Jump to content

Ekʼ Balam: Difference between revisions

Coordinates: 20°53′28″N 88°08′11″W / 20.89111°N 88.13639°W / 20.89111; -88.13639
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous edit
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
KolbertBot (talk | contribs)
Bots
1,166,042 edits
m Bot: HTTP→HTTPS (v475)
mNo edit summary
Tags: Mobile edit Mobile app edit iOS app edit
 
(44 intermediate revisions by 27 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{Short description|Mayan archaeological site in Mexico}}
<!-- Hide until it can be attended to
<!-- Hide until it can be attended to
{{Infobox Pre-Columbian site
{{Infobox Pre-Columbian site
|name =
|name =
|image =
|image =
|image size = 250px
|image size = 250px
Line 36: Line 37:
[[File:Acropolis - Ek Balam Archaeological Site - Near Valladolid - Yucatan - Mexico - 01.jpg|thumb|Acropolis - Ek Balam, 2012]]
[[File:Acropolis - Ek Balam Archaeological Site - Near Valladolid - Yucatan - Mexico - 01.jpg|thumb|Acropolis - Ek Balam, 2012]]


'''Ek' Balam'''{{Pronunciation-needed}} is a Yucatec-Maya [[archaeological site]] within the municipality of [[Municipality of Temozón|Temozón]], [[Yucatán (state)|Yucatán]], [[Mexico]]. It lies in the [[Geography of Mesoamerica#Northern Maya lowlands|Northern Maya lowlands]], {{convert|25|km|mi|0}} north of [[Valladolid, Yucatán|Valladolid]] and {{convert|56|km|mi}} northeast of [[Chichen Itza]]. From the Preclassic until the Postclassic period, it was the seat of a Mayan kingdom.
'''Ekʼ Balam''' (English pronunciation {{respell |ek| bælæm}}) is a Yucatec-Maya [[archaeological site]] within the municipality of [[Municipality of Temozón|Temozón]], [[Yucatán (state)|Yucatán]], [[Mexico]]. It lies in the [[Geography of Mesoamerica#Northern Maya lowlands|Northern Maya lowlands]], {{convert|25|km|mi|0}} north of [[Valladolid, Yucatán|Valladolid]] and {{convert|56|km|mi}} northeast of [[Chichen Itza]]. From the Preclassic until the Postclassic period, it was the seat of a Mayan kingdom.


The site is noted for the preservation of the plaster on the tomb of Ukit Kan Lek Tok', a king buried in the side of the largest pyramid.<ref>{{Cite book|author1=O'Neill, Zora |author2=Fisher, John|year=2008|title=The Rough Guide to the Yucatan |edition=second|publisher=Rough Guides (Penguin)|location=London|pages=196–197|isbn=978-1-85828-805-5}}</ref>
The site is noted for the preservation of the plaster on the tomb of Ukit Kan Lek Tokʼ, a king buried in the side of the largest pyramid.<ref>{{Cite book|author1=O'Neill, Zora|author2=Fisher, John|year=2008|title=The Rough Guide to the Yucatan|edition=second|publisher=Rough Guides (Penguin)|location=London|pages=[https://archive.org/details/roughguidetoyuca00onei/page/196 196–197]|isbn=978-1-85828-805-5|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/roughguidetoyuca00onei/page/196}}</ref>


==History==
==History==
Ek' Balam was occupied from the [[Mesoamerica#Preclassic.2FFormative|Middle Preclassic]] through the [[Mesoamerica#Postclassic|Postclassic]], although it ceased to thrive as a major city past the Late Classic. Beginning in the Late Preclassic, the population grew and the city expanded throughout the following periods. It eventually became the capital of the polity that controlled the region around the beginning of the Common Era.<ref name="Bey III, et al 1998">Bey III, et al (1998)</ref>
Ekʼ Balam was occupied from the [[Mesoamerica#Preclassic.2FFormative|Middle Preclassic]] through the [[Mesoamerica#Postclassic|Postclassic]], although it ceased to thrive as a major city past the Late Classic. Beginning in the Late Preclassic, the population grew and the city expanded throughout the following periods. It eventually became the capital of the polity that controlled the region around the beginning of the Common Era.<ref name="Bey III, et al 1998">Bey III, et al (1998)</ref>


