Hasaw Chan K'awil
Encyclopedia
Jasaw Chan K’awiil I was a ruler of a polity centered at Tikal
during its Late Classic phase
. Tikal was one of the largest pre-Columbian
Maya civilization
cities of the period, located in the Petén
basin of the central Maya lowlands region of Mesoamerica
.
in 695 is seen to represent a resurgence in the strength and influence of Tikal.
Before advances in the decipherment of the Maya script
revealed this reading of his name, this ruler was also known to researchers as Tikal Ruler A, or by the nickname Ah Cacao.
Two structures at Tikal in particular are associated with Jasaw Chan K’awiil. Tikal Temple I
is a classically Petén-styled stepped pyramid structure which served as this ruler's tomb, although it is presently unclear whether it was built for this specific purpose. Tikal Temple II
served as the tomb for his wife, "Lady Twelve Macaw
" (died 704).
His successor was his son Yik'in Chan K'awiil
.
Tikal
Tikal is one of the largest archaeological sites and urban centres of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. It is located in the archaeological region of the Petén Basin in what is now northern Guatemala...
during its Late Classic phase
Mesoamerican chronology
Mesoamerican chronology divides the history of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica into several periods: the Paleo-Indian , the Archaic , the Preclassic , the Classic , and the Postclassic...
. Tikal was one of the largest pre-Columbian
Pre-Columbian
The pre-Columbian era incorporates all period subdivisions in the history and prehistory of the Americas before the appearance of significant European influences on the American continents, spanning the time of the original settlement in the Upper Paleolithic period to European colonization during...
Maya civilization
Maya civilization
The Maya is a Mesoamerican civilization, noted for the only known fully developed written language of the pre-Columbian Americas, as well as for its art, architecture, and mathematical and astronomical systems. Initially established during the Pre-Classic period The Maya is a Mesoamerican...
cities of the period, located in the Petén
Petén Basin
The Petén Basin is a geographical subregion of Mesoamerica, located in the northern portion of the modern-day nation of Guatemala, and essentially contained within the department of El Petén...
basin of the central Maya lowlands region of Mesoamerica
Mesoamerica
Mesoamerica is a region and culture area in the Americas, extending approximately from central Mexico to Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica, within which a number of pre-Columbian societies flourished before the Spanish colonization of the Americas in the 15th and...
.
Biography
One of the most celebrated of Tikal's rulers, Jasaw Chan K'awiil's reign came at the end of a 130-year long hiatus in Tikal's historical record, and his defeat of the rival Maya city of CalakmulCalakmul
Calakmul is a Maya archaeological site in the Mexican state of Campeche, deep in the jungles of the greater Petén Basin region. It is from the Guatemalan border. Calakmul was one of the largest and most powerful ancient cities ever uncovered in the Maya lowlands...
in 695 is seen to represent a resurgence in the strength and influence of Tikal.
Before advances in the decipherment of the Maya script
Maya script
The Maya script, also known as Maya glyphs or Maya hieroglyphs, is the writing system of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization of Mesoamerica, presently the only Mesoamerican writing system that has been substantially deciphered...
revealed this reading of his name, this ruler was also known to researchers as Tikal Ruler A, or by the nickname Ah Cacao.
Two structures at Tikal in particular are associated with Jasaw Chan K’awiil. Tikal Temple I
Tikal Temple I
Tikal Temple I is the designation given to one of the major structures at Tikal, one of the largest cities and archaeological sites of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization in Mesoamerica. It is located in the Petén Basin region of northern Guatemala...
is a classically Petén-styled stepped pyramid structure which served as this ruler's tomb, although it is presently unclear whether it was built for this specific purpose. Tikal Temple II
Tikal Temple II
Tikal Temple II is a Mesoamerican pyramid at the Maya archaeological site of Tikal in the Petén Department of northern Guatemala. The temple was built in the Late Classic Period in a style reminiscent of the Early Classic...
served as the tomb for his wife, "Lady Twelve Macaw
Lady Twelve Macaw
Lady Twelve Macaw was a Mayan Queen of Tikal as a wife of the King Jasaw Chan K'awiil I. She was a mother of the King Yik'in Chan K'awiil....
" (died 704).
His successor was his son Yik'in Chan K'awiil
Yik'in Chan K'awiil
Yik'in Chan K'awiil was a Mayan ruler in the Late Classic period of the city-state polity centred at Tikal, a major pre-Columbian Maya site in the Petén Basin region .-Biography:Identified by Mayanist epigraphers as the 27th ruler in Tikal's dynastic succession, Yik'in Chan...
.