Women rulers in Maya society

During the 7th and 8th centuries in Mesoamerica, there was an evident shift in the roles women played in ancient Maya society as compared with the previous two centuries. It was during this time that there was a great deal of political complexity seen both in Maya royal houses as well as in the Maya area. Warfare was a significant factor in political competition and marriage was one of the ways that alliances were made between the different polities. This was accompanied by a shift in women's roles from wife and mother to playing integral parts in courtly life, such as participating in rituals involving the supernatural world and at times ruling individual polities.

A handful of women are described and depicted on monuments taking on roles and titles that were usually reserved for men.[1] High-ranking titles that both men and women could hold included Ajaw and Kaloomte'. The title of Ajaw was seen as "the most general title" that persons of nobility could have if they were born into the right social ranking; meanwhile, the title Kaloomte' has an unclear meaning but it is at the site of Tikal where the title is used as the highest rank.[2]

Among the high-ranking women in ancient Maya society during the Classic Period were five who rose to the position of ruling queen. Some acceded to the throne in their own right due to the lack of a male heir. Others served as regent until their sons were old enough to rule. These women included Lady of Tikal, Lady Yohl Ik'nal and Muwaan Mat of Palenque, Lady Six Sky of Naranjo, and Lady Eveningstar of Yaxchilan.

Tikal

Lady of Tikal

"Lady of Tikal" assumed a leadership role at the age of six but did not rule on her own. She co-ruled with an individual named Kaloomte' Bahlam.[3] The daughter of Chak Tok Ich'aal II, Lady of Tikal was depicted on Stela 23, which was broken and later re-erected incomplete. Her relationship to Bird Claw, who may have been her successor is unknown due to problems deciphering the text of Stela 8, but it is important to note that Bird Claw does not carry the Tikal emblem.[4]

Monuments that refer to the Lady of Tikal are: Stelae 6, 12, and 23.

Palenque

Lady Yohl Ik'nal

Lady Yohl Ik'nal took the throne at Palenque in 583 when Kan Bahlam I, the 7th ruler, died and left no heir. The relationship between her and the previous king remains undetermined, though she appears to have been either his daughter or sister. She ruled for more than 20 years. She also carried full royal titles, an uncommon occurrence for women.[5] According to the sarcophagus of K'inich Janaab' Pakal, Yohl Ik'nal was the mother of Lady Sak K'uk', making Lady Yohl Ik'nal the grandmother of K'inich Janaab Pakal.[6]

Lady Yohl Ik'nal appears on the side of the sarcophagus of K'inich Janaab Pakal.

Muwaan Mat

Muwaan Mat (also known as Lady Sak K'uk' or "Lady Beastie") ruled for a short time after the death of Aj Ne' Yohl Mat before K'inich Janaab' Pakal took the throne.

It was probably Sak K'uk' and her consort K'an Mo' Hix who held most of the power during the childhood of K'inich Janaab' Pakal.[7] There is an image of Lady Sak K'uk handing him what had been termed the "drum major" crown at his accession.[7]

Naranjo

Lady Six Sky

Lady Six Sky
Reign 682 – 741
Predecessor K'ahk Skull Chan Chaak
Successor K'ahk Tiliw Chan Chaak
Born Dos Pilas?
Died February 10 or 11, 741
Full name
Lady Six Sky, also known as Lady Wac Chanil Ahau, Lady of Dos Pilas, Lady of Tikal
Father Bajlaj Chan K'awiil of Dos Pilas
Mother Lady Bulu'

Of the three queens, Lady Six Sky's reign was the most impressive. She was the daughter of Bajlaj Chan K'awiil of Dos Pilas and arrived at Naranjo in the position of ruling queen and established a "new dynasty." Lady Six Sky commissioned monuments that note she performed important calendric rituals, some shortly after her arrival.[8] Additionally, she is shown on monuments taking on the role of a warrior-king by standing over a trampled captive, an unusual representation for a woman. Naranjo Stela 24 is one such depiction.[9] Scholars suspect that K'ahk' Tiliw Chan Chaak, the king who succeeded her, was the son of Lady Six Sky. He was born five years after her arrival at Naranjo.

Monuments that refer to Lady Six Sky are: Stelae 3, 18, 24, 29, and 31.

