Bats and the Ancient Maya

This Guatemalan vessel, dated around 650 AD to 850 AD, has bat heads
painted on it. From LACMA.

All kinds of bats (or zotz (also spelled sotz') in a lot of Mayan languages) live in the Maya area. It makes sense then, that bats became part of the Maya civilization, including religious beliefs, their writing system, and their calendar.

What the Maya Thought of Bats

Two things the ancient Maya connected bats to were caves and the underworld -- they also thought that bats were messengers from the underworld. The Maya also connected bats with sacrifice -- they drew bats with symbols of sacrifice, like “death eyes” around their neck (or on their wings) and a sort of split scroll coming out of its mouth that might be a symbol for blood.

Three other possible views the ancient Maya may have had – according to a paper called Bats and the Camazotz: Correcting a Century of Mistaken Identity are: as a wahy, a choice for a city name, and as a pollinator.

The Bat God

Starting with Eduard Seler’s conclusion about images on a pot, it’s now thought that the ancient Maya believed in a bat god – archaeologists call this god Cama Zotz’. This name comes from a bat god in the Popol Vuh, a Quiche (also K’iche’) “bible”. This god was connected with death. (It must be said though, that Maya experts don’t have a lot of info about this god outside of vessels taken from burials found in the Maya highlands.)

However, the paper Bats and Camazotz not only has the view people interpret bat images as this deity too often – but also doubts that Seler’s conclusion was right. (This doubt comes from the fact that they haven’t found any pre-contact images of the Hero Twins in the House of Bats.)

Agricultural Significance

Speaking of pollination, a lot of plants that the ancient Maya used were pollinated by creatures (as opposed to wind pollination, like corn.) This includes certain kinds of bats, like Underwood's long-tongued bat (Hylonycteris underwoodi).

A detail from an image of Haab months
from An Introduction to the Study of the
Maya Hieroglyphs. From Project Gutenberg.

In Mayan Writing 

The Maya had different glyphs (or perhaps versions of one glyph) that were bat heads – and they used these bat glyphs (or perhaps versions of one bat glyph) in different ways. For one thing, it looks like they may have used it (or them) for several syllables, including “xu” and “tz’i”. (As to whether or not there is more than one distinct bat glyph, that seems to be under debate.)

They also used a bat head glyph as a logogram, and when they did you will see descriptions that say you pronounce it zotz/sotz’. (There is a theory that in Classic Period inscriptions, though, it ought perhaps to be pronounced sutz’.) They used this logogram for the fourth month of the solar calendar (the Haab.)

A bat glyph was also used to represent "mother of" or “mother of child” in inscriptions -- specifically, for when the mother of that person was alive. For this, the bat glyph also has two syllable signs with it, one for “ya” and one for “na.”

Bat glyphs have also been used as part of “emblem glyphs” or city names. Both Calakmul and Copan had a glyph that was a bat head as part of their emblem glyphs. (Calakmul also had an emblem glyph that used a snake’s head instead of a bat’s head.) 

Consideration: Which Bat is the Bat Glyph?

According to a 2009 paper by Erik Boot, people tend to accept that that the model for the glyph was a species of leaf-nosed vampire bat. This paper also wonders if the model might have been the American false vampire bat because ancient Maya art liked to show powerful carnivores, like alligators and jaguars. (The American false vampire bat is the biggest you can find in North America – at the largest, its wingspan can be as wide as three feet!)

References:

Cambridge Core: "Latin American Antiquity" Volume 27, Issue 2: "Bats and the Camazotz: Correcting a Century of Mistaken Identity"; James E. Brady, Jeremy D. Coltman; June 2016

Mesoweb: "Temple of the Night Sun: A Royal Tomb at El Diablo, Guatemala"; "Chapter 1: "A Tomb and Its Context"; Stephen Houston, Sarah Newman, Thomas Garrison, and Edwin Román; 2015

Google Books: "The Maya Forest Garden: Eight Millenia of sustainable Cultivation of the Tropical Woodlands"; Anabel Ford, Ronald Nigh; 2015

Academia.edu: “Mexicon” Volume 36, Number 2; “A Drum Altar from the Vicinity ofYaxchilan”; Nikolai Grube and Camilo Alejandro Luín; April 2014

Caracol Archaeological Project: "Reevaluating the Late Classic Lu-Bat Glyphic Phrase: The Artist and the Underworld"; Patrick B. Carroll; 2010

Asociacion FLAAR Mesoamerica: Bats in Maya Art; Antonieta Cajas; June 2009

Maya Vase Database: “The Bat Sign in Maya Hieroglyphic Writing: Some Notes and Suggestions, Based on Examples on Late Classic Ceramics; Erik Boot; 20 February 2009

Brigham Young University BYU ScholarsArchive: "Parentage Statements and Paired Stelae: Signs of Dynastic Succession for the Classic Maya";  Daniel Moroni Stewart; 2008

Google Books: "Mesoamerican Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs of Mexico and Central America"; Kay Almere Read, Jason J. Gonzalez; 2000

FLAAR: Maya-archaeolgy.org: Bat Sculpture from Izabal or Alta Verapaz

USGS: Bat Population Data (BPD) Project: Hylonycteris Underwoodi (Underwood's Long-tongued Bat)

Image Credits:

LACMA: Vessel with Bat Heads

Project Gutenberg: "An Introduction to the Study of the Maya Hieroglyphs"; Sylvanus Griswold Morley; 1915

Pauahtun (God N)

Author's note: for the overview post on gods and goddesses of the ancient Maya, go here.