At its height from 770 to 840 CE, Ek' Balam provides a rich resource of information for understanding northern Classic cities, due to the poor preservation of many other notable northern Maya sites (e.g. [[Coba]], [[Izamal#Pre-Columbian Izamal|Izamal]], and [[Edzna]]).<ref>Martin and Grube (2000)</ref> It was during this height that the Late Yumcab ceramic complex (750-1050/1100 CE) dominated the architecture and pottery of Ek’ Balam.<ref name="Bey III, et al 1998"/>
At its height from 770 to 840 CE, Ekʼ Balam provides a rich resource of information for understanding northern Classic cities, due to the poor preservation of many other notable northern Maya sites (e.g. [[Coba]], [[Izamal#Pre-Columbian Izamal|Izamal]], and [[Edzna]]).<ref>Martin and Grube (2000)</ref> It was during this height that the Late Yumcab ceramic complex (750-1050/1100 CE) dominated the architecture and pottery of Ekʼ Balam.<ref name="Bey III, et al 1998"/>
The population decreased dramatically, down to 10% of its highest, during the Postclassic period as Ek’ Balam was slowly becoming vacant.<ref>Aimers (2007)</ref> There are several theories to why it was eventually abandoned and to the degree of haste at which it was abandoned (''see'': [[#Defensive Walls|Defensive Walls]]).
The population decreased dramatically, down to 10% of its highest, during the Postclassic period as Ekʼ Balam was slowly becoming vacant.<ref>Aimers (2007)</ref> There are several theories to why it was eventually abandoned and to the degree of haste at which it was abandoned (''see'': [[#Defensive Walls|Defensive Walls]]).


Ek Balam is mentioned in a late-sixteenth-century ''Relación Geográfica'', an official inquiry held by the colonial government among local Spanish landowners. It is reported to have belonged to a kingdom called 'Talol',<ref name="Witschey and Brown 2011">Witschey and Brown (2011)</ref> founded by an Ek' Balam, or Coch Cal Balam, who had come from the East. Later, the region was dominated by the aristocratic Cupul family.
Ek' Balam is mentioned in a late-sixteenth-century ''Relación Geográfica'', an official inquiry held by the colonial government among local Spanish landowners. It is reported to have belonged to a kingdom called 'Talol',<ref name="Witschey and Brown 2011">Witschey and Brown (2011)</ref> founded by an Ekʼ Balam, or Coch Cal Balam, who had come from the East. Later, the region was dominated by the aristocratic Cupul family.


==Architecture==
==Architecture==
Line 52: Line 53:


