Chan Chich Group or Chiik Nahb Acropolis, and have their own internal numeric system. Trying to fuse the established order of consecutive numbered structures with the proposed route for circling the site, the description will start with the structures directly on the Main Plaza (Structures II, IV, V, VI, VII, and VIII), then move to the two important excavated structures east and southeast of the Main Plaza (Structures I and III) and on to the Grand Acropolis or West Group (Structures XI, XIIIXVII, XIX and XX). Finally descriptions of the residential units in the northwest of the Grand Acropolis, (Utsiaal Caan and Casa del Seis Ajaw) as well as of the Chiik Nahb Acropolis and its mural paintings, the Chan Chiich Group and the Northeast Group will be provided.

82 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 83

120 m by 120 m (14,400 m2) base and a height of at least 45 m one of the largest structures of the Maya area. Looking up from the Main Plaza, surrounded by stelae erected by Yuknoom Took Kawiil between 702 and 731 AD, one immediately spots the massive multi-terraced base, one central and two lateral buildings in the lower part, a large central stairway flanked by four large Early Classic masks on either side (originally there might have been six), a stela half way up, as well as superstructure II-B, a colossal nine-room building which crowns the central part of a wide upper platform at about 30 m altitude. All of these elements are Early and Late Classic aggregates to a Late Preclassic core which elevates even higher behind Structure II-B, out of sight from the Main Plaza, but clearly visible from Structures I, VII or XV. In terms of construction, this means that the higher parts of Structure II are older than the lower aggregations, which were gradually added to the front of the Preclassic Structure II core.

under thousands of tons of construction fill, consists of a large 107 m north-south by 75 m east-west platform (8,025 m2) of approximately 8 m altitude, topped by seven to nine about 5 m high superstructures, of which three have been localized so far through extensive tunneling, while the others are assumed on symmetry and comparison with similar compounds at other sites, such as the Preclassic platform underlying Group H in Uaxactn (Carrasco 2000, 2001; Carrasco and Coln 2005; Rodrguez 2003, 2007). The northernmost of the three located superstructures, labeled Sub II-C-1, is 48 m long by 13.7 m wide and 5 m high, and functioned as an entranceway to an inner precinct of approximately 4,900 m2, which seems to have consisted of two courts. Visualized from the outside, this substructure is roughly on the level of the lower masks (second terrace), underneath and slightly in front of Structure II-B. Above its entrance it features an impressive 20 m wide by 3.5 m high stucco frieze with the representation of God Chaak floating between two super-

Stucco frieze of Substructure Sub II-C-1 (Drawing by Simon Martin)

Structure II as seen from the Main Plaza (Photo by the author)

Buried deep inside this enormous acropolis-type building are the earliest construction stages, labeled Sub II-C, which, as was already mentioned, go back to the early Late Preclassic, at around 250 BC100 AD. This early construction, which is preserved almost entirely

natural birds, framed by a two-headed cosmic crocodile, also known as the sky monster. The frieze shows iconographic elements similar to features on monuments of Izapa, Abaj Takalik and Nakb, all of Late Preclassic origin, as well as to a much later 450 AD stucco panel on the walls of Copns Margarita substructure (Simon Martin 2004: pers. com.). The central figure, God Chaak, the god of rain and thunder, is one of few Preclassic representations of that deity and bears similarities to a painting on the walls of San Bartolo in eastern Guatemala, as well as to Izapa Stela 1, both dated to the I Century BC (Garca Barrios 2007: 269). As was already mentioned, it can therefore be assumed that the Sub II C-1 frieze, or even the whole structure, dates roughly to about the same period. The central stairway which leads to entrance is flanked by two Olmec-style influenced deity masks, with down-turned mouths and slightly inclined almond shaped eyes. The one excavated so far is in

84 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 85

a magnificent state of preservation and still shows traces of red and black paint around the mouth, eyes and headdress. Next to the mask is a giant earplug, topped by a three-foiled corn leaf, an old Olmec sign of rulership, and a circular element which might represent a cut shell. The whole earplug-corn leaf-cut conch arrangement measures about 2.60 by 1 m. The access to the courtyard is via a 8.1 m long by 2.8 m wide central passageway of 22.7 m2, topped by a 2.6 m high round arch which was originally covered with smoothed stucco and painted with black hands and the graffiti of a warrior (Rodrguez 2003). An even better preserved rounded stuccoed arch, among the very few examples found in the Maya Lowlands, crosses the central building of the subcomplex (Sub II-C-2). This structure, which seems to have connected the first courtyard with a second, sunken court to the south, also features gigantic stucco masks on its base, albeit in less perfect state of preservation.

The location of subcomplex Sub II-C inside Structure II. Substructure Sub II-C-I is on the left underlying Structure II-B (Image PAC/INAH)

Sometime towards the end of the Preclassic, roughly around 200 AD in a stunning effort of construction labor, probably taking several decades, the whole 8,025 m2 subcomplex Sub II-C was carefully buried under the construction of Structure II-A, the highest point of Structure II, and under the somewhat later northern aggregation of Sub II-B, a substructure of Structure II-B, which today crowns the central part of the northern upper platform. While Sub II-B is located directly under II-B and covers Sub II-C-1 (described above), Structure II-A towers above the whole southern part of the Sub II-C complex. One has to imagine the engineering skills and the Herculean effort:

the nine structures and the 4,900 m2 courtyard were painstakingly filled with tons of earth and stones, all carried by hand from far away quarries, then everything was leveled and little by little elevated from roughly 13-14 meters to over 45 meters and extended from 107 m by 75 m to roughly 120 m by 120 m! While overseen by specialists of the elite stratum, the rough work was most likely done in shifts by local peasants, by laborers provided as tribute by subordinate sites, as well as by war prisoners/slaves. Given that the Late and Terminal Classic additions to the front of Structure II have been largely dismantled by the University of Campeche Project in the late 80s and early 90s, leaving exposed what they thought were small rooms, but which actually were small cells of rough stone walls used to stabilize the construction fill (cajones de relleno in Spanish), most of what is visible on the north front of Structure II today dates to the Early Classic and to the early Late Classic. By then Structure II consisted of at least six buildings on three different levels. On the first terrace were the two lateral edifices which are presently exposed to the visitor, called Buildings 1 and 2, with Stela 43 and 44 inside. Stela 43 was dated by Morley to 9.4.0.0.0 (514 AD), one of the earliest monuments at Calakmul. Upstairs the large central stairway flanked by originally six colossal deity masks were Structures Sub II-B in the center (later covered by Structure II-B, visible today), and Structures II-C and II-D on the east and west sides (exposed). Basically unchanged since the Late Preclassic, Structure II-A formed the peak of the construction, topped probably by a small temple of which just the base survived. Inside Structure Sub II-B one of the most lavishly adorned tombs of Calakmul was found, Tomb 4, today reconstructed at the marvelous Baluarte de San Miguel Museum in Campeche City. The final resting place of Yuknoom Yichaak Kahk who probably died in 695 AD, the tombs rounded arch roof was decorated with reversed glyph imprints, obviously not to be read by humans, and furnished with a wooden bier on which the dead king was laid, wrapped in cloth and adorned with jade, conch and feathers. A jade mask heirloom of his father, Yuknoom Cheen II, was put on his chest, while several jaguar claws alluding to his name, Claw of Fire, as well as ceramics bearing his name were carefully placed beside him (Boucher and Polomo 2000; Garca 2004, 2007; Garca and Granados 2000). Tomb 4 was dug into Sub II-B shortly before the structure was dismantled and overbuilt.

86 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 87

Therefore, it can be calculated that Structure II-B, the colossal building of three galleries which today crowns the northern upper platform, was constructed around 700 AD. The sheer size of the walls gives an idea of the original height of the structure which furthermore was probably crowned with a tall, massive roof comb as they are known, for instance, from temple structures in Tikal. During the construction of II-B, the lateral buildings, Structures II-C and II-D, were demolished and leveled to create a wide open space to each side of Structure II-B. To the west a solitary (dance-?) platform was erected, whose exposed construction fill units were falsely identified as foundation walls of small chambers of a perishable palace-type structure by the University of Campeche Project (Folan et al. 2000: 243 & 257; see also Florey and Folan 1999; Folan et al. 2007: Fig. 16). Structure II-B was undoubtedly the most important and imposing edifice of Late Classic Calakmul. Majestically overlooking the Main Plaza it probably served, more than anything, prestigious purposes as a theatrical stage for religious and administrative appearances of the holy ruler. It is likely that public auto-sacrifices of the ruler took place here, as well as important ritual dances, such as the so-called snake-dance or the flapstaff dance (Grube 1992; Looper 2003). On the lateral platforms and on the surrounding structures, a huge number of local nobles and high ranking visitors could have been accommodated while the plaza deep below was filled with tens of thousands of spectators.

In total, Structure II is one of the most significant, interesting, and complex buildings in the Southern Maya Lowlands. With a construction history that covers over 1000 years, it has been, from the very beginning of monumental architecture at Calakmul until the final days of the sites occupation, the focus of ceremonial and administrative ac tivity. Sacred mountain, sacred cave, axis mundi, and final resting place for some of the most venerated kings of Maya history, Structure II was and is an awe inspiring building, truly an icon for the city then as now. Directly north of Structure II is Structure V, a relatively small building but seemingly of enormous ritual importance, as attested by the exhibition of ten stelae and one altar around its sides. Relatively recent excavations have detected a Preclassic substructure, as well as two ample modifications during the Early and the Late Classic, during which the front of the building was reoriented from north to south, facing Structure II, as seen today, with six of the ten stelae facing the same direction (Carrasco 1998b; Rodrguez 2000). The superstructure, probably a temple, consists of one wide gallery with a single central doorway. On the north side of Structure V stand relatively small Stelae 28 and 29, dedicated in 623 AD, despite surface erosion two of the better preserved stelae of Calakmul, representing a royal couple. As mentioned, they might have been erected by Tajoom Ukakb Kahk, a Kaan dynast who reigned between 622 and 630 AD, but names are not preserved.

Structure II as seen from Structure VII (Photo by the author)

Structure V, south side, with Stelae 35 & 36 in the foreground (Photo by the author)

88 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 89

On the southeast, south, and southwest side are Stelae 32 to 37, Stelae 30 and 31 are standing atop Structure V. Stela 31 was described as plain by Morley (1933) and Marcus (1987: 25) but a more recent inspection by Simon Martin (1998) has detected a date which corresponds to 652 AD, falling into the reign of Yuknoom Cheen II. Stela 33, on the southeast corner, was equally commissioned by Yuknoom Cheen, this one dating to 657. In the extensive text on the back he mentions the accession of one of his predecessors, Scroll Serpent, 78 years in the past, in 579 AD. Northeast of Structure V lies Structure IV, which, together with Structure VI on the west side of the Main Plaza, forms a so-called EGroup, where the superstructures of the north and south extremes of the eastern building are aligned with the sunrises of the summer and winter solstices when observed from the center of the western building. E-Groups are named after Group E in Uaxactn, where the phenomenon was first observed and described (Smith 1950: 42-44). However, it can be assumed that the specific astronomical layout and related use as an observatory was not the sole purpose of these structures which most certainly were also used for ceremonial performances. Structure IV is an elongated construction with three superstructures labeled as A, B, and C: IV-A is on the northern end, IV-B in the center, and IV-C on the south end of the building. As all structures around the Main Plaza, Structure IV has Preclassic beginnings, and several modifications which date to the Early and Late Classic. While Structure IV-A and IV-C seem to be identical in architectural design, central Structure IV-B is a two storey building with a slightly larger construction history. It therefore can be assumed that Structure IV-B was built first, while the lateral buildings were added later and connected to the main building with prolonged platforms. Excavations in Structure IV-B exposed 6 burials and tombs, as well as several offerings related to structure modifications from the beginnings of the Early Classic (around 250 AD) until the beginning of the Terminal Classic (around 800 AD). Most notable among the discoveries were two tombs, one of which was empty, while the other, partly destroyed Tomb 2, contained the remains of a person of advanced age. Among the grave goods was a black ceramic mask as well as other beautiful black ceramics of the Early Classic Balanza-type which are now on display in the Baluarte San Miguel Museum in Campeche (Carrasco 1998; Carrasco and Boucher 1994; Garca and Schneider 1996: 61-63). In the construc-

Structure IV-B, as seen from the southwest (Photo by the author)

tion fill of this building fragments of earlier monuments were found, among them an altar, as well as what first appeared to be a small stela, but turned out to be a lintel which once graced an Early Classic doorway and seems to represent an Early Classic ruler dancing out of the jaws of the underworld. It was proposed that the ruler represented on the lintel and the body found in Tomb 2 might have been Kaan dynast Kaltuun Hix, who reigned from 520 to 546 AD (Carrasco 1998: 381; Carrasco and Boucher 1994: 36), but, as outlined above, that seems rather unlikely given the new evidence on political constellations and snake-head affiliation in the Early Classic (Grube 2004; Martin 2005; Martin and Grube 2008; Velazquez 2005). A total of 18 stelae are associated with Structure IV, even though some, such as magnificent Stelae 9, are no longer on site. Three stelae are standing right in front of or on Structure IV-A (Nos. 7, 8, 90), eight stelae are, or were, located in front of (or on) central Structure IV-B (Nos. 9-16), and three stand in front of (or on) Structure IV-C (Nos. 19-21). Another four stelae (Nos. 17, 18, 83 and 84) and one altar stand in a second row further to the west in front of Structure IV-B. Stela 8 in front of Structure IV-A is one of the most important monuments of the Main Plaza. Commissioned in 721 by Yuknoom Took Kawiil,

90 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 91

it relates to an event 128 years in the past, a 9.8.0.0.0 period ending celebrated by Scroll Serpent and his spouse in 593 AD (Martin 1998, 2005). Thus, Stela 8 is linked with Stela 33 of Structure V (see above), the only other monument referring to these long past events. Beautiful Stela 9, now in the Baluarte San Miguel Museum in Campeche, once stood on the northwest corner of Structure IV-B. This monument, carved from slate originating in the Maya Mountains in Southern Belize and, therefore, probably a tribute, was dedicated in 9.12.0.0.0 (662 AD) during the reign of Yuknoom Cheen II, who is most likely the character depicted on one side of the stela (the other showing his wife). Interestingly though, the only legible name on the monument is that of his son Yichaak Kahk, who was only 13 years old at that time (Martin 1998: 73). Since his name appears with full royal title, it has been assumed that Yichaak Kahk from that time on effectively ran the states affairs (Martin and Grube 2008: 110). His mentioning on Stela 9 might be interpreted as a first public proclamation of Yuknoom Cheen II that this particular son is going to be his successor (Guenter 2003: 20). On the west side of the Central Plaza is rather square Structure VI, a monumental building which connects architecturally the Main Plaza with the so-called Plaza del Jaguar to the west. It has stairways to both sides (dual-orientation), but only the eastern faade has been excavated so far. The terraced pyramidal platform consists of three levels, topped by a large single room building with five doorways pointing towards the east and one doorway pointing west. The western doorway opens to an ample open space which would have been reached first by climbing the western stairway from the Plaza del Jaguar. On the east side one stela is located at the bottom of the stairway (Stela 22) and two additional ones, as well as an altar, on top of the platform, just in front of the building (Stelae 23 & 24). On the west side there are three stelae and one altar on plaza level (Stelae Nos. 25-27). Features such as stairways, stelae, altars and other kinds of public display on both sides of a structure are common for dual-orientation buildings which normally perform the double purpose of separating and affiliating spaces, as in this case two of the major public plazas in the center of Calakmul. The ample terrace on the western side of the multi-doorway upper edifice of Structure VI, compared to the relatively reduced space on the east side, might indicate that different kinds of activities were acted out on either side.

Structure VI, as seen from the Main Plaza, with Stelae 23 & 24 on the upper terrace (Photo by the author)

Stela 24 on the east side of the upper building has a text on its right side which mentions ruler Yuknoom Took Kawiil and a ritual bloodletting he performed on the period ending 9.13.10.0.0 (702 AD). Assuming this date corresponds to the monuments erection, Stela 24 seems to be one of the earlier art works commissioned by this ruler who continued to do so until 732 AD. Together with the kings titles, the text exhibits one of the few examples of the Snake Kaan emblem glyph found on monuments at the site (Martin 1998: 73). Stela 25 to 27 on the west side of Structure VI at ground level on the Plaza del Jaguar, were erected about eight to ten years after Yuknoom Tooks death, celebrating the 9.15.10.0.0 (741 AD) period ending. Even though no names are legible it has been recently suggested that they might still fall into the reign of Wamaw Kawiil (otherwise also known as Ruler Y), who took power shortly before, or in AD 736 (Martin 1998: 74, 2005; Martin and Grube 2008: 114-115). The north end of the Main Plaza form Structures VII and VIII. Structure VII, facing south, is, after Structure I and II, the third tallest building at the site. Measuring roughly 40 m east-west by 47 m north-south, it has an elevation of some 25 m in present condition. Excavated partly by the University of Campeche Project but mainly during the 2001-2002 field season by the current Calakmul Archaeological Project, Structure VII features a three leveled, T-shaped terraced

92 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 93

base, in front of which stand five stelae (Nos. 2-6) and one circular altar. Unfortunately, all the monuments are so eroded that no names or dates can be made out. A wide central stairway on the south side of the base rises all the way up to a three-roomed temple on an upper platform. It is interesting to note that the stairway is largely an invention by the archaeologists: during excavations steps were only detected up to the second platform of the terraced base. But since it made sense, given the location and orientation of the structure, they were assumed to have continued to the upper temple and were almost entirely reconstructed in the upper half. Of course, a reconstruction of this type is questionable and other architectural alternatives are conceivable. For instance, on the level to where the stairway led, two postholes were discovered which might have held at one time a canopy shading a throne-like arrangement of some sort. Future excavations around the northern side of Structure VII might shed further light on the original construction plan and prove or disapprove the assumption.

Structure VII, as seen from the southwest (Photo by the author)

For a long time Structure VII had been considered a triadic complex, meaning a structure consisting of three upper buildings, two of them presumably made of perishable materials (Folan et al. 2000: 242). This hypothesis can still not be discarded entirely, even if at this moment it seems more plausible that the ample surface area of Structure VII was covered by two lateral platforms and one central three-roomed temple resting on a further elevated base (Carrasco et al. 2001). The two assumed lateral structures of the triadic complex therefore seem to have been plain platforms without traces of perishable superstructures, maybe used for dancing or the exhibition of ceremonial gear. The three-roomed upper temple, which was excavated in 1984 by the University of Campeche Project, contained one of the richest tombs so far uncovered in Calakmul, Tomb 1, probably of the mid-VIII Century of the Late Classic period and therefore possibly the final resting place of Yuknoom Took Kawiil who died between 731 and 736 AD (735 is most likely) at an unknown age. It consists of a carefully constructed 3.4 m by 1.3 m chamber, laid out in north-south direction, with a 1.4 m to 1.7 m high corbelled vault ceiling. Standing in the principal doorway of the upper temple of Structure VII, Tomb 1 is located a few steps ahead, underneath the passageway of the first to the second room. Inside, the remains of an adult male, aged 35-50 years, were found. Interestingly, the bones were incomplete, dislocated and deposited in a way which might indicate that several intrusions, probably of ceremonial kind, had taken place in the years after the interment (Gallegos 2001: 127; Gallegos et al. 2005). Re-openings of tombs and rearrangements of bones and offerings were not uncommon in the Classic, and are normally related to ceremonial activities rather than to profanation (Eberl 1999). If the remains really were Yuknoom Took Kawiils, another interpretation is possible: as indicated on Tikal Altar 9, he was captured in war by Yikin Chan Kawiil and probably sacrificed in Tikal. Maybe, in a remarkable parallel to what had happened to the remains of Yichaak Kahk years earlier, after his death his remains, or parts of them, were recovered and taken back to Calakmul to be sepulchered. That agreements of this kind might have existed is also implicit by Tikal Altar 5, where the exhumation of the bones of a noble women in 711 AD are supervised by Tikal lord Jasaw Chan Kawiil and a lord from Maasal (maybe the site of Naachtun in northern Guatemala), which had strong ties to Calakmul and the Kaan dynasty (cf. Eberl 1999; Martin and Grube 2008: 46).

