Acta Mesoamericana 17

CONTENTS

PREFACE .......................................................................................................................................... VII ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .....................................................................................................................VIII

1. INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 THE NORTHWESTERN LOWLANDS................................................................................................. 1

1.1.1 Definition ................................................................................................................................ 1 1.1.2 Geomorphology ...................................................................................................................... 2 1.1.3 Climate and Vegetation........................................................................................................... 2

1.2 THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL ZONE OF TORTUGUERO........................................................................... 3 1.3 HISTORY OF RESEARCH IN TORTUGUERO...................................................................................... 5

1.3.1 The Early Expeditions............................................................................................................. 5 1.3.2 The Regional Studies .............................................................................................................. 5 1.3.3 The Future ............................................................................................................................... 6

1.4 THE SOURCES AND THEIR DOCUMENTATION ................................................................................ 6 1.5 EPIGRAPHIC RESEARCH ................................................................................................................. 7

1.5.1 Calendrical Contents ............................................................................................................... 7 1.5.2 Historical Contents.................................................................................................................. 8 1.5.3 The Origin of the Dynasty....................................................................................................... 8 1.5.4 The Dynastic Sequence ........................................................................................................... 9 1.5.5 Sociopolitical Relations ........................................................................................................ 10 1.5.6 Desiderata.............................................................................................................................. 11

1.6 OBJECTIVES.................................................................................................................................. 11 1.6.1 Documentation and Analysis of the Sources......................................................................... 11 1.6.2 Limitations ............................................................................................................................ 12

2. OPERATING PREMISES ............................................................................................................. 15 2.1 EPIGRAPHIC AND LINGUISTIC FOUNDATIONS.............................................................................. 15

2.1.1 Epigraphic Premises.............................................................................................................. 15 2.1.2 Linguistic Premises ............................................................................................................... 16

2.2 ANALYTICAL METHODOLOGY..................................................................................................... 17 2.2.1 Source Immanent Analysis ................................................................................................... 17 2.2.2 Comparative Analysis of Sources ......................................................................................... 19 2.2.3 Historiographical Premises for the Classic Maya ................................................................. 19 2.2.4 Problems of Historiography .................................................................................................. 20 2.2.5 Comparison with External Sources ....................................................................................... 20

2.3 FURTHER WORKING STEPS .......................................................................................................... 21 3. EPIGRAPHIC ANALYSES ........................................................................................................... 23

3.1 CHRONOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK .................................................................................................. 23 3.2 PERSONAL NAMES ....................................................................................................................... 24

3.2.1 Male Individuals ................................................................................................................... 25 3.2.2 Female Individuals ................................................................................................................ 34

3.3 EMBLEMS AND TOPONYMS .......................................................................................................... 35 3.3.1 Emblems................................................................................................................................ 36 3.3.2 Toponyms.............................................................................................................................. 39

4. HISTORICAL DISCUSSION ........................................................................................................ 43 4.1 THE PROTAGONISTS AND THEIR BIOGRAPHY.............................................................................. 43

4.1.1 The Biography of Ahku’ul K’uk’........................................................................................... 43

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4.1.2 The Biography of Bahlam Ajaw............................................................................................ 43 4.1.3 The Biography of Ik’ Muuy Muwaan II ................................................................................ 45 4.1.4 The Biography of Ak’ax Bahlam........................................................................................... 46 4.1.5 The Biography of Individual B ............................................................................................. 46

4.2 DYNASTIC SEQUENCE .................................................................................................................. 47 4.2.1 Ruler 1 – Ahku’ul K’uk’ ........................................................................................................ 48 4.2.2 Ruler A – Ik’ Muuy Muwaan I .............................................................................................. 49 4.2.3 Ruler B – Bahlam Ajaw......................................................................................................... 49 4.2.4 Ruler C – Ik’ Muuy Muwaan II ............................................................................................. 49 4.2.5 Ruler D – Individual B.......................................................................................................... 49 4.2.6 Dynastic and Genealogical Synposis .................................................................................... 50

4.3 ORIGIN OF THE DYNASTY ............................................................................................................ 50 4.3.1 The Sociopolitical Dimension of Emblem Glyphs ............................................................... 51 4.3.2 The Etic Perspective of the Origin ........................................................................................ 53 4.3.3 The Emic Perspective of the Origin ...................................................................................... 53 4.3.4 Synthesis of the Results ........................................................................................................ 54

4.4 SOCIOPOLITICAL RELATIONS....................................................................................................... 54 4.4.1 Friendly Interactions: Marriages and Visits .......................................................................... 54 4.4.2 Event-Driven Description of the Belligerent Actions ........................................................... 56 4.4.3 Interpretation of the Belligerent Actions............................................................................... 58 4.4.4 Sociopolitical Organisation................................................................................................... 59 4.4.5 Synthesis of the Results ........................................................................................................ 60

4.5 EXPIRATION OF THE WRITING TRADITION .................................................................................. 60 4.5.1 Termination of Erecting Monuments in Tortuguero ............................................................. 60 4.5.2 Comalcalco as a Possible Successor of Tortuguero .............................................................. 61 4.5.3 Synthesis of the Results ........................................................................................................ 63

5. CONCLUSIONS.............................................................................................................................. 65 5.1 ASSESSMENT OF THE RESULTS .................................................................................................... 65 5.2 THE HISTORY OF TORTUGUERO................................................................................................... 65 5.3 PROSPECT..................................................................................................................................... 66

6. INTRODUCTION TO THE CATALOGUE ................................................................................ 67 6.1 THE CORPUS OF INSCRIPTIONS AND ITS DEFINITION................................................................... 67 6.2 NOMENCLATURE.......................................................................................................................... 67 6.3 LAYOUT OF THE CATALOGUE ...................................................................................................... 68

6.3.1 Data Sheet ............................................................................................................................. 68 6.3.2 Drawings ............................................................................................................................... 68 6.3.3 Epigraphic Analyses.............................................................................................................. 69 6.3.4 Calendrical Reconstruction ................................................................................................... 70

6.4 ABBREVIATIONS .......................................................................................................................... 71 6.4.1 Abbreviations for the Grammatical Category Labels ........................................................... 71 6.4.2 Abbreviations for the Syntactical Function Labels ............................................................... 71

7. CATALOGUE ................................................................................................................................. 73 7.1 TORTUGUERO WOODEN BOX (TRT BX. 1).................................................................................. 75

7.1.1 Data Sheet ............................................................................................................................. 75 7.1.2 Drawings ............................................................................................................................... 77 7.1.3 Epigraphic Analysis .............................................................................................................. 81 7.1.4 Calendrical Reconstruction ................................................................................................... 86

7.2 TORTUGUERO FRAGMENT 1 (TRT FRG. 1).................................................................................. 87 7.2.1 Data Sheet ............................................................................................................................. 87 7.2.2 Drawings ............................................................................................................................... 89

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7.2.3 Epigraphic Analysis .............................................................................................................. 91 7.3 TORTUGUERO JADE 1 (TRT JD. 1)............................................................................................... 93

7.3.1 Data Sheet ............................................................................................................................. 93 7.3.2 Drawings ............................................................................................................................... 95 7.3.3 Epigraphic Analysis .............................................................................................................. 97 7.3.4 Calendrical Reconstruction ................................................................................................. 100

7.4 TORTUGUERO MONUMENT 1 (TRT MON. 1)............................................................................. 101 7.4.1 Data Sheet ........................................................................................................................... 101 7.4.2 Drawings ............................................................................................................................. 103 7.4.3 Epigraphic Analysis ............................................................................................................ 105 7.4.4 Calendrical Reconstruction ................................................................................................. 108


7.6 TORTUGUERO MONUMENT 3 (TRT MON. 3)............................................................................. 120 7.6.1 Data Sheet ........................................................................................................................... 120 7.6.2 Drawings ............................................................................................................................. 123




7.10 TORTUGUERO MONUMENT 9 (TRT MON. 9)........................................................................... 185 7.10.1 Data Sheet ......................................................................................................................... 185 2.10.2 Drawings ........................................................................................................................... 187 2.10.3. Epigraphic Analysis ......................................................................................................... 189 7.10.4 Calendrical Reconstruction ............................................................................................... 193

APPENDIX 1: ABBREVIATIONS ................................................................................................. 195 SITES WITH INSCRIPTIONS................................................................................................................ 195 GENERAL DESIGNATIONS FOR OBJECTS .......................................................................................... 195 PERSONAL NAMES OF OBJECTS ....................................................................................................... 195

APPENDIX 2: CHRONOLOGICAL OVERVIEW....................................................................... 196 REFERENCES .................................................................................................................................. 199

