As scholars devote their attention toestablishing categories for types of monu-ments, classifying their iconography, andtrying to define what these symbols mean,their methods divert them from exploring themost fundamental questions about the natureof the works of art they are studying.Scholars of Maya art and archaeology havelong dedicated their efforts to unraveling thecomplex imagery of stelae, the sculpted pil-lars of stone raised by Maya kings to com-memorate katuns and the intervals that formtheir internal divisions. Mayanists have nowestablished a systematic understanding ofwhat subjects, themes, and symbols appearin stela iconography, recognizing that theyportray kings engaged in rituals that requireblood sacrifice and result in visionary revela-tions of the otherworld. Yet the significanceof the stela itself, as a holy object, as a ritualshrine, still requires definition and research.

The practice of raising stelae on peri-od endings is integral to the fusion of reli-gion and ruling power that underlies thedominance of Maya states in the Classicperiod. The stela cult was pervasive, and itstemporal boundaries coincide with those ofthe political structures that ordered LowlandMaya society from the Protoclassic period tothe final years of the collapse.l Clearly, thestelas purpose and meaning were central tothe ideology that made kingship vital to thepolitical systems that crystallized during theProtoclassic. The conventions of steladesign, styles and subjects remained remark-ably stable throughout the centuries ofClassic history, and across the widely diver-gent regions of the Central Lowlands.Orthodox and highly specialized as a ritualcomplex, the cadence of stela dedicationundoubtedly helped stabilize the institutionof kingship, perpetuating its ancient concep-tions and values by renewing them with theadvent of each future cycle.

Yet little is truly understood about thesignificance of setting up stone pillars atthese junctures of past and future time; if thelink between stelae and periodicities isunknown, little more can be said about themonuments relationship to the goals of thevision quest it serves to document. Whilerecent research has supplied countless break-throughs in interpreting stela texts andiconography, the larger patterns of how thoseelements interrelate and pertain to the sculp-tures purposes present a stubborn enigma.We understand little of how the ancientMaya themselves conceived of stelae, orwhat ritual purpose they may have served.Apart from its royal portrait and text, theobject itself, the stone pillar, seems mostremote from our understanding. In essence,we do not know what stelae are, nor do weunderstand why they were raised accordingto the rhythms of cyclical time. New ques-tions must challenge that realm of interpreta-tion, exploring the monuments relationshipto cosmology and the charismatic powersclaimed by kings.

Some of our limitations in interpret-ing the ritual role of stelae may be due to thefact that most were raised singly, at the baseof a pyramid stairway or in the sanctuary atthe structures summit. In those contexts theyseem like isolated markers, accents for archi-tectural settings or billboards for royalportraits and inscriptions. The significanceof the stone shaft seems irrelevant, except toprovide a vertical surface for display.However, the two Southeast Maya centers,Copan and Quirigua, feature prominentgroupings of stelae raised in open settings,situated to circumscribe areas for ritualactivity. Each series of stelae is unified by aserial pattern of dates and an overall spatialorder. The serial groupings are unique toCopan and Quirigua, and are further restrict-ed to the reigns of three closely connected

1

Precious Stones of Grace: A Theory of the Origin andMeaning of the Classic Maya Stela CultELIZABETH A. NEWSOMEUNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN, EAU-CLAIRE

kings.2 Despite their limited distribution, Ibelieve that analysis of the design, inscrip-tions and iconography of these stela cyclescan aid in interpreting the stela cult at othersites, and in other contexts.

The three programs were created bySmoke-Imix-God K, 12th ruler of Copan, hiss u c c e s s o r, 18-Rabbit-God K, and ButzTiwil, or Cauac Sky of Quirigua. T h eSmoke-Imix set chronicles a countdown ofintervals leading to the katun ending9.11.0.0.0 (October 11, 652 A.D.). The stelaeseem designed to unify the outlying areas ofthe Copan Valley with the center of rule atthe Main Group of ruins, for spatially andchronologically, they form a circuit of thevalleys perimeter that begins and ends withtwo sculptures at the Main Group. Fourstelae located on hill slopes east and west ofthe principle ruins carry the sweep of thek a t u n s chronology to the boundaries ofcommunity space.3 B u t z Ti w i l s seriesappropriates features of 18-Rabbits group-ing; both kings raised giant stelae that chan-

nel the flow of ritual motion in the northernplazas of their cities. Yet Butz Ti w i l ssculptures surpass 18-Rabbits in their colos-sal size, as though designed to shout downthe legacy of his rivals greatest statement ofpower.