94 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 95

Among all the rich grave goods of Tomb 1, composed of ceramics, conch and obsidian, the most astounding discovery was the enormous quantity of 2,147 pieces of jade. About one hundred of these belonged to a magnificent jade mask (one of the 5 full size jade masks found at Calakmul so far), a work of art of such intensity that by now it has become almost emblematic of the site of Calakmul and the state of Campeche in general (see Carrasco 1998: 382; Gallegos 2001: 141; Gallegos et al. 2005; Garca 2007; Garca and Schneider 1996: 66; Miller and Jade facial mask from Tomb I, Structure VII (Photo INAH) Martin 2004: 69). All of the five full facial masks of Calakmul were found in royal tombs and are supposed to be death masks, idealized representations of the departed used to cover his face. In this case the jade mask from Tomb 1 might be a portrayal of Yuknoom Took Kawiil. However, several show signs of wear, leading to the assumption that they had different functions and symbolic meanings before they found their final destination as death masks. It is conceivable that they were used in dance performances or in ritual observances related to ancestor worship, as is still the case in several modern Maya communities. Likewise, it is by no means certain that the masks necessarily represent the person they are buried with. As is the case of the mask found in Tomb 4 of Structure II (described above), they could have been heirlooms of venerated ancestors passed on from one generation to the next (Garca 2007). In this case the jade mask found in Tomb 1 might be a representation of Yuknoom Took Kawiils predecessor, Yichaak Kahk. Structure VIII, just to the east of Structure VII, is the tiniest of the buildings around the Main Plaza. Consisting of a low, two-level

platform, it has a small superstructure with thick walls and reduced interiors which opens to the south. In front of Structure VIII stand Stela 1 and one altar. Stela 1 has a date, 9.14.10.0.0, 5 Ajaw 3 Mak, which corresponds to October 13, AD 721, and therefore falls into the reign of Yuknoom Took Kawiil. Near the base on the left side is an Uxtetuun Three Stones toponym, one of at least two of the ancient names referring to the city of Calakmul. The severely damaged right side of the monument features near its base an ochkin kaloomte, batab of the west title (Martin 1998: 72), one of the most exalted titles for a Maya ruler, often found at Tikal and somehow connected to the almost mythical city of Teotihuacn (Martin and Grube 2008: 141). To the east and southeast of the Main Plaza are Structures I and III. While Structure III is only about 60 meters off the southeast corner of the Main Plaza, Structure I is slightly more remote, about 200 meters south of Structure III. Both structures are easily visible from the upper platforms of Structure II in northeastern (Structure III) and southeastern (Structure I) direction. As can be seen on a more recent high resolution map of the University of Campeche Project (Folan et al. 2001a, Appendix), there are relatively few structures or other features on the path to and around Structures I and III which could give hints on functionality of that area. There seem to be no clearly defined plazas or ceremonial roads, even though a questionable sacbe has been indicated by the mapping team. There can be no doubt, though, that Structure I, and the open space right in front of it, were of extreme importance, as indicated by the sheer size of the structure, the number of high quality stelae and the three immense round altars which probably allude to one of the very names of ancient Calakmul, Uxtetuun, Three Stones. Structure I is the second biggest construction in Calakmul, rising up to an impressive 40 meters in its present condition. As it sits on an approximately 8 meter high natural elevation, it seems to be even higher when seen from afar. However, it has a much smaller groundplan than Structure II, resulting in a very steep multi-terraced basal platform with an inclination that does not permit the construction of edifices on its slope such as on the acropolis-type Structure II. At the bottom of the pyramidal base, right in front of the principal western stairway, extends a platform which houses a building with two vaulted galleries, possibly a later addition. Another small two-gallery building, probably dating to the same construction period as the

96 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 97

Structure I as seen from forecourt to the west, with chain-sawed Stela 54 in the foreground (Photo by the author)

Looted Stela 89 on one of the upper terraces of Structure I (Photo by the author)

central one, sits on the same platform close to the southwest corner of the base. On top of Structure I is a oneroomed temple building of very small proportions given the massiveness of the whole structure. Some terraces further down stands Stela 89, discovered by Morley and his team, for which he reports a 9.15.0.0.0 date, corresponding to the year 731, and, therefore, to the reign of Yuknoom Took Kawiil (Morley 1970: 160). As the situation is with most stelae from Structure I, it has been sawed in small pieces by looters since, leaving just a row of glyphs intact on the sides. Located today in the Rautenstrauch-Joest-Museum fr Vlkerkunde in Cologne, Germany, Stela 89 shows Yuknoom Took Kawiil dancing, with a Kawiilscepter and an incense bag in one hand and a shield in the other, facing a dwarf (Castro 2007: 225). While the small upper temple had been partly excavated by the University of Campeche Project, the structures west side in its entirety and its north and south side partially have been excavated and consolidated in recent years by the Calak-

mul Archaeological Project under direction of Ramn Carrasco Vargas. During excavations in 2002, just underneath the small temple on the northern side of the stairway, the archaeologists came upon a huge stucco mask. While only this one has been excavated and consolidated, it can be assumed that there is another one on the southern side of the stairway as well. Neither of these two masks are exposed today as they were covered up once again for better protection. The remains of the stelae standing in front of Structure I (Stelae Nos. 49-55) are a pitiful sight, as all were chain-sawed by looters sometime in the decades of the sixties and seventies. Among them were the most beautiful preserved of Calakmuls monuments. When Morley visited Structure I and worked on the stelae standing in front of it on April 18, 1932, he could hardly disguise his excitement, so impressive were these works of art:
This morning Gustav [Stromsvik] and I worked at Structure A [Structure I]. Six of the nine stelae there seem to have been dedicated in 9.15.0.0.0 (A.D. 731). They are carved on unusual hard limestone for this site and beyond doubt are the finest stelae of the city. It is as though some master had carved them all. Work was begun on Stelae 51 [today on display in the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico-City] and 52. The former had fallen forward on its face but the magnificent sculpturing of the glyphs on the sides gave promise of something exceptional below. Stela 52 was standing but a great tree growing behind it had thrown roots around the base and these roots had to be cut out. While some of Gustavs men were digging along the sides of Stela 51 getting it ready to turn this afternoon, others were digging around Stela 53, the sides of which were plain. This also had fallen face forward and Gustav was very doubtful about its having sculpturing on the under side. But this time he was mistaken. It was not large, but the relief was magnificent. The figure holds a spear in its right hand and in his left a small round shield which has cross bands across it. The carving is beautiful, and altogether we are greatly pleased. [...] Stela 50 has a figure on it facing to the observers left but very much cruder than the five stelae behind it. At first I thought the figure was sitting but in the end came to the conclusion it was standing. The waist greatly constricted though a bar passes just below the waist which reaches almost across the shaft. One point that was a special interest in connection with this small monument was

98 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 99

the red paint which still adhered to it in many places. This was not the usual dark maroon red but a lighter brighter red. It must have been a lovely color when it was fresh [According to Martin and Grube (2008: 115) Stela 50 is one of the last monuments of Calakmul, probably dating to the first half of the X Century]. In the afternoon [] the turning of Stela 51 was gotten under way. From the first this monument proved troublesome. To begin with, it is an enormous shaft of stone thirteen feet long, five feet wide and a foot and two inches thick. To be sure, Gustav had raised larger stelae but the earth under this one was so soft that neither the jacks nor the rocks upon which they rested could get a good firm purchase below. Gradually he got it up bit by bit until it was inclined about seventy degrees with the horizontal. At this point, by assembling all hands he tried to get it up the remaining twenty degrees by all pushing it at once, but it never budged. While he was getting ready his next device, which involved the use of a pole some twenty-five feet long, we examined the relief. It is a beauty, the best we have found so far. The nose of the figure [Yuknoom Took Kawiil] is slightly damaged, but the details of the carving are exquisite. Frances noticed an elaborate curling of the hair almost like an Egyptian wig. The glyphs are in fine condition. It was too dangerous looking under this great slab, resting as it was on the jacks and a few slender poles, so we decided to wait a few minutes longer when it would be erect. [] Slowly the stela rose until it was vertical and resting easily against a stout short pole, which had been provided to keep it from going all the way over. It was just right, and then an ugly thing happened. When the crew at the end of the cable saw the stela was up, they let the rope go slack. The pole tottered and then crashed to the ground parallel with the stela, knocking out the three props on the left side. There before our eyes two hours arduous labor in the boiling sun went instantly for naught. The monument toppled over on its face again. That was that. It was a great disappointment for us all. For one minute we saw the sculpture in the magnificent slanting light and then it was gone (Morley 1970: 161-162).

One of the altar-like round stones which allude to Uxtetuun, one of Calakmuls ancient names (Photo by the author)

While Stelae 51-55 stood in the first line in front of Structure I, Stela 49 and 50 were closer to the center of the forecourt. Stela 48 is located further to the west, outside of the court precinct, behind a large range-type structure which delimits the plaza on its west side. This stela

depicts on its west side a standing ruler with a wide jade necklace in finely incised lines. The three immense altar-like round stones which allude to Uxtetuun, one of Calakmuls ancient names, are placed in a triangular pattern on the north, south, and west side of the plaza, probably representing the three stones of the cosmic hearth (Freidel et al. 1993: 59). 200 m north of Structure I is Structure III, the only building in Calakmul which survived the centuries after abandonment fully exposed to the elements without falling completely to ruins. As it was in such good condition, its rooms were used as shelter by chicleros even before the first reporting of Calakmuls existence in 1931, and have since been described in varying detail (see Pincemin 1994 for a resume). Structure III was identified as an Early Classic palace structure, probably constructed during the last decades of the IV Century. Since its construction it has seen very little modification, despite a permanent occupation all through the Late and Terminal Classic (see Ciudad 2001: 313-315; Marcus 1987: 29-33; Martin 2001: 174; Pincemin 1994; Ruppert and Denison 1943: 14-19). Given that Structure III was the only Calakmul building exhibiting a comprehensible floor plan up to the most recent excavation since the early 1990s, this construction has received a disproportionate amount

100 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 101

of attention in past publications on Calakmul. Compare, for instance, a full five pages description of this rather small structure by Ruppert and Denison (1943: 14-19) to the two paragraphs they dedicate to immense Structure II. Much more recently, Joyce Marcus (1987: 29-33) dedicated four full pages and a full page drawing to Structure III (compared to one paragraph and no drawing of Structure II) in her The Inscriptions of Calakmul, despite the fact that not a single stelae and only one eroded altar are associated with the building. The circumstance that Structure III is one of the few numbered structures in Calakmuls central core and the only building around the Main Plaza without associated stelae is an eye-catching, but little commented upon, fact. Virtually all structures of the Main Plaza and the Grand Acropolis, except for Structures IXX and XX, exhibit one or several stelae and often one or several altars. One notable characteristic that Structures III, IXX and XX have in common is that they all are palace-type structures or part of a larger palace complex (as Structure XX). However, this building type does not generally exclude the association with stelae, as can be seen on Structure XVI which exhibits a row of five massive stelae (Nos. 70-74) on its east, and three stelae (Nos. 67-69) on its north side. One possible explanation for the absence of stelae in front of Structure III might be that this building was constructed entirely in the Early Classic, in a time before stelae erection became an important form of public display in Calakmul, and has been seen little modification since. It can be assumed that the construction of this palace was done under the auspices of some powerful and venerated ruler, possibly the very person buried in luxurious tomb under Room 6 (see below), with whom it was associated ever since. Given the few modifications in later times (except for the common Late and Terminal Classic constriction of interior spaces by narrowing passageways), it almost appears as if this building was too sacred for later rulers to overbuild or otherwise alter and, thus, was preserved as a venerated mausoleum. A similar case of veneration and preservation can be found at Tikal with Chak Tok Ichaaks roughly contemporaneous palace (Structure 5D-46) in the Central Acropolis (Harrison 1970, 2000, 2003; Schele and Mathews 1998: 75). However, it is clearly difficult to explain such continuity in the light of Calakmuls troubled Early and Late Classic history. If the late IV Century construction date is approximately correct than the building predates the arrival of the Bat dynasty around 400 AD that dominated for some 200 years the

Structure III as seen from the southwest (Photo by the author)

local Chiik Nahb or substituted for that time the early Kaan dynasty. In this case, monuments which might have been erected in front of Structure III during that time might have been removed or destroyed in later times. If the ruler who occupied Structure III in the late IV Century was, in fact, an early Kaan dynast, Late Classic veneration up to at least 740 AD is much more comprehensible. Structure III sits on a five-level, roughly 5 meter high and 36 by 32 meter wide platform with its principal stairway on its west side, oriented towards the Main Plaza and Structure II. The twelve-roomed building measures approximately 22 meters north-south by 16 meters east-west and has typical Early Classic architecture with extremely thick walls, very reduced interior space and medium-high corbel vaulted ceilings. Of the buildings twelve rooms, Rooms 1, 5 and 8 are pretty much destroyed, while the others are mostly intact. The rooms are between 4.5 m and 7.2 m long and between 1 m and 2.5 m wide. The exception is Room 1, an elongated entrance space in the western part of the building of approximately 20 m length, which probably served as a kind of reception hall. The three doorways leading to that room are offset, providing, together with the elevation of the building, a high degree of privacy. It has been stated that this asymmetry also served as protec-

102 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 103

Inside one of the northern rooms of Structure III. To the right is the doorjamb with Cyrus Lundells graffiti (Photo by the author)

tion against aggressive intrusions (Folan et al. 2000: 245). However, given the low, not even 1 m high, steps of the terraced basal platform, as well as the 14 meter wide stairway leading up to the building, three asymmetrically placed doorways would have done little to protect the inhabitants in face of an attack. The less accessible rooms (Nos. 5, 7, 8, 11) are in the eastern and southern parts of the building, with Rooms 7 and 11 being the most private. Some of the rooms exhibit small windows, also known as ventilators, as well as small stone rings in door jambs used to string cotton sheets as curtains to close off spaces and provide more privacy. Inter-

estingly though, it is noticeable that there are very few stone benches inside the rooms, usually a common trait of residential structures in other parts of Calakmul and in the Maya area in general (lvarez 1998, 1999; Carrasco et al. 1997: 53, 2000: 71; Delvendahl 2005: 113-121). The only real bench in Structure III is on the rear wall of Room 4, while in Rooms 6 and 10 step/bench-types can be observed connecting to adjacent Rooms 7 and 11. High steps which simultaneously served as benches can be seen in several structures in Calakmul, the clearest example being in Structure XX. Excavations underneath Room 6 revealed a luxurious tomb, possibly of the Early Classic ruler responsible for the construction of Structure III (Pincemin 1994). The grave goods contained a total of three jade masks (one full-size facial mask and 2 smaller ones which were used as pectoral or belt masks) were found, as well as an impressive amount of incised black ceramics. All kinds of ritual and domestic activities have been proposed to have taken place inside the walls of Structure III. Interpretations based on the University of Campeche excavations in the 1980s suggest that several rooms were used for food preparation and consumption (Rooms 1, 5, 6 and 9), others for lithic and flake production (Rooms 1 and 4), at least one room for religious activities (Room 12) and another as dormitory (Room 10; see Folan et al. 2000: 246, Fig. 9; 2001a: 71, Fig. 33; 2001b: 236, Fig. 8. 7; see also Braswell et al. 2005: 174-177). Apart from these inside activities, the front platform was allegedly used for religious rituals and water collection and the roof for lithic production (Folan et al. 2000: 261). Unfortunately, no hard data has been presented to support the identification of these activities (such as results from chemical analysis of the rooms floors, etc.), and at least some, such food preparation in the innermost, less ventilated Rooms 6 and 9, seem doubtful. Because of activity-overlap or activity-shift, it is generally very difficult to ascribe precise functions to a specific space by recollecting artifacts only, especially if exposed during a millennium and without the partial protection of the structures collapse (Webster et al. 1997: 48). Most rooms that were in use for several hundred years experienced more than one activity, which are very difficult to determine even with state of the art techniques. Post-abandonment activities, from Postclassic and Colonial ritual activities up to the use by XX Century chicleros, might have significantly altered the archaeological context of the rooms in Structure III.

104 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 105

The Grand Acropolis or West Group

The Grand Acropolis or West Group (Ruppert and Denison 1943: 21-22) lies approximately 200 m west of the Main Plaza, accessible following a path which passes close to Structure VII and crosses the approximately 85 m of the Plaza del Jaguar which separates the western faade of Structure VI and the eastern stairway of Structure XIV. The whole Grand Acropolis complex rests on a slight elevation which descends from north to south and from east to west. The slope on the northern side is remarkable, of approximately 5-6 meters, while the descent to the west and south is more gradual, most noticeable in times of heavy rains. The elevation on the eastern side, supposably the main direction of visitor access, is distinctive, but not higher than approximately 3 m. To the north of the Grand Acropolis are relatively sparsely settled areas, including tracts which served as quarries. The largest aguada, water reservoir of Calakmuls extensive site core is located approximately 500 m northeast of the Grand Acropolis. It can be assumed that most of the water supply needed in the residential structures of the palace compound which occupies about two third of the Grand Acropolis was carried in from this pool. Towards the south and southeast are several smaller and a few larger building clusters. The largest of these, the so-called South Group, lies partly separated by a small swamp less than 200 m south of the Grand Acropolis. To the west there are a few smaller groups, but given the proximity of the El Laberinto swamp settlement soon thins out. The whole Grand Acropolis complex has an extension of approximately 350 m north-south by 480 m east-west and can be divided in two main areas: the three large eastern courts of apparently public character (North Court, Southeast Court, and the so-called Plaza de los Prisioneros, Prisoners Court) which maybe once formed one gigantic open space comparable in size to the Plaza del Jaguar; and the 17 smaller, less accessible western courtyards which form an architectural unity classifiable as a palace complex, easily the largest in the Maya area. The structures around the three open courtyards to the east are mainly of the temple-type: high terraced, pyramidal platforms with tall, but not very elongated, superstructures of thick walls and reduced interiors. On, and around, the North Court are unexcavated Structure X (south), Structure XI (west, ball court), unexcavated Structure XII (north), as well as Structure XIII (northwest) and Structure XIV

(east, access). Around the Southeast Court are the rear of Structure X (north), Structure XV (east), the eastern row of buildings of the largely unexcavated Structure XVI rectangle (west), and Structure XVII (south). Around the Plaza de los Prisioneros are the extension (Anexo) of Structure XIII (north), Structure XI (east, ball court), the northern row of buildings of the mostly unexcavated Structure XVI rectangle (south), and Structure XX with its adjacent north and south buildings. Even though of apparent public character, it can be assumed that these eastern structures, as the whole central core at large, were accessible by the general population only during important ceremonies and that most of the time the entrance was restricted to the about 2500-3500 members of the elite stratum.

The Grand Acropolis or West Group (detail from John Bolless map from 1932 (taken from Folan et al. 2001a: 35)

Structure XX formed one of the accesses to the royal palace complex, known as Grand Acropolis Group (Grupo Gran Acrpolis), which occupies the western two-thirds of the Grand Acropolis. This palace group was most likely the residence of Late Classic rulers since at least Yuknoom Cheen II. It extends approximately 336 m north-south

106 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 107

by 344 m east-west at its largest, covering about 115,584 m2, and is composed of 17 courtyards of varying sizes, the smallest measuring roughly 11 m by 20 m (220 m2) while the largest covers about 50 m by 75 m (3,750 m2). The courtyards are surrounded by approximately 80 mostly large, range-type buildings of dual-orientation and varying sizes and functions. The palace complex was even further restricted than the Grand Acropolis. To get to it, one had to pass through the gates to the central core, as well as the access to the Grand Acropolis. Small entrance ways to the complex and rather serpentine passageways circling through the compound clearly served further to filter and control pedestrian traffic. It is likely that the right of entry was limited to the extended royal family, important advisers, high ranking officials and warriors, distinguished artists, such as scribes and musicians, illustrious guests, as well as to a flock of highly supervised service staff (Delvendahl 2005). As the palaces of Calakmul will be discussed in a following chapter and several of the structures of the eastern courts are not excavated yet, the following lines will be devoted to Structures XI, XIII, XIV, XV, XVI, XVII, XIX and Structure XX, as well as to the Great Wall and the residential units Utsiaal Caan and Casa del Seis Ajaw. Structure XI, the ball court, is laid out in north-south direction right in front of the Grand Acropolis tallest building, Structure XIII. Thus, Structure XI is located on the western side of the so-called North Court, separating this space from the Plaza de los Prisioneros. However, seeing the three eastern plazas as a whole, as it probably was

Structure XI, the ball court, as seen from the south. In the background is Structure XIII (Photo by the author)

conceived in ancient times, one could say that Structure XI is centrally located, easily visible from all the surrounding structures, with spectators standing on Structure XIII having the best view. It is a ball court of modest size: only about 20 m long by 23.2 m wide (total) with side structures of approximately 8.6 m width and no more than 3 m height each in their present condition. Curiously, it is the only ball court so far discovered at Calakmul and it seems relatively secure to assume that there are no further to be found at least in the site core. Moreover, the court appears to be of relatively late construction: an unfinished stela (Stela 66, now standing on the northern side of the ball court), cut in four pieces and reused as construction material on the four exterior corners of the ball court, exhibits an unconfirmed date possibly corresponding to 731 AD (Martin 1998: 78), pointing to a construction sometime after this date, maybe around 750 (Carrasco et al. 1994: 79). The lateral bases do not seem to house substructures, which is not surprising given the relatively small size of the ball court. These indications led to the assumption that Calakmul did not have a ball court prior to this one (Rodrguez 2000: 27). However, an inscription from the site of La Corona dating to 9.12.15.0.0 (687 AD) declares that ruler Great/Red Turkey from that site went to Calakmul to play ball uhtiiy uxtetuun chiik nahb it happened at Calakmul (Martin 2000: 179 & 180, Figure 6.5). This evidence seems to indicate that Calakmul had a suitable court for that important game at least by the late VII Century. Be that as it may, it is odd that a city of such magnitude would have featured only one relatively small ball court of late construction for a transcendent game which was played since the very beginnings of cultural life in Mesoamerica (the earliest ball courts dating to around 1400 BC), recreating the very story of mankinds existence. No satisfying explanation has been offered so far and it can only be speculated that earlier ball courts lay still somewhere buried in some other important sector of the city. Structure XIII is an imposing structure slightly to the northeast of the ball court forming the northern end of the Grand Acropolis in this sector. North of Structure XIII is a sharp descent, giving a fair idea of the elevation of the northern side of the Acropolis platform. Structure XIII is the tallest building of the Grand Acropolis and result of several modifications and over-constructions since the Late Preclassic (Carrasco et al. 1994: 88-102). It consists of an ample 43.4 m long by 8.2 m high four-level terraced base covered with a wide stairway on

108 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 109

its southern side which opens to the North- and the ball court. On the upper platform towers a large two story edifice with an elongated southern gallery and a smaller lateral eastern gallery on its lower level, and another, even smaller room on the upper level. The lower southern room had an original extension of 30.7 m by 2.65 m interior space with 5 doorways opening to the south and one to the east. Some time in the Late or Terminal Classic the room was divided by smaller supporting walls into at least three smaller cells, maybe in a desperate intent to reinforce the heavy roof which has totally collapsed since abandonment. A fourth room on the western extreme of the gallery might be indicated by a slight rising of the floor. These subsections measure between 5 m by 2.6 m and 12.5 m by 2.7 m, the central one being the largest. The easternmost of these subdivisions connected via a small passageway with the eastern gallery, which originally consisted of a single room (8.5 m by 2.6 m) that was later subdivided into a larger southern and a smaller northern cell. The single room upper-level temple with its three doorways opening to the south, is somewhat smaller than the eastern gallery. It is actually the upper level of an older substructure hidden behind the lower galleries. Rising just above the surrounding treetops, it provides a fantastic view towards Structures I and II. However, for the structures protection it is no longer allowed to climb up there.

