K4598: The Immolation of the Jaguar War God
K4598, a painted ceramic vessel from the Nakbe area, is one of three vessels that depict the Jaguar War God meeting his end at the hands of the Chan Te’ Xib. The previously discussed K4118 shows him being crushed to death by a large stone, while this vessel and K1299 show him meeting his demise…
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K5619: An Early Classic Vessel with Three Faces
K5619 is a polychrome ceramic vessel from the Early Classic period recovered from Uaxactun’s Burial A-22. The vessel is relatively simple in its layout; it features three deity head glyphs that each sit within a T-shape. This T-shape may be a reference to the T-shaped tooth and mouths that these deities often have, which are…
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K4118: Between a Rock and a Hard Place
K4118 depicts the mythic scene of the Jaguar War God’s defeat at the hands of one or more young men called the Chante’ Xib. Two other ceramic objects also depict this scene, K1299 and K4598, though those depict the Jaguar War God meeting a fiery demise, while the scene here on K4118 sees him trapped…
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K1201: The Captured Shark
K1201 is another polychrome cylindrical vessel from the Late Classic Period. While it may at first appear to be in good condition, this may be due to modern repainting. The scene it depicts shows three figures, two wearing jaguar pelt clothing on either side of the central figure, who appears to be bound. This leftmost…
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K1398: The Regal Rabbit Vase
K1398, more commonly known as the Regal Rabbit Vase (Figure 1), is a cylindrical polychrome vessel from Late Classic Naranjo. As far as I know, the current location of this object is unknown, but it has been repaired/repainted in modern times. The Kerr rollout photograph was taken after this event, but Nicholas Hellmuth had taken…
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K0731: Emergence of the Maize God
K0731 is a polychrome cylindrical vessel from the Classic Period currently housed in Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts. Unfortunately, it is not only damaged but also appears to have quite a bit of repainting. The scene it depicts shows the Maize God emerging from the earth with several deities following behind in canoes. Juun Ixim,…
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K0595: The Shark Hunters
K0595 is a polychrome painted ceramic vessel from the Late Classic period, likely originating from the Naranjo area. The myth it depicts is the beginning portion of the Maize God’s rebirth and resurrection, in which he is rescued from the jaws of a shark monster by other deities. At the center of the scene is…
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K9152: A Polychrome Shark Hunting Scene
K9152 is a polychrome cylindrical vessel currently on display as a part of the collection at Dumbarton Oaks. It depicts two characters hunting a shark-like monster in an aquatic environment. Two bands of K’IN glyphs border the scene itself, and at the very top, a row of pseudoglyphs can also be found. The shark depicted…
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The Star War Vase: Paddlers and Planets
The Star War Vase, K6340, is a cylindrical painted ceramic vessel from the Late Classic Period, currently in the collection of the Kislak Foundation. It features a very busy and very detailed scene that depicts a chapter of the Maize God’s mythic resurrection. Marc Zender’s 2020 article on the vessel goes into great detail, so,…
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K5053: An Incised Vessel with the Pax God and Jaguar War God
K5053 is a carved vessel from the Late Classic Period of the Maya currently in the collection of the De Young Museum. I suspect that this vessel is from Chochola, as it seems to be done in that style. The main feature of this vessel is the two carved rectangular sections with deity heads within.…
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The Itzamnaaj Court Vase: A Celestial Accession Scene
The Itzamnaaj Court Vase features a magnificent scene that rivals that of the Vase of the Seven Gods. The scene depicts the court of Itzamnaaj, hence the vessel’s nickname, where Itzamnaaj is presiding over God I’s accession to rulership over Six Sky. Erik Boot’s 2008 article on the vase, despite being nearly twenty years old,…
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The Vase of the Seven Gods: Part III – The Glyphs
The Vase of the Seven Gods, K2796, has two sets of glyphs (Figure 1). One can be found along the rim and describes the purpose of the vase and who owned it, and the other set can be found within the scene and explains the event that is occurring. Below I have the rim text…
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K4333: A Chochola Style Vessel Depicting GI
K4333 is a carved vessel with a rounded bottom from the Late Classic period. The style of the vessel, as well as a name mentioned in the glyphs, would suggest an origin in the Chochola area of the Yucatan (Miller and Martin 2004:146). While the vase features a few cracks, they are not major, and…
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The Vase of the Seven Gods: Part II – The Background
The Vase of the Seven Gods, K2796 in the Kerr database, depicts a very full scene. In Part I, I discussed the seven characters depicted, but now it is time to discuss the scene itself. This includes the sky-bands, the bundled objects and stela, the crossed bones and eyes, the Witz Monsters, and even the…
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K1391: An Incised Shark Hunting Scene
K1391 is an incised vessel from the Late Classic that depicts a portion of a myth in which the Maize God is rescued from a shark-like monster. This vessel is one of several vessels that depict a scene from this mythic episode (K0595, K1201, and K1742, to name a few); however, this is one of,…
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The Vase of the Seven Gods: Part I – The Characters
The Vase of the Seven Gods (K2796) (Figure 1) is one of the more famous examples of the painted ceramic vessels from the Late Classic. It features a scene that takes place on the creation date of 4 Ajaw 8 Kumk’u in the court of Itzamaat (God L). This same scene also appears on two…
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