Rescuing the Origins of Dos Pilas Dynasty:
A Salvage of Hieroglyphic Stairway #2, Structure L5-49

The Decipherment of the Stairways

As stated before, the new discoveries have resulted in a numbering of the steps which for the purpose of this article will be thus: Stairway 2, Central Section, Steps 6 to 1 in descending order of dates; Stairway 2, East, Steps 6 to 1 in descending order of dates and similarly Stairway 2, West, Steps 6 to 1. This new way of referring to the stairways is different from previous ways of numbering the steps although there were differences earlier also—for example: in the Informe Preliminar 2, Segunda Temporada 1990 de Proyecto Arqueológico Regional Petexbatún (1990) page 256 there are three drawings of the same steps of Stairway 2 and they are numbered as 6, 7 and 8 even though at the time only four in each side were known. Similarly the Hieroglyphic Workbook from the XXVIII Texas Workshop by Linda Schele and Nikolai Grube number one of those Steps as 3, West and 7 and 8 on the same western side from the Petexbatún report as Steps 2 and 1 respectively.

Not wanting to add more confusion but in light of the new discoveries and recognizing the right to name and number new monuments by the excavators it becomes necessary to insist on the proposed new system which allows for a better understanding of the information.

All three of the steps of the Stairway have some information which can be also read on Stairway 4 of Structure L5-35. However as Houston (1993) states it is possible that Stairway 2 and 3 as well as 4 might have been disturbed and some of the steps replaced in a different order.

On the other hand the system of including anchor dates and then Calendar Round dates followed by a verbal phrase shows a specific interest in emphasizing the importance of the event without pretending that there be a connection between each step. In other words the texts go from step to step without the usual tie by distance numbers.

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Final Report

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