Structure XIII, as seen from the south (Photo by the author)

The wide stairway rising from plaza level to the lower gallery is probably of the same period or even later than the lower galleries. Originally, the access to an earlier substructure was by a rather unusual ramp. Inside the construction fill of the stairway several fragments of broken monuments were discovered, one of which mentions Bolon Kawiil as chi [ku]-NAHB-AJAW, Holy Lord of Chiik Nahb. As this is most likely the same person mentioned on a stela next to Structure XIII celebrating the 9.17.0.0.0 ending (771 AD), it is probable that the stairway was built posterior to that date. A total of four stelae and one round altar are associated with Structure XIII (Stelae 56-58 and Stela 88). Three stelae (Nos. 56-58) and the altar stand on the east side of Structure XIII, Stela 57 & 58 right next to the structure and Stela 56 and the altar some meters further to the east. A bit further to the south, but actually related to unexcavated Structure XII, is Stela 91 and another altar. At least two of the stelae, Stela 57 and 58, present the 9.17.0.0.0 date mentioned above, and therefore fall into the reign of Bolon Kawill. Given this rulers affiliation with the structure it seems highly likely that he was responsible for some of the modifications. Stela 57 describes the partition of three gods, among them Yahaw Man (o Naman), a particularly important tutelary deity that presided together with Yuknoom Cheen II over the accession of Cancuen ruler Chan Ahk Wi in 677 and whose effigy was captured and exhibited in the 695 AD Tikal war (Martin 1998: 77). Given that Bolon Kawiil was not of the Kaan dynasty as Yuknoom Cheen II and Yuknoom Ychaak Kahk, the deity was apparently somehow related to the city itself. Even though the text of Stela 58 is only slightly eroded, the content is somewhat obscure. It might mention Bolon Kawiils accession date, a little known early ruler called Yax ?-Yopaat, who ruled around 573 AD, and some location where some event (the accession?) took place (Idem.) In the lower third of the stairs of Structure XIIIs south side stands Stela 88 which features the portrait of an unknown woman, probably the wife of Bolon Kawiils predecessor Great Serpent, on its front. Some missing inscriptions in the upper part suggest that the monument was about half a meter taller originally. It exhibits a date corresponding to 9.16.0.0.0 (751 AD), a so-called distance number counting over 8000 years into the past, probably the name of the ruler and a capture event (Ibid: 79). A long range-type building which seem to be an extension of Structure XIII to the west, the so-called Anexo, is more probably an in-

110 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 111

dependent building to the west of the earlier substructure of Structure XIII. As can be seen in the fusion, the elongated structure seems to disappear underneath the stairway of Structure XIII and therefore is at least earlier than this fairly recent, post771 AD access. Excavations at this section have revealed that the range-type structure originally was some 3 m longer than what is visible today. On the northern faade it seems to have had impressive polychrome stucco ornamentation, which is preserved in the section underneath the base of Structure XIII (CaThe Anexo of Structure XIII, as seen rrasco et al. 1997: 40-45). The halfway up from Structure XIII, looking west (Photo by the author) extension of Structure XIII closes the Plaza de los Prisioneros to the north. The upper building sits on an over 40 m long base, which is almost entirely covered by a ten-step stairway on its southern side, and elevates the platform to approximately 2.4 m above plaza level. The superstructure has two galleries connected by a 4.7 m wide passageway, as well as seven doorways opening towards the plaza in the south and several more openings to the north which have not yet been excavated. This indicates that the building had a dual orientation, connecting the Plaza de los Prisioneros with an open space between the extension of Structure XIII and Structure XIX to the northwest. The southern gallery of the building is at least 24.7 m long by 2.7 m wide, of which a small part in the east was divided in a later modification. In front of the southern gallery is a 38 m long by almost 2.5 m wide terrace, which in its dimensions resembles the terrace in front of Structure XX. Given the accessibility of both structures by means of wide stairways and several doorways, as compared to the much less accessible structures on the south side of the Plaza de los Prisioneros, it can be assumed that some kind of administrative

Structure XIV, east side. Stelae 59 & 60 can be distinguished on the left (Photo by the author)

activities took place here, including probably the delivery of tribute as is depicted frequently on Late Classic Maya vessels (Delvendahl 2000, 2005). The proximity to the ball court and the sacrificial stone (see below) furthermore suggests important ceremonial functions as well. The eastern side of the North Court is occupied by Structure XIV, excavated by the current Calakmul Archaeological Project in the 1993-94 and 1997-98 field seasons (Carrasco et al 1998a: 34-43, 1999b; Gonzlez 1999a). In ancient times this structure probably formed the official entrance to the Grand Acropolis, connecting to the Plaza del Jaguar in the east. Since the Grand Acropolis complex is about 3 m elevated with respect to the eastern plaza, Structure XIV appears much higher on its east side than on its west side. Approaching the structure from the Plaza del Jaguar as an ancient visitor would have, one climbs a wide stairway, in front of which Stelae 59 and 60 were erected, to reach the upper platform which has an elevation of approximately 6.5 m above the eastern plaza. The superstructure has two galleries, connected by two passageways which align with the two lateral of the three eastern entrances. Originally the building consisted of just one, the eastern, gallery. This sin-

112 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 113

gle-room gallery is very long, approximately 27.8 m, but surprisingly narrow, just over 1.2 m. It has a thick rear wall which now forms the central wall connecting to the western gallery. This gallery, with its five doorways, all of which are displaced from the inner passageways, is a later addition to the original building. It is somewhat shorter than the eastern gallery (27.5 m) but with 1.6 m slightly wider, providing some 10 m2 more interior space than the eastern room. Even more recently, the western gallery was subdivided into three separate rooms, one independent central room without connections to the eastern gallery, and two lateral chambers, measuring between 7.3 m by 1.6 m and 9.6 m by 1.6 m. Aligned with the central room is Stela 61, five steps up the western stairway on a wide terrace, which is elevated 1.3 m above the North Court. Fragments of another stela (No. 62) were discovered on the extreme south end of this same platform. Stelae 59 and 60 on the eastern side of the structure can be dated to 9.15.10.0.0. (741 AD) and were therefore erected for the same period ending as Stelae 25 to 27 on the other side of the Plaza del Jaguar in front of Structure VI. The left side of Stela 59 exhibits a chumah was seated event, eventually alluding to the accession of Wamaw Kawiil, taking place probably in 735 (cf. Martin 1998; Martin and Grube 2008: 114; Tunesi 2007). Stela 61 is one of the three last dated monuments in the Southern Maya Lowlands, bearing a Calendar Round date, represented by a single day 12 or 13 Ajaw, which most probably corresponds to 909 AD and, therefore, falls into the reign of Aj Took (Martin 1998, 2000; Martin and Grube 2008: 115). Even though some monuments in Calakmul might be even later, they bear no dates. On the east side of the so-called Southeast Court is Structure XV, one of the two buildings of the Grand Acropolis with five massive stelae (Nos. 75-79) lined up in front of it. Structure XV consists of a stepped pyramidal base with rounded corners, the west side of which is largely covered with a wide stairway. The superstructure originally had only one, very narrow gallery with a bench running all along its rear and lateral walls. In front of the superstructure was an ample terrace. This terrace was later taken advantage of to build another, much wider western gallery, connected to the eastern gallery by a central passageway, the former main entrance. Underneath the western gallery three tombs were detected: one central, oriented north-south, and two lateral, oriented east-west. All three are more or less aligned with the three western doorways, less than half a meter under the rooms floor. In

central Tomb 3, an impressive facial mask made of hundreds of small jade pieces, with Spondylus-conch lips and obsidian eyes was found (now on display in the Baluarte San Miguel Museum in Campeche City), as well as ceramics, manta ray spines, one pearl, and several marine shells. Northernmost Tomb 1 held the remains of a 40-50 year old royal woman, as mentioned, possibly Yuknoom Cheens wife. She was resting on a wooden litter, completely wrapped in various layers of long strips made out of chicle or caucho, two forms of latex which can be found in or around Calakmul. This funerary bundle is in an exceptional state of preservation and one of the very few examples of this type that survived in all Mesoamerica (Garca and Schneider 1996: 165-178, 2002). An offering of a huge pectoral of jade and shell, including a small jade mask, as well as 14 complete Infierno Negro-type ceramic vessels, typical for the Late Classic, accompanied her into the afterlife. The stelae in front of Structure XV (Nos. 75-79) are, as most in Calakmul, in relatively bad shape. Still, a few features can be made out (Martin 1998: 78-79). Stela 75, dedicated in 9.12.0.0.0. (672 AD) seem to preserve the birth date of Calakmuls most successful ruler, Yuknoom Cheen II, 8 Kaban 5 Yax, corresponding to September 11th, 600 AD. Given that Yuknoom Cheen died in 686 this confirms that he was, in fact, a 5 Katun ajaw at the time of his death (i.e. between 80 and 100 years of age), as he is titled elsewhere. Stela 76 and 78 are of an earlier

Structure XV, South Court, Grand Acropolis (Photo by the author)

114 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 115

date, both dedicated probably at 9.10.0.0.0 1 Ajaw, 8 Kayab, or 633 AD. Stela 79 features a female noble on its front which is named in the left side text. It seems possible that this is the same female represented on Stela 9, dedicated in 662. It can be assumed that she is the wife of Yuknoom Cheen and possibly the person interred in Tomb 1. Martin (1998: 78-79) has suggested that Stela 79 was dedicated and erected as a trio with Stela 75 and Stela 77 in 9.12.0.0.0, AD 672. Across the Southeastern Court, on its west side, extends the huge platform of the Structure XVI complex, which is part of the palace group that occupies the western two-thirds of the Grand Acropolis. The Structure XVI complex consists of a massive 80 m by 100 m pyramidal foundation which stretches not only all along the western side of the Southeast Court, but also seals the southern side of the Plaza de los Prisioneros. A total of 8 stelae are associated with both sides of the complex: Stelae 70-74 stand in front of the eastern side, while Stela 67-69 were erected at the bottom of the northern side. On top of the pyramidal foundation is a long row of buildings encircling an inner courtyard of some 2,000 m2 (roughly 40 m by 50 m), one of the largest of the palace group. This courtyard is elevated some 6.5 m above the Southeast Court and almost 9 m over the Plaza de los Prisioneros. The presence of five stelae (Nos. 70-74) on the eastern side of Structure XVI suggested that this section of the platform might have a similar architectural composition as the structures with which it forms

an ensemble (Structure XV and XVII), i.e. a multi-layered base with a wide stairway leading up to an elongated superstructure. It was further supposed that, for its location within the Grand Acropolis and the site core, the courtyard of the Structure XVI complex might have had some semi-public functions, eventually as reception space for state visitors, similar to the East Court of the Palace in Palenque. However, excavations in 2001 showed that this was not the case. A test trench excavated centrally on the eastern side revealed a flight of steps leading up to a 3.7 m wide terrace 2.95 m above plaza level, followed by two tiers of relatively high walls which probably were once covered with smooth stucco. The height of the walls, 2.25 m on the east side, obviously impeded any access from the Southeastern Court. Further excavations on the north side of the complex confirmed that the northern faade was of comparable design -here the walls raised up to 3 m high- effectively prohibiting all access from the more public eastern plazas of the Grand Acropolis. The actual entrance stairway to the whole complex is suspected to be on the south side of the platform which can be only reached by entering one of the southern courtyards of the palace complex first, but further excavations would have to confirm this assumption (Delvendahl 2002, 2005: 427-429 & 449-450). The northern upper building of the Structure XVI complex was first described by Ruppert and Denison in their 1943 publication:
Structure XVI, a large quadrangle lying on the west side of the Southeast Court, is made up of a rectangular platform surmounted and rimmed by a building formed of two parallel ranges of rooms. Traces of transverse walls on the north and south sides and the disposition of the detritus in other places show that there were a number of rooms in each parallel range. The walls dividing the two ranges of rooms in the north, east, and west side of the quadrangle have a thickness of 2.95 m. The south rooms of the north side are 1.85 m. wide. [...] The masonry of the vertical walls is of irregular blocks; some are faced, but others show no special working. Stelae 67-69 are at the exterior base of the north side of the quadrangle and Stelae 70-74 are at the base of the east side (Ruppert and Denison 1943: 22).

Stelae in front of Structure XVI, South Court, Grand Acropolis (Photo by the author)

Similar to the northern building as described by Ruppert and Denison, the eastern upper building likewise presents two galleries with massive, up to 2 m thick exterior walls, and an even broader, over 3 m thick interior wall. With a comparatively small average of just 2.25

116 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 117

m wide interior space, the total width of the upper building on the eastern side is approximately 11.3 m. The building had at least seven doorways on each side (14 total) of which the central one was over 2.5 m wide. This one crossed the whole length of the superstructure, while the lateral 12 seem to open just to their respective galleries. Since the whole building is in ruins and mostly unexcavated, one can only speculate over its original height. However, given that the building was over 11 m wide and taking into account the massive exterior and interior walls, a total of approximately 10 m (including a possible 3 m roof-comb) for the original superstructure seems plausible. Rooms might have been somewhere between 5 to 6 m tall and therefore similar in size to the one revealed by a looters trench on the western side of the Structure XVI complex. The total height of Structure XVI, as seen from the Southeast Court plaza level, would have been somewhere between 14 m (without roof-comb) and 17 m (with roof comb). The mound, as visible today, has an elevation of 11-12 m, as seen from the Southeast Court, and about 14 m, as seen from the Plaza de los Prisioneros (Delvendahl 2002). The five standing stelae in front of the eastern side (Nos. 70-74) and the three fallen ones, almost entirely covered by vegetation, which were erected in front of the northern side of the platform (Nos. 6769), are badly eroded. The only legible dates come from Stela 74 on the eastern side of Structure XVI and correspond to 690 AD (9.12.18.1.6), falling into the reign of Yichaak Kahk, and to 711 (9.14.0.0.0. 6 Ajaw 13 Muwaan), falling into the reign of Yuknoom Took Kawiil. The earlier date seems to be retrospect, wherefore 711 AD can be assumed to be the date of dedication. Yuknoom Tooks name is eroded but still identifiable, followed by a Kaan, Snake emblem glyph (Martin 1998: 78). The other stelae are too eroded to be securely assigned to a ruler, but it seems relatively safe to assume that they were likewise erected during Yuknoom Tooks reign. Structure XVII on the south end of the Southeast Court has only been partially excavated, exposing the bigger part of a wide stairway on the northern side of a roughly 48 m long basal platform, as well as part of the frontal faade and the central part of the northern gallery of a two room upper building. Information is extremely limited and the badly eroded Stelae 80 at the base of the structure was only tentatively dated to 9.18.0.0.0 11 Ajaw 18 Mak, corresponding to 790 AD (Gonzlez 1999b; Ruppert and Denison 1943: 22).

Structure XVII, South Court, Grand Acropolis (Photo by the author)

Southeast of Structure XVII are two more stelae, Nos. 81 & 82, but without any obvious direct connection to the structures of the Southeast Court and too eroded to yield dates. West of Structure XVII and south of Structure XVI is a massive unexcavated building, preliminary labeled Structure A-1 for being on the east side of Court A of the Grand Acropolis palace group. This structure with unusually sturdy walls seems to consist of one ample gallery with six wide doorways, three in each faade. Seen from inside Plaza A, this building was probably at least 9 m tall in ancient times, given that the original plaza floor close to the structure is almost 3 m under the current soil level. The alignment of the doorways makes it probable that this structure, and an adjacent corridor between this building and Structure XVI, served as entrances to this sector of the palace group, from which possibly ascended the stairway leading to the inner courtyard of Structure XVI (Delvendahl 2002, 2005). Rounding the northeast corner of the Structure XVI complex one enters the so-called Plaza de los Prisioneros. This court received its name from the monumental Sculptural Outcrop found there by Morleys crew in the 1932 expedition. This piece of sculpted bedrock is close to the north faade of Structure XVI and southwest of the ball court, with which it was undoubtedly related. However, at present it is covered up for better protection and just a circle of stones and a signboard indicates its location. Morley considered it sensational and dedicated quite some effort in its clearing:

118 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 119

To the left [] a piece of the native limestone was outcropping and on this was carved a human head in very deep relief. It was in a fine state of preservation in spite of the fact that it had been exposed at the ground level where it was most subject to the attacks of humid acid. John [Bolles] left us the discovery of this interesting carving. We exposed a section of the outcrop nine and a half feet high and seven and a half feet wide. On this was an enormous kneeling captive with arms bound behind his back. The figure is nude and shows his genitalia very prominently. Behind and above is another smaller captive figure, the face of which has flaked away. There is a third figure, much smaller, sitting behind the larger figure. On another piece of limestone there is a further carving, but this continues under a tree. It will take considerable work to trace it in this direction. We worked here, sweating and brushing until we had uncovered the above mentioned section from roots and encumbered earth. If we can only get a good photograph of this carving, it will create a great sensation at home (Morley 1970: 158).

The sensation Morley referred to surely was not so much the monument itself or its roughly 6.4 m by 5.2 m dimension, but the iconography of seven miserable bound prisoners, with their hands tied behind their backs, bent down on their knees, probably awaiting sacrifice (Ruppert and Denison 1943: 122). Even if uncovered, today it would be difficult to make anything out on this blackened stone which rises slightly above the actual soil level and in former times surely stood out much higher from the original stuccoed plaza floor. Its proximity to the ball court suggests that it was used for ball game related sacrifices, attested for abundantly in Maya art. Those sacrifices would have been supervised and watched by thousands of spectators on the Plaza de los Prisioneros itself, as well as from the surrounding buildings, especially from Structure XIII and extension, from the northern buildings of Structure XVI, and from Structure XX and its adjacent buildings. On the west side of the Plaza de los Prisioneros is Structure XX, one of the more recently explored structures in this section of the site core, having been test-trenched in 2001 and excavated mainly in the 2003-2004 field season (Carrasco and Coln 2005: 42-44; Carrasco and Vzquez 2007: 158-159; Delvendahl 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005: 450-456; Reyes 2006). As has been stated several times, this structure served as one of the entrance ways to the palace group known as Grand Acropolis Group which stretches to the west of it. Much less impos-

ing than the Structure XVI complex, the almost 36 m long upper building sits on a relatively low, only 3.75 m high platform, which is covered on its eastern side almost entirely by a wide stairway. The total height of the structure in its present condition does not surpass 8 m, even though it can be calculated that in Classic times it might have reached 11 m, or more if it had a roof-comb. The main building is flanked by two smaller double-gallery structures which are slightly displaced towards the east. Partly excavated Structure XX in 2003, looking south (Photo by the author) The southern of these lateral buildings has two storeys: a lower single room, which corresponds to the plaza level, and the upper galleries, which can be reached by climbing the stairway to the ample platform, almost 4 m wide, which stretches in front of Structure XXs faade. From here the ancient visitor would have had a splendid view on the Plaza de los Prisioneros, the ball court and, especially, the sacrificial stone. Structure XX had, therefore, a clear scenic-ceremonial function and probably served as reception space for visitors and tributaries, besides its use as entranceway to the palace group and its possible administrative purpose. Structure XX reveals a surprising amount of consecutive modifications and particularities which are not to be found in other structures at Calakmul. Thanks to its function as one of the entrance ways to the most important palace complex of the site, it is also an exemplary case for gradual access restriction and effective visitor traffic control. The construction history of the upper building, as exposed today, covers at least 250 years of occupation from early Late Classic all through the Terminal Classic (roughly 650-900 AD). However, excavations close to the southwestern base of Structure XX have revealed earlier, Late Preclassic architectural features, maybe a platform, and even some related

120 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 121

late Middle Preclassic ceramics (600-300 BC) of Juventud Rojo-type. The platform and the ceramics were discovered at around 3.7 m below actual court surface and just above culturally sterile soil, indicating that the earliest stages of monumental construction in this part of the city are contemporaneous to the very beginnings of site settlement (Delvendahl 2002, 2003, 2005: 437). Further excavations into the southwestern section of Structure XX revealed a smaller Early Classic substructure of two galleries and a richly furnished tomb holding the remains of a 35-50 year old male accompanied by an offering of nine beautifully preserved ceramic objects (Carrasco and Coln 2005: 43; Reyes 2006: 361). It can be assumed that the construction of the upper building, as visible today, was initiated shortly after (and maybe as consequence of) that persons interment. Excavations into the northwestern corner of the Structure XX exposed two more, separated Early Classic substructures, one of which had a portal of stuccoed and painted columns, while the other housed a stuccoed bench with a painted inscriptions, naming the owner of the bench and a superior Calakmul ruler, a uxtetuun kaloomte (Carrasco and Vazquez 2007; Reyes 2006: 361). The upper building originally consisted of two small galleries, while the wide eastern room was a later addition. Of the two original galleries the westernmost, which opens to the inner courtyard, was smaller than, and not as long as, the eastern one, which back then formed the principal gallery of the building. Both were connected by a wide central passageway which was closed off, probably during the construction of the third gallery. When this new gallery was added some drastic changes took place. Several of the ancient doorways to the former frontal gallery were sealed and the antique eastern faade, which was originally only about 0.75 m thick, was reinforced to almost 2 m to hold the extra weight of the new roof. Three thin walls of rustic stone were built up to divide the middle gallery into four separate chambers of different sizes (Nos. 1-4 from south to north). After dividing the space, benches were set up in the two central rooms (Nos. 2 and 3). While the Room 2 bench is lateral and therefore out of sight, the bench in Room 3 aligns with both the passageway between the middle and the eastern gallery and the principal entrance to the newly built eastern gallery. This bench would have been visible from the terrace outside and therefore might have had more official functions. From the ceramics found during excavations of the eastern and the middle gallery it can be assumed that the two westernmost galleries

were constructed towards the end of the Early Classic or, more likely, at the beginning of the Late Classic (around 650 AD), while the larger eastern addition was most likely built during the second half of the Late Classic (sometime around 700-750 AD). The eastern gallery is of unusual proportions, almost 3.8 m wide, and with calculated 128 m2 of roofed interior one of the most spacious single galleries in the site core. Taken that the normal width of a corbelled vaulted room in the Classic Southern Lowlands is well under 3 m for construction reasons, this gallery must have been regarded as an extraordinary intent to create larger interior space. A large part of the western half of the interior of the eastern gallery of Structure XX is occupied by a long bench/step, running northsouth, 0.55 m high by 1.60 m wide. Even though this bench/step was

Upper left: Inside the eastern gallery of Structure XX. Note the bench/step running all along its rear wall (Photo by the author). Upper right: Elongated benches used for gatherings are still common in the Maya Highlands. Religious and political officials in front of the town house in Zinacantn, Chiapas (taken from Vogt 1969: 293). Bottom: Late Classic tribute scene taking place on al long bench/step inside a palace in Ik, Motul de San Jos (K2914, photo Justin Kerr, taken from Kerr n.d.a)

122 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 123

obviously needed to access the higher galleries in the back, its altitude, orientation and position suggest that it was also used as a seat for noble gatherings, to observe activities on the Plaza de los Prisioneros and/ or to receive noble visitors and tributaries, as is frequently depicted in Classic Maya vase paintings (see Delvendahl 2000, 2005). Given the proportions of the eastern gallery of Structure XX it is likely that the new roof was unstable from the beginning, which is the reason why shortly after construction supporting walls had to be built up at irregular intervals to reinforce the vault, as can also be observed in other buildings of the site. However, the small quantity of capstones found during excavations of the eastern gallery might also indicate that the roof was actually flat, of palm-and-mud-type, covered with stucco. Given the width of the gallery it would have been undoubtedly the safest and easiest way to span the distance. The new eastern gallery had seven doorways opening to the platform and the Plaza de los Prisioneros, the central of which, with 2.85 m being the widest, was sealed off sometime in the Terminal Classic. Six passageways, generally much smaller, and even further reduced during troubled Terminal Classic times, connected the eastern with the middle gallery which was situated some 0.85 to 1 m above the frontal one. An additional doorway in the southern faade of the eastern gallery at one time connected directly to the interior courtyard to the west, but was closed shortly after the gallerys construction, maybe even before the end of the VIII Century, as calculated by the ceramic-types accumulated in a so-called trash deposit just outside (Delvendahl 2005: 453).

