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5. Tikal’s Late and Terminal Classic Seating of the May
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chapter 5 Tikal’s Late and Terminal Classic Seating of the May Tikal was renewed as a cycle seat, or may ku, in the Late Classic period during a K’atun 8 Ajaw (a.d. 672–692). In 682, the midpoint of this k’atun, Jasaw Kan K’awil I (the Tikal ruler formerly known as Ruler A or Ah Cacao) came to power on 9.12.9.17.16 5 Kib’ 14 Sotz’ (May 4), only four days before the lajuntun of 9.12.10.0.0. Thirteen years later, in 695, he claimed victory over his legendary competitor, Calakmul, a victory celebrated on September 14 of that year. Much has been made of the fact that this occurred 256 years (more precisely, one day short of 260 tuns)— a may completion—after the death of Spearthrower Owl in 439 (Martin and Grube 2000:45; Puleston 1979; Coggins 1980). These events were celebrated on the carved, wooden Lintel 3 of Temple 1 (see Fig. 5.9), which notes that Jasaw Kan K’awil I conjured and let blood as part of dedicating (a building?) “in the center of the seat (or cave) of Tikal” (tan kun/ch’en Mutul). Jasaw Kan K’awil I, supposedly son of Nun Ujol Chak but also referred to as possibly “non-Tikaleño by birth” (Coe 1990a:608), inaugurated a return to the traditions of his forebears but with some innovations . The two distinctive elements of his reign and those of his successors (Table 5.1) were a combination of old and new imagery on period -ending stelae and elaboration of a distinctive architectural setting for k’atun celebrations, the twin-pyramid complex. The latter provide the most robust evidence for politico-religious continuities from the Classic to the Postclassic period, as the k’atun-ending dates, ritual bloodletting, and stela erection conform to numerous “acts” of Colonial period-ending ceremonies. Tikal as Late Classic May Ku Twin-Pyramid Groups In the Late Classic period, Jasaw Kan K’awil I inaugurated Tikal’s seating of the may by launching an expanded architectural program, twin- 122 maya political science Table 5.1. Tikal’s Late and Terminal Classic rulers. Number in Maya Name Nickname Date Succession Jasaw Kan K’awil I Ruler A 682–734 Yik’in Kan K’awil Ruler B 734–746 27 ??? 746–768? 28 Yax Nun Ayin II Ruler C 768–794? 29 Nun Ujol K’inich c. 800? Dark Sun c. 810? Jewel K’awil c. 849 Jasaw Kan K’awil II c. 869 Source: Martin and Grube 2000:44–53. pyramid groups (see Jones 1969), for commemorating k’atun endings. These complexes consist of a large raised platform on which four cardinally oriented structures are arranged around a plaza (Fig. 5.1). The eponymous twin pyramids are five-tiered, radially symmetrical structures with a stairway on all four sides, opposing each other on the east and west sides of the plaza; no temple structure stood atop them. A north-south line of paired, uncarved stelae and altars stood in front of the eastern pyramid, facing west into the plaza. To the south was a low, rectangular “range structure,” approximately 25 meters long, with nine doorways. On the north side was a small, square or rectangular stone enclosure , with walls roughly 3 meters high, in which a carved stela-altar pair were set (Fig. 5.2). This northern structure was unroofed and “open to the zenith, whence [the ruler] derives his power” (Aveni 2003:161). The twin-pyramid group is a cosmogram, a physical representation of the trilevel and quadripartite Maya cosmos (Guillemin 1968; see also Coggins 1979, 1980). Together the east-west structures of twinpyramid groups marked the journey of the sun and the moon as they rise in the east and set in the west. The nine-doorway structure in the south represents the Underworld, where these celestial bodies dwell after their disappearance in the west (nine is the number of levels and Lords of the Underworld). North represents the celestial level of the cosmos and the home of the divine ancestors. This is where the k’atunending commemorative stelae and altars were erected, the divine ruler on the monument symbolically looking “down” (south) on the earthly [3.82.3.33] Project MUSE (2024-03-29 06:55 GMT) tikal’s late and terminal classic seating of the may 123 figure 5.1 Restoration drawing of Tikal Twin-Pyramid Group Q (also known as 4E-4) (courtesy...