Tikal Temple I
Encyclopedia
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
. It also is known as the Temple of the Great Jaguar because of a lintel that represents a king sitting upon a jaguar throne, Another name is the Temple of Ah Cacao, for the ruler buried in the temple. Temple I is a typically Petén-styled limestone
stepped pyramid structure
that is dated to approximately 730
CE
.
Situated at the heart of a World Heritage Site
, the temple is surmounted by a characteristic roof comb
, a distinctive Maya architectural
feature. Building Temple I on the eastern side of the Great Plaza was a significant deviation from the established tradition of building funerary temples just north of the plaza in Tikal's North Acropolis.
ruler of the polity
based at Tikal, who ruled from AD 682–734. The tomb of this ruler has been located by archaeologists deep within the structure, the tomb having been built first with the temple being raised over it. Construction of both were overseen by Jasaw Chan K'awiil's son and heir Yik'in Chan K'awiil
. Jasaw Chan K'awiil probably planned the building of the temple long before his death. The temple rises in nine stepped levels, which may be symbolic of the nine levels of the underworld. The temple has grooved moldings and inset corners. A steep staircase climbs the temple to the summit shrine.
The temple rises 47 metres (154.2 ft) over the Great Plaza. The pyramid is topped by a funerary shrine, containing finely carved wooden lintels, the execution of which probably was overseen by Jasaw Chan K'awiil as part of his plans for his funerary monument. The lintels were carved from sapodilla
wood and one of them, Lintel 3, once was painted red. Sapodilla (Manilkara zapota) is a very hard red-brown wood available locally. The lintels were formed from planks of this wood set into small niches fashioned into the walls forming the three doorways, the outermost lintel was smooth, but the central lintel was carved intricately from four planks. Two of these planks were removed in the nineteenth century and their location now is unknown. The other two were removed by Alfred Maudslay and shipped to the British Museum
, where they now are warehoused. The scene carved onto one lintel shows a seated figure with an enormous serpent rising above him.
The shrine bears a high roof comb decorated with a sculpture of the seated king, Jasaw Chan K'awiil, although it now is difficult to discern. The roof comb consists of two parallel structures with an enclosed, vaulted hollow between them, which reduces the weight of the construction,. The weight of this heavy superstructure is borne through the spine of the temple. The front of the roof comb was finished with stone blocks carved to represent the enormous figure of the king, flanked by scrolls and serpents. It originally supported molded plaster decoration as well. The shrine contains three narrow, dark chambers that were accessible only through a single doorway. The three rooms were arranged one behind the other, and had high corbel-vaulted
ceilings, braced by wooden beams. The beams were fashioned from sapodilla, the wood that was used in the lintels.
Temple I was reused in the Postclassic Period
. The Late Classic burial shaft was reopened apparently, and a new burial made inside. The offerings accompanying the new burial included censer
s of a type found in Mayapán
and two ceramic
types that were widespread in Petén during the Postclassic. The type of censer associated with the new burial was not used after the fifteenth century.
objects, painted ceramics, rare spondylus
shells, pearl
s, mirrors, and other works of art. The body of the king was covered with large quantities of jade
ornaments including an enormous necklace with 114 especially large beads, as depicted in sculpted portraits of the king, and weighing 3.9 kilograms (8.6 lb).
One of the outstanding pieces recovered from the tomb was an ornate jade mosaic
vessel with the lid bearing a sculpted portrait of the king. Also accompanying the burial was a series of 37 finely carved human bones bearing inscribed hieroglyphic
texts, arranged in a pile by the king's right foot. One refers to Tikal's allies, including Copán
and Palenque
, others include the king's name and parentage. One contains a carved portrait of a captive, Ox Ha Te Ixil, who was a vassal of Tikal's great enemy Calakmul
. There also are scenes that show the maize deity
being carried to the underworld in a canoe. One of the bones contains a lengthy list of the death dates of foreign nobles.
carried out the first topographical
survey of the site in 1895, naming Temple I as the "First Great Temple". Alfred Tozzer
carried out another survey in 1911 and generally followed Maler's naming conventions, it was he who abbreviated the name to Temple I.
