Sihyaj Chan K'awiil II

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Sihyaj Chan K'awiil II
Ajaw of Tikal
16th in the line
Tikal Stela 31.jpg
Sihyaj Chan K'awiil II, stela 31.
Reign November 26, 411-February 3, 456
Predecessor Yax Nuun Ahiin I
Successor K'an Chitam
Died February 3, 456
BurialTemple 33 (Burial 48)
Spouse Lady Ahiin
Issue K'an Chitam
Father Yax Nuun Ahiin I
Mother Lady K'inich
Religion Maya religion

Sihyaj Chan K'awiil II, [N 1] also known as Storm Sky and Manikin Cleft Sky (died February 3, 456), was an ajaw of the Maya city of Tikal. He took the throne on November 26, 411 and reigned until his death. [N 2] [1] He was a son of his predecessor Yax Nuun Ahiin I and Lady K'inich, and a grandson of Spearthrower Owl. Stela 31, erected during his reign, describes the death of his grandfather in 439; other monuments associated with Sihyaj Chan K'awiil II are Stelae 1 and possibly Stelae 28. Tikal Temple 33 was Sihyaj Chan K'awiil II's funerary pyramid and his tomb was located beneath it. [2]

Ajaw

Ajaw or Ahau ('Lord') is a pre-Columbian Maya political title attested from epigraphic inscriptions. It is also the name of the 20th day of the tzolk'in, the Maya divinatory calendar, on which a king's k'atun-ending rituals would fall.

Maya civilization Mesoamerican civilization

The Maya civilization was a Mesoamerican civilization developed by the Maya peoples, and noted for its logosyllabic script—the most sophisticated and highly developed writing system in pre-Columbian Americas—as well as for its art, architecture, mathematics, calendar, and astronomical system. The Maya civilization developed in an area that encompasses southeastern Mexico, all of Guatemala and Belize, and the western portions of Honduras and El Salvador. This region consists of the northern lowlands encompassing the Yucatán Peninsula, and the highlands of the Sierra Madre, running from the Mexican state of Chiapas, across southern Guatemala and onwards into El Salvador, and the southern lowlands of the Pacific littoral plain.

Tikal Ruins of major ancient Maya city

Tikal is the ruin of an ancient city, which was likely to have been called Yax Mutal, found in a rainforest in Guatemala. It is one of the largest archaeological sites and urban centers of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. It is located in the archaeological region of the Petén Basin in what is now northern Guatemala. Situated in the department of El Petén, the site is part of Guatemala's Tikal National Park and in 1979 it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Contents

Notes

Sihyaj Chan K'awiil II's glyph Sihyaj Chan K'awiil II.svg
Sihyaj Chan K'awiil II's glyph
  1. The ruler's name, when transcribed is SIH-(Y)AJ-CHAN K'AWI:L, translated "Sky-born K'awiil", Martin & Grube 2008, p.34.
  2. These are the dates indicated on the Maya inscriptions in Mesoamerican Long Count calendar, Accession: 8.18.15.11.0 3 Ajaw 13 Sak and Death: 9.1.0.8.0 10 Ajaw 13 Muwan, Martin & Grube 2008, p.34.

Footnotes

  1. Martin & Grube 2008, p.34.
  2. Martin & Grube 2008, pp.34-36.

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References

Martin, Simon; Nikolai Grube (2008). Chronicle of the Maya Kings and Queens: Deciphering the Dynasties of the Ancient Maya (2nd ed.). London and New York: Thames & Hudson. ISBN   9780500287262. OCLC   191753193. 
Regnal titles
Preceded by
Yax Nuun Ahiin I
Ajaw of Tikal
November 26, 411-February 3, 456
Succeeded by
K'an Chitam