Structure XX in 2008, looking north. Note weathering of the stone (Photo by the author)

After this passageway was closed the only access to the inner courtyard was via a small, only 1.45 m wide doorway in southernmost Room 1 of the middle gallery. When times became difficult during the Terminal Classic this access was even further reduced to only 97 cm, restricting the interior of the palace group to a chosen few. This small passage was displaced from the doorways of the eastern gallery and from the passageways to Room 1 to further control visitor flow. Once inside, though, the visitor had easy access to most of the other 16 courtyards of the Grand Acropolis palace group (see below). On the south side of Structure XX a so-called trash deposit was discovered, consisting or more than fifteen thousand ceramic fragments (Delvendahl 2003, 2005). Of course, the fact that almost no other material (such as conch, obsidian, carbon, etc.) was found, makes the term trash dubious. However, around 95% of the ceramics were of domestic kind, especially of Ciricote Compuesto-type, large bowls with wide necks used for storage, which were so popular in Calakmul that the same type was used all through the Early and Late Classic. Almost 90% of the material was of Early Classic (42.3%) and Late Classic (46.4%) origin, very little from the Preclassic and only about 5% from the Terminal Classic. Notwithstanding the wealth of different types and shapes, the real surprise was a tiny percentage of finely painted ceramics, especially of the famed, so-called codex-style type, for the first time found at Calakmul in substantial quantity and up to this moment generally associated with Nakb and the El Mirador Basin (Delvendahl 2003, 2005; Garca and Carrasco 2006). The 650 codex-style ceramic pieces recovered during the excavations are still being analyzed in an ongoing investigation, which has distinguished so far fragments of at least 70 different vases (Sylviane Boucher 2008: pers. com.). Among the codex-style ceramics was the fragment of a plate featuring the snake-head, Kaan, emblem glyph, certainly as part of royal kuhul Kaan ajaw-title, but unfortunately with the name of the king missing (Delvendahl 2005: 435). Several other fragments feature the (on codex-style vases very com- Fragment of a codex-style plate with a snake-head (Kaan) emblem glyph mon) kuhul chatan winik, sacred man (Photo by the author)
DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 125

124 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

of chatan-title, a not yet clearly understood designation. This title is found on monuments only on an altar from Altar de Los Reyes (Grube 2003, 2004; Sprajc 2003; Sprajc and Cossio 2003) and on three stelae at Calakmul: Stelae 43, 51 and 89 (see Eggebrecht et al. 1993: 520; Grube 2004: 121; Simon Martin 2002: pers. com., see also Martin 1998: 76; Martin and Grube 2008: 103; Wlfel 2007: 33). While Stela 43 from Structure II dates to 514 AD and is, therefore, clearly prior to the time in which codex-style ceramics were painted (during the late VII and early VIII Century; see Reents-Budet et al. 1997), Stelae 51 and 89, both associated with Structure I, fall exactly into the assumed time period of manufacture. Both were erected by Yuknoom Took Kawiil, who also raised Stelae 70-74 in front of Structure XVI and, reigning during the first three decades of the VIII Century (702 to at least 731 AD), might also have been responsible for the Late Classic modifications of Structure XX. As was mentioned above, in the same deposit south of Structure XX a polychrome rim of the Zacatal Crema Polcromo-type was found, bearing in the Primary Standard Sequence his name in the Scroll-head Kawiil variant and, on related fragments of the same vase, eventually portraying the ruler disguised as a deity (Delvendahl 2003, 2005: 436). Another series of fragments from the Structure XX deposit show the Maize God as he is dressed by several nude women, a common theme in codex-style ceramics (see for instance K6979, in Kerr n.d.a; Fragments of Zacatal Crema Policromo- Robicsek and Hales 1981: 67). The type, bearing in the Primary Standard glyph naming the Maize God, a vaSequence the name of Yuknoom Took riant that might depict a crocodiles Kawiil in the Scroll-head Kawiil vahead, is the same as the one on the riant. A related fragment of the same vase eventually portrays the ruler dis- famous Resurrection Plate (Simon guised as a deity (Photos by the author) Martin 2002: pers. com.; cf. Coe and

Van Stone 2001: 153; Hellmuth 1987: 209; Miller and Martin 2004: 56). Also named is the mythic place, wuk ha nal, Place of the Seven Waters, where the event takes place and the action, maybe och ha or och bih?, enter the water/enter the road, terms generally related to death and in this case probably specifying an episode of the life-deathresurrection cycle of the Maize God (Simon Martin 2002: pers. com.). Another interesting codex-style fragment from this deposit shows God L, one of the most important underworld deities, in profile, head and body slightly inclined, matching in mimic, posture and gesture exactly the God L portrait on the famous, so-called Princeton Vase, suggesting that both were painted by the same master, possibly an artist from Calakmul (Delvendahl 2002, 2005: 436; cf. Miller and Martin 2004: 76; Reents-Budet 1994: 39 & 356).

Codex-style fragment from a trash deposit south of Structure XX (left, photo by the author), showing God L in profile, matching in mimic, posture and gesture the God L portrait on the famous Princeton Vase (right, detail, K511, photo Justin Kerr, taken from Kerr n.d.a )

Equally fascinating was the discovery of two fragments showing part of a sequence known as the Sacrifice of the Baby Jaguar or Sacrifice of Xbalanque (Robicsek and Hales 1988; see also Kerr and Kerr 1988: 248-256; Robicsek and Hales 1981: 22-23). The Structure XX fragments show God Chaak, with an eccentric in his left hand, in front of the so-called baby-jaguar (with human body, but jaguar tail) lying with his (missing) head to the left on a stone/altar known as Cauac Monster. Even though complementary fragments are missing, it can be assumed from other existing scenes that Chaak is dancing and that on the opposite side of the stone/altar dances skeletal God A, another underworld deity (Delvendahl 2003, 2005: 454-455; cf. Kerr

126 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 127

Fragments of codex-style ceramics showing God Chaak, with an eccentric in his left hand, in front of the so called baby-jaguar. From the Structure XX trash deposit (Photo by the author).

n.d.a: K521, K1003, K1152, K1197, K1370, K1644, K1768, K1815, K2207, K2208, K3201, K4011, K4013, K4056, K4385, K4486, K8680, among others). The drawing style and certain features, as for instance the eccentric, make the Structure XX fragments especially comparable with a vase of unknown providence today in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York (cf. Cohodas 1989; Kerr n.d.a: K521; Robicsek and Hales 1981: 22, Vessel 21; 1988: 265, Fig. 8. 5). Kerr and Kerr (1988: 247) attribute a total of at least seven vases of unknown providence to the same artist, dubbed the Metropolitan Master. Four of these depict similar themes and at least two (A and D) feature the kuhul chatan winik-title, discussed above. Even though it is difficult to prove without further discoveries of similar pieces in situ, it is tempting to think that this master artist came from Calakmul. Walking north from Structure XX one comes to Structure XIX on the northern end of the Grand Acropolis Group. Structure XIX is an elongated building of two galleries, similar in design to the extension (Anexo) of Structure XIII. Of the two galleries only the southern one has been excavated so far. It presents a single large, rather narrow room of which a smaller, eastern section was separated sometime after construction. In this smaller, separated room a bench was integrated. It seems highly likely that this structure was the northern access to the upper level of the Grand Acropolis, with a wide (but unexcavated) stairway on its northern side leading up from a relatively small plaza

between the structure and the Great Wall. If this were the case, Structure XIX would have performed a similar purpose as Structure XIV, discussed above, on the east side. The Great Wall is truly an impressive sight. It was even more so before it was awkwardly extended during the 1998 field season of the current Calakmul Archaeological Project. Up to 1998 only a solitary piece of this immense stone wall was still standing (visible today forming the eastern extreme), over 6 m high when seen from the outside (north) and over 2 m wide. It was once assumed that the wall extended only some 200 m (Ruppert and Denison 1943: 9), but it seems that it was really significantly larger, running all the way to at least the central water reservoirs (aguadas) north of the East Group, some 1 km to the east. Actually, several hundred meters before entering the Main Plaza one crosses an eastern segment of the same continuous wall, presumably of smaller proportions. The part still standing and visible today, in contrast, was probably the most massive section of whole construction. Even though in general considered

Structure XIX, possibly the northern entrance to the Grand Acropolis (Photo by the author)

The Great Wall in 1997, before reconstruction (Photo by the author)

128 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 129

primarily a defensive device, it seems more likely that the Great Walls main purpose was to delimit the inner ceremonial precinct of the city and to control the access to it from the north and northeast. Examples where walls surround the inner precinct of a city are fairly common, especially at the northern cities of Chichn Itz, Tulum, Ek Balam, Uxmal and Mayapn. Calakmul was clearly not surrounded completely by a wall, but other devices, such as monumental architecture, changes in plaza levels, swamps, water reservoirs and even irrigation channels could have served similar purposes. Turning west from the Great Wall one enters the Utsiaal Caan residential unit, the first of two units of the so-called Kinich Pak-group. Both units, the Utsiaal Caan and the Casa del Seis Ajaw form the north eastern and the northwestern corner of the northernmost and largest of the Grand Acropolis palace group courtyards, Court I. This irregular courtyard measures approximately 75 m by 50 m (3,750 m2) and contains the only artificial water cistern (chultn) found in the palace group so far, located a few meters off the southern faade of the residential complex. The Utsiaal Caan was excavated in the 1997-99 field seasons by the current Calakmul Archaeological Project (lvarez 1998, 1999). It consists of a roughly quadrangular building with 13 rooms around three small inner courtyards. Even though today in its ruined condition it seems to be open and inviting, during the Classic, while in use, it was completely closed towards the outside except for two small accesses in

the south and west (the actual eastern entrance did not exist). At one time there might have existed a wide entranceway to the north, but this was closed and turned into another room, possibly for storage. Seen from the outside, the Utsiaal Caan has to be imagined as one solid, closed building of maybe four meters in height. Once inside, however, relatively spacious and, probably, somehow shaded courtyards gave a lot of light to the different sized rooms around them. Most of these are small and furnished with a stone bench which in several cases takes up to half of the interior space. The most intimate of these courtyards is the central one, in the southwest section. Surrounded by six rooms opening towards the patio, it had no entranceway other than a small, possibly vaulted passage which connects to the northern courtyard. The patio itself was probably shaded by cotton blankets or with the help of wooden beams and palm leaves. Even though small, it could have been suitable for the coexistence of an extended family. Further west, following a short trail along an unexcavated structure, one gets to the Casa del Seis Ajaw (House of the Six Ajaw [Lord]) residential unit, a smaller, but similar complex to the Utsiaal Caan. This unit received its name after the discovery of a capstone incised with a Six Ajaw calendar date. The building consists of just one 65 m2 patio, surrounded by eight larger rooms, each with its own entrance, and one smaller chamber (Carrasco et al. 1997: 53-70). The bigger rooms present interior space

The residential unit Utsiaal Caan as seen from the Great Wall, looking west (Photo by the author)

Residential unit Casa del Seis Ajaw, looking at the reconstructed southern section (Photo by the author)

130 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 131

One of the benches inside the Casa del Seis Ajaw residential unit (Photo by the author)

between 10.7 m2 and 15.2 m2, most of which is taken up by stone benches. The smaller room of the southern building might have been used for storage. The benches are different in style, execution and elaboration, which might indicate the status differences of their occupants. In modern as probably in ancient Maya cosmovision, the east and the north were the most important directions, and generally attributed with male qualities, while the south and the west were considered female. Even though it seems a bit farfetched, it might just be one more clue in correct activity identification. A single narrow access on the eastern side leads into the building which, therefore, as the Utsiaal Caan, must have been a highly private and reclusive space. From the outside the building must have appeared as one impassable quadrangular construction without any openings or windows for ventilation. However, taken that all the bigger rooms open to the inner courtyard, illumination and ventilation was probably just as the ancient inhabitants desired. Unfortunately, there is very little information available as to who exactly lived in these buildings and what activities took place in the different rooms. Based on the architectural composition of accessibility and resulting privacy, as well as on general living space and the fact that there are benches in almost every room, there can be little doubt that both units were residential, even in the absence of indisputable traces of cooking areas, which could have been located outside. Benches were most probably used for resting and there was enough space to accommodate personal goods as well as some communi-

ty provisions, which could have been stored in the smaller adjoining or other benchless rooms, as well as under the vaulted roofs, hanging from beams, etc. Rooms could have been, and probably were, closed with cotton blankets for further privacy, which were also used during the day to shade the patio. As mentioned, the Utsiaal Caan unit had a water cistern (chultn) close by; others might be still hidden under debris. Otherwise, the closest water reservoir (aguada) is only about 300 m to the north, easily reachable especially from the northern fringes of the Grand Acropolis. Also the custom of burying the dead underneath the floors or in/under benches, as encountered in the Utsiaal Caan, is a common trait of domestic households. Regrettably, no information exists on more specific activities and use of space as can be detected sometimes through chemical analysis of the rooms floors and benches. There is also hardly any evidence as to who lived in these residential units. The tombs found inside some of the Utsiaal Caan rooms have not yielded any high class material as to suggest this, or both residential units, were inhabited by higher nobility or even kings and queens. On the other hand, painted ceramics, even some codex-style fragments, found in a so-called trash deposit on the north side of the Utsiaal Caan (lvarez 1999: 106), as well as the Six Ajaw-inscribed capstone which gave the name to the Casa del Seis Ajaw unit seem to indicate that the inhabitants were not low class either.

Utsiaal Caan residential unit looking northeast towards the Great Wall (Photo by the author)

132 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 133

While there might exist a number of similar compounds in other Maya cities, the configuration of the two Calakmul residential units is rather unusual for the Southern Lowlands. In fact, the closed quadrangular design around square inner courtyards reminds one more strongly of the residential units of far away Teotihuacn in the Mexican Highlands (compare for example with Manzanilla 1993). Nevertheless, material examination so far has not proved any closer connection to that powerful distant city which might explain some sort of a permanent representation inside Calakmul walls (Sara Dzul 2002: pers. com.). Given Teotihuacns Early Classic political, and even blood, ties to Tikal (Stuart 2000), it is highly unlikely that anything similar at any point might have existed. It has also been proposed on basis of location (on a much lower level compared to the palace courtyards to the south) and the rather small, cell like interior spaces that the Utsiaal Caan ac tually housed the palace personnel, the servants of the royal nobility (Ramn Carrasco Vargas 2001: pers. com.). However, it is more likely that the palace personnel lived outside the palace complex, and maybe even outside the site core, possibly in some of the extensive clusters of smaller structures about 250 m west-southwest of the Grand Acropolis or in the huge cluster south of the South Group at about 500 m from the Grand Acropolis. Another option is that the Utsiaal Caan and the Casa del Seis Ajaw have served as temporary residence for important visitors, such as lower ranking kings, royal emissaries, sajaloob provincial governors, or adolescents of subordinate royal families, who were housed in these spaces with their substantial entourages (Delvendahl 2005: 440). Two monuments from La Corona, for example, relate the story of a 19 year old royal noble who in 664 AD bixan chihk nahb, went to Calakmul to stay over 3 years until 667 AD, the year his father died, before returning to his place of origin, where, shortly after, he ascended to the throne, probably under auspices of Calakmul (Houston and Stuart 2001: 67; Martin 2001: 183). As the cited authors point out, these youngsters were probably held as some sort of political hostage to assure the commitment of subordinate cities, but with all the commodities of a noble visitor. In that time they were not only trained to be reliable vassals but also in the court etiquette of a higher and more refined palace culture. Given the insertion of the residential units in the northern parts of the Grand Acropolis Group, maybe it was in structures such as the Utsiaal Caan or the Casa del Seis Ajaw that the La Corona heir and his staff was accommodated.

Other Groups
There are other excavated groups hidden in the surrounding forest of the central core, some of which are passed on the way in. One of the most recently excavated groups which has revealed some stunning Early Classic paintings is the so-called North- or Chiik Nahb Acropolis, to the north of Structure VII. This Group was mapped and test trenched in 2000 by Agustn Anaya, a part time collaborator of the current Calakmul Archaeological Project, before initial excavations were carried out under his supervision around the central mound of the southern delimitation in 2001. This complex had been hitherto labeled The Market by the University of Campeche Project and consists of a roughly quadrangular complex which covers some 40,600 m2 (200 m north-south by 213 m east-west). Inside, several long, relatively low mounds stretch parallel in north-south direction, reminiscent of typical contemporaneous Latin American markets, hence the name. However, excavations in the past four years have led to the suggestion that these long mounds were platforms crowned by a series of residential-type structures (Carrasco and Bojalil 2005: 27).

The southern delimitation of the Chiik Nahb Acropolis. The walkway/bench with the paintings is underneath the reconstructed building (Photo by the author)

134 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 135

The walkway/bench (andador) with its aquatic imagery. The upper section features a series of birds standing in shallow water, surrounded by waterlilies and kaban (earth) glyphs. The lower section shows what has been called the Surface of the Underwaterworld populated by aquatic snakes, fishes and turtles (Photo by the author)

The lower part of the bench-like walkway, exposed first, shows an aquatic sphere, maybe what has been called the Surface of the Underwaterworld (Hellmuth 1987: 356). The watery surface is clearly indicated by the volutes and spirals along the upper rim of the lower part of the walkway, very similar to contemporaneous Early Classic images on Tzakol pottery from northern Petn (cf. Ibid: 113-118). To the right of the center of the exposed part of the painting is a snake, similar to a representation on a Uaxactn bowl (Ibid: 155, Fig. 313). Excavations underneath the eastern building revealed fishes and turtles. Waterlilies are framing three glyph cartouches which probably repeat at symmetrical intervals along the whole southern delimitation, as corroborated on the paintings of a stretch underneath the construction to the east. These glyph cartouches read Chiik Nahb and seem to refer to the space the wall encloses. As has been mentioned, the appearance of the term Chiik Nahb in various inscriptions in the Southern Lowlands has been taken as a reference to the city of Calakmul itself, i.e. one of the citys proper ancient names (see Martin and Grube 2008: 104). With the discovery of these repeating glyph cartouches it now seems equally possible that the term actually refers to a more specific location within Calakmul (Carrasco and Bojalil 2005: 26; Carrasco and Coln 2005: 44; Wlfel 2007: 32).

During the 2001 explorations in the southern section, called Group A, first a bench-like, approximately 1.5 m high stuccoed wall, apparently some sort of walkway (andador) with intervallic stairways, was discovered running east-west for several hundred meters, seemingly forming one line with, and merging into, the Great Wall to the west. Exposing gradually the delimitation towards the west, it was noticed that it stretched underneath an obvious later, about 5 m high construction. It was on the eastern edge of that building, where the wall/bench disappeared in the protective construction fill, that the first paintings were discovered. Painstakingly, a large piece of the polychrome painting was exposed and simultaneously conserved by a team of national and international restorers. It turned out that, even though the bench/ wall might have been painted on its whole 213 m length, the paintings were only preserved where protected by over-construction, as quickly confirmed by digging into two close-by structures to the east and west, where more paintings came to light.

One of several glyph cartouches featuring the Chiik Nahb toponym, probably referring to the space the wall encloses (Photo by the author)

136 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 137

Gradually exposing the walkways surface and later the corresponding vertical extension it turned out the paintings continued. While the horizontal surface is unpainted, the vertical part shows a series of aquatic birds standing in shallow water, surrounded by waterlilies and kaban (earth) glyphs. The birds are exceptionally well preserved: one can still appreciate the brush strokes of the painter, as well as the fine black and brown line undersketch used to outline the painting. Both parts of the bench reveal lavish blue/green, red, yellow, black, white, ochre/brown, and purple colors.

Detail of one of the birds on the vertical extension of the benchlike walkway (Photo by the author)

Seen in frontal view, the whole arrangement shows birds and waterlilies standing and floating on the upper layers of the underwater world, populated by aquatic snakes, fishes and turtles. Even though it seems apparent how the iconography of the bench relates to the term Chiik Nahb (which might be simply (probably too simply!) translated as waterlily bird or maybe as (waterlily)-lake of birds (from chiik bird (generic) and nab water lily, also pool, lake, water-surface, ocean; cf. Boot 2002: 27 & 60), the relation of the term/iconography to the space it encloses is much more confusing. What was Chiik Nahb? Excavations by Anaya in 2001 exposed several architectural features outside (south) of the bench-like walkway, one of which, some 3-4 m to the south and east of the central mound, appeared to be a small short bridge. Even though it seemed farfetched at that time, it immediately brought to mind an aquatic landscape reminiscent of a Japanese garden. Was the area south of the delimitation flooded to

create a watery space as alluded to by the paintings? An 80 cm elevated walkway (andador) would surely make more sense. It is imaginable how the paintings shimmered through some still, clear water, while noble visitors promenaded on the walkway to access the inner precinct. The bridge has been re-interred since then and the whole area south of the delimitation leveled, giving no idea of the larger composition as one approaches the complex today. However, a space surrounded artificially by water recalls a very ancient, pan-mesoamerican belief of a mythic homeland, the Place of the Reeds: Tollan. It has been proposed that Calakmul had close ties to the sites of the El Mirador basin, especially to El Mirador itself, in ancient times clearly visible from the top of Structure II and probably regarded as one of the original mythic Tollans. Was Calakmul, the Three Stones-place (Uxtetuun), the Waterlily Lake of Birds-place (Chiik Nahb) somehow relating itself to the Place of Reeds, the mythological Tollan? But then, what about the underwaterworld imagery? How does the enclosed space relate to iconography that was used to adorn its important southern delimitation? As is the case of most transcendent archaeological findings, the mural paintings leave much room for interpretations and future analysis. The main structure of the complex, Structure I, lies some 30 m north of the southern delimitation, centrally on the east-west axis. Only about 8 m high, it was over-constructed in at least four occasions until reaching its final configuration. The earliest building, corresponding allegedly to the beginnings of the Early Classic, was most carefully interred before the next layer was constructed around it. As in other instances where this was done, for example in the case of Substructure II C-1 of Structure II, the building and its decoration has been unusually well preserved (Carrasco and Bojalil 2005: 27-31; Carrasco and Coln 2005). Substructure I-4 of the Chiik Nahb Acropolis features wall paintings on the outside of the three layers of the pyramidal platform which make this building truly unique in the archaeological record: the only example so far known from the Southern Lowlands where scenes of seemingly historic (everyday?) life adorn the outside of a pyramidal platform. The scenes are painted in a rather naturalistic style, as is otherwise known only from Late Classic polychrome ceramics and from different wall paintings of the same period, most notably Bonampak (cf. Coe and Kerr 1998; Delvendahl 2000, 2005; Fuentes and Staines 1998, 2001; Kerr 1989-2000, n. d. a; Miller 1985-2004; Miller and Martin

138 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 139

Structure I of the Chiik Nahb Acropolis which houses substructure Sub I-4 that features stunning polychrome paintings on the outside of the three layers of its pyramidal platform (Photo by the author).

The scenes have been proposed to show market life, but might also represent a ceremonial feast (Photo taken from arqueologa mexicana, Vol. XIII - No. 75. p. 29 )

2004; Reents-Budet 1994, 1998b; Schele and Miller 1986). In fact, the style as represented by the Structure I paintings does so radically differ from the iconography, thematic and rules of representation of Early Classic ceramics, public monuments and wall paintings (cf. Miller 1999: 168) that one is almost inclined to doubt that these paintings were elaborated as early as the beginnings of the Early Classic. A late Early Classic or early Late Classic date of elaboration seems more adequate, and, indeed, has recently been confirmed by analysis of the material excavated in several test pits in Sub I-4, and of the colors and shapes of the ceramics depicted in the painting itself (Boucher and Quiones 2007). According to these studies the images were most probably painted during the VII Century, which largely corresponds to the reign of Yuknoom Cheen II, who seems to be the most likely patron. Even if the Calakmul paintings are not as early as first thought by the archaeologist, the recent discovery of Preclassic paintings in San Bartolo in northern Guatemala (elaborated around 300-100 BC; Saturno et al. 2005) show that a great painting tradition already existed since the at least the Late Preclassic in the Maya Lowlands. Genuine Early Classic and even Late Preclassic paintings might show up in Calakmul in the future.