[[Image:ekbalam map2 numbered.jpg|right|446px]]
[[Image:ekbalam map2 numbered.jpg|right|446px]]
# These are the city’s '''Defensive Walls''', which end on both sides at an unsurpassable, steep sink hole.<ref name="Dahlin 2000">Dahlin (2000)</ref>
# These are the city's '''Defensive Walls''', which end on both sides at an unsurpassable, steep sink hole.<ref name="Dahlin 2000">Dahlin (2000)</ref>
# The '''Entrance Arch''' stands at the entrance of Ek’ Balam on four legs, constructed over the road that leads into the city, and was probably ceremonial in purpose.<ref name="Rider 2005">Rider (2005)</ref>
# The '''Entrance Arch''' stands at the entrance of Ekʼ Balam on four legs, constructed over the road that leads into the city, and was probably ceremonial in purpose.<ref name="Rider 2005">Rider (2005)</ref>
# The '''Oval Palace''' contained burial relics and its alignment is assumed to be connected to cosmological ceremonies.<ref name="Rider 2005"/>
# The '''Oval Palace''' contained burial relics and its alignment is assumed to be connected to cosmological ceremonies.<ref name="Rider 2005"/>
# '''Structure 17''' or '''The Twins''' atop of which there are two mirroring temples on either side.
# '''Structure 17''' or '''The Twins''' atop of which there are two mirroring temples on either side.
# '''Chapel'''
# '''Chapel'''
# A carved '''[[Maya stelae|stela]]''' which depicts a ruler of Ek Balam, possibly [[#Inside the Walls|Ukit Kan Le’k Tok’]].
# A carved '''[[Maya stelae|stela]]''' which depicts a ruler of Ek Balam, possibly [[#Inside the Walls|Ukit Kan Leʼk Tokʼ]].
# '''Structure 12'''
# '''Structure 12'''
# '''Structure 10''' is a platform whose base dates to the Late Classic but was built upon by later generations.<ref name="Rider 2005"/>
# '''Structure 10''' is a platform whose base dates to the Late Classic but was built upon by later generations.<ref name="Rider 2005"/>
Line 65: Line 66:
# '''[[Maya medicine#Sweat baths|Steam Bath]]'''
# '''[[Maya medicine#Sweat baths|Steam Bath]]'''
# '''Structure 3''' on the east corner of the Acropolis is an unexcavated platform that borders the main plaza.<ref name="Rider 2005"/>
# '''Structure 3''' on the east corner of the Acropolis is an unexcavated platform that borders the main plaza.<ref name="Rider 2005"/>
# '''Structure 1''' or the '''Acropolis''' on the north side of the site is the largest structure at Ek' Balam and is believed to contain the tomb of Ukit Kan Le'k Tok', an important ruler in Ek’ Balam. Excavations on it began in 1998, when it was just a mound.<ref name="Rider 2005"/>
# '''Structure 1''' or the '''Acropolis''' on the north side of the site is the largest structure at Ekʼ Balam and is believed to contain the tomb of Ukit Kan Leʼk Tokʼ, an important ruler in Ekʼ Balam. Excavations on it began in 1998, when it was just a mound.<ref name="Rider 2005"/>
# This is the temple in which Ukit Kan Le'k Tok' was buried, called '''El Trono''' (‘The Throne’). The doorway is in the shape of a monster-like mouth, possibly depicting a [[Jaguars in Mesoamerican culture|jaguar]].<ref name="Rider 2005"/>
# This is the temple in which Ukit Kan Leʼk Tokʼ was buried, called '''El Trono''' ('The Throne'). The doorway is in the shape of a monster-like mouth, possibly depicting a [[Jaguars in Mesoamerican culture|jaguar]].<ref name="Rider 2005"/>


==Notable Features==
==Notable features==
[[File:2010. Ek' balam. Quintana Roo. México.-20.jpg|thumb|Head of serpent with Mayan hieroglyphs, Ek' balam, 2010]]
[[File:2010. Ek' balam. Quintana Roo. México.-20.jpg|thumb|Head of serpent with Maya hieroglyphs, Ekʼ balam, 2010]]


===Defensive Walls===
===Defensive walls===
The layout of the site is surrounded by two concentric walls which served as defense against attack. There were many smaller walls that snaked through the city as well. The inner wall encompasses an area of {{convert|9.55|ha|acre}}. The carved stone of the inner wall, {{convert|2|m|ft}} tall and {{convert|3|m|ft}} wide, is covered in plaster; the outer wall serves purely for defense, as it is less substantial and less decorative. These walls were the largest in the Late Classic Yucatan, and seem to have a symbolic meaning of protection and military strength. Theories claiming a hasty desertion of the city are backed up by the fourth wall inside the city, which “bisects the Great Plaza, and, at less than a meter wide and made of poorly constructed rubble, it was clearly built as a last ditch effort at protection” against invading attackers.<ref name="Dahlin 2000"/>
The layout of the site is surrounded by two concentric walls which served as defense against attack. There were many smaller walls that snaked through the city as well. The inner wall encompasses an area of {{convert|9.55|ha|acre}}. The carved stone of the inner wall, {{convert|2|m|ft}} tall and {{convert|3|m|ft}} wide, is covered in plaster; the outer wall serves purely for defense, as it is less substantial and less decorative. These walls were the largest in the Late Classic Yucatan, and seem to have a symbolic meaning of protection and military strength. Theories claiming a hasty desertion of the city are backed up by the fourth wall inside the city, which "bisects the Great Plaza, and, at less than a meter wide and made of poorly constructed rubble, it was clearly built as a last ditch effort at protection" against invading attackers.<ref name="Dahlin 2000"/>


