A Comparative Analysis of Ch’orti’ Verbal Art and the Poetic Discourse Structures of Maya Hieroglyphic Writing

Wings of the Eclipse

Eclipse notations in the inscriptions are usually enclosed in what is commonly referred to as an eclipse cartouche. This circle-like casing often contains the sign for day, k’in, and the glyph for night, ak’ab’. (In one case on Kerr 5359 the head of a rabbit, i.e. the moon, and the head of a male figure representing the sun replace the k’in and ak’ab’ signs. See Hull 2000 for a discussion of this scene). The eclipse cartouche regularly has two wing-like elements on either side. I suggest that these are actual wings being depicted based on a couplet from a Ch’orti’ curing text for a sickness caused by an eclipse. A section of the prayer reads:

Some Ch’orti’ believe that the eclipse "spirit" is a large snake (a few say it is a lion) with a long tail with its jaws open to swallow either the sun or moon. (Note this exact snake with a long tail and open maw on Kerr 5359 is poised to swallow the sun and moon in an eclipse cartouche). Another common interpretation is that the eclipse is caused by the wings of the evil spirit "Great King the Eclipser." This curing text contains a crucial reference to the wings of the eclipse that are blocking the sun or moon before they are eaten by a snake. The wings of the eclipse are said to be what is responsible for causing most of the illnesses that follow an eclipse. The healer explained his use of the couplet uyala, uwich’ "his wings, his wings" in the prayer cited above:

Por eso hoy Ángel Satanás de Malo, eso es Satanás, Ángel Kilis pero Satanás. Entonce, lo fabricó todo las criaturas que está encerrando, utravesiyir, umakajrir, usaktokarir. Ja’x uwich’ e Noxi’ Kilis.

This is why today Angel Satan of Evil, that is Satan, Angel Eclipse but Satan. So, he made all of the children who are closed off (in the womb), his blocking (in the womb), his stopping up (in the womb), his blinding of the eyes. These are the wings of the Great Eclipse (emphasis mine).

This notion of a ’winged eclipse’, preserved in this Ch’orti’ couplet from a healing prayer, helps to explain the origin of ’winged cartouches’ used in depicting an eclipse in the hieroglyphic texts.

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