This analysis focuses on the iconog-raphy, inscriptions and organization of 18-Rabbits stela series, which consists of sevensculptures ranging in date from December 1,711 to July 22, 736 A.D. All are located inthe Great Plaza, which opens to the north ofCopans Central Court (fig. 1). The kinglabored for 25 years of his 43 year reign toalter the design and orientation of the plaza,adding steps that enclose it on the north, eastand west sides, and reconstructing Temples 2and 4, which form its northern and southernfocal points. His efforts transformed theoriginal open plaza into an enclosed courtwith carefully controlled access from twocauseways that approached it from the eastand west. When completed, the plazasoriginal layout along a north-south axis had

2

Fig. 1 Position of 18-Rabbits Stelae in the Great Plaza of Copan. After Webster 1986, figure 1.

been reorganized into a four- d i r e c t i o n a ldesign.4 The new plan of Temple 4 withstairways that converge from the cardinalpoints, contributed to the reorientation, butthe most important factor was the addition of18-Rabbits seven giant stelae, which serveto structure the interior space of the plaza.

Each of the stelae is an imposingpresence, standing approximately 12 feettall, and carved nearly in the round as astanding portrait of the king (fig. 2). Eachdisplays a unique combination of iconogra-phy specific to the ritual it portrays, but allshare the same fundamental format. The kingstands in a frontal pose, elevating the double-headed serpent bar while small supernaturalfigures, deities and personified sacrificialblades, emerge from its twin maws. Fillingthe upper and lateral surfaces of each stelaare a host of otherworldly apparitionsvision serpents, gods, ancestral spiritsrevelations of the content of 18-Rabbitsdreams. The kings face, enlarged for effect,is still with the silent concentration of histrance. His lips are slightly parted, his eyesdowncast as he responds internally to thevisions which the imagery of his stelae givetangible form. Deeply undercut and mod-

eled, highlighted by dramatic contrasts oflight and shadow, 18-Rabbits stone sculp-tures bring the apparitions of his dreams tovivid, palpable life.

Six of the seven stelae stand clus-tered together, forming a roughly rectangulargrouping in the plazas southeast quadrant(fig. 1). The dates of these six sculptures allcorrespond to one chronological sequence, acountdown of intervals leading to the katunending on 9.15.0.0.0 4 Ahau 13 Yax (August18, 731 A.D.). Stela D, which stands at thebase of the Temple 2 stairway at the northedge of the plaza, is isolated by both its posi-tion and its date, which records the firsthotun of the next cycle. It belongs to a katunthat 18-Rabbit did not live to complete, forhe died at Quirigua on 9.15.6.14.6 6 Cimi 4Tzec, May 3, 738 A.D.5 It may also be thefirst monument of another, unfinished stelasequence. The others stand aligned in doublerows which face east and west across anopen corridor of space, their combined gazescharging the center zone of the group with atingling sensation of focused power. To-gether they compose a circuit, a four-sideddivision of space, which corresponds to thechronology of a cycle completed in time.

Each stela is carefully placed toendow it with directional associations. StelaC, the earliest sculpture of the series, breaksthe symmetry of the dual rows and standsnear the exact midpoint of the Great Plaza,serving as the axis of the entire court. Itmarks the beginning day of katun 9.14.0.0.0on 6 Ahau 13 Muan (December 1, 711 A.D.).Stela F, marking the lahuntun ending, standsat the northeast corner of the group. Stela 4,which follows at 9.14.15.0.0, faces it at thenorthwest. Stela H records the beginning dayof the final tzolkin leading to the fifteenthkatun, and is positioned at the southeast. Thededication date of Stela A falls one hundreddays before the katun ending, and it formsthe southwest closure of the group. Stela B isthe final monument of the series, dated 4Ahau 13 Yax. Completing the alignment thatincludes Stelae A and 4 in the western row, itfaces Stela C as though the two monumentswere mirror images, joined in beginning andending the cycle.