===Structures Inside the Walls===
===Structures inside the walls===
Only the center of Ek’ Balam has been excavated. Large, raised platforms line the interior wall, surrounding internal plazas. [[Sacbe|Sacbé]] roads stem off of the center in the four cardinal directions, an architectural allusion to the idea of a “four-part cosmos”.<ref name="Witschey and Brown 2011"/> These roads are often understood to have been sacred.<ref name="Dahlin 2000"/><ref name="Rider 2005"/> The buildings were designed in the northern Petén architectural style, as were the surrounding large cities of the time, although it has its dissimilarities with them as well.<ref name="Witschey and Brown 2011"/>
Only the center of Ekʼ Balam has been excavated. Large, raised platforms line the interior wall, surrounding internal plazas. [[Sacbe|Sacbé]] roads stem off of the center in the four cardinal directions, an architectural allusion to the idea of a "four-part cosmos".<ref name="Witschey and Brown 2011"/> These roads are often understood to have been sacred.<ref name="Dahlin 2000"/><ref name="Rider 2005"/> The buildings were designed in the northern Petén architectural style, as were the surrounding large cities of the time, although it has its dissimilarities with them as well.<ref name="Witschey and Brown 2011"/>


The Acropolis houses the tomb of king ''Ukit Kan Le'k Tok''', who ruled from 770 (the starting year of the “height” of this city) to 797 or 802 CE.
The Acropolis houses the tomb of king ''Ukit Kan Leʼk Tok''', who ruled from 770 (the starting year of the "height" of this city) to 797 or 802 CE.


===Wall Paintings===
===Wall paintings===
In rooms of the Acropolis, wall paintings consisting of texts have been found, amongst these the 'Mural of the 96 Glyphs', a masterwork of calligraphy comparable to the 'Tablet of the 96 Glyphs' from Palenque.<ref name="Lacadena 2004">Lacadena 2004</ref> Another wall painting of the Acropolis features a mythological scene with a hunted deer, which has been interpreted as the origin of death.<ref>Chinchilla Mazariegos 2011: 167 figs. 65, 66</ref> A series of vault capstones depict the [[god K|lightning deity]], a specific decoration also known from other Yucatec sites.<ref name="Lacadena 2004"/>
In rooms of the Acropolis, wall paintings consisting of texts have been found, amongst these the 'Mural of the 96 Glyphs', a masterwork of calligraphy comparable to the 'Tablet of the 96 Glyphs' from Palenque.<ref name="Lacadena 2004">Lacadena 2004</ref> Another wall painting of the Acropolis features a mythological scene with a hunted deer, which has been interpreted as referring to the origin of death.<ref>Chinchilla Mazariegos 2011: 167 figs. 65, 66</ref> A series of vault capstones depict the [[god K|lightning deity]], a specific decoration also known from other Yucatec sites.<ref name="Lacadena 2004"/> To date (2020), the wall paintings have only very inadequately been published.


