Deity Face Pendant 7th–8th century Maya This apple-green jade ornament represents the avian face of Ux Yop Hu’n (“Three Leaves Paper” or “Three-Leaf-Paper”) a complex supernatural being that personified the paper headband worn by ancient Maya rulers. This figure is also frequently referred to in the literature as “the foliated Jester God.” His forehead is infixed with a hieroglyphic sign that translates as ajaw, or ruler (a schematic face comprised of two dots for eyes and one for a mouth). Ux Yop Hu’n is shown cross-eyed, his squared pupils looking inward toward a furrowed brow. In Maya art,
Deity Face Pendant 7th–8th century Maya This apple-green jade ornament represents the avian face of Ux Yop Hu’n (“Three Leaves Paper” or “Three-Leaf-Paper”) a complex supernatural being that personified the paper headband worn by ancient Maya rulers. This figure is also frequently referred to in the literature as “the foliated Jester God.” His forehead is infixed with a hieroglyphic sign that translates as ajaw, or ruler (a schematic face comprised of two dots for eyes and one for a mouth). Ux Yop Hu’n is shown cross-eyed, his squared pupils looking inward toward a furrowed brow. In Maya art, this eye is a diagnostic feature of shining, solar, and/or resplendent supernatural beings. Below, a small nose with curling nostrils is carved atop a downturned beak. When seen in profile images, this bird beak has a distinct bracket shape (see, for instance, , b). Because jade is so difficult to carve, and because the artist was likely following the contours of a thin vein of apple-green jade, the beak has been flattened down in low relief against the face, overhanging the mouth. Two scrolls are visible on either side of the forehead, above (but separate from) the figure’s beaded earflare assemblages. From each of these scrolls descends a curving stem and leaves of vegetation. These vegetal symbols represent amate or fig leaves (ficus, sp.). In the ancient Maya world, amate bark was hammered out into thin sheets to make paper and cloth. When seen in iconography and inscriptions, amate stems and leaves can be read as hu’n, or “paper.”Jade objects like this one are frequently seen in Maya art as the central jewel of rulers’ headbands. During accession rituals, the king received the paper headband of rulership, a transformative moment in which he was “wrapped” into the office of kingship, transitioning from human mortal into divine king. That this ornament likely did serve as a central headband jewel is suggested by the two suspension
Size: 3000px × 4000px
Photo credit: © MET/BOT / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
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