Ancient Mayan panels uncovered in Guatemala [View all]

[Judi Lynn]

Ancient Mayan panels uncovered in Guatemala
07-25-2015 05:16 BJT

- video -

We return now to the same era as those Koran fragments, this time with a look at the Mayan empire. Three well-preserved panels, found in modern-day Guatemala, present a fascinating insight into this ancient culture.

It wasn't all idle ceremony and affairs of state for Mayan kings, as these ancient panels reveal.



Three well-preserved panels, found in modern-day Guatemala, present a fascinating insight into
this ancient culture.

"Excavations have discovered two hieroglyphic panels, two stone panels about 40 cm (16 inches) in length and about 30 cm (12 inches) in height, that are carved with hieroglyphs, and on one of them there's the image of a king dancing. These panels are incredibly well preserved and, for being about 1,300 to 1,400 years old, we are extremely surprised and excited about the fact that they preserve such a wonderful amount of detail," said Marcelo Canuto, co-director, LA Corona Archaeological Project.

The ancient Mayan culture is shrouded in mystery, and all the more fascinating for it. But these three pieces, excavated at the La Corona and El Achiotal archaeological sites - give us a peek through Time's veil. We learn, for example, that, unlike most other monarchical systems, kingly power was not transferred by hereditary right.

"They're extremely important for us because they give us very detailed information about how a Maya ruler becomes king. It gives us a step-by-step process by which a king over a period of two years is not a royal member of a dynasty and then becomes king of the site. This is fascinating kind of information that is extremely detailed and often not explicated with as much detail in other texts. So, at La Corona we're getting some great, very fine-grain information that we don't normally see in text," Canuto said.

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