In 1955, the University of Pennsylvania
began its Tikal Project, carrying out archaeological investigations of the ruins and preparing them to be opened for tourism, which included work on Temple I and Temple II. The project was overseen by Aubrey Trik and George Guillemin. The tomb under the temple was not discovered until 1962, by Aubrey Trik of the University of Pennsylvania. The work on Temple I lasted until 1964.
In 1986 the Proyecto Nacional Tikal (PRONAT) carried out repairs to cracks in the roof of the temple.
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...
, one of the largest cities and archaeological sites of the 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...
in 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...
. It is located in the Petén Basin
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...
region of northern Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
. It also is known as the Temple of the Great Jaguar because of a lintel that represents a king sitting upon a jaguar throne, Another name is the Temple of Ah Cacao, for the ruler buried in the temple. Temple I is a typically Petén-styled limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
stepped pyramid structure
Mesoamerican pyramids
Mesoamerican pyramids, pyramid-shaped structures, are an important part of ancient Mesoamerican architecture. These structures were usually step pyramids with temples on top – more akin to the ziggurats of Mesopotamia than to the pyramids of Ancient Egypt...
that is dated to approximately 730
730
Year 730 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 730 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.- Europe :* Charles Martel defeats the last independent...
CE
Common Era
Common Era ,abbreviated as CE, is an alternative designation for the calendar era originally introduced by Dionysius Exiguus in the 6th century, traditionally identified with Anno Domini .Dates before the year 1 CE are indicated by the usage of BCE, short for Before the Common Era Common Era...
.
Situated at the heart of a World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
, the temple is surmounted by a characteristic roof comb
Roof comb
Roof comb is the structure that tops a pyramid in monumental Mesoamerican architecture. Examination of the decorations and iconography of Maya civilization roof-combs indicates that each icon had specific sacred meanings.-External links:...
, a distinctive Maya architectural
Maya architecture
A unique and spectacular style, Maya architecture spans several thousands of years. Often the most dramatic and easily recognizable as Maya are the stepped pyramids from the Terminal Pre-classic period and beyond. Being based on the general Mesoamerican architectural traditions these pyramids...
feature. Building Temple I on the eastern side of the Great Plaza was a significant deviation from the established tradition of building funerary temples just north of the plaza in Tikal's North Acropolis.
The structure
The structure is a funerary temple associated with Jasaw Chan K'awiil I, a Classic PeriodMesoamerican 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...
ruler of the polity
Polity
Polity is a form of government Aristotle developed in his search for a government that could be most easily incorporated and used by the largest amount of people groups, or states...
based at Tikal, who ruled from AD 682–734. The tomb of this ruler has been located by archaeologists deep within the structure, the tomb having been built first with the temple being raised over it. Construction of both were overseen by Jasaw Chan K'awiil's son and heir 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...
. Jasaw Chan K'awiil probably planned the building of the temple long before his death. The temple rises in nine stepped levels, which may be symbolic of the nine levels of the underworld. The temple has grooved moldings and inset corners. A steep staircase climbs the temple to the summit shrine.
The temple rises 47 metres (154.2 ft) over the Great Plaza. The pyramid is topped by a funerary shrine, containing finely carved wooden lintels, the execution of which probably was overseen by Jasaw Chan K'awiil as part of his plans for his funerary monument. The lintels were carved from sapodilla
Sapodilla
Manilkara zapota, commonly known as the sapodilla, is a long-lived, evergreen tree native to southern Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. An example natural occurrence is in coastal Yucatan in the Petenes mangroves ecoregion, where it is a subdominant plant species...
wood and one of them, Lintel 3, once was painted red. Sapodilla (Manilkara zapota) is a very hard red-brown wood available locally. The lintels were formed from planks of this wood set into small niches fashioned into the walls forming the three doorways, the outermost lintel was smooth, but the central lintel was carved intricately from four planks. Two of these planks were removed in the nineteenth century and their location now is unknown. The other two were removed by Alfred Maudslay and shipped to the British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
, where they now are warehoused. The scene carved onto one lintel shows a seated figure with an enormous serpent rising above him.
