. Ancient civilizations of Mexico and Central America. Indians of Mexico; Indians of Central America. THE MAYAN CIVILIZATION 93 that elaborate many details of dress worn by the human beings carved on 1 he* monuments. The front view of the serpent's head is usually extended to fill an oblong panel and is often used to decorate the base of a monument or the facade of a building. There are several monsters closely connected with the serpent that will be discussed as the description proceeds. The Human Figure. The human beings pictured on Mayan monuments are captives, rulers, and priests or worshi
. Ancient civilizations of Mexico and Central America. Indians of Mexico; Indians of Central America. THE MAYAN CIVILIZATION 93 that elaborate many details of dress worn by the human beings carved on 1 he* monuments. The front view of the serpent's head is usually extended to fill an oblong panel and is often used to decorate the base of a monument or the facade of a building. There are several monsters closely connected with the serpent that will be discussed as the description proceeds. The Human Figure. The human beings pictured on Mayan monuments are captives, rulers, and priests or worshippers. The captives are poor groveling creatures, bound by rope, held by the hair or crushed under foot to fill a rectangular space over. Fig. 29. Sculpture on Front of Lintel at Yaxchilan showing Man holding Two-Headed Serpent with a Grotesque God's Head in each of its Mouths. which the conqueror stands. The rulers and priests are hard to distinguish from each other, perhaps be- cause the government was largely theocratic and the ruler was looked upon as the spokesman of divinity. The spear and shield of war served to mark off cer- tain human beings from others who carry religious objects such as the Ceremonial Bar and the Manikin Scepter. Elaborate thrones on several monuments are can- opied over by the arched body of the Two-headed Dragon that bears symbols of the planets. Over. Please note that these images are extracted from scanned page images that may have been digitally enhanced for readability - coloration and appearance of these illustrations may not perfectly resemble the original Spinden, Herbert Joseph, 1879-1967. New York
Size: 3046px × 821px
Photo credit: © The Book Worm / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., book, bookcentury1900, bookdecade1920, booksubjectindiansofmexico