Stela C is a special monument in

3

Fig. 2 West Side Portrait of Stela C with GreatTurtle Altar. Photo by author.

many respects. It is the only stela carvedwith double portraits, which appear on itseast and west sides. The two surfacescontrast with one another, the eastern imagerepresenting 18-Rabbit as a youthful kingwith a smooth face, while the western por-trait depicts him with a long growth of beard.Because the dedication date of Stela C coin-cides with the famous heliacal rising ofVenus as Evening Star that occurred on the14th katun ending, iconography that pertainsto Venus, blood sacrifice and decapitationpermeate its complex imagery. Its mostprevalent themes, however, relate to agricul-ture, trees, and the sacrifice and rebirth ofmaize. I believe that Stela C holds clues to abroader context of understanding that ratio-nalizes the link between royal vision questand the ritual dedication of pillars of stone.

The western portrait of Stela C tiesinto the complex of iconography that Taubeassociated with the Holmul Dancer as a man-ifestation of the Maize God (Taube 1985).The strongest evidence for this is the visualrelationship between 18-Rabbits image andthe giant turtle altar that rests in a shallowbasin in front of it (fig. 2). The turtle, sym-bolizing the earth, is a key element in theiconography of the Holmul Dancers resur-rection. The famous plate illustrated in figure3, shows the beautiful god who personifiesthe growing stalk of maize rising from acrack in the turtles broken shell. T h eiconography of the western side of Stela Cinvites the viewer to comprehend 18-R a b b i t s image according to the samemetaphor of germination. Seen from a posi-tion in front of the altar, where thoseapproaching Stela C might offer prayers orsacrifices, 18-Rabbits body appears toemerge from the carapace of the turtle, likethat of the Maize God on the ResurrectionPlate (fig. 3).

Other iconographic connections tothe Holmul Dancer are less certain, but muchof the imagery on the west side of Stela Cseems to fit a general association betweenthe kings sacrifice and vision quest and thecyclical death and rebirth of maize. 18-Rabbits full beard, which only appears inthis portrait, is an occasional attribute of theMaize God during the Early Classic period

4

Fig. 3 The Resurrection Plate. From Robiscekand Hales 1981, vessel #117.

Fig. 4 Monkey Extending the Maize GodsSevered Head, North End of Serpent Bar, WestSide Portrait of Stela C. Drawing by author.

(Taube 1985:179). The witz mask in hisheaddress recalls 18-Rabbits beautifulTemple 22 facade, which features masks ofthe mountain spirit from which busts of thesinging Maize God are reborn. While visionserpents hovering in the upper zones of thestela spew blades and symbols of sacrifice,the northern head of 18-Rabbits serpent barreveals a monkey who extends the severedhead of the Maize God (fig. 4). Meanwhile,on the east side of Stela C, the serpent bar ofthe king conjures apparitions of the MaizeGod who appears to be alive and well.

If the west side of Stela C portrays18-Rabbit as the Holmul Dancer, how doesthe imagery of the eastern portrait comparewith its themes of agriculture and rebirth? Ibelieve its symbolism reflects the concep-tions of world order, fertility and renewalthat revolve around another botanical ele-ment of Maya myth: the veneration of Treesof Life. The realm of belief and worship thatcenters upon trees and their symbols exhibitsa spectrum of associations: veneration of theancestral dead, metaphors of immortality,cosmic order, and the gift of sustenance fromthe gods. Related themes in Classic iconog-raphy include the Na Te Kan and the Wacah

C h a n, the Maize and World-Axis treesportrayed as crosses in the Group of theCross at Palenque (Schele and Freidel1990:259). Modern Maya groups veneratetheir dead through cross-shrines that theydecorate with evergreen boughs and flowers,as symbolic trees (Vogt 1969). Trees alsofunction in cosmogenesis, set in place as thefirst features of creation.

The most prominent feature of theportrait on the east side of Stela C is an elab-orate belt that consists of the dangling headand forepaws of a great cayman monster.Like the turtle, the cayman is aMesoamerican symbol of the earth; theAztec and Maya alike often envisioned theearths surface as the spiny back of a croco-dile who floats above the waters of an end-less sea. Where the head of the cayman inter-sects 18-Rabbits waist there appear a pair ofsuperimposed cauac masks, one facingupward, one gazing down, to emphasize thatthe underworld the cayman represents liesbeneath the earths crust of stone. 18-Rabbits torso emerges above the crocodilebelt, implying that he is breaking free fromthe earths surface.