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PREFACE The present publication is a condensed and revised version of my master thesis originally entitled Tor-tuguero, Tabasco, Mexiko: Geschichte einer klassischen Maya-Stadt, dargestellt an in ihren In-schriften. It has been submitted to the Philosophische Fakultät of the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms Universität Bonn, in 2004. Prof. Dr. Berthold Riese, and Prof. Dr. Nikolai Grube were in charge of the thesis committee. The topic was very suitable for a master thesis, since the hieroglyphic corpus of Tortuguero is rather limited. The historic analysis and reconstruction of a Maya site by means of epigraphy has a certain tradition at the Institut für Altamerikanistik und Ethnologie of the University of Bonn. The thesis therefore took its place in a series of similar works on Naranjo (Voß 1995 MS) and Pusilhá (Prager 2002 MS). As it is the fate of other similar small archaeological sites in the Maya area, Tortuguero has taken sec-ond place in the shadow of interest of other famous centres of Maya culture. Attention has been paid only very little by epigraphy and archaeology. Despite some articles, the documentation by Berthold Riese (1980) is the only concluding investigation published of the known hieroglyphic corpus. The barely conducted archaeological research is, from 1981 onwards, cause and effect at the same time, since much of the site has become a limestone quarry for a neighbouring concrete factory. Tortuguero does not only lie in the vicinity of one of the great centres of Maya civilization, namely Palenque. But it is also one of the westernmost sites of the Maya area bearing hieroglyphic inscrip-tions. The use of the Palenque emblem glyph and the remarkable short dynastic sequence of Tortu-guero itself raise many questions that have not adequately been answered. Tortuguero fought many battles under its vigorous and ambitious king Bahlam Ajaw. Investigation into the backgrounds of these wars and the reconstruction of the sociopolitical sphere in the Northwestern Lowlands during the Late Classic period from the emic perspective of Tortuguero is therefore another topic of this study. Besides archaeology, epigraphic research is the other major field of study to gain information about past aspects of Maya culture. Much of what archaeology cannot, or only can reveal on a limited scale with regard to historiography may be achieved by the study of the thousands of surviving hieroglyphic texts. You need just to think of marriages, accessions to the throne, or the delivery of tribute. Together with the recording of ancient names of persons and places, these actions were accurately recorded on a specific day by using a sophisticated calendar. Despite this fact, the analysis of hieroglyphic sources is limited to its own restrictions. Since who has had the opportunity to record history, their view of history, other than the elites? In contrast to archae-ology, we do not learn anything from the lives of the ordinary citizen. And since historiography is not free of intentions, it is the task of the epigrapher to review his sources with a critical eye in the search of historical facts. The working methods for this claim have already been established and proven in a series of epigraphic investigations at several sites, such as Tikal (Jones & Satterthwaite 1982), Naranjo (Gaida 1983), Yaxchilán (Mathews 1988), Copán (Riese 1992), or Dos Pilas (Houston 1993). The methodology de-pends on particular peculiarities of a site and the prerequisites and objectives of a study. It needs to be varied and adapted with regard to the current state of research, but remains unchanged in its core. To-gether with the mentioned studies on Naranjo and Pusilhá, a tested scheme has also developed at the Institut für Altamerikanistik und Ethnologie. It has been adopted for the current investigation and pub-lication, especially from the study of Christian Prager (2002 MS). The original thesis has been prepared into two volumes, one for the study, and one featuring the Cata-logue. For reasons of complexity and clarity, several chapters have been omitted in this present publi-cation. Especially, the thorough discussions of highly relevant thematic hieroglyphs have been omit-ted. When applicable, these accounts have been condensed and will be amended as comments within the results of this present analysis. Apart from that, this present study will limit itself to several foci. After an introduction to the North-western Maya Lowlands, the archaeological zone of Tortuguero will be characterized. The archaeo-logical and epigraphic research conducted so far will also be summarized. The desiderata can then be formulated and the goals that led to the present study can be derived. After a comprehensive overview on some of the methodological aspects applied here, the study will present its results of epigraphic analyses. By means of epigraphic and contextual interpreted thematic hieroglyphs, biographies of the historic protagonists will be established, the dynastic sequence and the origin of the dynasty of Tortu-

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guero examined, and the sociopolitical relations and implications presented. With a discussion of the termination of the tradition of monument erection in Tortuguero this part of the publication will close. A concluding chapter will sum up the results and partially compare those with the previous state of research. Instead of a second volume, the catalogue of hieroglyphic monuments will be included as a separate part of this publication. The first chapters therein will define and describe the corpus of Tortuguero and give an overview of the structure of the catalogue. Afterwards, each of the ten known monuments will be presented with a description, line drawings, a glyph-by-glyph epigraphic analysis and a calen-drical reconstruction. Comments have been placed within the analyses and reconstructions when nec-essary. As Alfonso Arellano Hernández (1996: 135) remarked in the introduction of his article on the history of Tortuguero, he presented results from his own research within the scope of his tesis de maestría on the inscriptions of Tortuguero. Since this unpublished thesis and eventually other studies were not available as additional references for the history of research, all statements unmarked should be con-sidered with the proviso that they have independently been investigated. To conclude the preface, a final remark on the use of different sign catalogues is appropriate. Within this study, only the three-digit code introduced in The New Catalog of Maya Hieroglyphs (Macri & Looper 2003) will be used, e.g. “ZQE”. Variants of a catalogue number will be suffixed in brackets, using the number within the caption “#. Picture: ...”, e.g. “ZQE(1)”. In textual connections that utilized T-Numbers (Thompson 1962), these sign numbers will be maintained to keep the original arguments transparent. A correlation with the New Catalog will be added in brackets.

Bonn, May 2005 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My original master thesis and this resulting publication would not have been possible without the gra-cious support of many people who have encouraged me during my time as a student and thereafter. I am cordially indebted to my professors, colleagues, and study mates from the Institut für Altameri-kanistik und Ethnologie of the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn. Berthold Riese not only agreed to supervise my master thesis, he was also ever adjuvant and supportive in every respect. Nikolai Grube was equally a great source of advice. Both also kindly supported this publication. Elisabeth Wagner deserves a special thank for opening her photographic archive to me. Further courtesies have been accomplished by numerous other people in respect to epigraphy and the documentation. Their knowledge of the circumstances of the discovery and history of certain artefacts and monuments was very helpful for drawing the history of research and compiling the catalogue. Especially Michael D. Coe (Yale University, New Haven, CT), Ian Graham (Peabody Museum, Har-vard University, Cambridge, MA), Donald M. Hales (Hermosa Beach, CA), Kornelia Kurbjuhn (New York City, NY), Karl Herbert Mayer (Graz), and Jesper Nielsen (Københavns Universitet, Copenha-gen) contributed much in this respect. Donald M. Hales also kindly consented to turn the text into what I believed to be English. Del Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH) de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos quiero agredecer a Antonio Benavides Castillo, Centro Regional Campeche, así como a Miriam Judith Gallegos Gómora y a Francisco Cuevas Olguín, Centro Regional Tabasco, por contribuir con informa-ciones sobre la zona arqueológica de Tortuguero. Finally, I would like to cordially thank my family as a backing in every single respect, in good as well as hard times. I also appreciate the company of those who let me find relaxation during my exams and thereafter.

To Karl-Heinz, Monika, Jens, Martina, Nils Heinrich, Meta (†)

and Natalie

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Tortuguero, Tabasco, Mexico

1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 THE NORTHWESTERN LOWLANDS The geographical region surrounding Tortuguero will shortly be described with a reference to the site itself (Map 1). Besides general geomorphic characteristics and soil conditions, a short climatic outline and a sketch of the regional flora will also be given.

Map 1: The region surrounding Tortuguero as part of the Northwestern Maya Lowlands and the adja-cent Highland of Chiapas. Draft: Sven Gronemeyer.

1.1.1 Definition The term of the Northwestern Maya Lowlands for a part of the region displayed in Map 1 was first introduced by Patrick Culbert (1973: fig. 1). The definition of this area in contrast to other regions of the Maya area takes account of geographic but also cultural features (Ochoa 1978: 41). Geographi-cally, the area referred to is defined as the region west of the Río Usumacinta, and north of the High-lands of Chiapas. A further subdivision was done by Robert Rands (1967: 115, 1973: fig. 18). Accord-ing to him, Tortuguero is part of an area called the “intermediate plains”, lying between the Highlands of Chiapas and the marshes of the Lower Usumacinta. However, Rands (1973: 170), reconsidered Tortuguero rather to be a part of the Highlands by its connections to Palenque albeit its marginal geo-graphic location. The cultural definition has been determined by three categories within the literature: (1) the monumen-tal sculpture and hieroglyphic texts, (2) the occurrence of certain ceramic wares (Rands 1967, 1973), and in a more reduced scale, (1) the architecture. But should be taken into account that the formulation

1


again. Some additional results have been revised in these studies and are presented below. Markus Eberl (1999 MS: 76-77) has discussed a paragraph mentioning the campaign against Comalcalco by analysing several verbal statements regarding the situational and thematic differentiation of the para-graph. The wars described thus far in the literature are summarized in Table 2. A descriptive presentation of the recorded accounts has been the primary working method so far. At-tempts to figure out the historical implications behind the campaigns and to better understand the po-litical situation in the Northwestern Lowlands have only seldom been done. Date Event Reference(s)

9.10.11.9.6 War against the land of Xam of Ox Te’ K’uh Mon. 6 9.10.12.3.10 Attack against an unknown site Mon. 6 9.10.16.13.6 Attack against Yomoop Mons. 6, 8 9.10.17.1.2 Capture of Us Mon. 8 9.10.17.1.9 Attack against an unknown site Mon. 8 9.10.17.2.14 Campaign against Comalcalco, capture of several persons Mons. 6, 8, Jd. 1 9.11.2.17.4 War against Ox Te’ K’uh Jd. 1 Table 2: The belligerent actions Tortuguero undertook during Bahlam Ajaw’s tenure. Compiled after Riese (1980), Arellano Hernández (1996), Mathews (2000), and Grube, Martin & Zender (2002).