==Archaeological Research==
==Archaeological research==
Ek’ Balam was rediscovered and explored first by influential archaeologist [[Désiré Charnay]] in the late 1800s but extensive excavation did not take place until a century later.<ref name="Rider 2005"/> Bill Ringle and George Bey III mapped the site in the late 1980s, and continued to do extensive research into the 1990s, their works being cited by many others who later write on the site. Subsequently, the Acropolis was excavated by Leticia Vargas de la Peña and Víctor Castillo Borges from the [[Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia]].<ref name="Witschey and Brown 2011"/> Alfonso García-Gallo Lacadena deciphered the most important set of North Maya Maya hieroglyphic texts and all historical references of Ek Balam are based on his intellectual work.<ref>Lacadena García-Gallo, A. 2002. El corpus glífico de Ek’ Balam (Yucatán, México) (Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, Inc. (FAMSI).</ref>
Ekʼ Balam was rediscovered and explored first by influential archaeologist [[Désiré Charnay]] in the late 1800s but extensive excavation did not take place until a century later.<ref name="Rider 2005"/> Bill Ringle and George Bey III mapped the site in the late 1980s, and continued to do extensive research into the 1990s, their works being cited by many others who later wrote about the site. Subsequently, the Acropolis was excavated by Leticia Vargas de la Peña and Víctor Castillo Borges from the [[Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia]].<ref name="Witschey and Brown 2011"/> Alfonso García-Gallo Lacadena deciphered the most important set of North Maya hieroglyphic texts and all historical references of Ek' Balam are based on his work.<ref>Lacadena García-Gallo, A. 2002. El corpus glífico de Ekʼ Balam (Yucatán, México) (Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, Inc. (FAMSI).</ref>


==Gallery==
==Gallery==
<gallery widths="250px" heights="220px">
<gallery widths="250px" heights="220px">

image:Ekbalam-Right.png|Structure III and Structure X
image:Ekbalam-pillars.png|Pillars on 'The Acropolis'
Image:Ekbalam-Jaguar-Altar-Right.png|Stucco facade.
image:Ekbalam-Carving-Detail.png|Close-up of carving
Image:Ekbalam-left.png|Structure II and west side of 'The Acropolis'
⚫
Image:Faucesgv.JPG|Stucco jaws principal pyramid of Ek Balam([[Yucatan]])
image:Ekbalam-Jaguar-Altar-Right.png|Stucco facade.
⚫
Image:Palacioovalgv.jpg|Oval palace Ek Balam
image:Ekbalam-Jaguar-Altar-Left.png|Jaguar Altar (Left)
⚫
Image:Detail EkBalam facade.jpg|Winged Maya Warriors
image:Ekbalam-left.png|Structure II and west side of 'The Acropolis'
Image:Ek_balam_ballcourt.jpg|Ek' Balam Ballcourt
⚫
image:Faucesgv.JPG|Stucco jaws principal pyramid of Ek Balam([[Yucatan]])
⚫
image:Palacioovalgv.jpg|Oval palace Ek Balam
⚫
Image:Detail EkBalam facade.JPG|Winged Maya Warriors
</gallery>
</gallery>


Line 102: Line 101:


== References ==
== References ==
{{reflist}}
{{Reflist}}


==Bibliography==
==Bibliography==
* [https://www.jstor.org/stable/41053243 Aimers, James J. “What Maya Collapse? Terminal Classic Variation in the Maya Lowlands.” Journal of Archaeological Research 15.4 (2007): 329-77.]
* [https://www.jstor.org/stable/41053243 Aimers, James J. "What Maya Collapse? Terminal Classic Variation in the Maya Lowlands." Journal of Archaeological Research 15.4 (2007): 329-77.]
* Bey III, George J., et al. "The Ceramic Chronology of Ek Balam, Yucatan, Mexico." Ancient Mesoamerica. 9. (1998): 101-20.
* Bey III, George J., et al. "The Ceramic Chronology of Ek Balam, Yucatan, Mexico." Ancient Mesoamerica. 9. (1998): 101-20.
* Chinchilla Mazariegos, Oswaldo. ''Imágenes de la mitología maya''. Guatemala: Museo Popol Vuh, 2011.
* Chinchilla Mazariegos, Oswaldo. ''Imágenes de la mitología maya''. Guatemala: Museo Popol Vuh, 2011.
* [https://www.jstor.org/stable/972179 Dahlin, Bruce H. "The Barricade and Abandonment of Chunchucmil: Implications for Northern Maya Warfare." Latin American Antiquity. 11.3 (2000): 283-98.]
* [https://www.jstor.org/stable/972179 Dahlin, Bruce H. "The Barricade and Abandonment of Chunchucmil: Implications for Northern Maya Warfare." Latin American Antiquity. 11.3 (2000): 283-98.]
* [http://www.famsi.org/reports/01057/01057LacadenaGarciaGallo01.pdf Lacadena, Alfonso, 'The Glyphic Corpus from Ek' Balam, Yucatán, Mexico', FAMSI report 2004.]
* [http://www.famsi.org/reports/01057/01057LacadenaGarciaGallo01.pdf Lacadena, Alfonso, 'The Glyphic Corpus from Ekʼ Balam, Yucatán, Mexico', FAMSI report 2004.]
* Martin, Simon, and Nikolai Grube. ''Chronicle of the Maya Kings and Queens''. 2nd ed. London: Thames & Hudson, 2000.
* Martin, Simon, and Nikolai Grube. ''Chronicle of the Maya Kings and Queens''. 2nd ed. London: Thames & Hudson, 2000.
* Rider, Nick. Yucatan & Mayan Mexico, 3rd. 3rd. Cadogan Guides, 2005.
* Rider, Nick. Yucatan & Mayan Mexico, 3rd. 3rd. Cadogan Guides, 2005.
* Witschey, Walter R. T., and Clifford T. Brown. ''Historical Dictionary of Mesoamerica''. illustrated. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, 2011. Web.
* Witschey, Walter R. T., and Clifford T. Brown. ''Historical Dictionary of Mesoamerica''. illustrated. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, 2011. Web.
* [http://havecamerawilltravel.com/ek-balam-mayan-ruins-mexico-yucatan-photos/ Photos of Ek' Balam]
* [https://archive.today/20110817180513/http://havecamerawilltravel.com/ek-balam-mayan-ruins-mexico-yucatan-photos/ Photos of Ekʼ Balam]
* [http://www.mesoweb.com/features/ek_balam/text.html Recent Finds at Ek' Balam] at Mesoweb
* [http://www.mesoweb.com/features/ek_balam/text.html Recent Finds at Ekʼ Balam] at Mesoweb
* [http://www.famsi.org/mayawriting/dictionary/boot/itza_based-on_hofling1991.pdfItza based on Hofling] at famsi.org
* [http://www.famsi.org/mayawriting/dictionary/boot/itza_based-on_hofling1991.pdfItza based on Hofling]{{Dead link|date=December 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} at famsi.org


==External links==
==External links==
{{Commons category|Ek' balam}}
{{Commons category|Ek' balam}}
* [http://yucatan.for91days.com/ek-balam-the-home-of-black-jaguar/ Ek Balam Photo Essay]
* [http://yucatan.for91days.com/ek-balam-the-home-of-black-jaguar/ Ek Balam Photo Essay]
* [http://amazingtemples.com/location/america/mexico/yucatan/ek-balam-the-black-jaguar/ Ek' Balam on AmazingTemples.com (en)]
* [http://amazingtemples.com/location/america/mexico/yucatan/ek-balam-the-black-jaguar/ Ekʼ Balam on AmazingTemples.com (en)]
{{coord|20|53|28|N|88|08|11|W|display=title|region:MX_type:landmark_source:dewiki}}
{{Coord|20|53|28|N|88|08|11|W|display=title|region:MX_type:landmark_source:dewiki}}
{{Maya sites}}
{{Maya sites}}
{{Authority control}}


[[Category:Maya sites in Yucatán]]
[[Category:Maya sites in Yucatán]]
[[Category:Former populated places in Mexico]]
[[Category:Former populated places in Mexico]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Yucatán]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Yucatán]]
[[Category:Maya sites that survived the end of the Classic Period]]