The diving cayman is a particularlystriking image, and I am aware of only oneother important instance of itin theiconography of Stela 25 from the LatePreclassic site of Izapa in the PacificHighlands of Guatemala (fig. 5). The divingcayman forms the roots and base of a tree,with swaying branches taking the place ofthe reptiles back and tail. 18-Rabbits bodyoccupies the same position as the tree trunkon the Izapan monument, and I suggest thatthe king and the tree are conceptually thesame. There are many trees in Maya mythol-ogysome give sustenance, others supportthe sky, and some symbolize the rebirth ofdivinities and ancestors. While all these treesmay be equivalent at some level of under-standing, I believe that the images from theeast side of Stela C and Izapa Stela 25 corre-spond to one particular variant, the Imix-Yaxche mentioned in The Book of ChilamBalam of Chumayel (Roys 1933).

Yax-che means first tree, and accord-ing to Maya myth, it stands at the center ofthe world, just as Stela C occupies the mid-

5

Fig. 5 Stela 25, Izapa. From Norman 1976, fig.3.26.

point of the Great Plaza. Imix, the first day ofthe Maya tzolkin, corresponds to the CentralMexican day-sign cipactli, or alligator. Itsassociations with the fertile earth and maizereflect its role in the dawning of the newcycle and world renewal. Thompson equatedthe Yax-che with the ceiba, which theYucatec Maya worshipped as a symbol ofabundance and everlasting life (Thompson1950:71). Landas commentary reveals thatthe Yax-che spread its branches over ablessed paradise where the spirits of the deadrested in eternal comfort, enjoying an abun-dance of all the foodstuffs of the world(Tozzer 1941:220). Roys remarks that theItza of Tayasal regarded it as the tree fromwhich the first human on earth received hisfood (Roys 1933:102). The I m i x - Ya x c h e ,then, is a Tree of Paradise, an eternal font offruitfulness, a haven of new life.

The link between the iconography ofStela C and this central tree of Maya myth isprofound, and the interwoven metaphors oftrees, maize, and the cycles of sacrifice andrebirth unify 18-Rabbits grouping as awhole. 18-Rabbit also appears as the HolmulDancer on Stela H, costumed in the charac-teristic net skirt and xoc-fish-spondylus shellbelt of the god (Taube 1985:174). T h ePrinciple Bird Deity perches atop his head-dress, just as it roosts at the apex of the treesdepicted in the Group of the Cross. Stela 4portrays the king arrayed in the attributes ofGod K, who seems to function at times as agod of maize (Taube 1985). While Stela Brepresents 18-Rabbit as the incarnation ofChac Xib Chac, Venus as Evening Star, theiconography on the side features smallanthropomorphic beings, ancestral spiritswho tug at fronds of corn, drawing them outof witz masks that symbolize the Mountainof Creation.6 The saga of Stelae C is com-plex, intermeshing royal sacrifice, botanicalrebirth, and motions of the celestial gods.7

As I traced these threads of agricul-tural symbolism through 18-Rabbits stelacycle, I began to wonder how deep the con-nection between trees and stone pillars mightgo, and searched for contexts to explain it. Ifound myself intrigued by two fragmentarycreation myths preserved in the Chumayelmanuscript, one called The Creation of the

World, the other The Ritual of the Angels.Both myths begin at a point in the remotepast when the order of the present world hadnot yet been established. Both recount thegods initial acts of creation as the raising ofvertical pillars at the four corners of theworld and at its center, to lift the sky awayfrom the waters of the sea. The Creation ofthe World specifies that these supports areTrees of Paradise set in place to nourish thenew life of creation. In the Ritual of theAngels, the sky is set upon the pinnacles ofseven stones of grace.

The Creation of the World beginswith the cataclysmic destruction of the previ-ous creation, accomplished by a flood thatsubmerges the earth, and finalized when thesky collapses onto the waters of chaos. Thenarrative states that the four Bacabs werethen set up in their cosmic seats. A newepoch of creation ensues, and the gods begina series of actions that circumscribe the rimof the new world, giving it directionality andvertical divisions. Most of these acts appearto involve founding the quadrants and order-ing the sky. In this version of cosmogenesis,the gods raise Trees of Paradise at each of thecardinal points, lifting the earth up undertheir roots, raising the sky upon their branch-es. Their final act is to root the Yax Che, thegreen tree or first tree, at the center of theworld. With this act, the first phase ofcreation is complete.