Nikolai Grube (1996: 6) assumed that Bahlam Ajaw waged war by order of K’inich Janaab Pakal to strengthen the political influence of Palenque. Peter Mathews (2000: 146) incorporates the same idea and proposes an indirect Palenque influence in the inscriptions at Comalcalco. He based his ideas on the absence of the hegemonial powers Tikal and Calakmul in the inscriptions of Palenque after 659. Tortuguero (and therefore Palenque) thus strived for an extension of its sphere of influence to invigo-rate a renewed, and more autarkic position of Palenque. Though not explicitly discussed, Alfonso Arellano Hernández (1996) introduced economic aspects as well as political ones. He considered Tortuguero as a rival for the control of the trade routes connect-ing the gulf region with the highlands of Chiapas. 1.5.6 Desiderata Though the scientific attention laid for a long time upon the calendrical data, there are still some dis-agreements regarding various dates. They are mostly in dispute due to erosion or deficient documenta-tion. Regarding the non-calendrical references it needs to be assessed that since the cataloguing of all in-scriptions and their analysis by Berthold Riese (1980), no further attempt has taken place to study the corpus anew with regard to recent advances in epigraphy. The coverage of the texts has been mostly done by single hieroglyphs and passages removed from the original context (c.f. Grube, Martin & Zender 2002). These recorded facts were only reproduced in a descriptive manner. Attempts to figure out the backgrounds of the historic accounts by comparing the sources have only sporadically been made. Again, isolated sections of the inscriptions have mainly been used for these interpretations. This desideratum can plainly be seen with the warfare actions of Tortuguero, but also in connections with the origin of the dynasty (c.f. Grube 1996: 6, Martin & Grube 2000: 165). It is therefore desirable to analyse and interpret the entire corpus of Tortuguero anew in consideration of the current state of epigraphic research. 1.6 OBJECTIVES Based on the desiderata discussed in Chapters 1.4 and 1.5.6, the objectives for this study can now be drafted. They will determine the further composition, the work steps to be accomplished and the oper-ating premises. 1.6.1 Documentation and Analysis of the Sources The basis for an analysis of the sources is their adequate documentation. In order to close the desider-ata, the line drawings of each inscription has been evaluated. New drawings were facilitated by the author of those monuments and portable artefacts not reaching the underlying standards of the CMHI (Graham 1975).

11

Introduction

This was achieved by detailed photographs from the published literature as well as materials from Elisabeth Wagner’s photo archive. Aided by the author, she has accomplished a complete coverage of the monuments displayed in the Museo Carlos Pellicer Cámara in Villahermosa in July 2001. The line drawings are accompanied by a data sheet listing all important characteristics of the respec-tive inscription. Further explanations and the criteria after which the catalogue was compiled can be found in Chapter 6. All calendrical data listed by Berthold Riese (1980) will again be verified upon the basis of the draw-ings. When discrepancies crop up, a re-evaluation of those dates will be done and if necessary, a re-consideration of the reconstructed chronological nexus. The nucleus of the study will be the epigraphic analysis of the inscriptions and the discussion of the texts based on this. Considering the critique expressed in Chapter 1.5.6, the analysis will especially focus upon the epigraphic and linguistic advances made in the last decades. Linguistic foundations will be taken into consideration with regard to the identification of vernacular languages. After establishing a framework in the form of an analysis and translation, a descriptive and event-driven history will be drawn upon the previous research (c.f. Chapter 1.5). Based on the “traditional” approach on historic sources (Houston, Chinchilla Mazariegos & Stuart 2001: 268, c.f. Prager 2002 MS:33-34) the following objectives will be considered. The source immanent determination and re-construction of the calendrical structure of the texts will serve for the establishment of a chronological framework. This framework serves for the dating of the historic facts as the basis of all further steps. The ongoing process of the comparative analysis includes the identification of individuals by their nominal phrases with special interest on reconstructing a biography of the main protagonists. A chronological sequencing of these data will allow the reconstruction of the dynastic sequence of the rulers of Tortuguero. The identification of genealogical statements permits the determination of rela-tionships of the ruling elite in a local and regional frame with the lineages of other sites. Based on this step, the previous desideratum of the historic interpretation of the sources will be achieved. While the dynastic sequence as one of the three main foci remains rather descriptive, the questions regarding the origin of the dynasty and the sociopolitical interaction and organization need further study of the sources under a comparative view. To enhance the understanding of the texts, the interpretation will also include the inscriptions of other sites of the Northwestern Lowlands. The texts of Palenque are of special interest regarding the ques-tion of the origin of the Tortuguero dynasty and the usage of the emblem glyph. The texts from those sites will especially be worthy of note that had relations with Tortuguero. Since emphasis will be focused on the belligerent actions, the texts from Comalcalco will be under scrutiny. Information about other sites that have not yet been archaeologically located, such as Ox Te’ K’uh and Yohm Pi (Yomoop), will be borrowed from the references from known sites. The investigation of the backgrounds of the numerous wars Tortuguero fought will pursue two direc-tions. First, these that are politically justified and their implications. As indicated in Chapter 1.5.5, economic interests might also have played a role. This factor will also examined more thoroughly. The operating premises after which the descriptive portrayal and the historic interpretation will be achieved are explained in detail in Chapters 2.2.3 and 2.2.4. 1.6.2 Limitations No photographs will be used regarding the documentation of the inscriptions that would allow a veri-fication of the accuracy of the line drawings. The photos having been used to create the drawings come from different photographers and show partial differences in their quality. While the images were sufficient to create the drawings, they are not suitable to be depicted in the catalogue, since the desired homogenous documentation standard would not be achieved. Also, the location of some pieces are presently unknown. A complete edition of the corpus of Tortuguero cannot be reached in this study as well. These limita-tions concern the epigraphic analysis that has to use specific decipherments and theories regarding phonology and morphosyntax. There is only little latitude to discuss those contentious issues (c.f. Chapter 2.1). The thematic limitation includes for example the discussion of specific rites that could not be accomplished without a thorough understanding of the underlying ideology. Another limitation has to be drawn regarding the involvement of external written sources. Peter Mathews (2000: 128) has estimated that the Northwestern Lowlands (including the Usumacinta re-gion) has more than 40 sites with inscriptions with about 750 texts. It is neither necessary to integrate all these sources, nor would it be presently worth the effort. Criteria for the selection are given in

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Chapter 2.2.5. Since the focus of this study lies on the inscriptions of Tortuguero, a detailed epigraphic analysis for the external sources will not be covered. Their complementary data will therefore be made accessible from the existing literature. A further limitation is the lack of archaeological data. Since this publication is primarily an epigraphic study, archaeological sources will only be cited when they can contribute to the interpretation of the written sources.

