Possible Mesoamerican Naked-eye Observation of Sunspots - VI: Evidence from Yaxchilan Lintel 48

Abstract

Many pre-telescopic naked-eye observations of large sunspot displays exist in the historical records. The most famous of these observations come from China, Japan, Korea, and Greece, but other cultures have made them as well. Pictorial evidence on dated monuments suggests that naked-eye sunspot displays may have been recorded in Mesoamerica as well. In this regard, Yaxchilan Lintel 48 is of particular interest. After a century long gap in naked-eye sunspot observations from Asia, an outstanding cluster of events began in 499 AD and terminated on April 7, 513. Within 5 years of this latter date, Joy b'alam (Knot-eye Jaguar I) was captured and, following an interregnum, K'inich Tatb'u (Skull II; Knot-eye's brother) ascended the throne in 526. In retrospect, Mayan priests might have associated the sunspot displays with the change in political power, and recorded their observations on historical Lintel 48, dated to 526 AD, by the device of a spotted Sun God.

Possible Mesoamerican Naked-eye Observation of Sunspots - V: Evidence from Río Azul Tomb I Murals and Related Artifacts

“…The spotted Sun God is depicted as the "father" of Curl Snout, whose dates are 379 to ~ 404 AD. As previously discussed in the fourth paper of this series on Tikal Stela-31 [37], a long series of outstanding naked eye sunspots presaged Curl Snouts accession to the throne by 4 years, and four other massive naked eye sunspot events occurred during his life, with the final event presaging his death by about 4 years again. This remarkable coincidence of events tied the spotted Sun God to Curl Snouts life in a way that, mythologically speaking, made the spotted Sun God his "father."…”

“…Since Mayan political and mythological material is often dated, it becomes possible to correlate the presence of the spotted Sun God with the actual physical condition of the Sun as evidenced by Far East Asian sunspot observations and physical data. The first four papers of this series on Mayan sunspot observations demonstrate a positive correlation [12,33,36,37]. That is to say, the presence of a spotted Sun God is indicative of high solar activity, while the absence if cheek spots are indicative of a quiet Sun.…”

“…Fialco [32] has suggested that the spotted Sun God is an emblematic device of the Tikal dynasty. However, the spotted Sun God is well known from sites and dynasties not connected with Tikal or its rulers [33,34]. Two other suggestions were made by Milbrath [34].…”

“…This then establishes an "if and only if" relationship between the iconography and solar activity. The selection of Mayan artifacts for study has been dictated by four rules [12].…”

“…And, those two facts make Nilometer data a very useful tool for estimating solar activity levels in a general way. Some of this Nilometer data has already been used in the second publication of this series on Mayan sunspot observations [12] to correlate the active Sun with the presence of the spotted Sun God in the Dresden Codex. Unfortunately, the author's work on Nile levels at the (pharaonic) Luxor quay was interrupted by the recent political turmoil in Egypt.…”