Yaxchilan

Lady Ik' Skull

Lady of Ik' Skull
'Ix Ajaw'
Reign as possible regent
Predecessor Itzamnaaj Bahlam III
Successor Bird Jaguar IV
Born September 1, 704
Calakmul
Died 751
Spouse Itzamnaaj Bahlam III
Full name
Lady of Ik' Skull, AKA Lady Eveningstar

Lady Ik' Skull, also known as Lady Eveningstar, came to Yaxchilan from Calakmul. She was a secondary wife to Itzamnaaj Bahlam III (also referred to as Shield Jaguar II, Shield Jaguar the Great or Itzamnaaj B'alam II).[10] Although a secondary wife, Lady Ik' Skull may have ruled for a short time in Yaxchilan's history until her son Bird Jaguar IV was old enough to take the throne.[11] A review of the dynastic history of Yaxchilan during Itzamnaaj Bahlam III's reign indicates that he had three wives: Lady K'ab'al Xook (also written as Lady Xoc or Lady Xok), Lady Sak B'iyaan and Lady Ik' Skull of Calakmul, with Lady K'ab'al Xook as the primary wife.[12] Upon the death of Itzamnaaj Bahlam, the right to the throne would traditionally go to his heir through the Lady K'ab'al Xook line; however, this is not what happens and nearly ten years after his death it is his son, Bird Jaguar IV, from Lady Ik’ Skull that takes the throne.[13]

There is a great deal of speculation as to why the son of a secondary wife took the throne and did so after the king had been dead for ten years. Current thinking is that the rightful heir through Lady K'ab'al Xook's lineage may have been her son, or perhaps a nephew or brother,[14] but that this individual was captured during a conflict with Dos Pilas in 745.[15] Information regarding this "interregnum" period tends to be conflicting. In their second revised edition Martin and Grube note that at Piedras Negras there is mention of a new king at Yaxchilan, Yopaat Bahlam II, who may have ruled for part or all of this period.[16] However, supporting evidence for this is unknown from Yaxchilan. On the other hand, Josserand notes that Lady Ik' Skull ruled as regent during this time and that it was not until her death that Bird Jaguar IV took the throne.[11]

A monument which refers to Lady Ik' Skull is stela 35.

See also

Notes

Information regarding monuments in which the above individuals are noted was obtained from Martin and Grube 2008: 38, 74, 129, 160, and 161.

  1. ↑ Miller & Martin 2004:93
  2. ↑ Montgomery 2002:201, 203
  3. ↑ Martin & Grube 2008:38
  4. ↑ Martin & Grube 2008:39
  5. ↑ Martin & Grube 2008:159
  6. ↑ Schele & Freidel 1990:221
  7. 1 2 Martin & Grube 2008:161
  8. ↑ Martin & Grube 2008:74
  9. ↑ Martin & Grube 2008:74; Miller & Martin 2004:99.
  10. ↑ Martin & Grube 2000:122. Note that in Martin and Grube's 2nd (revised) edition of this work (2008), Itzamnaaj Bahlam's position in the dynastic sequence has changed from that given in the original edition, along with a modification to the orthography for his name (Martin & Grube 2008:122).
  11. 1 2 Josserand 2007
  12. ↑ Martin & Grube 2008:126
  13. ↑ Josserand 2007:299.
  14. ↑ As is suggested by Martin and Grube (2008:127).
  15. ↑ Josserand 2007:307.
  16. ↑ Martin & Grube 2008

References

Bruhns, Karen Olsen; Karen E. Stothert (1999). Women in Ancient America. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 0-8061-3169-1. OCLC 41540119. 
Houston, Stephen D. (1993). Hieroglyphs and History at Dos Pilas: Dynastic Politics of the Classic Maya. Austin: University of Texas Press. ISBN 0-292-73855-2. OCLC 25507968. 
Josserand, J. Kathryn (2007). "The Missing Heir at Yaxchilan: Literary Analysis of a Maya Historical Puzzle" (PDF online reproduction, at the Maya Vase Database). Latin American Antiquity. Washington, D.C.: Society for American Archaeology. 18 (3): 295–312. doi:10.2307/25478182. ISSN 1045-6635. JSTOR 25478182. OCLC 175188574. 
Martin, Simon; Nikolai Grube (2000). Chronicle of the Maya Kings and Queens: Deciphering the Dynasties of the Ancient Maya (1st ed.). London and New York: Thames and Hudson. ISBN 0-500-05103-8. OCLC 47358325. 
Martin, Simon; Nikolai Grube (2008). Chronicle of the Maya Kings and Queens: Deciphering the Dynasties of the Ancient Maya (2nd revised ed.). London and New York: Thames & Hudson. ISBN 978-0-500-28726-2. OCLC 191753193. 
Miller, Mary; Simon Martin (2004). Courtly Art of the Ancient Maya. London: Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0-500-05129-1. OCLC 54799516. 
Montgomery, John (2002). How to Read Maya Hieroglyphs (Hippocrene pbk. ed.). New York: Hippocrene Books. ISBN 0-7818-1020-5. OCLC 56050823. 
Schele, Linda; David Freidel (1990). A Forest of Kings: The Untold Story of the Ancient Maya. New York: William Morrow. ISBN 0-688-07456-1. OCLC 21295769. 
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