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3. EPIGRAPHIC ANALYSES 3.1 CHRONOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK The establishment of a calendrical framework is the necessary preparatory work for the chronological fixing of the event-driven history. Within the scope of the source immanent analysis, the calendrical accounts have been identified for each inscription. As it has been stated in Chapter 1.5.1, Berthold Riese’s work (1980) was critically evaluated and complemented, corrected and supplied with my own hypotheses for the reconstruction if necessary. The commented reconstruction of the calendrical nexus accompanies each monument in the catalogue part and is further described in Chapter 6.3.4. The second step comprised the synoptic tabulation of all dates by comparing the sources. The result is shown in Table 3. Since the arrangement of the dates is still separated from the historical accounts connected with them, same dates from distinct monument are separately listed. The assumption that identical calendar dates are connected with the same event may lead to wrong results. The table lists all legible and reconstructable chronological information. The columns are oriented after the original syntax, i.e. the dates are ordered (1) long count, (2) calendar round, and if specified by hieroglyphs, (3) period endings, and (4) supplementary series. Since from the latter category only Glyphs G and F are represented in Tortuguero, all other parts of the supplementary series are not con-sidered. The next columns gives the position of the non-calendrical text in the block matrix that is connected with the respective date. The last column cites the inscription where the date has been iso-lated. In almost all cases the long count had to be reconstructed from the internal nexus of distance numbers, calendar rounds, or period ending expressions. Reconstructed Dates are marked with an asterisk. Ad-justments of miswritten calendar rounds are indicated by a rhombus. A question mark specifies inse-cure reconstructions. Absent information have been put into square brackets, data not written outside the initial series complex are represented by a minus sign. Identical calendar dates from distinct monu-ments are backed grey. Calendrical data that can absolutely not be reconstructed are excluded in the table. It concerns the ini-tial series date from the top side of Monument 8 and the two recognizable dates on Monument 9. Their problematic nature is discussed in Chapters 7.9.4 and 7.10.4 more thoroughly. Long Count Calendar Round Period Ending G/F Reference Source * 08.15.16.00.05 11 Chikchan 13 Muwaan - - G17-H17 Mon. 6 * 09.03.16.01.11 8 Chuwen 9 Mak - - N2-N4 Mon. 6 *[09.08.19.09.16]? [8 Kib]? [4 K’ank’in]? - [7]? ??-F3 Mon. 6 * 09.10.07.00.00 12 Ajaw * 13 Muwaan 7-Tun - - Jd. 1 * 09.10.11.03.10 1 Ok * 3 Kumk’u - - - Jd. 1 * 09.10.11.03.10 1 Ok 3 Kumk’u - - A4 Mon. 1 * 09.10.11.03.10 1 Ok 3 Kumk’u - - Dp4-F2 Mon. 5 * 09.10.11.03.10 1 Ok 3 Kumk’u - - F7-F8 Mon. 6 * 09.10.11.03.10 1 Ok 3 Kumk’u - - B80-B81 Mon. 8 * 09.10.11.09.06 13 Kimi 14 Sek - - F9-E11 Mon. 6 *[09.10.12.00.00] *[5 Ajaw] *[8 K’ank’in] 12-Tun - A6-A11 Jd. 1 * 09.10.12.03.10 10 Ok 18 K’ayab - - F14-E15 Mon. 6 * 09.10.13.00.00 1 Ajaw 3 K’ank’in 13-Tun - B1a-A3by Mon. 1 * 09.10.15.00.00 6 Ajaw 13 Mak 15-Tun - G15 Mon. 6 * 09.10.15.00.00 6 Ajaw 13 Mak 15-Tun - B18-B19 Mon. 8 * 09.10.15.01.11 11 Chuwen 4 Muwaan - - H10-G12 Mon. 6 * 09.10.15.01.11 11 Chuwen 4 Muwaan - - B23? Mon. 8 * 09.10.15.06.06 2 Kimi 14 Pohp - - B29-B32 Mon. 8 * 09.10.16.13.06 8 Kimi 9 Mol - - G1-H1 Mon. 6 * 09.10.16.13.06 8 Kimi 9 Mol - - B37-B42 Mon. 8 * 09.10.16.15.00 3 Ajaw 3 Yax - - B45-B49 Mon. 8 * 09.10.17.01.02 7 Ik’ 5 K’ank’in - - B52a-B55 Mon. 8 * 09.10.17.02.14 13 Hix ◊ 17 Muwaan - - B3-B4 Jd. 1

23

Epigraphic Analyses

* 09.10.17.02.14 13 Hix 17 Muwaan - - G4-G9 Mon. 6 * 09.10.17.02.14 13 Hix 17 Muwaan - - B59a-B76 Mon. 8 * 09.10.18.03.10 12 Ok 8 Pax 7-Tun - A3-A24 Mon. 8 * 09.11.00.00.00 12 Ajaw 8 Keej - - B4by Mon. 1 * 09.11.02.17.04 10 K’an 17 Yax - - B9-B12 Jd. 1 * 09.11.15.00.00 4 Ajaw 13 Mol 15-Tun - J10-K16 Mon. 6 * 09.11.16.08.18 9 Etz’nab 6 K’ayab - 7 J4-J6 Mon. 6 * 09.12.00.00.00 10 Ajaw 8 Yaxk’in 12-K’atun 9 B5-?? Mon. 5 * 09.12.06.17.18 6 Etz’nab 11 Sek - - - Bx. 1 * 09.12.07.00.00 8 Ajaw 13 Sek 7-Tun - B2+C2-F1 Bx. 1 * 09.12.07.01.19 8 Kawak 12 Yaxk’in - - F2-K1 Bx. 1 * 09.12.07.14.07 9 Manik’ 15 Pohp - - L2-P2 Bx. 1 *[09.12.08.13.04] *[8 K’an] *[12 Kumk’u] - - R2-S5 Bx. 1 * 09.14.00.00.00 6 Ajaw 13 Muwaan 14 K’atun 9 A4ay-?? Mon. 2 * 13.00.00.00.00 4 Ajaw 3 K’ank’in 13 Bak’tun - O4-P5 Mon. 6 Table 3: Synoptic tabulation of the calendar dates identified in the inscriptions of Tortuguero.

3.2 PERSONAL NAMES The division of nominal phrases according to single individuals serves as the basis for the reconstruc-tion of the biographies of the historical protagonists (Chapter 4.1). It also has relevance for the recon-struction of the dynastic sequence (Chapter 4.2) and the question for the origin of the dynasty (Chapter 5.3). According to Maria Gaida (1983: 10-12), a nominal phrase is defined as a sequence of hieroglyphs that may have a different function. One can distinguish between personal names, titles, and epithets. Personal names can be recognized and classified by formal criteria (e.g. the presence of a personal classifier), a temporal context, spatial relations, and their syntactical position (Riese 1980: 39). The internal syntax of personal names has been comprehensively advanced by Nikolai Grube (2002) and Pierre Robert Colas (2004). Contrary to the nominal phrases of gods and objects, the ones from his-torical persons are normally temporally limited by the natural lifespan. Personal names are under con-sideration of this criterion bound to a specific site. Supraregional references are to evaluated by the-matic hieroglyphs as a part of sociopolitical relations. While there is usually a one-to-one correlation between a biological individual and a personal name, titles and epithets refer to the social attributes of a person. They are therefore not bound to a specific individual, time, and space (Gaida 1983: 10-12). Besides functional titles and epithets, one can also observe personal ones, these are however mostly locally used as the substitution for a personal name. The positioning of epithets is not yet thoroughly investigated until now and only registered for few sites in a systematic way (Gaida 1983, Baudez & Riese 1990: 85-108, Lacadena 2000a). In the following, all records of nominal phrases will be chronologically arranged in the manner of a name register. The chronological framework of Chapter 3.1 will serve as the basis. The context date (i.e. the date that introduces the individual) takes precedence over the contemporary date (i.e. the latest date mentioned on a monument). The sorting criterion within a nominal phrase is the earliest date con-nected with an individual in an ascending order. The nominal phrases will be sorted into male and female individuals. There are five individuals that are not bound by a specific context date, two of them not even by a contemporary date. These nominal phrases will be separately marked and dis-cussed at the end of each chapter. Another individual can only be incompletely positioned into a con-text date within one K’atun. But he is the only one with this restriction, so an unambiguous dating is assured. The individuals will be addressed with the phonemic reading of their personal names. Names that are not or only partially legible will be referred to by alias names. All functionally recognizable records will be considered in a table. The personal names will be described: (1) with their reference, (2) their classification, (3) the contemporary and context dates, and (4) the thematic context. Connected with the given thematic context, this type of presentation already serves for the biographic reconstruction in Chapter 4.1. In an additional table, the nominal phrase will be structurally displayed in a synoptic way. This scheme is orientated after Riese (1992) and also considers titles and epithets, backed in grey. The

24


position of single elements will be designated by Roman numerals and represented in transcription and transliteration. All records of a personal name are syntactically and structurally analysed after Grube (2002) and Colas (2004). Based on lexical evidence from the Ch’olan, Yucatecan, and Tzeltalan branches, the names will be linguistically deciphered. 3.2.1 Male Individuals This chapter will discuss the personal names of the male individuals, as they can by isolated by syntac-tic criteria. Besides the presence of the agentive prefix, formal criteria are merely applicable for the identification of male nominal phrases.

(1) Individual Ahku’ul K’uk’ Reference(s) Classification Contemporary Date Context Date Context Mon. 6, N4 AL2.ZC1:AMB:BP7 9.11.16.8.18 9.3.16.1.11 N2-M4

ek-waan-i-Ø-[iji]y … Position I II Variant 1 a-ku-la

a[h]k-u’[u]l K’UK’ k’uk’

This nominal phrase occurs once in the inscriptions of Tortuguero. Based on the temporal distance between contemporary and context date, the reference is to be judged retrospective and posthumous. The personal name is comprised of two animal names in a nominal composition (Grube 2002: 327, 341). The first lexeme is derived by a –V’Vl toponymic suffix (Lacadena & Wichmann 2005 MS: 19-28). Grube’s (2002: 341) statement that certain animal names, among them k’uk’, may not consti-tute the final position is partially neglected by this example. The name can traditionally be translated as “Turtle-Quetzal” or as “Turtle-like Quetzal” (c.f. Colas 2004: 63-64, 69). In the light of the new proposals of the –V’Vl suffix (Lacadena & Wichmann 2005 MS: 19-28), a translation as “Quetzal with whom the turtle abounds” would come into mind. No known titles and epithets are known for this person, he is mentioned only a few days apart from seven K’atun before the contemporary date of Monument 6 which one must conclude that he must have been an important person.