The characters so far exposed are shown in different activities related to food preparation, transportation, interchange and consumption. Several persons are shown drinking from cups and bowls, other are seemingly preparing, interchanging, and eating food, among others tamales and atole, maize gruel. Two males seem to be painting or stirring or possibly sniffing tobacco. A woman in a magnificent transparent blue dress engages in helping another woman mounting a huge bowl of the Ciricote Compuesto type on her head (or otherwise is handed over the bowl from the woman), while others are shown sitting next to a big bundle which, from other images, is known as merchant bundle. These features, the activities and the related glyphs, denominating some of the personages as He of the Salt, He of the Atole, Person of the Tamales, He of the Corn, He of the Tobacco, She of the Cups, etc., have led to the assumption that the Chiik Nahb Acropolis actually was a market, for its size easily the largest in the Maya area (Simon Martin 2006: pers. com; see also Wlfel 2007: 53-54). Taken that no clear marketplaces have been identified anywhere else in the Southern Maya Lowlands so far, that would have been quite an exciting discovery and more than apt for one of the most powerful cities of the Classic. Nevertheless, this assumption was energetically refuted by the archaeologist excavating the space and others studying the ceramics

140 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 141

and imagery (Boucher and Quiones 2007; Carrasco and Bojalil 2005; Carrasco and Coln 2005; Carrasco and Vzquez 2007; Ana Garca Barrios 2008: pers. com.). Instead, they perceive the Chiik Nahb Acropolis as a ritual and sociopolitical space and the activities represented in the paintings therefore related to some kind of ritual action, maybe a feast or banquet (Boucher and Quiones 2007: 48-49). While more excavations in the parallel buildings of the complex are needed to get a clearer picture, the southern delimitation paintings, described above, seem to support the archaeologists view. East of the Chiik Nahb Acropolis lies a large residential unit which was partly excavated in 1993-1994 and further investigated and cleared in 2002-2004. Called Chan Chiich Group, this compound is a spectacular example of archaeological assembly and reconstruction, piecing together what seemed to be a rather unassuming array of isolated small structures of inferior construction quality into an imposing unit of interconnected rooms with massive walls.

The Chan Chiich group under excavation in 2003 and reconstructed in 2008 (Photos by the author)

The Chan Chich Group is located in the forest north of the path leading into Calakmuls central core, some 150 m before entering the Main Plaza. Surprisingly, it is not signposted yet and therefore might be easily missed. It consists of a series of smaller rooms and structures layed out around several courtyards, two of which are exposed today. The main section of the residential unit stretches around a wide, L-shaped courtyard, and comprises a series of rooms, several of which feature lateral and central benches, in some instances both types in one room, notably also of the in Calakmul rather uncommon throne like central bench with side-arms (cf. Harrison 2001 for bench types in Tikal). As said, when excavated the rooms and structures were in a pitiful condition. Made out of rather crude and unfinished stone, which of course in ancient times were covered with layers of stucco and possibly painted, they had tumbled almost to their very bases. The size of the structures and the quality of the masonry, especially when compared to the masonry of worked and squared stones used in the construction of the larger palace groups, seemed to suggest that the unit was inhabited by lesser nobles. However, the proximity to the Main Plaza, as well as the artifacts found during the explorations, especially different polychrome-type and some codex-style ceramics, point towards higher, albeit non-royal nobility. Today, in its reconstructed condition, which might better represent its former glory, this status seems to be corroborated. Further to the northeast lies the so-called Northeast Group, a large and important complex as indicated by no less than thirteen stelae associated with three of its structures (Stelae Nos. 95-107). The only excavated part of the group, so far, is one of the first major vestiges one encounters on the way into the archaeological site. This elevated platform with three upper temples and four associated stelae (Nos. 104-107) composes the northern part of the group. Following a small and possibly overgrown trail some 80 m to the southeast two additional structures with stelae (Nos. 95-103) appear. These two pyramidal structures, which share a common forecourt, are unexcavated but impressive mounds of maybe 12 m height. On top of the eastern mound the remains of a small superstructure are visible. The stelae, broken and heavily damaged by weathering, have been reerected in recent years but, except for one (Stela 99), show no traces of writing. South of the two mounds stretches an immense, almost quadrangular courtyard covering at least 60 m by 60 m (3,600 m2). It

142 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 143

is surrounded by long range-type, probably double-gallery buildings, sitting on relatively low platforms. This more residential-like section of the Northeast Group might classify as a royal court, maybe inhabited by members of Yichaak Kahks extended family. A sacbe, an inner site road or walkway, has been reported to connect this sector with the Small Acropolis (see Folan et al. 2001a, Appendix; May Hau et al. 1990), but could not be confirmed on the ground. Still further south, and closely attached to the quadrangle, are a series of smaller low residential mounds and some smaller quarries for stone extraction. As for this moment, all sections south of the excavated area have not been thoroughly investigated and are not easily accessible. In fact, the small path leading to them might be overgrown and unlocatable. It is clearly not advisable to penetrate the forest south of the excavated section without a knowledgeable guide. The northern section of the Northeast Group, excavated basically in the 2003-2004 field seasons, consists of a huge platform with a wide stairway and three upper temples in a triadic layout: the larger of the three buildings occupies the northern fringe while the two smaller lateral temples take up the east and west side of the platform.

Plain Stela 104, centrally placed in the larger single-roomed northern structure on the excavated platform of the Northeast Group (Photo by the author)

Stairway leading up to the platform of the excavated northern section of the Northeast Group (Photo by the author)

Centrally placed in the larger single-roomed northern structure is Stela 104, obviously plain, but possibly painted in ancient times. It is one of the few stelae erected inside a structure, a rather unusual but not completely unique feature in Calakmul or the Southern Maya Lowlands. Another noteworthy peculiarity is the immense monolith which forms the central upper step of the northern superstructure. While it likewise might have been painted in former times, no traces of artistic modifications are noticeable today. The smaller eastern temple houses a large bench, while the western temple is void of furniture. In front of the platform stand Stelae 105-107, Stelae 105 and 106 right at the bottom of the stairway, Stela 107 and an altar further to the south. Westernmost Stela 105 is the only one with legible text, exhibiting se-

144 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 145

veral dates, one of which, 9.13.0.0.0 (692 AD), might be the date of erection (Martin 1998: 80). The date falls into the last years of reign of Yuknoom Yichaak Kahk and it seems safe to assume that at least some of the constructions of the Northeast Group can be attributed to this ruler. Stela 106, probably also erected by Yichaak Kahk, and Stela 99, in front of the eastern building of the southern group, are the only other monuments with traces of text, none of which is legible (idem.). About 100 m further north of the Northeast Group lies a small cluster of buildings, preliminary named the Taman Group, consisting of various low mounds around two relatively open courts, which at one time possibly formed one contiguous space. Three of the structures were exposed in a limited intervention in the year 2000 (Delvendahl 2001), and are the first excavated structures which the visitor will likely stumble upon when following the winding path which leads into Calakmul from the entrance to the archaeological site. The eastern building, a long, range-type structure of roughly 20.4 m north-south by 3.75 m east-west, has three rooms with one doorway each, opening towards an ample court in the west. Benches were found inside the central and the southern room. The court in front of this structure is surrounded on its north and west sides by one long, seemingly uninterrupted mound. However, it can be assumed that underneath hide at least two structures, one on the north side of the patio and another on the west side, as well as a southwest addition to the western building. South of this court, is located a second, smaller patio (at times heavily overgrown with vegetation), surrounded by, again, seemingly one, U-shaped mound, under which three separate, but almost contiguous buildings can be predicted. Separating the two patios are two small single room structures, the only other structures excavated so far. The northern structure is of inferior construction quality, with largely deteriorated thin exterior walls made of small rough stones. Nevertheless, flat corbelled vault stones, a row of which were found aligned on the structures floor, indicate that the structure was covered with a stone roof. Inside, a large bench in the rooms southeast corner was detected. The other structure, just behind, was made of rather bulky stones and was void of furniture, which might indicate that it was used a storeroom. Underneath the floor, deposited on a layer which seems to correspond to the plaza-level, a small offering consisting of two flint knives partly covered by a simple Tinaja-type plate was uncovered.

The easternmost building of the Taman Group (Photo by the author)

Benches inside several of the rooms, as well as the overall configuration of the group and the quantity of manos and metates excavated, seem to indicate that this small unit was used as a residential compound. Since the small amount of finely painted ceramics, the rough worked stones used for construction and the simple offering found underneath one structure does not indicate any high elite status, the group rather seems to have been occupied by commoners. On the other hand, given the proximity to the site center and to the Northeast Group it is improbable that they were simple peasants. Instead, it seems more likely that they were of a segment designated some years ago as middle men (azmen; see Chase, A. 1992; Chase and Chase 1992; Chase et al. 1999): wealthier commoners, probably laborers of some sort. Further excavations and chemical analysis of the structures and patios floors might reveal in more detail what kind of activities the residents pursued and what exactly the different structures were used for.

146 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES

DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS STRUCTURES 147

Chapter 6:
Palaces and Court Culture at Calakmul
ne of Calakmuls major attractions today lies undoubtedly in its monumentality. Unlike any other site in the Southern Lowlands it impresses the visitor first and foremost through the massiveness of its structures, the largest of which -Structure II- dwarfs most comparable constructions in other Classic Maya cities. As has been expressed above, it can be assumed that the effect was not much different in the past. While other cities, such as Copn and Palenque, astonished the ancient visitor through the refinement of the public arts and the sheer quantity of ornamentation, Calakmul without doubt primarily awed and intimidated through the magnitude and grandeur of its temples and plazas. The principal architectural features of the inner site core are, however, not the temple-pyramids and public plazas but the extensive administrative and residential palace groups which flank the central plazas on the east, west, and southwest. At least five structures and groups within Calakmuls 2 km2 inner site core can be classified as potential royal courts given their spatial configuration and their proximity to the central plazas and main temples: Structure III and the Small Acropolis in the east, the Grand Acropolis Group in the west, the South Group in the southwest, as well as parts of the Northeast Group, about 750 m to the northeast of the Main Plaza (cf. Martin 2001). Together, these groups occupy almost 1/4 of the total space of the central area and more than ten times the space occupied by ceremonial structures, pointing not only to a broad stratum of royal nobility and a refined palace culture, but also to a spatial consciousness which seemed to have been unlimited by urban restrictions. The two largest of Calakmuls central palace groups, the Small Acropolis (East Group) to the east of the Main Plaza and, especially,

PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL 149

Palace structures and -groups within Calakmuls 2 km2 inner site core (taken from Martin 2001: 173)

the Grand Acropolis Group in the western part of the Grand Acropolis, are by far the most extensive palaces complexes in the Southern Maya Lowlands. The Grand Acropolis Group, for instance, with an extension of approximately 336 m north-south by 344 m east-west, is about nine times the size of the Central Acropolis, the biggest court complex of Tikal, and more than fourteen times the size of the Palace in Palenque. In fact, the whole Palenque palace complex would fit comfortably into the Structure XVI rectangle, one of the larger eastern courtyards of the Grand Acropolis Group (Delvendahl 2005). The availability of space, it seems, was a not an issue for Calakmul architects. Palace groups are a common sight at many medium and major Maya cities and are, even when unexcavated, relatively easy to identify thanks to their particular composition of a number of structures, often of the long range-type, around one or several shared courtyards habitually located on a low platform or some other type of elevation. Varied in location, extension, organization, and appearance, palace groups can range from small and simple types (four structures around a comparatively open courtyard) to large and complex formations of numerous restricted courtyards and dozens of buildings spanning several construction phases. Nevertheless, not all groups identifiable

as palatial are necessarily royal court complexes which were used and occupied only by the highest stratum of society. Most so-called palace groups were probably elite residences inhabited by nobility of varying status, as can be estimated on basis of proximity to the site center, size of the group, quality of construction (including masonry, height, volume, and ornamentation), functionality, as well as association with monuments, elite polychrome ceramics, jades or other exotic goods. Consequently, only the largest, most complex and central palace groups of a given site should be regarded as royal (unless proven otherwise), occupied by the kuhul ajaw, his extensive family, and his closest confidants. These royal compounds often lie immediately adjacent to the central plazas and the most important temple structures, forming a scenic-ceremonial and administrative ensemble which adequately reflects the centralism of Classic Maya society with all political, religious, social, and ideological power concentrated in the ruler. However, this general pattern does not imply that all palace groups were alike. The same individuality that is apparent in the layout of Classic Maya cities on the whole is also evident in the location and spatial design of the central palace groups. Besides sharing seemingly universal principles, such as the arrangement around rectangular courtyards and the orientation of structures on an east-west or northsouth axis, individual palace groups can differ significantly from each other depending on several factors, all resulting eventually from the antiquity of a given complex. The appearance of palace structures or palace groups at a given site seems to be linked intimately to the emergence of that site as a political power of a certain importance. Therefore court complexes of large and antique urban centers such as Tikal or Calakmul have their initiations in the Late Preclassic or even around the end of the Middle Preclassic (around 300 BC), while palace groups of cities of more recent political importance show much later beginnings (in Palenque, for instance, around 430 AD, in Aguateca after 650 AD). Complexity of a palace group in terms of extension and internal organization can be assessed as a result of the antiquity of a given complex and of the time it was in use, and therefore, indirectly, also to the sites antiquity. Accordingly, it can be assumed as a general rule that larger and older cities tend to present larger and more complex court groups, while smaller and more recent cities tend to have minor and simpler palace groups with relatively little time depth. The number of potential

150 PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL

PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL 151

royal palace complexes seems to be linked to the same principle, with larger and older cities presenting a higher number of extensive and potentially royal groups than smaller and more recent cities, which often tend to have only one palace group or in some cases even none at all. However, other factors, such as urbanity, compactness, and the surrounding natural environment of a given city, also may have played definite roles. The complexity and restriction of a given palace compound seem to reflect to a certain degree the social and administrative organization of a city, with less formal and more casual contacts between the ruler, his administrative apparatus, and the general population in smaller towns and more complex and formalized etiquette with restricted access to the ruler/ruling stratum in larger cities. The individual evolutions of palace complexes in relation to the evolution of the larger city/ kingdom seem to depend on the same mechanisms: the bigger, more powerful and more politically important a city becomes, the more complex, restricted and inaccessible its rulers and his residential/ administrative buildings get. As evidenced with later the holy Mexica kings, it seem perceivable that in the biggest Maya cities the kuhul ajaw lived largely secluded from mundane community life within the walls of their extensive palace complexes or at best within the restricted inner districts of the sites centers. As has been expressed above, the larger population might have been granted access to these inner sectors only to attend important ceremonies and power representations which invariably included public appearances of the ruler to reinsure social and spiritual stability. The isolation of the royal figure is reflected in the way the rulers private life is made public: while in smaller towns the ruler and his family lived a relatively exposed life probably not too unlike the common people, the residential areas within the palace complexes of the larger cities are always in the most remote and less accessible/visible sectors, filtering the chosen visitors through a complex system of admission control. The seclusion of the royal person and the resulting contact to only a handful of confidants, as is also apparent in many historic palace scenes painted on Late Classic polychrome ceramics, most likely was intended to prevent a possible vulnerability of the ruler in a potentially hostile and competitive local environment. The indication is that the restriction and closing of palatial spaces is not necessarily linked to outside factors such as increasing warfare. The heavily embattled city

of Aguateca, for instance, had a relatively open palace court, even though a wider defense system of several concentric walls surrounded the inner site core. Apparently, when war was already at the doorstep there was no more point in barricading the palaces accesses. Instead, the relation of palace complexity and city size seems to indicate that restriction and closure were signs of inner strains, evoked through pressures on the ruling class by an increasing complex and demanding society. Despite the often impressive exterior of the royal palace groups, in cases accentuated through the association of finely carved monuments and/or lavish exterior ornamentation, the actual palace life was probably not as opulent as some might like to imagine (see Houston 2004: 271; Houston and Stuart 2001; Miller and Martin 2004). Life in the Maya palace groups can certainly not be compared to the lifestyle of XVII Century Louis XIV Versailles, but should rather be imagined similar to the more modest court-life of cultures of similar ecological niches. The royal courts of XIX Century Central Africa, for instance, such as the Bamoum Palace at Foumban in Cameroon come to mind, or the courts and court culture among the Kongo and Kuba Kingdoms (cf. Blier 1998). Also the even more recent, early XX Century oma sebua chief houses of Bawmataluo in South-East Asia and their related court culture provide surprisingly many inspiring parallels to help imagine and understand the royal palaces of the Classic Maya (Waterson 1998: 100-113). Given that any direct archaeological information on the inhabitants of the Classic palace groups is sparse, that evidence of the activities that took place within the rooms and courtyards is faint at best, and that most of the perishable material culture is lost or only indirectly traceable, much of what constituted the royal environment has to be reconstructed through the analysis of contemporary graphic images, such as those preserved in historic palace scenes painted on Late Classic ceramic vessels, in the Bonampak or Ek Balam mural paintings, or depicted on different stone monuments, such as famous Panel 3 of Piedras Negras (Delvendahl 2000, 2005; Reents-Budet 2001). In these images one typically observes a ruler sitting on his throne or bench, surrounded by part of his court nobility within an architectural frame that well could be of the more public buildings of a standard Southern Maya Lowland palace compound. The ruler is represented with relatively little attire, except for some jade jewelry, and dressed

152 PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL

PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL 153

in his most likely everyday dress: a simple loincloth. Given the more intimate, less formal, private environment, some of the most important public markers of rulership, such as the Kawiil-scepter or the double-headed serpent bar, are completely missing in the palace scenes. Instead the ruler is generally depicted barehanded, gesturing towards the person confronting him. His body is usually turned to frontal view to provide a better look at his jewelry and his gesturing is more expressive, granting him more space in the picture. Several status markers, such as the elevated throne/bench, often covered with mats or jaguar skins, curtains, which are swung all along the rooms interior or frame the rulers bench/throne area, as well as mirrors, invariably pointing towards the ruler, leave no doubt who is the most significant character in the representation.

Late Classic palace scene from Dos Pilas, showing a gathering of the ruler with noble scribes. Note cushion, curtain, and plate with tamales, (K1599, photo Justin Kerr, taken from Kerr n.d.a)

Surrounding him is his most important court nobility -important enough at least to be painted on rare polychrome elite ceramics- as well as in several scenes foreign dignitaries, emissaries or war prisoners. Most of the local nobles can be assumed to be members of the immediate family of the ruler wife(s), brothers, sisters, adult sons, uncles, cousins, etc., or of the most exalted families of the state. These nobles, wearers of titles such as baah chok, sajal, ah kuhul huun, yajaw kahk, yajaw te, etc., probably occupied key positions in the local political, religious and administrative system, and include war generals, high ranking warriors, personal (body-)guards, provincial governors of attached satellite sites, and scribes (a general term for a whole group of master carvers and

painters, architects, astronomers and mathematicians, eventually priests/ shamans, the mysterious chilames, translators/interpreters [maybe of the sacred codices?], masters of ceremony, teachers, archivists, bureaucrats, advisors, merchants, etc.). On a seemingly lower hierarchical level there are musicians, servants (eventually trainees), and dwarfs, which, given their mythological proximity to the Maize God might have actually had an important role as (divine) advisors. Non-local nobles in most cases serve to illustrate some kind of power balance: they appear as visiting dignitaries paying respect, and as emissaries in tribute presentations, or as bound prisoners in war booty and prisoner presentations, as well as in scenes of human sacrifice. On the other hand, in public monumental imagery, depicted visiting nobles are often of higher status, sanctioning some event at the visited site which was proudly remembered by the subordinate entity. Besides the rulers wooden or stone bench/throne the only furniture depicted in the palace scenes are large cushions and curtains made out of cotton or sometimes jaguar fur. No archaeological traces are left of these except for indirect evidence such as the common curtainholes found frequently on both sides of doorways. The background in the pictorial scenes is generally austere, even though glyphic captions naming the persons and action represented are reminiscent of those found sometimes in the interiors of palace structures, as for instance in Palenque. In contrast, perishable and non-perishable objects illustrated in different palace scenes are plentiful and varied. However, most are directly related to a person or to the action depicted and can therefore not be considered as general palace dcor. These object include: pots and plates of all kinds, often filled with cacao and tamales; obsidian or pyrite mirrors, always pointing towards the ruler and, therefore, a major status symbol; bundles, sometimes described or marked to contain cacao, beans or Spondylus shells; cotton sheets -plain white, colored, brocaded-, brought in as tribute and, in some scenes, quality-checked by court officials; flowers, appreciated for their fragrance and often used to flavor cacao; fans of different kinds and sizes, some made out of feathers but most made out of cotton or palm; baskets of varying kinds, made out of palm and often painted; offensive and defensive weapons such as long and short spears, knives, hatchets, clubs with obsidian incrustations, as well as shields of different sizes and forms; musical instruments such as rattles, conch trumpets, wooden or clay trumpets, different types of drums (including

154 PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL

PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL 155

the rather uncommon friction drum), shell bells; torches to illuminate the interiors of the rooms at night, always carried by someone and never fixed to the architecture; zoomorphic, anthropomorphic and fantastic masks, books, ballgame gear, and incense bags.

