<a href="http://jeanatacc.com/2011/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/PaKal.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-3366" alt="PaKal" src="http://jeanatacc.com/2011/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/PaKal-177x300.jpg" width="177" height="300" /></a>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://jeanatacc.com/2011/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Pakal-color.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-3365" alt="Pakal color" src="http://jeanatacc.com/2011/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Pakal-color-180x300.jpg" width="180" height="300" /></a></p>
<p style="text-align: center;">Sarcophagus lid in the Temple of Inscriptions 683 CE</p>
<p style="text-align: center;">http://chichcalan.com/vrml/grafika/sarcophagus.jpg</p>
<p style="text-align: center;">http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3486/4649330363_2c9716cfd9_z.jpg</p>
The sarcophagus lid that that covered the tomb of Pakal inside the temple of inscriptions at Palenque. The lid was covered with the iconography of Pakal falling off the Wacah Chan, tree of life which connects the sky, earth, and underworld (Sayre). The tree represented the Mayan’s ability to interact with each of the three realms.  Pakal’s head is tilted back replicating that of a sacrificial victim, while his hair is bunled similarly to corn stalks. Both the posture and hair are meant to mimic many of the characteristics of the Maize god. (Blume).  On the top of the tree sits the feathered serpent (Sayre pg464). The celestial bird soars on the top of the lid, representing the sky realm (Blume).<!--more-->

Pakal’s tomb is unique since it can be accessed from the top of the temple of inscriptions, which allows scholars to link Pakal to the ideologies of the Mayan religion. The Mayan leaders maintained a connection with their ancestors as this played a critical role to Mayan beliefs.(Ching pg328) This piece is categorized as one of the best examples of Classic Mayan art. Like many of the pieces from this era, the icons and the inscriptions allow us to understand the Mayan’s sociopolitical organization.  Many of the topics covered in the piece revolve around ideology, power, conquest, defeats, alliances, and divine right to rule.

Scholars are beginning to understand the relationship between the Mayan rulers and their people. The Mayan used a written language that could not be deciphered due to the lack of documents that survived the Spanish conquest, only until 1958 scholars began publishing and deciphering the secrets of the Mayan. In 1986 "The blood of kings" was one of the first published documents that deciphered the complex relationship between the divine and the city states. Each of the lords was believed to have the ability to summon the gods through their flesh and blood. Kings would wage war with other city states and the defeated kings would have their blood run down the temples and have their hearts ripped out all to please the gods (Chippindale).

The sarcophagus lid of Pakal is found in the Temple of Inscriptions. In order to understand why the Temple of Inscriptions is unique from other Mayan temples, we have to understand the architecture. Many of the Mayan pyramids are simple in design usually a base with stairs on one of its side. The Temple of Inscriptions is unlike anything any of the other Mayan pyramids, has hidden stairway that leads a crypt. Inside the crypt archeologist found jewelry, the remains of human sacrifices, and the tomb of Pakal (Ruz).

<a href="http://jeanatacc.com/2011/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Temple-of-Injhscriptions.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-3367 aligncenter" alt="Temple of Injhscriptions" src="http://jeanatacc.com/2011/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Temple-of-Injhscriptions-300x162.jpg" width="377" height="202" /></a>

Not only has the sarcophagus of Pakal gathered attention from scholars, it has also become a part of popular culture. The Ancient astronaut theory suggest that the older civilazations were helped by advanced extraterrestials. Erik Von Daniken believes that the sarcophagus of Pakal is an actual representation of a spacecraft,  stating “…human being is sitting there, the chest slightly bent over, in the position of a racing pilot; nowadays, every child would identify his vehicle as a rocket”. Although much of the sarcaphogus has been deciphered, the ancient astronaut theory continues to gain support.  Before I knew anything about the Maya, I saw an image of the lid of Pakal next to a rocket and immediately began speculating Mayan technology. The images depicted on the lid seemed too abstract when compared to any of the other Mayan pieces.

<a href="http://jeanatacc.com/2011/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Anastasis.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-3368 aligncenter" alt="Anastasis" src="http://jeanatacc.com/2011/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Anastasis-300x248.jpg" width="300" height="248" /></a>
<p style="text-align: center;">http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-echpMcl0elU/T380mikKcBI/AAAAAAAABOI/XOYBfwhsclE/s1600/anastasis4.jpg</p>
The “Anastasis” or “Harrowing of hell” and Sarcophagus are two unique piece of art that depict each of the cultures most important religious figure travel to the underworld. In between the death of Christ but before his Resurrection, Christ makes the journey to the depths of hell and enters the domain of Satan. Pacal on the other hand is depicted falling off “tree of life”, while “???” waits to guide him to the underworld. In the Anastasis, Christ purpose of entering the underworld is different than Pacal decent. Christ enters the underworld to save all of those that came before Christ such as Adam, Eve, David, John the Baptist, and Moses. Forest summarizes the Christian’s view of death stating:

The undoing of the kingdom of death and thus the undoing of all that keeps us in a state of fear. After all, it’s death we fear and spend our lives resisting and delaying. It’s fear of death that stands in the way of actually living. Dig away at the other fears and sooner or later we discover our grave. Whatever delays we manage to arrange, the end is certain. But this icon reminds us that death doesn’t have the last word (Forest)

The Mayan’s viewed death was more relaxed than the Christian. One of the most important Mayan gods was the Maize god, which played a critical role with one of the central Mayan ideas. They believed that only fallen stalks would give birth to a new generation allowing the Mayan’s to participate and acknowledge their ancestor’s role do the creation of life.(Bloom) Although each of these religions was founded thousands of miles apart and at different points in time, they share the idea of an afterlife. Each of these culture’s ideas may be different but we will always be closer to each other than we believe we are.

The sarcophagus of Pakal is more than aesthetic piece of art. If there is one piece of Mayan art that captures the essence of the Mayan culture, this is the piece that does it best. It tells us the story of one of the greatest Mayan ruler Pakal, the relationship between his people and him, and the Mayan’s view of death.
<p align="center">Works Cited</p>
<p style="text-align: left;" align="center">Blume, Anna. "Royal Visions: Art Of The Maya Courts." Art In America 92.11 (2004): 102-151. Academic Search Complete. Web. 22 Sept. 2013.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;" align="center">Ching,Francis, et al. A Global history of Architecture. River Street: John Wiley and Sons, Inc, 2011. Print</p>
<p style="text-align: left;" align="center">Chippindale, Christopher. "The Last Great Decipherment." History Today 43.7 (1993): 59. Academic Search Complete. Web. 22 Sept. 2013</p>
<p style="text-align: left;" align="center">Forest, Jim. "Glorious Freedom." U.S. Catholic 71.4 (2006): 51. Academic Search Complete. Web. 23 Sept. 2013.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;" align="center">Grünschloß, Andreas. "Ancient Astronaut Narrations. A Popular Discourse On Our Religious Past."Fabula 48.3-4 (2007): 205-228. Academic Search Complete. Web. 22 Sept. 2013.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;" align="center">Ruz L., Alberto. "The Mystery Of The Mayan Temple." Saturday Evening Post 226.9 (1953): 30-98. Academic Search Complete. Web. 22 Sept. 2013.</p>
Sayre,Henry. A World of Art. Saddle River: Prentice Hall Pearson, 2010. Print