(2) Individual Bahlam Ajaw Reference(s) Classification Contemporary Date Context Date Context Mon. 6, E3 2M1ÂT1:33K 9.11.16.8.18 [9.8.19.9.16]? E1-F2

??? … Mon. 5, E2 2M1ÂT1 9.12.0.0.0 9.10.11.3.10 G1

u-???-Ø Mon. 6, F8 2M1ÂT1 9.11.16.8.18 9.10.11.3.10 F7-E8

chum-waan-i-Ø … Jd. 1, A10 2M1ÂT1 9.11.2.17.4 9.10.12.0.0 A6-A9

pat[-laj-Ø- iji]y … Mon. 1, B2by 2M1ÂT1 9.11.0.0.0 9.10.13.0.0 A2b-B2ay

u-k’al-tuun-Ø … Mon. 6, H8 2M1ÂT1:33K 9.11.16.8.18 9.10.17.2.14 G8

???-[a]j-Ø Mon. 8, B68 2M1ÂT1 9.11.?.14.11 9.10.17.2.14 B67

u-kab-Ø-[i]ji[y] Mon. 8, A7 AT1.PT7:2S2:32A 9.11.?.14.11 9.10.18.3.10 A5b-A6

chum-laj-Ø na[h] ba[a]h Mon. 8, A20 AT1.2M1:2S2 9.11.?.14.11 9.10.18.3.10 A19

??? maye’(e)ch-Ø Jd. 1, B12 2M1ÂT1 9.11.2.17.4 9.11.2.17.4 B11

[y-]e[h]t?-Ø Mon. 6, J15 2M1ÂT1 9.11.16.8.18 9.11.15.0.0 J12-I15

wak-mul ba[ah]-aj-[i]l-Ø … Mon. 6, J5 2M1ÂT1 9.11.16.8.18 9.11.16.8.18 J4-I5

chum-waan-i-Ø-[iji]y … Bx. 1, E1 2M1ÂT1 9.12.8.13.4 9.12.7.0.0 C2-D2

ma’ il[-n]-aj-Ø

25

Epigraphic Analyses

erences should therefore be considered as toponyms by the principle of exclusion. Since the focus of the historical reconstruction should lie more on the regional than the local perspective, toponyms need furthermore to be distinguished between internal and external references. One criterion for external references is the occurrence of the gentilicio. The toponym of Tortuguero will also be discussed, but not the localities that lie within the site. Most of them refer to buildings and such references are easily to be excluded by the context (c.f. TRT Mon. 6, M3-N4). In the following, emblems and toponyms will be arranged by the quantity they have in the corpus of Tortuguero. The hieroglyphs are addressed by their phonemic reading, those that are not or only par-tially legible will be referred to by alias names. All functionally recognizable records will be consid-ered in a table, internally arranged by the source-internal order. The hieroglyphs will be described (1) with their reference, (2) their classification, (3) the context date, (4) the thematic context and when applicable, (5) the individual bearing the emblem or toponym. The connection with the context and an individual is the ultimate step before discussing the history in Chapter 4. In an additional table, the emblems and toponyms will structurally be displayed in a synoptic way in all their variants. Exten-sions of the nucleus, the actual emblem or toponym, will structurally be described in transcription and transliteration in all spellings. Based on lexical evidence from the Ch’olan, Yucatecan, and Tzeltalan branches, the hieroglyphs will linguistically be analyzed. 3.3.1 Emblems Emblems were first recognized by Heinrich Berlin (1958) and structurally analyzed by Peter Mathews and John Justeson (1984: 216-219). The meaning of emblems was controversial for a long time (c.f. Berlin 1958: 111, Proskouriakoff 1960: 471, Barthel 1968a: 120, Kelly 1976: 215) and all nuances have still not been solved. According to Mathews and Justeson (1984: 216), emblems have a geo-graphic and territorial reference for “the political unit over which one site had dominion”. Evidence for a geographic affiliation was presented by David Stuart and Stephen Houston (1994: 7-18), where they identified several instances of emblems used toponymically in the place name formula. The territorial reference has brought forth two fundamental views of Classic Maya territorial sover-eignty. Peter Mathews (1991) advocates a model of independent city states, while Richard Adams (Turner, Turner & Adams 1981) favours larger scaled regional states. This rather artificial contrast led to the formulation of further models that likely represent the complex political situation more appro-priately. A good approximation is therefore the model of independent states in a network of hegemo-nial dominances. Political units were “more equal than others” (Martin & Grube 2000: 18) in a dy-namically limited way. Since a thorough discussion of the structure of Classic Maya “states” expects no further understanding regarding Tortuguero, this topic will not be discussed. Much more essential is the question of the exact nature and genesis of emblem glyphs and which processes of creating identity stand behind this expression of self-identity. Especially the texts of those archaeological sites that share one emblem, as it is the case with Palenque, Tortuguero, and Comal-calco, may support productive insights. This will be part of the discussion in Chapter 4.3.1.

(1) Emblem Baakiil Reference(s) Classification Context Date Context Subject Bx. 1, F1 AMC.2M1^HH1 9.12.7.0.0 D2

ma’ il[-n]-aj-Ø E1 Bahlam Ajaw

Jd. 1, A11 AMC.2M1^HH1 9.10.12.0.0 A6-A9 pat-[laj-iji]y-Ø …

A10 Bahlam Ajaw

Mon. 1, A3ax AMC.2M1^HH1:AMB 9.10.13.0.0 A2b-B2ay u-k’al-tuun-Ø …

B2by Bahlam Ajaw

Mon. 2, A5y AMC.2M1^000 9.14.0.0.0 A4ay-A4by u-k’al-tuun-Ø …

A5x Individual B

Mon. 5, F2 AMC.2M1^000 9.10.11.3.10 G1 u-???-Ø

E2 Bahlam Ajaw

Mon. 6, F3 AMC.2M1^SCM [9.8.19.9.16]? E1-F2 ??? …

E3 Bahlam Ajaw

Mon. 6, G9 AMC.2M1^SCM:AMB 9.10.17.2.14 G8 ???-[a]j-Ø u-chan

H8 Bahlam Ajaw

Mon. 6, J2 YM3.XE2:HH1:AMB 8.15.16.0.5 I2 uht-i-Ø-[iji]y

- -

36


Mon. 6, I16 AMC.2M1^HH1:AMB 9.11.15.0.0 J12-I15 wak-mul ba[ah]-aj-[i]l-Ø

J15 Bahlam Ajaw

Mon. 6, K1 PC1.2M1^HH1:AMB 9.11.15.0.0 J16-I17 u-baah-Ø u-chiit-ch’ab

J17 Lady Wan Chiij

Mon. 6, K3 AMC.2M1^SCM 9.11.15.0.0 L1-K2 u-nich-Ø …

L2 Ik’ Muuy Muwaan I

Mon. 8, A8 AMC.2M1^SCM 9.10.18.3.10 A5b-A6 chum-laj-Ø na[h] ba[ah]

A7 Bahlam Ajaw

Mon. 9, B9 AMC.2M1^HH1:AMB 9.10.?.?.4 B4-B8 ???

A9 Bahlam Ajaw

Mon. 9, D10 AMC.2M1^HH1 9.10.?.?.5 D7-D9 ???