Late Classic palace scene from the Ik site polity (Motul de San Jos), showing the delivery of tribute (K1728, photo Justin Kerr, taken from Kerr n.d.a)

Most of the non-perishable objects shown in the palace scenes are likely to be encountered fragmented in any archaeological excavations, including pots and plates, pieces of obsidian, obsidian or flint spearheads, knives and hatchets, flutes, figurines, shells, fragments of maize grinding instruments such as manos and metates. However, while in the palace scenes most of these objects are shown in use and in situ, the ones excavated, even those closest to the structures floors, most probably have fallen in some post-abandonment moment out of the structures roof/wall fill. It is, therefore, almost impossible to infer the functionality and/or use of space and activity based on artifacts alone. The functionality of the palace groups has been a problem ever since they were first identified as such by early explores such as John Lloyd Stephens in 1840 (Stephens 1969: 309-320). The spatial composition of these complexes suggests certain specific functions, but very few have been corroborated by archaeological or iconographic evidence. Even if chemical samples of the floors and benches were taken, all that could be proven with current technology would be a limited number of activities such as cooking and incense burning, as well as the use of certain areas as storage space for organic matter. Notwithstanding, by correlating information of architectural, spatial, archaeological and iconographic data it is possible to assign at least three categories of

general functions -1) scenic-ceremonial; 2) political-administrative and 3) domestic-residential- to five specific areas: A) areas of access; B) areas of scenic display and reception; C) areas of semi-public reception; D) areas of private reception; E) residential areas (see Delvendahl 2005: 178-234). Within the three functional categories more specific activities can be assumed with some certainty even if not necessarily present in the archaeological-iconographic data. In areas identified as domestic for their spatial location (D, E), for example, spaces suitable for general living, sleeping, storage, and the preparation of food are likely to be found, even if the latter has not been demonstrated satisfactorily so far (a few mano-fragments do not make a kitchen; see Inomata 2001: 43). In areas identified as adequate for political-administrative and scenic-ceremonial functions (A, B), activities such as the welcoming of state visitors, the reception of tribute, reunions of local nobility and the ruler, enthronements, dances, auto-blood sacrifices, as well as the presentation and eventual sacrifice of prisoners can be inferred primarily from iconographic evidence. Given their general scenic character, it can be assumed that most political-administrative and ceremonial activities occupied the same general spaces (A-C), especially the palace groups stairways, platforms, and peripheral constructions adjacent to the more public plazas, or alternatively, the stairways, platforms, and structures of the more accessible, larger inner courtyards. Other spaces which can be assumed to have existed in the palace groups or close by, as indicated indirectly through iconographic evidence, are larger storage rooms for tribute and war-booty, residencelike areas for the lodging of state visitors and their entourage, special chambers for the storage of ritual paraphernalia, as well as workshops for elite crafts, such as codex and ceramic painting, and workshops for royal youth education. Given ethnographic evidence one also might expect smaller sanctuaries for household rituals (while most of the above mentioned is resumed from Delvendahl 2000 & 2005 and most of the following based on Delvendahl 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, additional information on different aspects of Late Classic palaces and court nobility can be drawn from: Arnauld 2001; Ball 1993; Barrales 2002; Chase, A. 1992; Chase, A. and D. Chase 1992, 2000; Chase, A. et al. 1999; Chase, D. and A. Chase 1992; Christie 2003; Clark and Houston 1998; Closs 1992; Coe 1973; Coe and Kerr 1998; Donahue n.d.; Evans 2001; Evans and Pillsbury 2004; Harrison 1969, 1970, 2001, 2003;

156 PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL

PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL 157

Harrison and Andrews 2004; Hendon 1987, 1997; Houston 1998a, 1998b, 1998c, 2002, 2004; Houston and Cummins 2004; Houston and Stuart 1993, 2001; Houston and Taube 2000; Houston et al. 2006; Inomata 2001a, 2001b; Inomata and Houston 2001a, 2001b, 2001c; Inomata and Triadan 2003; Jackson and Stuart 2001; Kahn 1990; Kerr n.d.a, n.d.b; Liendo 2003; Martin and Grube 2008; Miller, M. 1986, 1988, 2001; Miller and Martin 2004; Miller, V. 1985; Parmington 2003; Prager 2002; Reents-Budet 1994, 1998b, 2001; Reents-Budet et al. 2000; Schele 1997; Schele and Mathews 1991; Schele and Miller 1986; Traxler 2001, 2003; Webster 2001; Webster and Inomata 2004). Unfortunately, archaeological investigations in all of Calakmuls palace groups have been rather inadequate up to the present. Mapping and some excavations have been realized in Structure III by the University of Campeche Project (see for instance Folan et al. 2000, 2001b; Pincemin 1994) but the published results have been confusing at best (see Delvendahl 2005: 418-422 for a resume). The same project also mapped the other groups as part of their wider cartographic effort (Folan et al. 2001a, Appendix; May Hau et al. 1990). The current Calakmul Archaeological Project has mapped and excavated parts of the ceremonial sectors of the Northeast Group, but so far not extended the explorations to the potential residential areas of the same group further south. The Small Acropolis and the South Group have only been surveyed. The Grand Acropolis Group, which has been preliminarily investigated in 1997-1998 and again during the 2001-2004 field seasons by the current Calakmul Archaeological Project is the best explored palace group of Calakmul so far and will be discussed in more detail further on. During the earlier explorations stratigraphic test-pits were dug in several courtyards to establish a preliminary construction sequence of the group (Campaa 1998), while at the same time parts of the northern fringes of the Grand Acropolis Group, especially the residential units Utsiaal Caan and Casa del Seis Ajaw were explored and excavated (lvarez 1998, 1999; Carrasco et al. 1998a). During the 2001-2004 field seasons the whole palace complex was surveyed and measured while extensive surface collection, trenching, test-pitting and partial excavation of some structures were carried out (Carrasco and Coln 2005; Delvendahl 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005). While Structure III and the Northeast Group have been described above, little is known of the Small Acropolis and the South Group. The Small Acropolis is a six to seven court complex starting some 150 m to

the east of the Main Plaza and covering approximately 200 m northsouth by 250 m east-west. While only the second biggest palace group at Calakmul, with extension and building volume inferior to the Grand Acropolis Group, it is still almost three times the size of the Central Acropolis in Tikal, that citys largest royal court. It, therefore, must have been an extremely important complex, without doubt home to one of the most exalted lineages of the city. However, unlike the Grand Acropolis Group, the Small Acropolis does not have apparent scenicceremonial buildings, except maybe for a major structure on its northern side. There are also no monuments associated with this complex (as opposed to eight stelae linked to the Grand Acropolis palace). In total it seem to have had more domestic-residential functions, maybe in part stimulated by the proximity of the only two artificial water reservoirs in the inner central site core, one of them not even 100 m east, the other about 200 m to the north of the Small Acropolis. The South Group lies just off the Grand Acropolis Group, less than 100 m from that compounds southern courts and separated by some low-lying, formerly possibly swampy ground. It is an impressive, roughly quadrangular complex of approximately 100 m east-west by 110 m north-south and four courtyards, surrounded on all sides by long range-type buildings. The whole complex is elevated several meters above the surrounding area, providing a certain amount of privacy for the structures and courtyards and creating a sense of coherency. Even though no monuments are directly associated with the complex there can hardly be any doubt that it was inhabited by members of the highest stratum. A series of residential mounds are extending to the south of the South Group on a lower ground level. Compared to the relatively small mounds attached to the residential court of the Northeast Group, the much larger, clearly arranged mounds south of the South Group seem to be of higher quality and can therefore be assumed to be elite residences. In fact, Martin (2001: 173) considers them part of the South Group court complex. As mentioned above, the Grand Acropolis Group has an extension of roughly 336 m north-south by 344 m east-west, covering approximately 115,584 m2. It is constituted of 17 courtyards of different sizes and elevations which are surrounded by up to 80 buildings. The buildings and courtyard form a clearly defined area, separated by high, adjoining buildings from the public plazas in the east and by low buildings and low walls from a seemingly sparsely inhabited

158 PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL

PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL 159

area which extends towards the Bajo El Laberinto in the west. As the ground on which the palace group evolved slopes gradually towards the west, all the eastern courtyards present a higher elevation than the western courtyards. As one moves from east to west the decline is somewhat over 6 m (Campaa 1998: 59-60). However, this difference includes artificial elevations, as the eastern courtyards present several construction periods while most central and western courtyards have only one. The actual descent of the ground seems to be only slightly over 2 m. To the north an immense wall, known as the Great Wall (described above), closes the palatial space and controls the access from that direction. Some 300 m to the northwest of it lies the second largest water reservoir (aguada) of Calakmul. It is possible that a large part of the water supply of the palace inhabitants was carried in from that reservoir since, except for one small cistern (chultn), no other water storing device has been detected in the palace group so far. Most of the 17 courtyards of the group (preliminarily designated Courts A-Q) are unusually large as compared to the courts of other Southern Lowland palace complexes. While in Tikals Central Acropolis the largest courtyard (5D-2) does not surpass approximately 20 m by 30 m (600 m2) and the largest court of the Palace of Palenque (the East Court) covers less than 310 m2, in the Grand Acropolis Group of Calakmul only 5 patios (G, H, L, N, P) are smaller than 1,000 m2. Seven courts (C, D, F, K, M, O, Q) cover between 1,000 and 2,000 m2, three courts span over 2,000 m2 (Court B: 40 m north-south by 50 m eastwest [2,000 m2], Court A: 29 m north-south by 74 m east-west [2,146 m2] Court E: 43 north-south by 50 m east-west [2,150 m2]), and two almost plaza-like courtyards cover more than 3,000 m2 (Court J: 63 m north-south by 49 m east-west [3,087 m2], Court I: 50 m north-south by 75 m east-west [3,750 m2]; all measures are average approximations). Excavations and systematic surface artifact collection on all 17 courtyards have yielded a small percentage of Late Preclassic ceramics (little over 3%), a high percentage of Early Classic pottery (almost 47%), a relatively small amount of Late Classic material (not even 30%), and very little from the Terminal Classic (6.4%). Some 14% of the material found was too eroded to be identified (see Delvendahl 2002, 2003, 2005). These numbers seem to indicate that the whole complex was settled by at least the Late Preclassic, the eastern part probably even by the early Late Preclassic (around 300-200 BC). However, given the high

Map of the Grand Acropolis Group, with preliminary nomenclature of the courtyards (redrawn by the author from John Bolles map in Ruppert and Denison 1943, Plate 61)

percentage of Early Classic material -most probably originating from the construction fill of the structures and the latest floor layers- the big bulk of construction seems to have taken place towards the end of the Early Classic or, more likely, at the beginning of the Late Classic. This time-span does coincide perfectly with the establishing of the Kaan dynasty at Calakmul and with the later height of Calakmuls power under the reign of Yuknoom Cheen II The Great (636-686 AD), when Calakmul dominated a vast network of allies and subordinated tributaries, and huge amounts of tribute, material, and work force must have flowed into the city, used by the royal architects for a radical physical alteration of the sites core. Judging by the percentage of ceramics, the second half of the Late Classic and the Terminal Classic saw far less construction activity in the palace group, probably for the most part dedicated to the amplifications of existing structures, as was corroborated on Structure XX (Carrasco and Coln 2005; Delvendahl

160 PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL

PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL 161

2004, 2005). But there can be no doubt that the whole group was in use at that time and probably occupied by the extended royal family, as indicated by the volume and quality of its edifices, the number of monuments associated, and the amount of finely painted elite ceramics found in and around its structures. Most of the mounds surrounding the 17 courtyards cover long range-type structures with three to ten rooms built on low platforms. Many of these structures extend all along the sides of their respective courts, leaving only relatively small passageways from one patio to the other. Even if few buildings have been actually trenched or excavated, surface clearing has revealed their general outlines, affirming that most are composed of two galleries of the tandem present/transverse not present-type established by Harrison (1970: 94), referring to structures with two or more parallel rooms (tandem present) without lateral rooms (transverse not present). As is common in the Petn architectural style, most buildings have relatively massive exterior and interior walls while roofed space is rather limited. It can be assumed that the majority contained lateral or central stone benches. In the southern part of the palace group (Courts C, D, E, and F), several of the two-gallery buildings connect or separate two courtyards in a way that each of the galleries opens to a different court. In these dual-orientation buildings every room has his own doorway and some rooms, often the central ones, are connected to permit access from one court to the other. Some structures in the Grand Acropolis Group seem to have several levels, comparable to Structures 5D-52 and Structures 5D-128 & 5D-53 & 5D-54 (three in one) in Tikal or Structure A-18 in Uaxactn. The best example of this type of construction in the Grand Acropolis Group is a building on the southern side of Court I, to the south of the Utsiaal Caan residential unit. On this building three levels are easily distinguishable: the lowest level corresponds to the Court I floor, while the highest level corresponds to a three-roomed upper building on top of the structure, which opens both to the north (Court I) and to the south (Court H), located at approximately 11.2 m above Court I floor. The middle level is identifiable about half-way up by a series of corbelled vault stones in situ. No doubt the roof of the lowest level formed the terrace for the middle level, while this level provided the north terrace for the upper rooms. The spatial configuration of the Grand Acropolis Group clearly separates the more accessible and, therefore, possibly public or semi-

public spaces of the scenic-ceremonial and political-administrative categories and the more secluded areas, some of which might have had domestic-residential functions. The accesses to the palace group are on the eastern side of the complex, through buildings bordering the large plazas of the Grand Acropolis. While Structure A-1 of the South Court might have given access to the southern part of the group and to Court B of the Structure XVI rectangle, the main access to the palace complex was probably via Structure XX on the west side of the Plaza de los Prisioneros. This complex building, described above, probably served as scenic-ceremonial stage for festivities related to the ball game and human sacrifice as well as for receptions of foreign visitors and tributaries (functional area B: areas of scenic display and reception). However, one main purpose of this building since at least early Late

Map of the Grand Acropolis Group, indicating possible access and circulation routes (redrawn by the author from John Bolles map in Ruppert and Denison 1943, Plate 61)

162 PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL

PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL 163

Classic times and until the Terminal Classic (VII through early X Century) was that of an entrance gate to the central and northern sections of the palace group (functional area A: areas of access). The small Court G behind Structure XX served as point of dispersion: once the visitor passed through the small, guarded passageways of Structure XX and stepped down into Court G, it was equally easy to get to the central (F, H) and southern courts (E, D, and C), as it was to reach the western sections (Court J via Court E and from there north to Courts K, M, N, and P). Nevertheless, it can be suspected that the main radius of accessibility from Court G would have been the Courts H, F, E and maybe Court J which was connected to Court E via a wide stairway. These courts might have covered functional areas C and D, described above: areas of semi-public reception and areas of private reception. Courts B, C, and D were probably accessed from Court A in the south, while the northwestern section was accessed via a so far not clearly identified path. As described above, two residential units have been located and excavated in the northern part of the Grand Acropolis Group, unfortunately without satisfactorily establishing the status of its occupants. However, most of the courtyards which most likely were residential (functional area E: residential areas) are located in the south-central part of the palace group (Courts C, D, E, in part possibly Courts F & H, and maybe Court B). Accessible only indirectly via other courtyards, they all are located at a certain distance from the general access to the palace and the more public buildings. The large rangetype buildings surrounding the courtyards on all sides form rather intimate spaces, while at the same time the wide courtyards prevent a feeling of enclosure. The apparent homogeneity of the courtyards and structures (especially Courts C-E), all of roughly the same elevation and similar layout, enforces the perception of a functional coherent area which essentially represents an extended versions of the basic residential patio group of the ancient Maya commoner (see Benavides and Manzanilla 1985; Manzanilla and Benavides 1985; Marcus 2004; McAnany and Plank 2001; Nalda and Balanzario 1997; Webster 2001). Unfortunately, no extensive excavations have been carried out and it makes little sense to speculate on the whereabouts of more specific activity areas, such as kitchens, etc., which generally define domesticresidential sectors.

Some courtyards within the Grand Acropolis Group, as for example Courts L, J, and O, might have had specific functions not covered by the categories described above. Court L, for instance, is with roughly 11 m by 20 m the smallest courtyard of the palace complex (220 m2) and also one of the less accessible. Surrounded by low buildings on its north, south, and west sides, the east side is covered by a wide stairway leading up to a building connecting to higher Court H. The eastern 2/3 of the court seems to have been covered by some sort of platform. On the soil surface of that platform, centrally at the bottom of the stairway rising to the eastern building, a substantial amount of polychrome ceramics has been unearthed, including a beautiful piece of codexstyle ware, showing two scribes attending a meeting. The quantity of ritual elite pottery, the discovery of several fragments of censers, and the seclusion of the space suggest that Court L was used for some kind of private ritual activities.

Codex-style fragment excavated in Court L, possibly showing two scribes. Note the small jade-mask pectoral worn by the right figure (Photo by the author)

Court J, the second largest court located in the western part of the palace group, presents on its northern extreme three elongated, over 40 m long, but relatively narrow parallel buildings that span the whole length of the courtyard. The three buildings are separated by straight alleys not more than 3.5 m wide. Unusual as compared to the other constructions of the palace group, they convey the impression of storerooms or maybe workshops. The western and southern sides of Court J seem to be surrounded not so much by edifices, but by

164 PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL

PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL 165

low walls. Several rocky outcrops pierce the actual soil surface in the southeastern section of the court and must have stood about a meter high from the original stuccoed floor. High concentrations of ceramics were noticeable around these rock formations, which might have been aesthetically integrated in the surrounding space (see Houston 2004: 284, Note 32, for a short discussion of similar features at Piedras Negras). The Court O complex in the northwestern section is one of the most impressive spaces within the palace group: a huge quadrangle elevated up to 10 m above the surrounding Courtyards M, P, and Q. The four long and very narrow buildings, enclosing the 33 m by 38 m courtyard, were made of relatively small exterior walls, the reason, probably, why they tumbled to their very bases, covering with their debris the four sides of the quadrangle to an extent that no traces of stairway leading up to the compound can be made out today (though the stairway is suspected on the south or the east side). The Court O complex is one of the less accessible parts of the palace group; however, the structures do not seem to be residential and therefore must be considered ritual, possibly for some kind of seclusion requiring community-religious activities like fasting. For the structural quality one might think that the buildings were of late date, maybe even Terminal Classic, but surface collection yielded the usual percentage distribution similar to the rest of the palace group with almost 5% dating to Middle and Late Preclassic, 40% dating to the Early Classic, 30% dating to the Late Classic, and only 10% dating to the Terminal Classic. As with Maya sites on the whole, it is extremely speculative to estimate the number of inhabitants that once peopled a palace complex the size of the Grand Acropolis Group. It had been calculated that up to 500 people occupied rather small palace groups such as Group 10L-2 in Copn or the Los 27 Escalones complex in Kohunlich (cf. Harrison and Andrews 2004: 141; Nalda and Balanzario 1997: 11). On the other side it was estimated, based on residential facilities, that only between 100 and 200 people lived permanently in a rather large palace group as the Central Acropolis of Tikal (Harrison 1970: 316). As for the Grand Acropolis Group, the size of the complex, the quantity of courtyards and surrounding buildings, the relation of scenic-ceremonial, semi-public and residential space, as well as the relation of architecture versus roofed interior space suggest that it was permanently occupied by no more than 600-800 inhabitants. The

complexs overall extension of 115,584 m2 would provide between 144.5 m2 and 193 m2 space per person. However, most of the overall space was taken up by open courtyards, structure basements, as well as of the mass of construction itself. The 17 courtyards alone cover more than 26,665 m2 of the total surface, leaving about 88,920 m2 for structures of different kinds. If one estimates that the rather limited, roofed interior space of the upper buildings constitutes only about 10% of the total construction volume (including platforms), 88,920 m2 of construction would reduce to only approximately 8,892 m2 of interior space. Of these at least 50% can be subtracted for buildings used for other than residential purposes (Harrison [2001: 87] calculates even up to 80% for the Central Acropolis in Tikal), leaving a maximum of 4,446 m2 of roofed interior space as domestic living quarters. With an estimated residential population of 600 inhabitants, every person would have had less than 7.5 m2 interior space, providing a family of ten about 74 m2. That amount of space is roughly equivalent to a hypothetical four-roomed one-gallery building of 42 m by 4 m (wall size 1 m) with rooms of 9.25 m by 2 m. In the case of 800 residents, every person would have had a little bit over 5.5 m2 interior space available. A family of ten would have inhabited 55.5 m2 of interior living space, equivalent to a hypothetical one-gallery building of 31.75 m by 4 m (wall size 1 m) with three 9.25 m by 2 m rooms, or, alternatively, four 6.95 m by 2 m rooms. All three types of buildings are conceivable inside the Grand Acropolis palace group. Of both figures, 600 permanent residents seems to be more likely and should probably be considered the average at the time of Calakmuls apex during the early Late Classic, when most of the buildings were constructed and occupied. If future excavations confirm that only about 20-30% of the whole complex was of domestic-residential use, even that figure must be considerably lowered. During the Terminal Classic, subdivisions and amplifications of the existing structures seem to indicate a greater need of interior space, a result, possibly, of a larger population. However, this need was not desperate enough to build entirely new structures inside the palace walls on the immense inner courtyards (less for some small, seemingly very late buildings in Court B). Accordingly, it can be assumed that the permanent population of the complex in the Terminal Classic was considerably, but not excessively, larger than in the Late Classic, maybe somewhere around 800, and eventually up to 1,000 residents towards the very end of the IX Century.

166 PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL

PALACES AND COURT CULTURE AT CALAKMUL 167

Epilogue

ew Maya sites have yielded such a vast amount of information in the relatively short period of 26 years of archaeological investigation as Calakmul. Even if it was perceived as a Classic metropolis of supreme importance since its rediscovery in 1931, it was only after excavations started in 1983 that the true magnitude and time-depth of the city came to light. Identified as one Kaan seat of power, epigraphic studies since the 70s, and especially in the 90s and up to the present, could establish the overarching political influence of Calakmul during its height of power in the VII and early VIII Century. In a time period lasting roughly 140 years (600-740 AD), its authority was felt in the remotest areas of the Maya Lowlands, and the city itself prospered through an unequaled influx of wealth and labor force. Never before and never after was a Maya kingdom so respected and feared. And still, only 160 years later, by the beginning of the X Century, Calakmul was seized by the vortex of events of the turbulent Terminal Classic, culminating in the desertion of the royal institutions and the subsequent gradual abandonment of the city. Its plazas, palaces, and pyramids were reclaimed by nature. Roofs crumbled, walls tumbled, and the structures left in ruins were only sporadically visited by pilgrims up to the time of the Spanish Conquest in the first half of the XVI Century. History turned to myth. Today, almost 1,100 years after the last monument was dedicated at Calakmul, thanks to the tremendous archaeological effort of recent decades, the excavated sections of the sites center once again provide an overwhelming impression of what the city might have been like in its most glorious days. For now, and for future generations, the most important task will be to preserve the ancient vestiges as a debt we owe to the past.

EPILOGUE 169

170 EPILOGUE

References
lvarez Gonzlez, Paula 1998 Unidad residencial Utsiaal Caan, in: Carrasco et al. (1998), pp. 44-58. 1999 Utsiaal Caan, in: Carrasco et al. (1999), pp. 103-117. Andrews, George F. 1975 Maya Cities. Placemaking and Urbanization, Norman, Oklahoma. Arnauld, Marie Charlotte 2001 La Casa Grande: Evolucin de la arquitectura del poder del Clsico al Postclsico, in: Ciudad et al. (2001), pp. 363-401. Ball, Joseph W. 1993 Pottery, Potters, Palaces, and Polities. Some Socioeconomic and Political Implications of Late Classic Maya Ceramic Industries, in: Sabloff, J. A., and J. Henderson (eds.) Lowland Maya Civilization in the Eighth Century A. D., Washington D. C., pp. 243-272. Barrales Rodrguez, Dehmian 2002 Nuevas perspectivas sobre la posicin y organizacin social de los escribas mayas durante el Clsico Tardo, in: Tiesler et al. (2002), pp. 69-88. Barthel, Thomas S. 1968 El complejo emblema, in: Estudios de Cultura Maya, Vol. 7, UNAM, Mxico D. F., pp. 159-193. 1968b Historisches in den klassischen Mayainschriften, in: Zeitschrift fr Ethnologie, Vol. 93, No. 1 and 2, Braunschweig, pp. 119-156. Benavides Castillo, Antonio, and Linda Manzanilla 1985 Unidades habitacionales excavadas en Cob, Q. R., in: Arquitectura y Arqueologa. Metodologas en la cronologa de Yucatn, Collection Etudes Mesoamericaines Serie II-8, CEMCA, Mxico D. F., pp. 69-76.

