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| This is a ceramic whistle depicting a man with dwarfism. It was made around 600 AD to 800 AD and came from either southeast Mexico or from north Guatemala. From LACMA. |
Dwarfism is a term used for different conditions that all share one feature: the person who has it is shorter than is common when compared to the area they're born in. Archaeologists have found that among the ancient Maya, dwarfism had cultural significance.
Evidence
According to several references used for this post, archaeologists have not found any remains so far of ancient Maya with dwarfism. Contradicting this, a 2009 article, also in the references, says otherwise.
Either way, archaeologists have found images of people with dwarfism in the art the ancient Maya made. Some examples are painted pottery, carved jade, stelae, and figurines made of ceramic. (In the Puuc region -- which is located in the north of the Yucatán Peninsula -- art showing people with dwarfism is more common than any other place in the Maya world.)
As there are different types of the condition, you may be wondering which one or ones have been found in ancient Maya art. The answer to that is achondroplasia. This is a term for multiple types of dwarfism that happen because of a gene mutation. (Achondroplasia can be passed on to one's children too.)
Role in Society
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| A wood artifact that may have been carved to represent a man with dwarfism. The Maya may have used it as a setting for a mirror. It was made between 410 AD and 650 AD, and might be from either Mexico or Guatemala. From the Metropolitan Museum of Art. |
tax collectors, musicians, attendants for elites, and quality control officials. An article on The Metropolitan Museum of Art's website says that the ancient Maya thought dwarfism gave a person the ability to see the future. (Images have also been found where people dressed as the Maize God were dancing with people with dwarfism.) Also it's possible that the ancient Maya thought that people with dwarfism were connected to the god K'awiil -- that they actually were K'awiil.
There's a theory that the elites in the ancient Maya world thought that dwarfism made a person a good candidate for marriage. And because of this, it may be why people with the condition show up in the art as much as they do.
Possible Symbolism
The idea of dwarfism may have been a symbol to the ancient Maya. They may have thought of it as being in some kind of in-between state. The same article from The Metropolitan Museum of Art mentioned above says that the ancient Maya saw dwarfism as beautiful in exactly the opposite way that the Maize God was beautiful.
Consideration: Uxmal's "Pyramid of the Dwarf"
You may have heard about the story of the magical dwarf and the site of Uxmal, located in the Puuc region. This story's history goes back over 150 years. There are different versions of what happens. A pyramid at Uxmal is supposed to have been part of the dwarf's story -- examples of the pyramid's names today include the House of the Dwarf, the Pyramid of the Magician, and the Pyramid of the Dwarf.
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| Also a ceramic whistle from made in the same time frame. This one however, came from the Mexican state of Campeche, located in the Yucatán Peninsula. From LACMA. |
Google Books: "Bioarchaeology of Impairment and Disability: Theoretical, Ethnohistorical, and Methodological Perspectives"; Jennifer F. Byrnes, Jennifer L. Muller (editors); 2017
Purdue University: Journal of Purdue Undergraduate Research: "Ancient Mayan "Deformity"": Cultural Accomodation of Congenital Physical Anomaly in Mesoamerican Prehistory"; Michael H. Lockman, Liberal Arts; 2015
Google Books: "The Ch'ol Maya of Chiapas"; Karen Bassie-Sweet; 2015
Google Books: "Telling and Being Told: Storytelling and Cultural Control in Contemporary Yucatec Maya Literatures"; Paul M. Worley; 2013
PubMed: "Colombia Médica : CM": "Achondroplasia among ancient populations of mesoamerica and South America: Iconographic and Archaeological Evidence."; Carlos A Rodríguez, Carolina Isaza, Harry Pachajoa; September 30, 2012
Penn Museum: "Expedition" Volume 51 Issue 1: "Out of the Past and Into the Night: Ancient Mythical Dwarfs in Modern Yucatan"; Judith A. Storniolo; March 2009
The Free Dictionary: Encyclopedia: Dwarfism
Reed College: Architecture, Restoration, and Imaging of the Maya Cities of Uxmal, Kabah, Sayil, and Labná: Architecture, Restoration, and Imaging of the Maya Cities of UXMAL, KABAH, SAYIL, and LABNÁ The Puuc Region, Yucatán, México: The Yucatán
Bluffton University: Digital Imaging Project: Art historical images of sculpture and architecture from pre-historic to post-modern: Mary Ann Sullivan, Bluffton University: Uxmal, Mexico:Uxmal, Yucatan--page 1 (of six pages)
University of Idaho: Non-Western Architecture: Professor Anne Marshall 499/502: Mayan Architecture of the Yucatan Peninsula: Uxmal-Pyramid of Magician
The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Column, Costumed Figure
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia: Achondroplasia
Image Credits:
LACMA: Figurine Whistle of a Dwarf
The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Mirror Bearer
LACMA: Dwarf Figurine Whistle