The shrine bears a high roof comb decorated with a sculpture of the seated king, Jasaw Chan K'awiil, although it now is difficult to discern. The roof comb consists of two parallel structures with an enclosed, vaulted hollow between them, which reduces the weight of the construction,. The weight of this heavy superstructure is borne through the spine of the temple. The front of the roof comb was finished with stone blocks carved to represent the enormous figure of the king, flanked by scrolls and serpents. It originally supported molded plaster decoration as well. The shrine contains three narrow, dark chambers that were accessible only through a single doorway. The three rooms were arranged one behind the other, and had high corbel-vaulted
Corbel arch
A corbel arch is an arch-like construction method that uses the architectural technique of corbeling to span a space or void in a structure, such as an entranceway in a wall or as the span of a bridge...
ceilings, braced by wooden beams. The beams were fashioned from sapodilla, the wood that was used in the lintels.
Temple I was reused in the Postclassic Period
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...
. The Late Classic burial shaft was reopened apparently, and a new burial made inside. The offerings accompanying the new burial included censer
Censer
Censers are any type of vessels made for burning incense. These vessels vary greatly in size, form, and material of construction. They may consist of simple earthenware bowls or fire pots to intricately carved silver or gold vessels, small table top objects a few centimetres tall to as many as...
s of a type found in Mayapán
Mayapan
Mayapan , is a Pre-Columbian Maya site a couple of kilometers south of the town of Telchaquillo in Municipality of Tecoh, approximately 40 km south-east of Mérida and 100 km west of Chichen Itza; in the state of Yucatán, Mexico...
and two ceramic
Pottery
Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...
types that were widespread in Petén during the Postclassic. The type of censer associated with the new burial was not used after the fifteenth century.
The royal tomb
The tomb of Jasaw Chan K'awiil I was discovered by archaeologists in 1962. It was entered through the roof of the tomb after exploratory tunneling from the bottom of the temple stairway. The tomb has been labeled as, Burial 116, by archaeologists. It is a large vaulted chamber deep within the pyramid, below the level of the Great Plaza. Over half of the chamber is occupied by the masonry bench supporting the king's body and his jewelry. The king's remains had been laid on a woven mat and the tomb contained rich offerings of jaguar skins, jadeiteJadeite
Jadeite is a pyroxene mineral with composition NaAlSi2O6. It is monoclinic. It has a Mohs hardness of about 6.5 to 7.0 depending on the composition. The mineral is dense, with a specific gravity of about 3.4. Jadeite forms solid solutions with other pyroxene endmembers such as augite and diopside ,...
objects, painted ceramics, rare spondylus
Spondylus
Spondylus is a genus of bivalve molluscs, the only genus in the family Spondylidae. As well as being the systematic or scientific name, Spondylus is also the most often used common name for these animals, though they are also known as thorny oysters or spiny oysters.There are many species of...
shells, pearl
Pearl
A pearl is a hard object produced within the soft tissue of a living shelled mollusk. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is made up of calcium carbonate in minute crystalline form, which has been deposited in concentric layers. The ideal pearl is perfectly round and smooth, but many other...
s, mirrors, and other works of art. The body of the king was covered with large quantities of jade
Jade
Jade is an ornamental stone.The term jade is applied to two different metamorphic rocks that are made up of different silicate minerals:...
ornaments including an enormous necklace with 114 especially large beads, as depicted in sculpted portraits of the king, and weighing 3.9 kilograms (8.6 lb).
One of the outstanding pieces recovered from the tomb was an ornate jade mosaic
Mosaic
Mosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. It may be a technique of decorative art, an aspect of interior decoration, or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral...
vessel with the lid bearing a sculpted portrait of the king. Also accompanying the burial was a series of 37 finely carved human bones bearing inscribed hieroglyphic
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...
texts, arranged in a pile by the king's right foot. One refers to Tikal's allies, including Copán
Copán
Copán is an archaeological site of the Maya civilization located in the Copán Department of western Honduras, not far from the border with Guatemala. It was the capital city of a major Classic period kingdom from the 5th to 9th centuries AD...
and Palenque
Palenque
Palenque was a Maya city state in southern Mexico that flourished in the 7th century. The Palenque ruins date back to 100 BC to its fall around 800 AD...
, others include the king's name and parentage. One contains a carved portrait of a captive, Ox Ha Te Ixil, who was a vassal of Tikal's great enemy Calakmul
Calakmul
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...
