[Aztlan] Question about Stone Chaac Mask in the Northern Acropolis (Tikal)

[David Hixson]

--- Sollie <soldance2001 at yahoo.com> wrote:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:5328_aquaimages.jpg

> 1) Would the stone, Chaac mask in the Northern
> Acropolis (Tikal) have been visible to the residents
> of Tikal around 800-900 AD? 

I cannot answer this question, perhaps others can.
 
> 2) How would the the mask have been built? Was it
> built with multiple, carved stone pieces that were
> stuck together using some kind of limestone based
> mortar?

Yes and no.  The core of this "mask" would include
carved limestone pieces set into mud and lime mortar
(for more on lime stucco and mortar, do a search for
"lime" in our Aztlan archives at FAMSI.org).  However,
the details of the very outer layer were executed in a
thin layer of stucco, (as opposed to the mosaic stone
"chac masks" of the Puuc region of Yucatan, which used
limestone for even the fine exterior details).  In
other words, while the terminal classic puuc "chac
masks" were composed of finely cut stone set into
concrete facades, the early classic masks of Tikal
tended to use more roughly carved stones set into lime
and mud mortar, then covered with a layer of stucco to
acheive their final form.

> 3) Last question. Is there consensus at this time
> that the mask represents Chaac or some other Maya
> deity?

Short answer: no, there is not a concensus that this
mask represents Chaac.  Nor is there a pure concensus
that the "chaac masks" of the puuc are actually meant
to represent the deity Chaac.

For a view of various architectural masks of the Maya,
you might want to look at their evolution from
Preclassic predecessors to their terminal and post
classic decendents, and see the wide array of possible
deities that have been proposed (Cuello, Tikal,
Kohonlich, Acanceh, Copan, and many others).

And, perhaps others on this list can provide the range
of deities that have been proposed for this particular
mask.

Hope this helps, and doesn't just muddy the waters...

All the best,

-Dave

__________________________________________________
David Hixson
Ph.D. Candidate
Tulane Anthropology
chunchucmil at yahoo.com
www.mesoamerican-archives.com

"Nothing more useless than a bored archaeologist."
-Douglas Adams


 
____________________________________________________________________________________
Finding fabulous fares is fun.  
Let Yahoo! FareChase search your favorite travel sites to find flight and hotel bargains.
http://farechase.yahoo.com/promo-generic-14795097