C10 Bahlam Ajaw

Transcription Transliteration Variant 1 K’UHUL-BAAK(-la)-AJAW k’uh-ul baak-[ii]l ajaw Variant 2 IX-BAAK-la-AJAW ix baak-[ii]l ajaw Variant 3 TAN-HA’-BAAK-la tan ha’ baak-[ii]l The emblem baakiil occurs 14 times in the inscriptions of Tortuguero. Twelve instances are of Vari-ant 1 in the context of an emblem glyph, one entitles a female person, another variant is used as a toponym. The emblem is written by two graphemes, HH1 and SCM. They can freely substitute, a temporal or individual preference cannot be observed, though there is a slight preference to HH1 with eight secure references. The reading /BAK/ is verified for both signs by substitutions in the hieroglyph for the count of captives (Stuart 1985), as well as phonetic complements and functional equivalent syllabic spellings in other contexts. In six records of the emblem, the subfix /la/ likely occurs as the indicator of the locative suffix –iil (Lacadena & Wichmann 2005 MS). The emblem can be translated as “Place of the Bone” (c.f. Colas 2004: 231-232), or eventually as “Place where the Heron Abounds” (Laca-dena & Wichmann 2005 MS). In his study on emblem glyphs, Heinrich Berlin (1958) designated the variant using SCM as “P-1a”, the one with HH1 as “P-1b”. The letter “P” hereby stands for Palenque, the site with which the men-tioned emblem was first affiliated. Thomas Barthel (1968b: 174) provides further comments on the distribution patterns of the different variants of the emblem (also c.f. Marcus 1976: 94-106). Addition-ally, Barthel first considered the readings and meanings of the emblem. While he correctly interpreted HH1 as baak, the grapheme SCM was semantically explained as “Head, Skull”. He deduced a sym-bolic parallel of both variants with the underworld (Barthel 1968b: 174-177), a view that was later disproved by later investigations (Stuart 1985). As already mentioned in Chapter 1.5.3, it has most recently been recognized that the emblem baakiil refers not only to Palenque, but to Tortuguero as well. A simple synopsis of chronologically arranged contexts demonstrates that in no instance several ruling persons of an emblematic site carry the title of a k’uhul ajaw at the same time. The contemporaneousness of K’inich Janaab Pakal in Palenque and Bahlam Ajaw in Tortuguero proofs the independent use of the emblem in both sites. After the erection of monuments in Tortuguero came to a stop, the emblem baakiil also emerges in Comalcalco. The first datable record (Hoppan 1996: 156) comes from CML MBr. 2, Bp4 and names K’inich Ohl as the k’uhul baakiil ajaw, associated with the context date 9.14.14.9.12 (Grube, Martin & Zender 2002: 42). At the same time Palenque was governed by K’inich Ahku’ul Mo’ Naab III (Martin & Grube 2000: 172). What implications result from the simultaneous double use of the emblem in altogether three sites will be part of the theoretic discussion concerning emblem glyphs in Chapter 4.3.1, as well as the consid-eration of the origin of the dynasty (Chapters 4.3.2 and 4.3.3) and the termination of erecting monu-ments in Tortuguero (Chapter 4.5).

(2) Emblem Joy? Chan Reference(s) Classification Context Date Context Subject Jd. 1, B4 1G4:ZB1°XH3 9.10.17.2.14 B3

STAR WAR[-iiy]-Ø B4 aj–

Mon. 6, G5 2M1^ZB1°XH3:2S2 9.10.17.2.14 G4-H4 STAR WAR-iiy-Ø-ijiy …

H5 Ox Bahlam

Mon. 8, B59b 1G4:ZB1°XH3 9.10.17.2.14 B59a STAR WAR[-iiy]-Ø

B59b aj–

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4. HISTORICAL DISCUSSION Having analyzed individuals and place names as the mosaic pieces for the reconstruction of the history of Tortuguero, the historical and contextual discussion can now take place. As it has been discussed in Chapters 1.6.1 and 2.3, this working step first will descriptively be conducted to achieve an event-driven reconstruction of history. Secondly, it will also contextually supplement history on an interpre-tational level to seek the backgrounds of the events. The latter will be conducted in the narrow frame of the inscriptional records, supported by complementary information from external sources, as they have been defined in Chapter 1.4.1. 4.1 THE PROTAGONISTS AND THEIR BIOGRAPHY Instead speaking of individuals, as they have been discussed in Chapter 3.2, the biographical recon-struction will introduce the term “protagonist”. These persons, main actors in the literal sense, pro-duced the history which this study seeks to reconstruct by their activities. These individuals are of special interest for a prosopographical approach, opposite to those which are befallen by history or which are only known to have existed. Therefore, a biography will be reconstructed only for a selec-tion of individuals, into which others will be integrated if necessary. In order to establish a clear dis-tinction between the protagonists and all other individuals, some criteria need to be formulated. An individual will be considered as a protagonist when at least one action occurs in his biography that he conducted himself or that can be attributed to him by context. Furthermore, events that include status-related (e.g. accession to the throne) or sociopolitical statements (e.g. marriage) will be incorpo-rated, and as a result, acquired and awarded status positions as optional criteria. The biographical information is divided into several sections that describe: (1) birth and relationships, (2) accession, (3) stations and events of the path through life, (4) death, and (5) status positions. So-ciopolitical relations will be excluded and separately discussed in Chapter 4.4, especially belligerent actions. Each biography concludes with a short evaluation of the historic importance of the protagonist by means of the known sources. 4.1.1 The Biography of Ahku’ul K’uk’ Data on the lifespan of this individual is not known. Ahku’ul K’uk’ is only mentioned once in the in-scriptions of Tortuguero, as he has laid down (ek-waan-i-Ø-[iji]y, Mon. 6, N2, c.f. Grube & Schele 1993: 4, Wichmann 2002b: 10-11) something in his pibnaah (Mon. 6, M4, c.f. Houston 1996). The context date is 9.3.16.1.11, 8 Chuwen 9 Mak (9 December 510), the placement in the ninth Bak’tun allows him to be considered as historic. Titles as part of acquired or attributed status positions are absent, as well as genealogic references. Ahku’ul K’uk’ therefore remains temporally and individually isolated. However, the fact that he de-serves a retrospective mention going back 160 years argues for a prominent role he played in the his-tory of the site. His role cannot further be specified, but some hypotheses will be included in the dis-cussion concerning the dynastic sequence in Chapter 4.2.1. 4.1.2 The Biography of Bahlam Ajaw The birthday was likely recorded on the missing left panel of TRT Mon. 6 and can be reconstructed by two indications. The partially eroded distance number A/B and the temporal clitic of the verb siij?, Mon. 6, F5 in connection with Date B make 9.8.19.9.16, 8 Kib 4 K’ank’in (29 November 612) a very good candidate. In connection with the date 9.11.15.0.0, 4 Ajaw 13 Mol (28 July 667), Bahlam Ajaw’s father is named as Ik’ Muuy Muwaan I via the statement u-nich, Mon. 6, L1. In the same context, Bah-lam Ajaw is connected by the expression u-baah u-chiit?-ch’ab, Mon. 6, J16-I17, with Lady Wan Chiij who carries the title of a female baakiil ajaw. In contrast, the unambiguous motherhood expression u-ba[ah] [u-]juntan, Mon. 8, A21, names Lady Nay Amay Noh. As the discussion of Lady Wan Chiij in Chapter 3.2.2 already introduced, the relationship expression recorded on TRT Mon. 6 can not se-curely or solely be connected to the mother. Since there are also likely two different individuals named, Lady Wan Chiij surely has another degree of relationship with Bahlam Ajaw. As it has been demonstrated in the discussion of her name, the Yucatec term ix cit designates the paternal aunt, which may also describe the relationship between Lady Wan Chiij and Bahlam Ajaw. Since local women are

43

Historical Discussion

The proximity of the period ending he celebrated with the accession date of Ik’ Muuy Muwaan II leads to the conclusion that Ruler D was his successor. A genealogical descent cannot be attested to, but seems likely. As an approximation, Ruler D’s lifetime can be considered to about one K’atun before and after the period ending. This suggests that Tortuguero most likely had to some extent an autono-mous dynastic line after 9.14.0.0.0. 4.2.6 Dynastic and Genealogical Synopsis As the dynastographic presentation for each ruler has demonstrated, some synthetic statements can be given for the dynastic line. They rely both on verified and reconstructed chronological and on genea-logical information, as they have also been outlined in the biographies of Chapter 4.1. It is therefore probably to consider Ahku’ul K’uk’ as the founder of the local ruling house. But he re-mains without any kinship ties and uncertain in his emic status categorization. How many rulers gov-erned Tortuguero until Ik’ Muuy Muwaan I acceded to power is finally unknown. The next three rulers can be placed in a chronological order placed around Bahlam Ajaw. These three persons are also of consanguine descent. The lest testified ruler, Individual B, certainly is the direct successor of Ik’ Muuy Muwaan II, but remains without any family connections. The known dynasty of Tortuguero ends with Ruler D and with him also the local tradition of erecting monuments.

Ix Nay Amay Noh

Lady A Ix Witz Chan

Ik’ Muuy Muwaan II.

Bahlam Ajaw

Ik’ Muuy Muwaan I.

Ix Wan Chiij

Figure 4: The demonstrably reconstructable family tree of the dynasty of Tortuguero as known from the epigraphic sources. Draft: Sven Gronemeyer.