The Ritual of the Angels presents asimilar procedure of cosmogenesis throughritual acts that cycle through the world quad-rants and lead to the raising of the sky. Thisaccount, however, was composed in morecryptic language, and the content are harderto comprehend. The narrative begins whenthe world was submerged, when there wasneither heaven nor earth... Creation beginswhen a divine presence stirs in an entitycalled the three-cornered precious stone ofgrace, which the translator, Ralph Roys, in-terprets to mean the grain of maize (Roys1933:107). Seven tuns are born, and withthem seven katuns, hanging in the heart ofthe wind. The account continues to describethe birth of each precious stone of grace,which is animated by a divine spirit. Theseangels hidden in the stones are clearly

6

counterparts of Precolumbian spirits of thewinds. The narrative of creation peaks whenthe sky appears to be lifted on the pinnacle ofone mighty stone called Sustinal Gracia, orSustaining Grace, and a light kindled at itssummit vanquishes the primordial darkness.8

Clearly, the two epics preserve relat-ed versions of creation. How closely are thetrees of the first narrative connected to theprecious stones of the second? The myths

themselves contain ample allusions to theidea that the world directional trees andstone pillars overlap in identity. Roys offersthe information that gracia is a liturgicalterm for maize in Maya ritual (Roys1933:107), and Sustaining Grace seems afitting euphemism for the principle food cropof the Maya. These and other clues suggestthat the stones of grace have a double iden-tity as pillars and trees of maize. Thedirectional trees of The Creation of theWorld have fewer direct references thatconnect them to stones, yet the myth is pref-aced by the authors statement that his workconcerns the precious stones which ourLord, the Father, has abandoned. One of thefinal events of the narrative is the raising ofa new series of directional markers calledrulers, each set upon a foundation at one ofthe world quarters. Echoing the founding ofthe trees, the raising of these rulers calls tomind the erection of stelae on their founda-tions.

How does the process of cosmogene-sis recorded in these myths pertain to thestela grouping of 18-Rabbit at Copan? Thestelae themselves do not correspond to thecardinal directions of the world, but to theintercardinal points. However, examples like

7

Fig. 6 Cosmogram with World Trees, Page 1,Codex Fejevary-Mayer. From Seler 1901.

Fig. 7 Diagram of Superstructure with Corner Figures of Pauahtuns, Temple 11, Copan. From Schele andMiller 1986, p. 122.

the famous cosmogram preserved in CodexFejevary-Mayer (fig. 6) reveal that the widercontext of Mesoamerican thought includedtrees that stand at the corners of the world aswell as its cardinal points. While the manu-script is Central Mexican and not Maya, itrepresents a similar conception of the uni-verse as a four-sided structure with Trees ofParadise that bear fruit and flowers at eachworld quarter. Other trees occupy the cornersthat correspond to the northeast, northwest,southeast and southwest points of cosmicgeography. Pathways of power flow betweenthem from the paradises located at the cardi-nal directions, converging in the centralsquare established by the intercardinal trees.

Yet the Chumayel manuscript itselfmay provide a more immediate connectionbetween trees, stones, and the intercardinalquadrants. The Ritual of the Angels identi-fies the gods born in the seven stones ofgrace as the Pauahtuns, the stone-giants whostand at the corners of the world, lifting thesky above the earth. They belong to a groupof closely related directional gods thatinclude the Bacabs, who are world-bearerslike the Pauahtuns, and the Chacs, gods oflightning and storms. Indeed, Landa assertsthat Chac, Bacab and Pauahtun were merelydifferent names for the same being (Tozzer1941:137). As gods of the winds, the

Pauahtuns would have controlled the move-ment of clouds, storms and rain across thesky they support, blessing the children ofcreation with warm rains to nourish theirfields, or punishing them with floods anddrought. Their favor could bring the gifts ofabundance, while their fury could destroy theworld.

R o y s translation of this passagefrom the Chumayel reads as follows:(These are) the angels of the winds which were set upwhile he (God the Father) created the star, when theearth was not yet lighted, when there was neitherheaven nor earth: the Red Pauahtun, the W h i t ePauahtun, the Black Pauahtun, the Yellow Pauahtun(Roys 1933:110).