Latest revision as of 04:28, 7 February 2024

Northward view of Ek-Balam from the Oval Palace to the Acropolis in the North
Arco de Entrada, Ek Balam 2008
Acropolis - Ek Balam, 2012

Ekʼ Balam (English pronunciation ek-bælæm) is a Yucatec-Maya archaeological site within the municipality of Temozón, Yucatán, Mexico. It lies in the Northern Maya lowlands, 25 kilometres (16 mi) north of Valladolid and 56 kilometres (35 mi) northeast of Chichen Itza. From the Preclassic until the Postclassic period, it was the seat of a Mayan kingdom.

The site is noted for the preservation of the plaster on the tomb of Ukit Kan Lek Tokʼ, a king buried in the side of the largest pyramid.[1]

History

[edit]

Ekʼ Balam was occupied from the Middle Preclassic through the Postclassic, although it ceased to thrive as a major city past the Late Classic. Beginning in the Late Preclassic, the population grew and the city expanded throughout the following periods. It eventually became the capital of the polity that controlled the region around the beginning of the Common Era.[2]

At its height from 770 to 840 CE, Ekʼ Balam provides a rich resource of information for understanding northern Classic cities, due to the poor preservation of many other notable northern Maya sites (e.g. Coba, Izamal, and Edzna).[3] It was during this height that the Late Yumcab ceramic complex (750-1050/1100 CE) dominated the architecture and pottery of Ekʼ Balam.[2] The population decreased dramatically, down to 10% of its highest, during the Postclassic period as Ekʼ Balam was slowly becoming vacant.[4] There are several theories to why it was eventually abandoned and to the degree of haste at which it was abandoned (see: Defensive Walls).

Ek' Balam is mentioned in a late-sixteenth-century Relación Geográfica, an official inquiry held by the colonial government among local Spanish landowners. It is reported to have belonged to a kingdom called 'Talol',[5] founded by an Ekʼ Balam, or Coch Cal Balam, who had come from the East. Later, the region was dominated by the aristocratic Cupul family.

Architecture

[edit]

There are 45 structures, including:

  1. These are the city's Defensive Walls, which end on both sides at an unsurpassable, steep sink hole.[6]
  2. The Entrance Arch stands at the entrance of Ekʼ Balam on four legs, constructed over the road that leads into the city, and was probably ceremonial in purpose.[7]
  3. The Oval Palace contained burial relics and its alignment is assumed to be connected to cosmological ceremonies.[7]
  4. Structure 17 or The Twins atop of which there are two mirroring temples on either side.
  5. Chapel
  6. A carved stela which depicts a ruler of Ek Balam, possibly Ukit Kan Leʼk Tokʼ.
  7. Structure 12
  8. Structure 10 is a platform whose base dates to the Late Classic but was built upon by later generations.[7]
  9. Structure 7
  10. The Ballcourt was completed in 841.[7]
  11. Structure 2 on the west corner of the Acropolis is one of the large platforms that make up the main plaza and contains a temple in one corner.[7]
  12. Steam Bath
  13. Structure 3 on the east corner of the Acropolis is an unexcavated platform that borders the main plaza.[7]
  14. Structure 1 or the Acropolis on the north side of the site is the largest structure at Ekʼ Balam and is believed to contain the tomb of Ukit Kan Leʼk Tokʼ, an important ruler in Ekʼ Balam. Excavations on it began in 1998, when it was just a mound.[7]
  15. This is the temple in which Ukit Kan Leʼk Tokʼ was buried, called El Trono ('The Throne'). The doorway is in the shape of a monster-like mouth, possibly depicting a jaguar.[7]

Notable features

[edit]
Head of serpent with Maya hieroglyphs, Ekʼ balam, 2010

Defensive walls

[edit]

