Tikal Report No. 6. The Carved Wooden Lintels Of Tikal

Tikal timbers and temples: ancient Maya agroforestry and the end of time

“…She also may be the personage portrayed with elaborate earplugs and ornamentation on the temple's roof comb. Also known as the 'Temple of the Masks,' Temple 2 is thought to have been constructed at the end of the seventh century (Coe et al, 1986). The construction of Temple 2 marks the ascendancy of Lord Jasaw and, along with Temple 1, was the crowning architectural achievement of an era of rejuvenation at Tikal brought about by this great lord.…”

“…Located at the far west end of the city center, Temple 4 faces Temple 1 and with it, the rising sun. The structure was built during the reign of Yik'in Chan K'awiil (Coe et al, 1986;Ralph, 1965) in an era of unprecedented building, presumably funded by Yik'in's victories over the kingdoms of Kan (A.D. 736), Waka (El Perú ) (A.D. 743) and Naranjo (A.D. 744) of the Calakmul alliance (Harrison, 1999). Lintels 2 and 3 depict Yik'in enthroned atop giant palanquins surrounded by various celestial symbols and emblems of the conquered cities.…”

“…While Jasaw probably played a large part in the design and construction, the temple most likely was completed after his death in A.D. 734 by his son and successor, Yik'in Chan K'awiil. The most recent associated date is from corresponding texts on Stela 25 from the year A.D. 711 (Coe et al, 1986). …”

“…Each floor consists of two galleries, one in front of the other, with the fore gallery of each floor set over the rear gallery of the floor beneath, imparting a stepped appearance. The palace consists of two separate construction projects: the lower two floors (5D-50) originating from the Early Classic period (Harrison, 2001), and the upper three (5D-52) (Coe et al, 1986) of Late Classic construction from which all samples studied originate. The central interior doorway of the first floor of 5D-52 (the third floor of the structure as a whole) is carved with what Coe et al (1986) refer to as ''domestic quality'' iconography, which nonetheless represents a rare example of non-temple lintel elaboration.…”

“…The chronological assessments of structures follow glyph translations and Gregorian date conversions (Harrison, 1999;Martin and Grube, 2008) coupled with radiocarbon dates taken from the lintels and beams themselves (e.g., Satterthwaite and Ralph, 1960;Ralph, 1965;Stuckenrath et al, 1966). Because dates inscribed onto lintels are often commemorative and somewhat variable (Coe et al, 1986), dedicatory dates are taken as the latest date inscribed on the structure or its accompanying stela. Where dedicatory inscriptions or radiocarbon dates are unavailable, generally accepted style ranges, referencing inscriptions from other locations, and stratigraphic or geometric relationships to other structures are used to determine the structure's relative chronology (Table 1).…”