Baeza, who witnessed a m i s amilpera, a cornfield mass, in 1813, alsostates that the Pauahtuns were invoked asgods of the four winds (quoted in Brinton1890:166). Diego Lopez de Cogolludo, writ-ing in the seventeenth-century, refers to theBacabs as wind gods associated with rainand divination (Lopez de Cogolludo 1867-68, 4, VIII). Some accounts place the sky-bearing gods at the cardinal points, whileothers specify that, like the intercardinaltrees of Codex Fejevary-Mayer, they stand atthe corners of the universe. The modernTzotzil of Zinacantan, for example, worshipfour deities called the Vashakmen who standat the intercardinal quadrants, supporting thesky (Vogt 1969:303).

Imagery of the Pauahtuns is preva-lent in the royal iconography of Copan. 18-Rabbits descendant Yax Pac designed theelaborate superstructure of Temple 11 withbisecting corridors open to the cardinalpoints, and corner figures of the Pauahtunswho supported an entablature carved to rep-resent the sky (fig. 7) (Schele and Miller1986:122). 18-Rabbit himself composed anelegant expression of this cosmology in thedesign of the inner door lintel of Temple 22,which portrays the sky monster arcing abovekneeling Pauahtuns who support its frontand rear heads. As wind gods, it seemsappropriate that the Pauahtuns would becharged with supporting the sky. As personi-fied pillars of stone, I believe they are thedivine prototype of the Classic Maya stela.R o y s notes to his Chumayel translation

8

Fig. 8 Stela 5, Izapa. From Lowe 1982, fig. 15.8.

include the interpretation of the namePauahtun as stone set upright (Roys 1933:171-172). I believe 18-Rabbits monumentgroup was designed to recreate cosmogene-sis, symbolizing the cycle of creation thatlifted the sky and divided the rim of theworld into eight cardinal and intercardinalpoints.

While this theory is built upon a widerange of arguments, the inscription of StelaC may offer the most compelling evidence tosupport it. The text sets the agenda for mean-ings carried to fulfillment by the totalinscriptional and iconographic program ofthe group, and expresses how 18-Rabbitsmonuments perpetuate divine actions thatstructure space and time. The inscriptions onboth sides begin by citing the completion ofthe 13th calabtun, apparently at the end of apast creation. The texts then cite dedicationrites for a series of stones set in place bygods at supernatural locations in the cosmos.The inscription on Stela C may record anancient, Precolumbian version of the thinly-Christianized myth preserved in The Ritualof the Angels. 18-Rabbit recalled this mythin the inscription of his initial stone, bindingit to the ideology of world-renewal hewished his sculptural series to fulfill.

The conclusions reached here repre-sent a first venture into a theoretical realmthat requires more examination and research.If the connections I have argued unlock anyof the secrets of the Classic Maya stela cult,they may also serve to shed light on itsorigins among the complex societies of thePreclassic Highlands and coastal Veracruz.The direct link to world-creation through themythology of Trees of Paradise may accountfor the prevalence of what seem to beepisodes of origin myths recorded on Izapanstelae. Images like the verdant paradisesheltered by a Tree of Life displayed onIzapa Stela 5 (fig. 8) would appear to supportsuch a connection. Kent Reillys research onthe royal symbolism of the Olmecs mayreveal that parallels exist there as well. Ifaspects of the Maya stela cult can be under-stood with reference to these Formativetraditions, their continuities may reveal thebasis of a definition of power as ancient asthe emergence of kingship in Mesoamerica.

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Southeast Classic Maya Zone, E. Booneand G. Willey, eds., pp. 5-30. Washington,D. C.: Dumbarton Oaks.

NOTES1 The known chronology of stela dedication

in the Lowlands closely conforms to that theo-rized for the rise and collapse of states controlledby dynastic kings. The earliest dated stela, theHauberg, records 8.8.0.4.0. or 199 A.D., andbelongs to the period of transition between theLate Preclassic, when kingship revolutionizedthe structure of Lowland society, and the EarlyClassic, when it stabilized into an institution ofo ffice (Schele 1985; Schele and Miller1986:191). As ruling structures declinedthroughout the Lowlands during the ninth centu-ry, faltering stela dedications and aberrant stylesand imagery reflect the conditions of politicalupheaval. At some centers, such as Seibal, for-eign elites may have briefly experimented withthe ancient conventions of stela art to supporttheir own authority. Most centers had ceased to

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raise stelae by 10.3.0.0.0; the last dated stela inthe Lowlands was erected at Tonina for the katunending 10.4.0.0.0, January 20, 909 AD. After thistime, the tradition of raising stelae, with roots asancient as the La Venta Phase of Olmec culture,became extinct as an expression of kingship(Schele and Friedel 1990:383-392).

