One of the
most significant archaeological finds of the 20th century was the tomb of
K'inich Janaab' Pakal, ruler of the Mayan city of Palenque from 615 to 683 AD.
After having assumed the throne at age twelve, he ruled Palenque for an
astonishing 68 years. During his reign, Palenque became a Mayan Florence, a
medium-sized city crammed with unsurpassed architecture and art.
Pakal's
tomb was found in the so-called Pyramid of Inscriptions. Until this find, it
was not known that the Mayan's buried their rulers in a very similar fashion to
the ancient Egyptians.
The concept
and execution of Pakal's tomb are really remarkably similar to the Egyptian
pyramids, which served as a sort of launching platform for deceased pharaohs,
including worldly goods the Pharaoh would need and elaborate inscriptions as to
how the Pharaohs' soul was to navigate through the underworld and reach the
afterlife. Pakal's tomb was not only filled with relics and treasures, it also
contained six servants.
The lid on
the tomb describes how Pakal's soul is to manoeuvre through the underworld. It
shows the ruler seated upon the Monster of the Sun, in its state of transition
between life and death: a skeleton from the mouth down, yet with the eyes of a
living being. The sun enters into this state of transition at dawn and at dusk.
Here, the emblem of the Monster of the Sun contains the ‘cimi’, the sign of
death, representing the ‘death of the sun’ or sunset, with the sun located on
the horizon, sinking into Xibalba – the underworld.
The
movement of the sun from east to west represents Pakal's journey from life into
death. Inside the underworld at the centre of the universe, stands the sacred
World Tree with a Celestial Bird—symbol of the kingdom of heaven.
Each night,
the Mayans saw the Milky Way rise after the sun had set. For them, this starry
river was the Underworld, and the dark space at its centre was the ‘Dragon's
Mouth’ - its entrance. The ‘World Tree’ was basically the cross formed by the
Milky Way rising perpendicular to the horizon.
(text:
Edgar Foley)
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