Yaxun B'alam III

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Yaxun Bʻalam III
High King of Yaxchilan

BallcourtYaxchilan1.JPG

Ballcourt at Yaxchilan, where Yaxun B'alam played ball
Reign 631 – 681
Successor Itzamnaaj B'alam II
Died 681?
Consort Lady Pacal
Issue Itzamnaaj B'alam II
Father K'inich Tatbu Skull III [1]

Yaxun Bʻalam III (also known as 6-Tun-Bird-Jaguar) was a high king of the Mayan city Yaxchilan from 631 until 681.

Yaxchilan human settlement

Yaxchilan is an ancient Maya city located on the bank of the Usumacinta River in the state of Chiapas, Mexico. In the Late Classic Period Yaxchilan was one of the most powerful Maya states along the course of the Usumacinta River, with Piedras Negras as its major rival. Architectural styles in subordinate sites in the Usumacinta region demonstrate clear differences that mark a clear boundary between the two kingdoms.

Contents

Family and Name

Yaxun Bʻalam's father was Kʻinich Tatbu Skull III. [2] The name of his mother is unknown.

Yaxun married Lady Pacal (sister of Lady Xoc), and their son, Itzamnaaj B'alam II, succeeded him as king.

Lady Pacal Maya Queen consort

Lady Pakal was a Maya Queen consort of Yaxchilan in Mexico.

Lady Xoc

Lady Kʻabʻal Xook[kʼaɓal ʃoːk] or Lady Xoc was a Maya Queen consort of Yaxchilan and is considered to have been one of the most powerful and prominent women in Maya civilization. She was the principal wife and aunt of King Itzamnaaj B'alam II, who ruled the prominent kingdom of Yaxchilan from AD 681 to 742. She is believed by many to have been the sister of Lady Pacal.

Itzamnaaj Balam II Mayan king who ruled in Yaxchilan

Itzamnaaj Bʻalam II was a Maya king who ruled in Yaxchilan from 681 until he died in the year 742. He is also called Shield Jaguar II by modern writers and commonly referred to simply as Shield Jaguar based on his name glyph before the phonetic name was deciphered.

It is generally believed that B'alam is the third Yaxun Bʻalam; "6-Tun" was later added to the glyph of his name, distinguishing him from his grandson, Yaxun B'alam IV (also known as Bird Jaguar IV).

Glyph Element of writing

In typography, a glyph is an elemental symbol within an agreed set of symbols, intended to represent a readable character for the purposes of writing. Glyphs are considered to be unique marks that collectively add up to the spelling of a word or contribute to a specific meaning of what is written, with that meaning dependent on cultural and social usage.

Yaxun Balam IV Ruler of Yaxchilan

Yaxun B’alam IV, also called Bird Jaguar IV, was a Mayan king from Yaxchilan. He ruled from 752 until 768 AD, continuing the period of prosperity started by his father Itzamnaaj B'alam II. He had to struggle to take and hold power, as he was not perceived to be the rightful heir to the throne.

Reign

B'alam ruled Yaxchilan from 631 to 681.

On the stairs of Temple 33, he is depicted as being on the eighth step playing ball on the date August 27, 636.

Tikal Temple 33

Tikal Temple 33 was a 33-metre-high (108 ft) ancient Maya funerary pyramid located in the North Acropolis of the great Maya city of Tikal. The pyramid was centrally situated in the front row of structures facing onto the Great Plaza, between Temples 32 and 34 and in front of the Northern Platform. Temple 33 is one of the most thoroughly explored temples in the entire Maya area. The earliest version was a low funerary shrine over the tomb of king Siyaj Chan K'awiil II, which was sealed in AD 457. Temple 33 underwent three consecutive phases of construction, during which the king's funerary shrine was remodelled and one of his stelae was interred above his tomb. In the mid-1960s, archaeologists completely dismantled the final version of the large pyramid, uncovering the earlier phases of construction.

The Mesoamerican ballgame was a sport with ritual associations played since 1400 BC by the pre-Columbian people of Ancient Mesoamerica. The sport had different versions in different places during the millennia, and a newer more modern version of the game, ulama, is still played in a few places by the indigenous population.

In either 646 or 647, B'alam captured a lord from the Hix Witz polity, a Mayan center. He noted the capital of the Hix Witz polity was located at Zapote Bobal during that time.

Zapote Bobal

Zapote Bobal is the modern name for a pre-Columbian Maya archaeological site located south of the San Pedro Martir river in the Petén department of Guatemala. The name Zapote Bobal was coined by archaeologist Ian Graham, who discovered the site in the 1970s. It refers to the large number of Zapote Bobo trees, which grow near abundant sources of water in the Petén Basin. The site languished in archaeological obscurity until 2003, when epigrapher David Stuart connected the archaeological site of Zapote Bobal with a name repeatedly mentioned in the inscriptions of sites like Piedras Negras and Yaxchilan. That name was the toponym Hix Witz, or "Jaguar Hill" Scholars had recognized this name for over 20 years, and its connection to a real place prompted the creation of an archaeological project at Zapote Bobal in 2003, the Proyecto Peten Noroccidente (PNO). It is currently directed by James Fitzsimmons and Laura Gamez.

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Pajaral

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B'alam, Balam, Balaam, B'ahlam, Bahlam, Bahlum or Bolom are variant spellings which may refer to:

Lady Eveningstar politician

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Kan Ahk II

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Itzam Kan Ahk II

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Yonal Ahk III

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Tuun Kab Hix Mayan king

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References

  1. Kings of Yaxchilan at Mesoweb site
  2. Chronicle of the Maya Kings and Queens by Simon Martin and Nikolai Grube
Schele, Linda; David Freidel (1992). A Forest of Kings: The Untold Story of the Ancient Maya (pbk reprint ed.). New York: Harper Perennial. ISBN   0-688-11204-8. OCLC   145324300. 
Preceded by
Ah Kan-Xoc?
High King of Yaxchilan
631 – 681
Succeeded by
Itzamnaaj B'alam II