. There also are scenes that show the maize deity
Maya maize god
Like other Mesoamerican peoples, the traditional Mayas recognize in their staple crop, the maize, a vital force with which they strongly identify. This is clearly shown by their mythological traditions. According to the 16th-century Popol Vuh, the Hero Twins have maize plants for alter egos and man...
being carried to the underworld in a canoe. One of the bones contains a lengthy list of the death dates of foreign nobles.
Modern history
Tikal was discovered in 1848 and in 1877 various pieces were looted from the major temples at Tikal, including pieces of Temple I. Alfred P. Maudslay first mapped the centre of Tikal in 1881–1882, marking the five major temples on his sketch, including Temple I, although he named the major temples alphabetically, ranging from A through to E. Teoberto MalerTeoberto Maler
Teoberto Maler or Teobert Maler was an explorer who devoted his energies to documenting the ruins of the Maya civilization....
carried out the first topographical
Topography
Topography is the study of Earth's surface shape and features or those ofplanets, moons, and asteroids...
survey of the site in 1895, naming Temple I as the "First Great Temple". Alfred Tozzer
Alfred Tozzer
Alfred Marston Tozzer was an American anthropologist, archaeologist, linguist, and educator. His principal area of interest was Mesoamerican, especially Maya, studies. He was the father of figure skating champion Joan Tozzer....
carried out another survey in 1911 and generally followed Maler's naming conventions, it was he who abbreviated the name to Temple I.
In 1955, the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
began its Tikal Project, carrying out archaeological investigations of the ruins and preparing them to be opened for tourism, which included work on Temple I and Temple II. The project was overseen by Aubrey Trik and George Guillemin. The tomb under the temple was not discovered until 1962, by Aubrey Trik of the University of Pennsylvania. The work on Temple I lasted until 1964.
In 1986 the Proyecto Nacional Tikal (PRONAT) carried out repairs to cracks in the roof of the temple.
See also
- El Castillo, Chichen ItzaEl Castillo, Chichen Itza;El Castillo , also known as the Temple of Kukulkan, is a Mesoamerican step-pyramid that dominates the center of the Chichen Itza archaeological site in the Mexican state of Yucatán...
- Pyramid of the MagicianPyramid of the MagicianThe Pyramid of the Magician is a Mesoamerican step pyramid located in the ancient, Pre-Columbian city of Uxmal, Mexico. The structure is also referred to as the Pyramid of the Dwarf, Casa el Adivino, and the Pyramid of the Soothsayer...
at UxmalUxmalUxmal was dominant from 875 to 900 CE. The site appears to have been the capital of a regional state in the Puuc region from 850-950 CE. The Maya dynasty expanded their dominion over their neighbors. This prominence didn't last long... - Temple of the InscriptionsTemple of the InscriptionsThe Temple of the Inscriptions is the largest Mesoamerican stepped pyramid structure at the pre-Columbian Maya civilization site of Palenque, located in the modern-day state of Chiapas, Mexico. The structure was specifically built as the funerary monument for K'inich Janaab' Pakal, ajaw or ruler of...
at PalenquePalenquePalenque was a Maya city state in southern Mexico that flourished in the 7th century. The Palenque ruins date back to 100 BC to its fall around 800 AD... - Tikal Temple IITikal Temple IITikal 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...
- Tikal Temple IIITikal Temple IIITikal Temple III, also known as the Temple of the Jaguar Priest, was one of the principal temple pyramids at the ancient Maya city of Tikal, in the Petén Department of modern Guatemala. The temple stands approximately tall. The summit shrine of Temple III differs from those of the other major...
- Tikal Temple IVTikal Temple IVTikal Temple IV is a Mesoamerican pyramid in the ruins of the ancient Maya city of Tikal in modern Guatemala. It was one of the tallest and most voluminous buildings in the Maya world. The pyramid was built around 741 AD. Temple IV is located at the western edge of the site core...
- Tikal Temple VTikal Temple VTikal Temple V is the name given by archaeologists to one of the major pyramids at Tikal. Tikal is one of the most important archaeological sites of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization and is located in the Petén Department of northern Guatemala....