The family tree shown in Figure 4 shows the related rulers and their affinities based on the historical reconstruction achieved so far. The rulers are marked with grey symbols, presumed relationships are represented by a dotted line. The integration of the other rulers was not included due to the missing base of sources. 4.3 ORIGIN OF THE DYNASTY The question for the origin of the dynasty of Tortuguero has to proceed in two directions. Firstly, the etic origin is to be settled. This means the search for indications of an original local or immigrated elite on which later rulers claimed their legitimacy. The second important question is the emic origin, i.e. the search for indications of the ruling elite’s self-image. This complex is closely tied to the use of an emblem glyph as it has already been introduced in Chapter 3.3.1. The image testified to in the in-scriptions can have emerged including both directions, but does not need to require a combination. Both directions will first be discussed separately before this chapter concludes with a synthesis of the results. To better evaluate the emic perspective, an examination of the sociopolitical dimension of

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memorates the last event of the local history on TRT Mon. 2. We surely would know more about his tenure if the content of the monument would not be so affected by heavy erosion. According to the currently recognizable time gap of 30 years between the date on TRT Mon. 2 and the last previous date, the dedication of the wooden box, one can hardly speak of a beginning decline of the inscrip-tional tradition with TRT Bx. 1 and TRT Mon. 2 as the only exceptions. Linda Schele’s statement (1991b: 82) that the erection of monuments came to a stop with Bahlam Ajaw could be disproved. Systematic archaeological explorations surely would contribute monuments with complementary in-formation for epigraphic research to modify our current view. It is therefore not assured that the inscriptional tradition ceased with the erection of TRT Mon. 2. But the hypotheses presented here and in the following chapter are based on this premise. This circum-stance should be taken for granted under proviso in the further discussion. Whether Tortuguero was left after the erection of the last monument in fact is a question which could only be answered by ar-chaeology. A systematic exploration on the basis of stratigraphic excavations is still pending, as well as an unambiguous ceramic sequence. Robert Rands (1973: 200) was able to demonstrate that later pieces of pottery of the ware Fine Gray deviate from those in Palenque and show greater similarities with those in Comalcalco. But these statements are not secured by absolute chronological methods and are of a limited and tendentious validity. But these data however suggest that Tortuguero kept on be-ing occupied after the last monument had been erected, though the site eventually “withdrew from Palenque’s sphere” (Schele 1991b: 82). 4.5.2 Comalcalco as a Possible Successor of Tortuguero The inscriptions known from Comalcalco predominantly date from the time after 9.14.0.0.0, while some exceptions (CML Msc. 2, Bur. IIIa, CML Stone Urn) have already been mentioned. Comalcalco remains silent after its defeat by Tortuguero until 9.13.13.1.17. This date is recorded on CML St. 1 (Figure 6) and refers to the accession of an individual who has tentatively been named as K’inich-? (Grube, Martin & Zender 2002: 36).

Figure 6: CML St. 1. The basis for the re-construction of the Long Count is the Calen-dar Round 6 Kaban 0 Pohp in blocks Cp2-Dp2. The accession is mentioned in block Cp4. Drawing: Nikolai Grube. From: Grube, Martin & Zender 2002: 36.

A local elite and obviously a ruling house seemed to have further continued at Comalcalco. The ques-tion whether the members of this dynastic line or the ruler enthroned on CML St. 1 still used the origi-nal emblem joy? chan or already employed the emblem baakiil remains unknown. The later texts from Comalcalco are unsuitable for such questions with regard to their contents be-cause they mainly refer to the dedication of inscriptions (c.f. Hoppan 1996, Fernández Martínez 2000), or to different rituals on specific Haab dates (c.f. Armijo Torres, Gallegos Gómora & Zender 2000, Grube, Martin & Zender 2002). With the individual K’inich Ohl, a ruler from Comalcalco is associated for the first time with the em-blem baakiil on CML MBr. 2. The reconstructed date 9.14.14.9.12 refers to a contemporaneousness with the Palenque king K’inich Ahku’ul Mo’ Naab III (c.f. Table 6). Between this date and the last known date from Tortuguero, 9.14.0.0.0, lies a gap of approximately 14 years. As demonstrated in the biographical reconstruction of Ruler D, he still may have ruled a certain time after the K’atun ending.

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5. CONCLUSIONS This study closes with an evaluation with the present state of research currently published in the litera-ture and the objectives that have been achieved here, as declared in Chapter 1.6. Furthermore, the most significant results of this study will be summarized, followed by a short prospective on future desir-able aspects in the epigraphic analysis of the inscriptions of Tortuguero. 5.1 ASSESSMENT OF THE RESULTS Gaps in the state of documentation have largely been closed in this study, the only restrictions con-cerns TRT Mon. 2. New photographs of the entire monument could not be achieved because of present circumstances. The new documentation served as the basis for a complemented and modified corpus for the following epigraphic analysis. The conduction of the source immanent analysis according to the current state of research has been guaranteed. The analytical methodology permits further the adaptation of the data for future develop-ments in epigraphic research. The consideration of linguistic questions, such as the existence of ver-nacular languages, has been achieved in part, as some phonemic readings could be correlated to lex-emes of the Tzeltalan languages. The descriptively and contextually interpreted event-driven history by means of thematic hieroglyphs was discussed in Chapter 4. Based upon the chronological framework, individuals and place names were isolated and correlated with historical events. Biographies were drawn up for a predefined circle. Considering the identification of individuals as rulers, a dynastic sequence was reconstructed. Like-wise, certain persons could be set into family relationships. The historical interpretation of the source data was on one hand the product of the desiderata, on the other hand it was influenced by the personal expectations with regard to the contents and statements of the inscriptions – prejudiced from the records of other sites. For example, this affects the interpretation of the dynastic origin, the sociopolitical interaction, especially the antagonistic events, and the expira-tion of the writing tradition. The assessment of analytical premises opposed this methodological prob-lem. Interpretations have been made only from evident text passages and orientated themselves after the written records. The integration of external sources for the evaluation of the informational contents of the texts of Tor-tuguero in a macropolitical scope and the control of the interpretation was done in part. Under the predefined selection criteria, only two external references have been found that contribute to accounts in the corpus of Tortuguero. The historiographical premises outlined in Chapter 2.2.3 were worked in for the historical discussions. The different approaches and methods were employed specifically for the treatment of certain ques-tions. The problems of the intention of the texts and the evaluation of their historic facts are only par-tially solved, as for example the discussion of the meaning of emblems in Chapter 4.3.1. The integration of archaeological sources was likewise restricted with regard to the predefined criteria in Chapter 1.6.1. Only ceramic studies and the distribution of architectural features could be used, as they supported arguments for the termination of the writing tradition. If there are no unambiguous inscriptional records, this discussion can merely be handled only by the texts. Similarly, archaeologi-cal data are needed to support the theories for the so called “collapse” of Classic Maya culture (c.f. Culbert 1973). 5.2 THE HISTORY OF TORTUGUERO The corpus of Tortuguero is rather limited with a total of ten known inscriptions, but was appropriate to achieve at least a partial reconstruction of the history of the site. This study was able to broaden several conclusions already published, and to conduct to some extent fine adjustments in the under-standing of the historic gear. Albeit only a very short dynastic sequence of four rulers, as far as it can be recognized, Tortuguero left clear marks in the history of the Northwestern Lowlands. Although these are not recognizable in ex-ternal sources. Centred around the ruler Bahlam Ajaw, the bulk of these activities occurred between

65

Conclusions

about 9.10.11.0.0 and 9.11.16.0.0. The influence of Tortuguero is especially palpable in line with the sociopolitical interaction on the level of antagonistic actions. Tortuguero sought to gain a position of supremacy in the political landscape in the war against the northern city of Comalcalco. Coevally, a consolidation of friendly ties was sought by marriage diplomacy. A connection to the elite of Palenque obviously bestowed Tortuguero a certain kind of legitimisation and prestige. Though we have a dynastic sequence without interruption beginning with Ik’ Muuy Muwaan I, impor-tant questions for the origin of the base of power remain unacknowledged, and the local history ap-pears mostly restricted to ritual activities. Although the names of other rulers before and after Bahlam Ajaw are known, the sources regarding historic accounts from their tenure are silent. And even Palen-que does not make mention of its ally in its own texts, though both sites were connected by family bonds. 5.3 PROSPECT Many questions regarding the history of Tortuguero remain poorly understood or at least blurred in the perception of the epigraphically working historian. Many of these aspects have been illuminated in Chapter 4. Despite the recovery of multitudes of information from the text sources at hand, it has to be demanded from archaeology to conduct systematic explorations in the site. The potentiality to unearth more in-scriptions must be availed before the industrial utilisation of the area makes it completely impossible and a window into the past is closed. Some opportunities have already been missed, such as the corre-lation between monuments and their location to architectural features in the original townscape or within buildings. Further archaeological explorations, not only in Tortuguero, would improve the evaluation of the epi-graphically reached results, and enable a more precise local, but also regional history. In this vein, exacting statements could be made on the political and economical status of Tortuguero in the North-western Lowlands that would conduce to the understanding of the overall historical picture. As the analysis of the corpus of Tortuguero has shown, especially sites of secondary importance have the ability to contribute considerably to the numerous interweavements and interactions of Maya poli-ties. While major centres, such as Tikal, Palenque, or Copán largely limited their chronicles to coequal relations, minor sites conducted their relations in the vacuum of the commemoration of the great he-gemonial powers. Especially these accounts, as they are available for the Northwestern Lowlands with the inscriptions of Tortuguero, are important mosaic pieces for an area-wide understanding of the his-tory and politics of Classic Maya cities.