REFERENCES 171

Benson, Elizabeth P., and Gillett G. Griffin (eds.) 1988 Maya Iconography, Princeton University Press, Princeton. Berlin, Heinrich 1958 El glifo emblema en las inscripciones mayas, in: Journal de la Socit des Amricanistes 47, pp. 111-119. Blier, Suzanne Preston 1998 Royal Arts of Africa. The Majesty of Form, London. Boot, Eric 2002 A Preliminary Classic Maya-English/English-Classic Maya Vocabulary of Hieroglyphic Readings, Leiden University, Leiden. http://www.mesoweb.com/resources/vocabulary/Vocabulary.pdf Boucher, Sylviane, and Sara Dzul G. 1998 La secuencia tipolgica preliminar de la cermica de Calakmul, in: Carrasco et al. (1998a), pp. 123-146. Boucher, Sylviane, and Yoly Palomo C. 2000a El lenguaje iconogrfico de la Tumba 4, Estructura II de Calakmul, Camp., in: Los Investigadores de la Cultura Maya 8, Vol. I, UAC, Campeche, pp. 50-68.

Campaa, Luz Evelia 1998 Prospeccin y sondeo en el rea suroeste de la Gran Acrpolis, in: Carrasco et al. (1998a), pp. 59-71. Carr, Robert F., and James Hazard 1961 Map of the Ruins of Tikal, El Peten, Guatemala, in: Tikal Report, No. 11, University of Pennsylvania-The University Museum, Philadelphia. Carrasco Vargas, Ramn 1996 Calakmul, Campeche, in: arqueologa mexicana, Vol. III - No. 18, Editorial Races, Mxico D. F., pp. 46-51.

1998a The Metropolis of Calakmul, Campeche, in: Schmidt, Peter, Mercedes de la Garza, and Enrique Nalda (eds.) Maya, Bompiani, Venice, pp. 373-385. 1998b Evidencias arqueolgicas de entidades polticas mayas, in: Trejo, Silvia (ed.) Modelos de entidades polticas mayas. Primer seminario de Mesas Redondas de Palenque, Conaculta, INAH, Mxico D. F., pp. 79-87. 1999a Actividad ritual y objetos de poder en la Estructura IV de Calakmul, Campeche, in: Gubler, Ruth (ed.) In Land of the Turkey and the Deer: Recent Archaeological Research in Yucatan, Labyrinthos Lancaster, pp. 69-84. 1999b Tumbas reales de Calakmul. Ritos funerarios y estructura de poder, in: arqueologa mexicana, Vol. VII No. 40, Editorial Races, Mxico D. F., pp. 28-31. 2000 2001
El cuchcabal de la Cabeza de Serpiente, in: arqueologa mexicana, Vol. VII - No. 42, Editorial Races, Mxico D. F., pp. 12-19. Calakmul en el arte y la arquitectura del Formativo, paper presented at the Congreso Internacional de Copn, July 12-14, 2001, Copn Ruinas. The Sacred Mountain. Preclassic Architecture in Calakmul, in: Fields, Virgina M., and Dorie Reents-Budet Lords of Creation. The Origins of Sacred Maya Kingship, Scala, Los Angeles, pp. 62-66.

2000b Cermica ritual de Calakmul, in: arqueologa mexicana, Vol. VII - No. 42, Editorial Races, Mxico D. F., pp. 34-39.
Boucher, Sylviane, and Lucia Quiones 2007 Entre mercados, ferias y festines. Los murales de la Sub I-4 de Chiik Nahb, Calakmul, in: Mayab, No. 19, Sociedad Espaola de Estudios Mayas, Universidad Complutense, Madrid, pp. 27-50. Braswell, Geoffrey, Joel D. Gunn, Mara del Rosario Domnguez Carrasco, William J. Folan, Laraine A. Fletcher, Abel Morales Lpez, and Michael D. Glascock 2005 Defining the Terminal Classic at Calakmul, Campeche, in: Demarest, Arthur A., Prudence M. Rice, and Don S. Rice (eds.) The Terminal Classic in the Maya Lowlands. Collapse, Transition, and Transformation, University Press of Colorado, Boulder, pp. 162-194.

2005

172 REFERENCES

REFERENCES 173

Carrasco Vargas, Ramn, and Andre Bojalil 2005 Nuevos datos para la historia del arte y la iconografa del Clsico temprano en el rea maya: el Reino de Kaan, in: La Pintura Mural Prehispnica en Mxico, Boletn Informativo, Ao XI, No. 23, IIE-UNAM, Mxico D.F., pp. 24-32. Carrasco Vargas, Ramn, and Sylviane Boucher 1994 Calakmul. Espacios sagrados y objetos de poder, in: arqueologa mexicana, Vol. II - No. 10, Editorial Races, Mxico D. F., pp. 32-38. Carrasco Vargas, Ramn, Sylviane Boucher, Paula lvarez Gonzlez, Vera Tiesler Blos, Valeria Garca Vierna, Renata Garca Moreno, and Javier Vsquez Negrete 1999a A Dynastic Tomb from Campeche, Mexico. New Evidence on Jaguar Paw, a Ruler from Calakmul, in: Latin American Antiquity, Vol. X, No. 1, Society for American Archaeology, Washington D. C., pp. 47-58. Carrasco Vargas, Ramn, and Marins Coln Gonzlez 2005 El reino de Kaan y la antigua ciudad de Calakmul, in: arqueologa mexicana, Vol. XIII - No. 75, Editorial Races, Mxico D. F., pp. 40-47. Carrasco Vargas, Ramn, and Omar Rodrguez Campero 2003 La antigua ciudad maya de Calakmul. Una retrospectiva, in: Universidad de Mxico, No. 623, UNAM, Mxico D. F., pp. 47-48.

1997

Proyecto Arqueolgico Calakmul. Temporada 1996-1997, Vol. I, INAH, Campeche.

1998a Proyecto Arqueolgico Calakmul. Informe de los trabajos arqueolgicos, Temporada 1997-1998, INAH, Campeche. 1998b Proyecto Arqueolgico Calakmul. Temporada 1998, INAH, Campeche. 1999b Proyecto Arqueolgico Calakmul. Informe de los trabajos arqueolgicos, Temporada 1998-1999, Vol. I, INAH, Campeche. 2000 2001 2002 2003
Proyecto Arqueolgico Calakmul. Informe Temporada 1999, INAH, Campeche. Proyecto Arqueolgico Calakmul. Informe Temporada 2000, INAH, Campeche. Proyecto Arqueolgico Calakmul. Informe Temporada 2001, INAH, Campeche. Proyecto Arqueolgico Calakmul. Informe Temporada 2002, INAH, Campeche.

2005

La antigua ciudad maya de Calakmul. Una retrospectiva, in: Blanco y Negro. Calakmul, Imgenes, No. 7, Conaculta-INAH-UAC-Gobierno del Estado-Instituto de Cultura, Campeche, pp. 11-17.

Castro, Ins de 2007 Maya. Knige aus dem Regenwald, Katalog zur Sonderausstellung, Gerstenberg, Hildesheim. Chase, Arlen F. 1992 Elites and the Changing Organization of Classic Maya Society, in: Chase, D., and A. Chase (eds., 1992), pp. 30-49. Chase, Arlen F., and Diane Z. Chase 1992 Mesoamerican Elites. Asumptions, Definitions, and Models, in: Chase, D., and A. Chase (eds., 1992), pp. 3-17.

Carrasco Vargas, Ramn, and Vernica A. Vzguez Lpez 2007 Nuevas evidencias del Clsico Temprano en el registro arqueolgico del reino de Kaan, in: Los Investigadores de la Cultura Maya 15, Vol I, UAC, Campeche, pp. 155-165. Carrasco Vargas, Ramn et al. 1994 Proyecto Arqueolgico de la Bisfera de Calakmul, Vol. I, 1993-1994, INAH, Campeche.

2001

The Royal Courts of Caracol, Belize. Its Palaces and People, in: Inomata and Houston (2001c), pp. 102-137.

174 REFERENCES

REFERENCES 175

Chase, Arlen F., Diane Z. Chase, and William A. Haviland 1999 Maya Social Organization from a Big Site Perspective. Classic Period Caracol, Belize and Tikal, Guatemala, paper presented at the Tercera Mesa Redonda de Palenque, 27. 06-04. 07. 1999, Palenque. Chase, Diane Z., and Arlen F. Chase (eds.) 1992 Mesoamerican Elites. An Archaeological Assessment, University of Oklahoma Press, Norman. Christie, Jessica Joyce (ed.) 2003 Maya Palaces and Elite Residences. An Interdisciplinary Approach, University of Texas Press, Austin. Ciudad Ruiz, Andrs 2001 Los palacios residenciales del Clsico Temprano en las ciudades del Sur de las Tierras Bajas Mayas, in: Ciudad et al. (2001), pp. 305-340. Ciudad Ruiz, Andrs, Mara Josefa Iglesias Ponce de Len, and Mara del Carmen Martnez Martnez 2001 Reconstruyendo la ciudad maya. El urbanismo en las sociedades antiguas, Sociedad Espaola de Estudios Mayas, Madrid. Clark, John E., and Richard D. Hansen 2001 The Architecture of Early Kingship: Comparative Perspectives of the Origins of the Maya Royal Court, in: Inomata and Houston (2001c), pp. 1-45. Clark, John E., and Stephen D. Houston 1998 Craft Specialization, Gender, and Personhood Among the Postconquest Maya of Yucatan, Mexico, in: Costin and Wright (1998), pp. 31-46. Closs, Michael 1992 I Am a kahal; My Parents Were Scribes, in: Research Reports on Ancient Maya Writing 39, Center for Maya Research, Washington D. C., pp. 7-22. Coe, Michael D. The Maya Scribe and His World, Grolier Club, New York. 1973

Coe, Michael D., and Justin Kerr 1998 The Art of the Maya Scribe, Harry N. Abrams, Inc., New York. Cohodas, Marvin 1989 Transformations: Relationship between Image and Text in the Ceramic Paintings of the Metropolitan Master, in: Hanks, William F., and Don S. Rice (eds.) Word and Image in Maya Culture. Explorations in Language, Writing, and Representation, University of Utah Press, Salt Lake City, pp. 198-231. Delvendahl, Kai 2000 Herrscher und Hof. Eine ikonografische Analyse historischer Palastszenen auf sptklassischen Maya-Keramiken, master thesis, University of Hamburg, Hamburg. 2001 2002 El Grupo Taman, in: Carrasco et al. (2001). El Grupo Gran Acrpolis, in: Carrasco et al. (2002). Anlisis del material cermico recuperado en las investigaciones del Grupo Gran Acrpolis durante la Temporada del 2001, in: Carrasco et al. (2003). Excavaciones en la Estructura G-1 del Grupo Gran Acrpolis, ms. Las sedes del poder. Arquitectura, espacio, funcin y sociedad de los conjuntos palaciegos del Clsico Tardo en el rea maya evaluados desde la arqueologa y la iconografa, Ph. D. dissertation, FFL & IIA, UNAM, Mxico D. F.

2003

2004

2005

Domnguez Carrasco, Mara del Rosario 2004 Fuentes, produccin y consumo de cermica en el estado regional de Calakmul, Campeche. Un enfoque sociopoltico, Ph.D. dissertation, IIF & FFL, UNAM, Mxico D. F. Domnguez Carrasco, Ma. del Rosario, William J. Folan, Abel Morales L., Raymundo Gonzlez Heredia, Haejoo Chung Seu, Joel D. Gunn, and Lynda Florey Folan 2002 The State of Calakmul, Campeche. Its Regional Concept, in: Tiesler et al. (2002), pp. 277-304.

176 REFERENCES

REFERENCES 177

Domnguez Carrasco, Ma. del Rosario, Joel D. Gunn, and William Folan 1997 Interpretaciones de actividades lticas en la estructura II de Calakmul y su relacin con los edificios III y VII de la plaza central, in: Laporte J. D., and H. I. Escobedo (eds.) X Simposio de Investigaciones Arqueolgicas en Guatemala, Museo Nacional de Arqueologa y Etnologa, Ciudad de Guatemala, pp. 615-532. Donahue, John A. n.d. Applying Experimental Archaeology to Ethnomusicology. Recreating an Ancient Maya Fricction Drum through Various Lines of Evidence, in: Kerr (n.d.a). Dunham, Peter 1988a Maya Balkanization and the Classic Florescence. Golden Age or Incipient Collapse?, paper presented at the Symposium on Mesoamerican Archaeological Studies, American Anthropological Association, 87th Annual Meeting.

Evans, Susan Toby, and Joanne Pillsbury 2004 Palaces of the Ancient New World, A Symposium at Dumbarton Oaks, 10th and 11th October 1998, Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Washington D. C. Fash, William L. 1991 Scribes, Warriors and Kings. The City of Copn and the Ancient Maya, Thames and Hudson, London. Fletcher, Laraine Anne, and James A. Gann 1995 Calakmul, Campeche. Patrn de asentamiento y demografa, in: Vargas Pacheco, Ernesto (ed.) Seis ensayos sobre antiguos patrones de asentamientos en el rea maya, IIA, UNAM, Mxico D. F., pp. 53-67. Fletcher, Laraine A., William J. Folan, Jacinto May Hau, and Lynda Florey Folan 2001 Patron de asentamiento, in: Folan et al. (2001a), pp. 43-66. Florey Folan, Lynda, and William J. Folan 1999 Estructura 2, Calakmul, Campeche (octubre de 1988 a mayo 1989) Plataforma F, in: Informacin 16, CIHS, UAC, Campeche, pp. 15-21. Folan, William J. 1985 Informe preliminar, Proyecto Calakmul 1984-1985, CIHS, UAC, INAH, Campeche.

1988b Social Process and the Maya Collapse. The Classic Balkanization of the Southern Lowlands, paper presented at the Society for American Archaeology 53rd Annual Meeting, Phoenix.
Eberl, Markus 1999 Tod und Begrbnis in der klassischen Maya-Kultur, master thesis, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universitt, Bonn. Eggebrecht, Eva and Arne, Nikolai Grube, and Karin v. Welck (eds.) Die Welt der Maya, Verlag Philipp von Zabern, Mainz. 1993

1992 1994
Ericson, Jenny, Mark S. Freudenberger, and Eckart Boege 1999 Population Dynamics, Migration, and the Future of the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve, Occasional Paper No. 1, Program on Population and Sustainable Development, American Association for the Advancement of Science, New York. http://www.aaas.org/international/ehn/occas1/occas1.pdf Evans, Susan Toby 2001 Aztec Noble Courts. Men, Women, and Children of the Palace, in: Inomata and Houston (2001b), pp. 237-273. 1995

Calakmul, Campeche. A Centralized Urban Administrative Center in the Northern Petn, in: World Archaeology 24, pp. 158-168. Proyecto Calakmul. Estructura II, Temporada Noviembre-Diciembre de 1993, Febrero-Marzo 1994, CIHS, UAC, INAH, Campeche. Proyecto Calakmul, INAH, Campeche. Patrimonio histrico-cultural, in: Folan Higgins, William J., Maria Consuelo Snchez Gonzlez, and Jos Manuel Garca Ortega (eds.) Naturaleza y Cultura en Calakmul, Campeche, UAC/CIHS, Campeche, pp. 71-81.

1999

178 REFERENCES

REFERENCES 179

Folan, William, Laraine A. Fletcher, Jacinto May Hau, and Lynda Florey Folan 2001a Las Ruinas de Calakmul, Campeche, Mxico. Un lugar central y su paisaje cultural, UAC/CIHS, Campeche. Folan, William J., Joel D. Gunn, and Mara del Rosario Domnguez Carrasco 2000 Templos tridicos, plazas centrales y palacios dinsticos. Un anlisis diacrnico del complejo de la corte real de Calakmul, Campeche, Mxico, in: Los Investigadores de la Cultura Maya 7, Vol. II, UAC, Campeche, pp. 234-268. Folan, William J., Joel D. Gunn, and Mara del Rosario Dominguz Carrasco 2001b Triadic Temples, Central Plazas and Dynastic Palaces: A Diachronic Analysis of the Royal Court Complex, Calakmul, Campeche, Mexico, in: Inomata and Houston (2001c), pp. 223-266. Folan, William J., Joyce Marcus, and W. Frank Miller 1995 Verification of a Maya Settlement Model Through Remote Sensing, in: Cambridge Archaeological Journal, Vol. V, No. 2, Cambridge, Mass. pp. 277-283. Folan, William, Abel Morales, Raymundo Gonzlez, Rosario Domnguez, Armando Anaya, and Joel D. Gunn 2007 Calakmul, Campeche. El desarrollo de la Estructura II desde el Clsico Temprano hasta sus ltimos das durante el Clsico Terminal, in: Los Investigadores de la Cultura Maya 15, Vol.I, UAC, Campeche, pp. 138 - 153. Freidel, David, Linda Schele, and Joy Parker 1993 Maya Cosmos. Three Thousand Years on the Shamans Path, William Morrow and Company Inc., New York. Fuente, Beatriz de la, and Leticia Staines Cicero 1998 La Pintura Mural Prehispnica en Mxico, Vol. II, Tomo I & II, rea Maya Bonampak, UNAM, IIE, Mxico D. F.

Gallegos Gmora, Miriam Judith 1990 Excavaciones en la Estructura VII de Calakmul, Campeche. Las costumbres funerarias mayas durante el 300-900 d. n. e. en las capitales regionales: una interpretacion, Mxico D. F.

2001

Costumbres funerarias y organizacin social en Calakmul. Excavaciones en la Estructura VII. Una Interpretacin, UAC/Centro INAH Tabasco, Campeche.

Gallegos Gmora, Miriam Judith, Maria del Rosario Domnguez Carrasco, Ricardo Armijo Torres, and Zaid Lagunas 2005 La cripta funeraria de la Estructura VII de Calakmul, Campeche. Evocando un hallazgo, in: Los Investigadores de la Cultura Maya 13, Vol. I, UAC, Campeche, pp. 107-119. Garca Barrios, Ana 2007 El Dios Chaahk en el Preclsico maya, in: Los Investigadores de la Cultura Maya 15, Vol. I, UAC, Campeche, pp. 267-278. Garca Barrios, Ana, and Ramn Carrasco Vargas 2006 Nuevos Hallazgos de ceramica Estilo Cdice en Calakmul, in: Los Investigadores de la Cultura Maya 14, Vol. I, UAC, Campeche, pp. 125-136. Garca Moreno R., Renata, and Josefina Granados G. 2000 Tumbas reales de Calakmul, in: arqueologa mexicana, Vol. VII - No. 42, Editorial Races, Mxico D. F., pp. 28-33. Garca Vierna, Valeria Amparo 2004 Mscaras para la vida o para la muerte? Una reflexin sobre la funcin de las mscaras de mosaico de jadeta en el rea maya, in: Cobos, Rafael (ed.) Culto funerario en la sociedad maya. Memoria de la Cuarta Mesa Redonda de Palenque, INAH, Mxico D. F., pp. 609-626. 2007 Imgenes materializadas. La mscara de jadeta como retrato y representacin en el Clsico maya, master thesis, ENAH, Mxico D. F.

2001

La Pintura Mural Prehispnica en Mxico, Vol. II, Tomo III & IV, rea Maya, UNAM, IIE, Mxico D. F.

180 REFERENCES

REFERENCES 181

Garca Vierna, Valeria Amparo, Yareli Jaidar Benavides, and Mara Cristina Ruiz Martn 2007 Conservando la memoria de los Cuatro Seores de Balamk, Campeche. La restauracin del relieve de estuco de la Subestructura IA, paper presented at the 1er Coloquio Internacional Patrimonio y desarrollo sustentable in Campeche, Campeche. Garca Vierna, Valeria Amparo, and Renata Schneider Glantz 1996 El proceso de rescate, conservacin, restauracin y anlisis como una fuente primaria de investigacin antropolgica. El caso de la Tumba I de la Estructura XV de Calakmul, Campeche, tesis de licenciatura, ENCRM, Mxico D. F. 2002 El rescate de la Tumba 1 de la Estructure XV de Calakmul, Campeche, in: Tercer Congreso Internacional de Mayistas, Memoria, Vol. II, UNAM-UQRoo, Mxico D. F., pp. 213-223.

Grube, Nikolai (ed.) 2000 Maya. Gottknige im Regenwald, Knemann Verlagsgesellschaft mbH, Kln. Grube, Nikolai, and Maria Gaida 2006 Die Maya. Schrift und Kunst, SMB-DuMont, Berlin. Grube, Nikolai, and Simon Martin 1998a Deciphering Maya Politics, in: Notebook for the XXIInd Maya Hieroglyphic Forum at Texas, University of Texas, Austin. 1998b Poltica clsica maya dentro de una tradicin mesoamericana. Un modelo de organizacin hegemnica, in: Trejo, Silvia (ed.) Modelos de entidades polticas mayas. Primer seminario de Mesas Redondas de Palenque, Conaculta, INAH, Mxico D. F., pp. 131-146. 2000 Die dynastische Geschichte der Maya, in: Grube (ed., 2000), pp. 149-171.

Gonzlez, Emily 1999a Estructura XIV, in: Carrasco et al. (1999), pp. 90-96. 1999b Estructura XVII, in: Carrasco et al. (1999), pp. 97-102. Grube, Nikolai 1992 Classic Maya Dance. Evidence from Hieroglyphs and Iconography, in: Ancient Mesoamerica, Vol. 3, Cambridge University Press, New York, pp. 201-218. 2003 2004 2005 Epigraphic Analysis of Altar 3 of Altar de los Reyes, in: Sprajc (2003) http://www.famsi.org/reports/01014/section14.htm El origen de la dinasta Kaan, in: Nalda (2004), pp. 117-131.

Guenter, Stanley 2003 The Inscriptions of Dos Pilas Associated with Bajlaj Chan Kawiil, http://www.mesoweb.com/features/guenter/DosPilas.html Harrison, Peter D. 1969 Form and Function in a Maya Palace Group, in: Verhandlungen des XXXVIII Internationalen Amerikanistenkongresses, Vol. 1, Mnchen, pp. 165-172. 1970 The Central Acropolis, Tikal, Guatemala. A Preliminary Study of the Functions of its Structural Components During the Late Classic Period, Ph. D. dissertation, University of Pennsylvania. The Rise of the Bajos and The Fall of the Maya, in: Hammond, Norman (ed.) Social Processes in Maya Prehistory: Studies in the Memory of Sir Eric Thompson, Academic Press, New York, pp. 470-508. Lords of Tikal. Rulers of an Ancient Maya City, Thames and Hudson, London. Maya-Architektur in Tikal, Guatemala, in: Grube (ed., 2000), pp. 219-231.

1977 Toponyms, Emblem Glyphs, and the Political Geography of Southern Campeche, in: Anthropological Notebooks, XI, pp. 89-102, Slovene Anthropological Society. http://www.drustvo-antropologov.si/AN/PDF/2005_1/ Anthropological_Notebooks_XI-1_6.pdf Die Staaten der Maya, in: Castro (ed, 2007), pp. 41-59.

1999

2007

2000

182 REFERENCES

REFERENCES 183

2001

Thrones and Throne Structures in the Central Acropolis of Tikal as an Expression of the Royal Court, in: Inomata and Houston (2001c), pp. 74-101. Palaces of the Royal Court at Tikal, in: Christie (2003), pp. 98-119.

2004

The Acrpolis of Piedras Negras. Portrait of a Court System, in: Miller and Martin (2004), pp. 271-276.