Pauahtun (Pawahtun) is God N of the Schellhas classification. Currently known to have four aspects, he has been connected to an earth god known as Mam described as a god still being worshiped today in Exploring the Life, Myth, and Art of the Maya.

Appearance

Drawn as an old man with missing teeth, images depict Pauahtun with a turtle shell or a conch shell on his back. He also wears a headdress -- most sources this author has found say it is a netted headdress, though The Ancient Maya: New Perspectives states that it is a crocodile headdress (the book also state that he has a "cut-out shell nose").

The god is also commonly drawn with one hand raised above his head, and is drawn either as a scribe or teaching scribes. In a few Classic period images on ceramics, Pauahtun is drawn with an accompaniment of women.


Functions
Pauahtun was the patron of scribes and of group of 5 unlucky days known as the Uayeb (Wayeb), which came at the end of the Haab calendar.

The four aspects of Pauahtun -- called Bacabs (Bakabs) -- each were thought to stand at one of the four main compass points and hold up the sky. Each Bacab was connected to a color as well, like the aspects of Chac (God B).



Uayeb Dance
Pauahtun may be connected to a dance known as the Uayeb (Wayeb) Dance. A scene in the Lower Temple of the Jaguars at Chichen Itzá depicts a ruler and ritual participants taking part in a dance, with Pauahtun being a notable figure. It is conjectured that this dance may have taken place during the Uayeb.

Consideration
Sources conflict concerning Pauahtun's name. The Ancient Maya states that Pauahtun was known as Bacab during the Postclassic period, while Handbook to Life in the Ancient Maya world states that it is Pauahtun's four aspects that are known as Bakabs. A third source,The Ancient Maya: New Perspectives, states that Pauahtun at the time of contact with the Spanish was known as the four Bacabs.

 References:

"Handbook to Life in the Ancient Maya World"; Lynn V. Foster; 2005

"Exploring the Life, Myth, and Art of the Maya"; Timothy Laughton; 2011

"The Ancient Maya"; Robert J. Sharer, Loa P. Traxler; 2006

"The Ancient Maya: New Perspectives"; Heather Irene McKillop; 2004

"Star Gods of the Maya: Astronomy in Art, Folklore, and Calendars"; Susan Milbrath; 2000

Missouri State University: MAYA GODS AND GODDESSES

Maya Calendar Series 3 of 6 -- Calendar Round

As mentioned in the overview article, the Calendar Round is the combination of the cyclical Tzolkin and Haab calendars that starts over every 52 years. Like with the Haab and Tzolkin calendars by themselves, a common way to visually explain the Calendar Round is by representing the calendars as interlocking gears.

With other Mesoamerican cultures, the Calendar Round was the longest length of time they recorded. This was not the case with the Maya, however, who also used the non-repeating Long Count -- which could be used to count beyond the 52 years of Calendar Round.

How Calendar Round Dates are Expressed
The Haab and Tzolkin dates are written today as a pair of dates. For example, the day on which the Tzolkin date 13 Ahau and the Haab date 8 Xul both fall is simply referred to as 13 Ahau 8 Xul. And once it occurs, a pairing of dates won’t occur again until 52 years have gone by.

Repititions
Within the 52-year cycle, the calendars complete their own cycles at rates independent of each other. The Haab repeats 52 times and the Tzolkin repeats 73 times before the two calendars can meet up again to begin a new Calendar Round.

Year Bearer
The Tzolkin date that fell on 0 Pop of the Haab was called the “year bearer.” The “characteristics” of a Tzolkin date that occurred on 0 Pop were thought to influence all the days of the Haab.

With the way that the calendars were set up, only 4 named days out of the 20 named days of the Tzolkin could ever occur on 0 Pop. In the Classic period, the 4 days -- known as “year bearers” -- were Akbal, Lamat, Ben and Etz’nab*. Taking into account the 13 numbers that are part of the Tzolkin, 52 unique Tzolkin dates could occur as “year bearers” (13 x 4 = 52). After 52 years, this sequence of year bearers started over.

Here’s a sample of the pattern of year bearer dates as they occurred: 1 Akbal, 2 Lamat, 3 Ben, 4 Etz’nab, 5 Akbal, 6 Lamat, 7 Ben, 8 Etz’nab, 9 Akbal, 10 Lamat, 11 Ben, 12 Etz’nab, 13 Akbal, 1 Lamat…

*These four days sometimes varied by region, as in the center of the Maya Lowlands, the days were Ik, Manik, Eb and Caban in the Classic Period. By the time of the Conquistadors, the days had become Kan, Muluc, Ix and Cauac.