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7. CATALOGUE

The Emblem Glyph of Tortuguero. Monument 8, A8. After a photography by Elisabeth Wagner, 2001.

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7.1 TORTUGUERO WOODEN BOX (TRT BX. 1) 7.1.1 Data Sheet Present Location: Miami Lakes, Florida, United States of America. Collection: Jay I. Kislak Foundation. Provenance and history: The provenance of the wooden box is unknown. According to information provided by Michael Coe (1974: 51), the object came into the private property of the collector Josué Sáenz and was later brought to the Lomas de Chapultepec. According to Michael Coe (in a letter from June 17, 2003), the art dealer Edward Merrin from New York City who conducted the sale of the greater part of Sáenz’ collection, may have sold the wooden box to Jay I. Kislak. His collection was transformed into the Jay I. Kislak Foundation in 1984. Kind of object: Box. Material: Wood, eventually sapodilla (Coe 1974: 51). Dimensions: Length: 15.7 cm, width: 3.54 cm, height: 4.37 cm. Description: The object is a wooden box with a lid fixed through a raised edge on the inner side of the box. At the bottom, there are four nearly round feet. The surface was rubbed with red haematite (Coe 1974: 51). Found in the interior was a small possibly Mixtec stone figurine that presumably may have been produced outside of the Maya area according to Coe (1974: 51). Sculptured areas: All exterior surfaces of the wooden box except the four feet feature carved areas. Sculpture techniques: Bas-relief. State of preservation: The object is completely preserved. However, it shows some damage particu-larly on the top and the upper and left vertical sides of the lid, as well as on the lower rim of the box. The top and bottom of the object is eroded along the way of the grain. Epigraphy: All six sides are inscribed, the text consists in total of 44 glyph blocks. Marginal texts are located in the upper right corner (T1) and at the lower edge of the lid (U1-V1). The main text is ar-ranged running around the four vertical sides (A1-R2), and in a single column in a rectangular field (S1-S5). Text internal arguments show that the text can only be read when the box is closed. It begins at the upper left corner of the lid (A1), runs around the vertical sides in double columns and continues (S1) in the text field in the bottom. According to the inscription (S3-S4), the object is a yotoot mayij, a con-tainer for ritual implements (Zender & Bassie 2002). Ak’ax Bahlam is named as its owner (S5), whose name is again repeated on the lid (V1a) and in the main text (O2-P2). Iconography: The top face of the lid bears the representation of a standing male, identified as Ak’ax Bahlam by the marginal text. In his right hand he holds an undecorated staff. The headdress consists of a rectangular element with the head of long-lipped deity, adorned with two feathers attached to the front of it. This headdress is worn in similar form by persons on the hieroglyphic bench of PAL T. XIX, the so-called “Tablero de Bulto” of Group XVI of Palenque, and on several ceramic vessels (c.f. K5109, K5435, K5445). It seems to be a characteristic feature of lesser nobles (Zender & Bassie 2002) who also carry the title of an ebeet (on TRT Bx. 1: U2b, P1, S1). Ak’ax Bahlam wears an earspool, a knee-length loin-cloth, and high sandals, all in Late Classic style (Proskouriakoff 1950: 81, 86-88). His necklace with pendant shows similarities with the depictions on the south side of the aforementioned bench from Palenque. Together with the loin-cloth, the clothing also shows parallels to the dress of the protagonists from the “Tablero de Bulto”. Likely, the necklace and his headdress indicate his status. Photographs: Coe 1974: figs. 1, 2, 3, 7, Hernández Pons 1984: fig. 33, Coe & Kerr 1998: pl. 93, Zender & Bassie 2002. Kerr #339. Drawings: Coe 1974: figs. 4, 5, 6, 8, Riese 1980: fig. 7, Looper 1991, Arellano Hernández 1996: fig. 7, Zender & Bassie 2002, present catalogue: Plates 1, 2.

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Plate 2: Tortuguero Wooden Box. Bottom and Top. Drawing: Sven Gronemeyer.

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7.1.3 Epigraphic Analysis PARAGRAPH A: DEATH OF BAHLAM AJAW AND PERIOD ENDING PHRASE I (Date A, 09.12.06.17.18) Clause 1 A1

006.ZZ1°XQ8 6-ETZ’NAB wak ETZ’NAB NUM DASpred 3 ETZ’NAB

B11

011.AA1:XS3:2S2 11-ka-KASEW-wa buluk kaseew-Ø NUM MNSpred-3sAsubj 11 SEK it (was)

PHRASE II (Date B, 09.12.07.00.00) Clause 2 A2

002.XGE:1M1 2-bi-ji cha’-bij NUM-TDCadv two (days) (later)

B2

ZC1.1S2:MR2.ZU1 K’AL-ja-TUN-ni k’a[-h]l-[a]j-Ø tuun VTR[-DerPAS]-THMpred-3sAsubj NONsubj was bound (the) stone

Clause 3 C1

008.ZZ1°AM1 8-AJAW waxak ajaw NUM DASadv 8 Ajaw

D1

013.AA1:XS3.2S2 13-ka-KASEW-wa oxlajun kaseew NUM MNSadv 13 SEK

C2

32A.BP1 ma-a ma’ PRPpred not

D22

AL4:1M1.AL2 IL-a-ji il[-n]-aj-Ø VTR[-DerPAS]-THMpred-3sAsubj was seen

1 The transcription of the month name follows the proposal by Marc Zender (1999 MS: 56). The sign XS3 is logographically read as /KASEW/ in this context instead of syllabically /se/. No grapheme has more than one syllabic value, already occupied for this sign by /cha/. Therefore, the frequently affixed syllabographs are pho-netic complements that can be absent from case to case. 2 As Lacadena’s study on the passive voice (2004) has demonstrated, transitive verbs not corresponding to a CVC root are derived in a different way. Instead of infixing the –h– derivational morpheme, the irregular stem is suffixed by –n or –w (Lacadena 2004: 183-187), hereafter follows the thematic suffix –aj. In the present case, the thematic suffix is realized by /a-ji/, but a derivational suffix is never present. For the root il, this pattern already appears in the Early Classic (Grube 1990a: 60). Based on the linguistic foundations estab-lished by Lacadena (2004), the derivational suffix is reconstructed here, since all other processes of intransitivi-zation of il occur regularly. But it is questionable, whether this type of passive derivation was used for this lex-eme in the hieroglyphic inscriptions. Colonial Yucatec also features the derivation il-ah (Smailus 1989: 45).

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Catalogue

7.1.4 Calendrical Reconstruction Pos. Long Count/Distance Number Calendar Round Gregorian Date Date A (Death of Bahlam Ajaw) A1-B1 * 09.12.06.17.18 06 Etz’nab 11 Sek 24.05.0679 AD A2 + 02 Date B (Period Ending) C1-D1 PE 09.12.07.00.00 08 Ajaw 13 Sek 26.05.0679 AD Date A (Death of Bahlam Ajaw) A1-B1 * 09.12.06.17.18 06 Etz’nab 11 Sek 24.05.0679 AD E2 + 02.01 Date C (Accession of Ik’ Muuy Muwaan II) H1-G2 * 09.12.07.01.19 08 Kawak 12 Yaxk’in 04.07.0679 AD K2 + 12.08 Date D (Accession of Ak’ax Bahlam) M2-N2 * 09.12.07.14.07 09 Manik’ 15 Pop 08.03.0680 AD Date C (Accession of Ik’ Muuy Muwaan II) H1-G2 * 09.12.07.01.19 08 Kawak 12 Yaxk’in 04.07.0679 AD Q1-Q2 + 01.11.05 Date E (Dedication of the Wooden Box) N/A * 09.12.08.13.04 08 K’an 12 Kumk’u 08.02.0681 AD Distance Number A/C: The distance number of two Winal given in the text (E2) does not properly connect with the Calendar Round 8 Kawak 12 Yaxk’in but is too short for one day. Why the distance number does not connect Dates B and C with a span of 1.19 as previously suggested (Riese 1980: 27-28, Looper 1991) can easily be explained. The connection of the distance number with the death expression och bij clearly refers to Date A (Eberl 1999 MS: 43). This is also confirmed by the use of the deictic clitic –ijiy with the death expression (Wald 2000). Why the distance number has been rounded off cannot be explained, since there would have been enough space for a correct count. Distance Number C/D: Again, this distance number has been rounded down, in this case for about five Winal. Since the calendrical nexus is clear, the reconstruction can easily be given as 12.8. Date E: The distance number C/E at the end of the text running around does not lead to another Cal-endar Round. Date E can therefore be reconstructed by counting forward from the recorded Date C. The reference to the accession after the distance number is evidence enough to consider Date C as the base date.

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Acta Mesoamericana 17

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