2003

Harrison, Peter D., and E. Wyllys Andrews 2004 Palaces of Tikal and Copn, in: Evans and Pillsbury (2004), pp. 113-147. Hellmuth, Nicholas M. 1987 Monster und Menschen in der Maya-Kunst. Eine Ikonographie der alten Religionen Mexikos und Guatemalas, Akademische Druck- u. Verlagsanstalt, Graz. Hendon, Julia A. 1987 The Uses of Maya Structures. A Study of Architecture and Artifact Distribution at Sepulturas, Copan, Ph. D. dissertation, Department of Anthropology, Harvard University, Cambridge. 1997 Woman`s Work, Woman`s Space, and Woman`s Status Among the Classic-Period Maya Elite of the Copan Valley, Honduras, in: Claassen, Cheryl, and Rosemary A. Joyce (eds.) Woman in Prehistory. North America and Mesoamerica, University of Pennsylvania Press, Philadelphia.

Houston, Stephen (ed.) 1998c Function and Meaning in Classic Maya Architecture. A Symposium at Dumbarton Oaks, 7th and 8th October 1994, Dumbarton Oaks Trustees for Havard University, Washington, D. C. Houston, Stephen, and Tom Cummins 2004 Body, Presence, and Space in Andean and Mesoamerican Rulership, in: Evans and Pillsbury (2004), pp. 359-398. Houston, Stephen, and David Stuart 1993 Der Hofstaat der Maya in der Klassik, in: Eggebrecht et al. (1993), pp. 142-157. 2001 Peopling the Classic Maya Court, in: Inomata and Houston (2001b), pp. 54-83.

Houston, Stephen, David Stuart, and Karl Taube 2006 The Memory of Bones. Body, Being, and Experience Among the Classic Maya, University of Texas Press, Austin. Houston, Stephen, and Karl Taube 2000 An Archaeology of the Senses: Perception and Cultural Expression in Ancient Mesoamerica, in: Cambridge Archaeological Journal, Vol. X, No. 2, The McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, Cambridge University Press, pp. 261-294. Inomata, Takeshi 2001a Kings People. Classic Maya Courtiers in a Comparative Perspective, in: Inomata and Houston (2001b), pp. 27-53. 2001b The Classic Maya Palace as a Political Theater, in: Ciudad et al. (2001), pp. 341-361. Inomata, Takeshi, and Stephen D. Houston 2001a Opening the Royal Maya Court, in: Inomata and Houston (2001b), pp. 3-23.

Hohmann, Hasso 2005 A Maya Keystone Vault at La Mueca, in: mexicon. Aktuelle Informationen und Studien zu Mesoamerika, Vol. XXVII, No. 4, Markt Schwaben, pp. 73-77. Houston, Stephen D. 1998a Classic Maya Depictions of the Built Enviroment, in: Houston (1998c), pp. 333- 372. 1998b Finding Function and Meaning in Classic Maya Architecture, in: Houston (1998c), pp. 519-538. 2002 Cantantes y danzantes de Bonampak, in: arqueologa mexicana, Vol. X No. 55, Editorial Races, Mxico D. F., pp. 54-55.

184 REFERENCES

REFERENCES 185

Inomata, Takeshi, and Stephen D. Houston (eds.) 2001b The Royal Courts of the Ancient Maya. Theory, Comparison, and Synthesis, Vol. I, Westview Press, Boulder. 2001c The Royal Courts of the Ancient Maya. Data and Case Studies, Vol. II, Westview Press, Boulder.

n.d.b

Where Do You wear Your Paint Pot? in: The Maya Vase Database: http://www.famsi.org/research/kerr/articles/paint_pot/index.html

Kerr, Justin, and Barbara Kerr 1988 Some Observations on Maya Vase Painters, in: Benson and Griffin (1988), pp. 236-259. Kistler, S. Ashley 2004 The Search for Five-Flower Mountain. Re-evaluating the Cancuen Panel, http://www.mesoweb.com/features/kistler/Cancuen.pdf Liendo Stuardo, Rodrigo 2003 Access Patterns in Maya Royal Precincts, in: Christie (2003), pp. 184-203. Looper, Matthew G. 2003 The Meaning of the Maya Flapstaff Dance, Glyph Dweller, Report 17, Maya Hieroglyphic Database Project, University of Califonia, Davis. http://nas.ucdavis.edu/NALC/R17.pdf Lowe, Gareth W. 2000 El horizonte escultrico de Izapa, in: Lowe, Gareth W., Thomas A. Lee, Jr, and Eduardo Martnez Espinosa Izapa. Una Introduccin a las ruinas y los monumentos, Fundacin Arqueolgico Nuevo Mundo A. C., Doc. 31, Tuxtla Gutirrez. Lundell, Cyrus Longworth 1933 Archaeological Discoveries in the Maya Area, Reprinted from the Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, Vol. LXXII, No. 3, Lancaster Press, Inc., Lancaster. MacLeod, Barbara, and Dorie Reents-Budet 1994 The Art of Calligraphy. Image and Meaning, in: Reents-Budet (1994), pp. 106-163. Manzanilla, Linda (ed.) 1993 Anatoma de un conjunto residencial teotihuacano en Oztoyahualco, 2 Vols., IIA, UNAM, Mxico D. F.

Inomata, Takeshi, and Daniela Triadan 2003 Where Did Elites Live? Identifying Elite Residences at Aguateca, Guatemala, in: Christie (2003), pp. 154-183. Jackson, Sarah, and David Stuart 2001 The aj kuhun Title. Deciphering a Classic Maya Term of Rank, in: Ancient Mesoamerica, Vol. 12, No. 2, Cambridge University Press, New York, pp. 217-228. Jones, Grant D. 1998 The Conquest of the Last Maya Kingdom, Stanford University Press, Stanford. Kahn, Anna Lee 1990 A Thematic Study of the Female Figures in Late Classic Maya Vessel Paintings, UMI Dissertation Services, Ann Arbor. Kerr, Justin 1989 The Maya Vase Book, Vol. I, Kerr Associates, New York. 1990 The Maya Vase Book, Vol.II, Kerr Associates, New York. 1992 The Maya Vase Book, Vol. III, Kerr Associates, New York. 1994 1997 2000 n.d.a The Maya Vase Book, Vol. IV, Kerr Associates, New York. The Maya Vase Book, Vol. V, Kerr Associates, New York. The Maya Vase Book, Vol. VI, Kerr Associates, New York. The Maya Vase Database, http://research.famsi.org/kerrmaya.html

186 REFERENCES

REFERENCES 187

Manzanilla, Linda, and Antonio Benavides 1985 Arquitectura domstica en el rea maya: el Formativo Tardo y el Clsico, in: Gendrop, Paul (ed.) Cuadernos de arquitectura mesoamericana, FA, UNAM, Mxico D. F. Marcus, Joyce 1973 Territorial Organization of the Lowland Classic Maya, in: Science, Vol. 180, pp. 911-916. 1976 Emblem and State in the Classic Maya Lowlands. An Epigraphic Approach to Territorial Organization, Dumbarton Oaks, Trustees for Harvard University, Washington D. C The Inscriptions of Calakmul. Royal Marriage at a Maya City in Campeche, Mexico, University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology Technical Report 21, Ann Arbor. Maya Commoners. The Stereotype and the Reality, in: Lohse, Jon C., and Fred Valdez, Jr. (eds.) Ancient Maya Commoners, University of Texas Press, Austin, pp. 255-283.

2000b At the Periphery. The Movement, Modification and Re-use of Early Monuments in the Environs of Tikal, in: Colas, Pierre Robert, Kai Delvendahl, Marcus Kuhnert, and Annette Schubart (eds.) The Sacred and the Profane. Architecture and Identity in the Maya Lowlands, 3rd European Maya Conference, University of Hamburg, November 1998, Acta Mesoamericana Vol. 10, Verlag Anton Sauerwein, Markt Schwaben. 2001 Court and Realm: Architectural Signatures in the Classic Maya Southern Lowlands, in: Inomata and Houston (2001b), pp. 168-194. Preguntas epigrficas acerca de los escalones de Dzibanch, in: Nalda (2004), pp. 105-115. Of Snakes and Bats. Shifting Identities at Calakmul, in: The Pari Journal, Vol. VI, No. 2, Pre-Columbian Art Research Institute, San Francisco, pp. 5-15. http://www.mesoweb.com/pari/publications/journal/602/SnakesBats.pdf

2004

1987

2005

2004

Martin, Simon, and Nikolai Grube 1994 Evidence for Macro-Political Organization Amongst Classic Maya Lowland States, London and Bonn, ms. 1995 2000 Maya Superstates, in: Archaeology, Vol. 48 - No. 6, pp. 41-43. Chronicle of the Maya Kings and Queens. Deciphering the Dynasties of the Ancient Maya, Thames and Hudson, London. Chronicle of the Maya Kings and Queens. Deciphering the Dynasties of the Ancient Maya, 2nd Edition, Thames and Hudson, London.

Martin, Simon Site Q. The Case for a Classic Maya Super-Polity, ms. 1993 1994 Warfare and Political Organization in the Late Classic Central Southern Lowlands, paper presented at the Xth Texas Symposium on Ancient Maya Writing and Culture, University of Texas at Austin, ms. 1996 Calakmul y el enigma del glifo Cabeza de Serpiente, in: arqueologa mexicana, Vol. III - No. 18, Editorial Races, Mxico D. F., pp. 42-45. The Painted King List. A Commentary on Codex-Style Dynastic Vases, in: Kerr (1997), pp. 847-867. Investigaciones epigrficas de campo: 1995-1998, in: Carrasco et al. (1998a), pp. 72-122. Los seores de Calakmul, in: arqueologa mexicana, Vol. VII - No. 42, Editorial Races, Mxico D. F., pp. 40-45.

2008

1997

1998

May Hau, Jacinto, Rogerio Cohua Muoz, Raymundo Gonzlez Heredia, and William. J. Folan 1990 El mapa de las ruinas de Calakmul, Campeche, Mxico, UAC/CIHS, Campeche. McAnany, Patricia A., and Shannon Plank 2001 Perspectives on Actors, Gender Roles, and Architecture at Classic Maya Courts and Households, in: Inomata and Houston (2001b), pp. 84-129.

2000a

188 REFERENCES

REFERENCES 189

Miller, Mary Ellen 1985 The Architectural Backdrops of the Murals of Structure 1, Bonampak, in: Benson, Elizabeth P. (ed.) Fourth Palenque Roundtable, 1980 , Pre-Columbian Art Research Institute, San Francisco, pp. 185-190. 1986 The Murals of Bonampak, Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. The Boys in the Bonampak Band, in: Benson and Griffin (1988), pp. 318-330. Maya Masterpiece Revealed at Bonampak, in: National Geographic Vol. 187, No. 2, National Geographic Society, Washington D. C., pp. 50-69. Maya Art and Architecture, Thames and Hudson, London. Zum Verstndnis der Wandgemlde von Bonampak, in: Grube (ed., 2000), pp. 235-243. Life at Court. The View from Bonampak, in: Inomata and Houston (2001b), pp. 201-222. Reconstruccin de los murales de Bonampak, in: arqueologa mexicana, Vol. X - No. 55, Editorial Races, Mxico D. F., pp. 44-54. Lo que s se sabe y lo que no se sabe de Bonampak, in: Uriarte, Mara Teresa, and Leticia Staines Cicero (eds.) Acercarse y mirar. Homenaje a Beatriz de la Fuente, Estudios y Fuentes del Arte en Mxico LXXIV, IIE/UNAM, Mxico D. F., pp. 273-282.

Morley, Sylvanus G. 1933 The Calakmul Expedition, in: The Culture of the Maya, Carnegie Institution of Washington Supplementary Publications No. 6, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington D. C., pp. 30-43. 1938 The Inscriptions of Petn, Vol. 1, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington D. C. In Search for Maya Glyphs. From the Archaeological Journals of Sylvanus G. Morley, edited and with an introduction by Robert H. Lister and Florence C. Lister, Museum of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque.

1988

1970

1995

Nalda, Enrique (ed.) Los cautivos de Dzibanch, INAH, Mxico D. F. 2004 Nalda, Enrique, and Sandra Balanzario 1997 La casa maya, in: arqueologa mexicana, Vol. V - No. 28, Editorial Races, Mxico D. F., pp. 6-13. Nations, James D. 2006 The Maya Tropical Forest. People, Parks, and Ancient Cities, University of Texas Press, Austin. Nieves, Luca M., Lourdes Esparza, and Paco Nieto 1995 Trabajos arqueolgicos en la Plaza Central de Calakmul, Campeche, Mxico, in: Varela Torrecilla, Carmen, Juan Luis Bonor Villarejo, and Yolanda Fernndez Marqunez (eds.) Religin y sociedad en el rea maya, Publicaciones de la S. E. E. M., Nm 3, Sociedad Espaola de Estudios Mayas, Instituto de Cooperacin Iberoamericana, Caja Madrid, Madrid, pp. 93-108. Parmington, Alexander 2003 Classic Maya Status and the Subsidiary Office of Sajal. A Comparative Study of the Status as Represented in Costume and Composition in the Iconography of Monuments, in: mexicon, Aktuelle Informationen und Studien zu Mesoamerika, Vol. XXV, No. 2, Markt Schwaben, pp. 46-52.

1999 2000

2001

2002

2004

Miller, Mary E., and Simon Martin 2004 Courtly Art of the Ancient Maya, Thames and Hudson, Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco, San Francisco. Miller, Virginia 1985 The Dwarf Motif in Classic Maya Art, in: Greene Robertson, Merle, and Elizabeth Benson (eds.) Fourth Palenque Round Table, University of Texas Press, Austin, pp. 141-153.

190 REFERENCES

REFERENCES 191

Pennington, Terence D., and Jos Sarukhn 2005 rboles tropicales de Mxico. Manual para la identificacin de las principales especies, UNAM, FCE, Mxico D. F. Pincemin, Sophia 1994 Entierro en el Palacio. La tumba de la Estructura III, Calakmul, Campeche, UAC, Campeche. Pincemin, Sophia, Joyce Marcus, Lynda Florey Folan, William J. Folan, Mara del Rosario Domnguez Carrasco, and Abel Morales Lpez 1998 Extending the Calakmul Dynasty Back in Time. A New Stela from a Maya Capital in Campeche, Mxico, in: Latin American Antiquity, Vol. 9, No. 4, Society for American Archaeology, Washington D. C., pp. 310-328. Prager, Christian 2002 Enanismo y gibosidad. Las personas afectadas y su identidad en la sociedad maya del tiempo prehispnico, in: Tiesler et al. (2002), pp. 35-67. 2004 A Classic Maya Ceramic Vessel from the Calakmul Region in the Museum zu Allerheiligen, Schaffhausen, Switzerland, Human Mosaic Vol. 35, No. 1, pp. 31-40. http://wayeb.org/download/resources/schaffhausen.pdf

Reents-Budet, Dorie, Simon Martin, Richard Hansen, and Ronald Bishop 1997 Codex-Style Pottery: Recovering Context and Concept, paper presented at The Texas Symposium In Their Own Write: Native Voices of Mesoamerica during the Maya Meetings at the University of Texas, Austin, ms. Reyes Ayala, Claudia D. 2006 La Estructure XX y su friso de principios del Clsico Tardo, in: Los Investigadores de la Cultura Maya 14, Vol. II, UAC, Campeche, pp. 359-371. Rivet, Paul 1932 Dcouverte d une nouvelle cit maya, in: Journal de la Socit des Americanistes de Paris, Nm. 24, Paris, pp. 209-210. Robicsek, Francis, and Donald M. Hales 1981 The Maya Book of the Dead. The Ceramic Codex. The Corpus of Codex Style Ceramics of the Late Classic Period, University of Virginia Art Museum, Charlottesville, Virginia. 1988 A Ceramic Codex Fragment. The Sacrifice of Xbalanque, in: Benson and Griffin (1988), pp. 260-276.

Rodrguez Campero, Omar 2000 La Gran Plaza de Calakmul, in: arqueologa mexicana, Vol. VII - No. 42, Editorial Races, Mxico D. F., pp. 22-27. 2003 La arquitectura petn en Calakmul. Una comparacin regional, grantee report, Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, Inc. http://www.famsi.org/reports/02070es/index.html. La permanencia de las montaas. Cambios morfolgicos en los edificios de Calakmul, in: Los Investigadores de la Cultura Maya 15, Vol. I, UAC, Campeche, pp. 179-189.

Reents-Budet, Dorie 1994 Painting the Maya Universe. Royal Ceramic of the Classic Period, Duke University Press, Durham. 1998 Elite Maya Pottery and Artisans as Social Indicators, in: Costin, Cathy and Rita Wright (eds.) Craft and Social Identity, Archaeological Papers of the American Anthropological Association, No. 8, Washington D. C. Classic Maya Concepts of the Royal Court. An Analysis of Renderings on Pictorial Ceramics, in: Inomata and Houston (2001b), pp. 195-233.

2007

2001

Reents-Budet, Dorie, Ronald L. Bishop, Jennifer T. Taschek, and Joseph W. Ball 2000 Out of the Palace Dumps. Ceramic Production and Use at Buenavista del Cayo, in: Ancient Mesoamerica, Vol. II, No. 1, Cambridge University Press, Cambidge, pp. 99-121.

Ruppert, Karl, and J. H. Denison 1943 Archaeological Reconnaissance in Campeche, Quintana Roo, and Petn, Carnegie Institution of Washington Publication 543, Washington D. C.

192 REFERENCES

REFERENCES 193

Sabloff, Jeremy A. 2008 Archaeology Matters. Action Archaeology in the Modern World, Leftcoast Press, Walnut Creek. Saturno, William, Karl A. Taube, and David Stuart 2005 Los murales de San Bartolo, El Petn, Guatemala, Parte I: El mural norte, Ancient America 7, Center for Ancient American Studies, Bernardsville. Schele, Linda 1997 Hidden Faces of the Maya, Impetus Communication, ALTI Publishing, Singapore. Schele, Linda, and David Freidel 1990 A Forest of Kings. The Untold Story of the Ancient Maya, William Morrow & Co., New York. Schele, Linda, and Peter Mathews 1991 Royal Visits and Other Intersite Relationships, in: Culbert, Patrick (ed.) Classic Maya Political History. Hieroglyphic and Archaeological Evidence, Cambridge University Press, New York, pp. 226-252. 1998 The Code of Kings. The Language of Seven Sacred Maya Temples and Tombs, Scribner, New York.

Sprajc, Ivan 2003 Archaeological Reconnaissance in Southeastern Campeche, Mxico, 2002 Fied Season Report, grantee report, Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, Inc. http://www.famsi.org/reports/01014/index.html Sprajc, Ivan, and Daniel Jurez Cosso 2003 Altar de los Reyes, sitio del sureste de Campeche, in: arqueologia mexicana, Vol. X - No. 59, Editorial Races, Mxico D. F., p. 5. Stephens, John Lloyd 1969 Incidents of Travel in Central America, Chiapas and Yucatan, Vol. II, Dover Publications, Inc., New York. Stuart, David 1998 Testimonios sobre la guerra durante el Clsico maya, in: arqueologa mexicana, Vol. VI - No. 32, Editorial Races, Mxico D. F., pp. 6-13. 2000 The Arrival of Strangers. Teotihuacan and Tollan in Classic Maya History, in: Carrasco, Davd, Lindsay Jones, and Scott Sessiones (eds.) Mesoamericas Classic Heritage. From Teotihuacn to the Aztecs, University of Colorado Press, Boulder, pp. 465-513.

Schele, Linda, and Mary M. Miller 1986 The Blood of Kings. Dynasty and Ritual in Maya Art, Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth. Schlesinger, Victoria 2001 Animals & Plants of the Ancient Maya. A Guide. University of Texas Press, Austin. Smith, A. Ledyard 1950 Uaxactun, Guatemala. Excavations of 1931-37, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Publication 558, Washington D. C.

Tejeda, Samuel, Vera Tiesler, William Folan, and Mario Coyoc 2001 Condiciones de vida y alimentacin en Calakmul, Campeche, in: Los Investigadores de la Cultura Maya 9, Vol. II, UAC, Campeche, pp. 335340. Tiesler Blos, Vera, Rafael Cobos, and Merle Greene Robertson (eds.) 2002 La organizacin social entre los mayas, Memoria de la Tercera Mesa Redonda de Palenque, Vols. I y II, Conaculta-INAH-UADY, Mxico D. F. Tokovinine, Alexandre 2007 Of Snake Kings and Cannibals. A Fresh Look at the Naranjo Hieroglyphic Stairway, in: The Pari Journal, Vol. VII, No. 4, Pre-Columbian Art Research Institute, San Francisco, pp.15-22. http://www.mesoweb.com/pari/publications/journal/704/PARI0704.pdf

194 REFERENCES

REFERENCES 195

Traxler, Loa P. 2001 The Royal Court of Early Classic Copan, in: Inomata and Houston (2001c), pp. 46-73. 2003 At Court in Copn. Palace Groups of the Early Classic, in: Christie (2003), pp. 46-68.

Webster, David, and Takeshi Inomata 2004 Identifying Subroyal Elite Palaces at Copn and Aguateca, in: Evans and Pillsbury (2004), pp. 149-180. Wlfel, Ulrich 2007 Eine Untersuchung zur politischen Organisation von Calakmul, Campeche, Mexico, master thesis, University of Hamburg, Hamburg. http://www.tcs.uni-luebeck.de/downloads/mitarbeiter/woelfel/ Magisterarbeit.pdf Zapata Castorena, Alicia 1985 Los chultunes de Calakmul, Campeche: Trabajos preliminares, in: Informacin 10, Campeche, pp. 81-102.

Tunesi, Raphael 2007 A New Monument Mentioning Wamaaw Kawiil of Calakmul, in: The Pari Journal, Vol. VIII, No. 2, Pre-Columbian Art Research Institute, San Francisco, pp. 13-19. http://www.mesoweb.com/pari/publications/journal/802/ PARI0802.pdf Velsquez Garca, Erik 2004 Los escalones jeroglficos de Dzibanch, in: Nalda (2004), pp. 79-99. 2005 The Captives of Dzibanche, in: The Pari Journal, Vol. VI, No. 2, Pre-Columbian Art Research Institute, San Francisco, pp. 1-4. http://www.mesoweb.com/pari/publications/journal/602/Captives.pdf

Velsquez Garca, Erik, and Carlos Palln Gayol 2006 La Estela 52 de Calakmul y el reinado de Yuhknom Took Kawiil, in: Los Investigadores de la Cultura Maya 14, Vol. II, UAC, Campeche, pp. 341-358. Waterson, Roxana 1998 The Living House. An Anthropology of Architecture in South-East Asia, Whitney Library of Design, New York Webster, David 2001 Spatial Dimensions of Maya Courtly Life. Problems and Issues, in: Inomata and Houston (2001b), pp. 130-167. Webster, David, Nancy Gonlin, and Payson Sheets 1997 Copan and Ceren. Two Perspectives on Ancient Mesoamerican Households, in: Ancient Mesoamerica, Vol. 8, No. 1, Cambridge University Press, New York, pp. 43-59.

196 REFERENCES

REFERENCES 197

198 REFERENCES