“A Forest of Kings”; Linda Schele, David Friedel; 1990

“The Ancient Maya”; Robert J. Sharer, Loa P. Traxler; 2006

“Yaxchilan: The Design of an Maya Ceremonial City” Carolyn Elaine Tate; 1992

Maya Calendar Series 2 of 6 -- Haab

Author’s note: I will be putting on pictures of the glyphs soon.


The word Haab (or “vague year”), is the modern name for the ancient Maya’s sun-based calendar used for knowing when to plant crops. This calendar is made of 20 “months” (uinals) of 18 days (18 times 20 is 360), plus a group -- or “month”-- of 5 days at the end of the year. Altogether, this makes the Haab a 365-day calendar.

The “Months”
Months are referred to by their names in Yucatec Mayan: Pop, Uo, Zip, Zotz’, Zec, Xul, Yaxkin, Mol, Ch’en, Yax, Zac, Ceh, Mac, Kankin, Muan, Pax, Kayab, Cumku and finally Uayeb -- the 5 day period whose name may mean “resting of the year”. Each month was ruled by a deity who was its patron.

How The Haab Worked
Unlike our calendar, instead of each month being numbered 1 through 30, 1 through 31 or 1 through 28 (or 29), the days of each Haab month were numbered 0 through 19. For example, the days of month of Uo would be written 0 Uo, 1 Uo, 2 Uo and so on through 19 Uo -- and then the next month would begin (0 Zip). The same process was used for Uayeb, in that the 5 days were numbered 0 through 4.

The first day of a month could be referred to as the “seating” of the month -- so, for example, 0 Cumku is the “seating” of Cumku. The particular influence of a month began on this day of “seating”. This also means that although 0 Pop was the beginning of Pop -- the first month of the Haab -- 1 Pop was still the Haab’s new year’s day.

Uayeb had a special consideration to the ancient Maya. It was considered an unlucky period of days.

Consideration: Drift
As is known, the year is actually about one-quarter of a day (6 hours) longer than 365 days. People working in the Maya field of archaeology have found that some ancient Maya seem to know this fact, though no one seemed to have adjusted the Haab to express this.

References:
“A Forest of Kings; Linda Schele, David Friedel; 1990

“The Ancient Maya”; Robert J. Sharer, Loa P. Traxler; 2006

Maya Calendar Series -- Overview

Author’s Note: This is part one of a series on the Maya calendars. Each section in this post will eventually have a separate post which I will hyperlink to its respective header.

In Mesoamerica -- possibly in Izapa during the 1300s BC -- two calendars developed, a sacred calendar and a calendar based on the sun. These calendars spread to peoples including the Mixtecs, Teotihuacanos and Zapotecs as well as the ancient Maya, who used the two calendars in an interlocking system.

Of the peoples that used it, the ancient Maya are believed to be the people who refined the system the most. Other than the two calendars, they also kept other “calendars”.

The Sacred Calendar: Tzolkin
The sacred calendar -- which was used for religious purposes -- is known today as the Tzolkin. This calendar has an interlocked cycle of 13 numbers and 20 days that started over after 260 days (13 x 20 = 260). Each of the 20 days had a name.

The Sun-Based Calendar: Haab
The sun-based calendar -- which was used for more everyday purposes -- is known today as the vague year or the Haab, and was like our calendar. Made up in total of 365 days, the Haab contains 18 months, each having 20 days, plus a group of 5 days (18 x 20 + 5 = 365). Each month of the Haab, like our calendar (the Gregorian calendar), has a name.

Calendar Round: The Interlocking System
The Calendar Round is the name that people who study the Maya use to describe the interlocking system of the Tzolkin and the Haab. The cycle produced by combining these two calendars repeats every 52 years.

Long Count
The Long Count is a system of units for keeping track of how many days had passed since the creation of the current world. Something only the Maya used, unlike the Haab and Tzolkin, the Long Count does not repeat, but continues to go up in number. Its smallest unit was a day from which it progressed to larger and larger units. Currently, the Long Count’s start date is thought to be sometime in 3114 BC.

Other Calendars
The ancient Maya also used some other cycles, and worked them into their timekeeping. Some of these cycles are the cycle of Venus, an 819-day count centered on the god K’awiil and the cycle of the moon as well as the cycle of the Nine Lords of Night.


Correlation
Through the years, various people tried to find a date or dates to match our calendar with the ancient Mayan Calendar Round and Long Count. So far, a match known as the Gordon-Martinez-Thompson correlation (or GMT correlation) is the most commonly accepted as the right match. However, not everyone thinks it is as accurate as it ought to be.


References:
"A Forest of Kings"; Linda Schele, David Friedel; 1990

Dartmouth College: Chapter 6 The Long Count: Astronomical Precision

"The Ancient Maya"; Robert J. Sharer, Loa P. Traxler; 2006