2 While certain of the connections betweenthese rulers are not clear, it seems apparent thatButz Tiwil was a governor of Quirigua underthe Copan dynasty and a vassal lord of its rulinghouse. In all probability he was a close kinsmanof 18-Rabbit, perhaps even a member of theroyal family (for further discussion, see Schele1989, 1990b).

3 For discussion of the Smoke-Imix-God Kstela series as a pilgrimage circuit, see Newsome1991.

4 Charles Cheeks excavations in the MainPlaza of Copan reveal the construction history ofthe Great Plaza and its principle buildings(Cheek 1983a and b).

5 18-Rabbits death is recorded on ButzTiwils Stelae E, F, G and J at Quirigua. It iscited only once at Copan, on Steps 58-61 of theHieroglyphic Stairway (Schele 1990a).

6 The Mountain of Creation is described inthe Popol Vuh (Tedlock 1985) as the locationwhere the first humans encountered their gift ofsustenance from the gods, corn, which theyfound growing in the mountains cleft. T h eiconography of Stela B, with its stacked witzmasks and overhanging macaw beaks, may relateto 18-Rabbits Temple 22. which also featuresthe stacked corner masks and may have origi-nally included bird beaks positioned above them.Because the iconography of both monumentscombines the mountain as a setting with the ger-mination of maize, I suspect that Stela B andTemple 22 both symbolize the Mountain ofCreation.

7 A theme that parallels the emphasis uponvegetal rebirth is the connection between bloodsacrifice, and gods and events associated withphases of Venus. The chronology of the stelagroup includes a number of Venus dates whichmay be of varying importance. The date of StelaC, of course, coincides with the heliacal rising ofVenus as the Evening Star. The beginning day ofthe katuns last 260 day cycle, recorded on Stela

H, occurs near Ve n u s final apparition asMorning Star, while the date of Stela A falls nearthe end of inferior conjunction. The fifteenthkatun ending, recorded on Stela B, falls near theplanets maximum elongation as Evening Star.Helen Alexander (1988) describes the astronom-ical associations of these dates. Iconographically,at least two monuments portray 18-Rabbitdressed in the attributes of Venus gods. Stela Bdepicts 18-Rabbit as Chac-Xib-Chac; Grube andSchele (1988) believe that Stela F portrays himas the One-Sky-in-Hand Jaguar God, whom theysuspect is related to phases of the Evening Star.

8 It is difficult to determine which celestiallight the author of The Ritual of the Angels hadin mind. Roys interpretation of the passage fol-lows:Then, it is said, the boldness of the heaven onhigh was created. This was one grace, one stone;then fire was created, Tixitate was his name, thelight of the heavens(Roys 1933: 110).

Roys himself speculated that some garbledreference to the Christian myth of Lucifer, thebold one, might explain the sudden introductionof an entity associated with light and fire. Thesubsequent lines, however, reveal that thePauahtuns were set at their directional coordi-nates while he (God) created the star. In addi-tion, the Chumayel text includes a later mentionof a macaw who warmed it well behind theacantun (stood-up stone) (Roys 1933:111). Thislast metaphor suggests a possible connectionwith Vucub Caquix, the great parrot monster ofthe Popol Vuh, who set himself up as the falsesun at the dawning of creation (Tedlock 1985).Given the deliberately esoteric nature of the text,it is difficult to tell whether the Chumayelsauthor was describing the creation of the sun orone of the brighter stars.

Recent research by Linda Schele, KrisVillela and others (Schele 1992) has uncovered afar-reaching correspondence between the cre-ation mythology of the ancient Maya and anarray of celestial phenomena: the configurationsand movements of constellations, stars, theMilky Way, the ecliptic. Their research may un-cover astronomical connections that help toresolve the mystery of this passage.

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