People of the Jaguar
The Maya of the Classic period (A.D. 250-900) developed a
sophisticated artistic tradition, producing sculpted stone, painted
ceramics, clay figurines, and screen-fold bark books of drawings
and hieroglyphic writing.
Today, many Maya continue to follow the ancient religion in their
ancestral homeland, which spans five countries of
Mesoamerica:
Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, and El Salvador.
The People of the Jaguar exhibit focuses on authentic Maya
pottery decorated with figures and glyphs, as well as certain objects
re-created for the IMAX film.
Credits:
Maya rulers used the jaguar as a symbol for the divine right of
kings. The Jaguar God inhabited the Underworld, home of the dead.
Each morning, he became the Sun God, travelling across the sky
to the west, where he fell back into the Underworld. To maintain
the cycle of night and day, rulers performed rituals to appease the
gods, the controllers of the fate of humankind. Like the Jaguar
God, Maya kings defied death by being reborn out of the dreaded
Underworld, which the average human could not escape.
Maya ceramic artists were highly educated members of the elite.
They used slip paint, a mixture of finely ground pigment, clay, and
water, to decorate their pottery with images of rituals, myths,
geometric motifs, and hieroglyphs. Ceramics were used as tableware,
currency, symbols of status, and as offerings to the dead. Clay
pots were also made for cooking and storing food.
A jaguar playing with a waterlily, both symbols of royalty.
Artifacts:
Jaguar God mask
Figurine of a noblewoman
Two-faced figurine
Incised shell
Vessel with two shamans
Plate with bird motif
Vessel with three Noblemen
Vessel with four dancing Noblemen
Vessel with crouched figure
Vessel with dancing Snake Man