The layout of the site is surrounded by two concentric walls which served as defense against attack. There were many smaller walls that snaked through the city as well. The inner wall encompasses an area of 9.55 hectares (23.6 acres). The carved stone of the inner wall, 2 metres (6.6 ft) tall and 3 metres (9.8 ft) wide, is covered in plaster; the outer wall serves purely for defense, as it is less substantial and less decorative. These walls were the largest in the Late Classic Yucatan, and seem to have a symbolic meaning of protection and military strength. Theories claiming a hasty desertion of the city are backed up by the fourth wall inside the city, which "bisects the Great Plaza, and, at less than a meter wide and made of poorly constructed rubble, it was clearly built as a last ditch effort at protection" against invading attackers.[6]

Structures inside the walls

[edit]

Only the center of Ekʼ Balam has been excavated. Large, raised platforms line the interior wall, surrounding internal plazas. Sacbé roads stem off of the center in the four cardinal directions, an architectural allusion to the idea of a "four-part cosmos".[5] These roads are often understood to have been sacred.[6][7] The buildings were designed in the northern Petén architectural style, as were the surrounding large cities of the time, although it has its dissimilarities with them as well.[5]

The Acropolis houses the tomb of king Ukit Kan Leʼk Tok', who ruled from 770 (the starting year of the "height" of this city) to 797 or 802 CE.

Wall paintings

[edit]

In rooms of the Acropolis, wall paintings consisting of texts have been found, amongst these the 'Mural of the 96 Glyphs', a masterwork of calligraphy comparable to the 'Tablet of the 96 Glyphs' from Palenque.[8] Another wall painting of the Acropolis features a mythological scene with a hunted deer, which has been interpreted as referring to the origin of death.[9] A series of vault capstones depict the lightning deity, a specific decoration also known from other Yucatec sites.[8] To date (2020), the wall paintings have only very inadequately been published.

Archaeological research

[edit]

Ekʼ Balam was rediscovered and explored first by influential archaeologist Désiré Charnay in the late 1800s but extensive excavation did not take place until a century later.[7] Bill Ringle and George Bey III mapped the site in the late 1980s, and continued to do extensive research into the 1990s, their works being cited by many others who later wrote about the site. Subsequently, the Acropolis was excavated by Leticia Vargas de la Peña and Víctor Castillo Borges from the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia.[5] Alfonso García-Gallo Lacadena deciphered the most important set of North Maya hieroglyphic texts and all historical references of Ek' Balam are based on his work.[10]

[edit]
  • Stucco facade.
    Stucco facade.
  • Structure II and west side of 'The Acropolis'
    Structure II and west side of 'The Acropolis'
  • Stucco jaws principal pyramid of Ek Balam(Yucatan)
    Stucco jaws principal pyramid of Ek Balam(Yucatan)
  • Oval palace Ek Balam
    Oval palace Ek Balam
  • Winged Maya Warriors
    Winged Maya Warriors
  • Ek' Balam Ballcourt
    Ek' Balam Ballcourt

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ O'Neill, Zora; Fisher, John (2008). The Rough Guide to the Yucatan (second ed.). London: Rough Guides (Penguin). pp. 196–197. ISBN 978-1-85828-805-5.
  2. ^ a b Bey III, et al (1998)
  3. ^ Martin and Grube (2000)
  4. ^ Aimers (2007)
  5. ^ a b c d Witschey and Brown (2011)
  6. ^ a b c Dahlin (2000)
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Rider (2005)
  8. ^ a b Lacadena 2004
  9. ^ Chinchilla Mazariegos 2011: 167 figs. 65, 66
  10. ^ Lacadena García-Gallo, A. 2002. El corpus glífico de Ekʼ Balam (Yucatán, México) (Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, Inc. (FAMSI).

Bibliography

[edit]
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ek' balam.

20°53′28″N 88°08′11″W / 20.89111°N 88.13639°W / 20.89111; -88.13639

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Ekʼ_Balam&oldid=1204449360"