In the lore of the Quiché Maya, One and Seven Hunahpu were the first generation of hero twins. These boys were passionate ballplayers. They were so good at it, and so noisy about it, that they came to the attention of the Lords of Death. The rulers of the Underworld sent messengers to summon them to a ballgame.

The Lords of Death asked that a dog be sacrificed and then brought back to life. And when this was done, they asked that it be repeated with a human. And when this too was accomplished, they asked the Twins to sacrifice each other. So Xbalanque dismembered his twin and cut out his heart. Then he started dancing and commanded Hunahpu to get up and join him. And when Hunahpu got up as good as new, the Lords of Death were caught up in a frenzy of delight.

"Now do us!" they cried. And so the Twins sacrificed the two foremost of the Lords of Death. Only they didn't bring them back to life. And the other Lords knew that they had been defeated, and from that day forth Xibalba had lost its glory. (Based on the Popul Vuh)

Ft. Knox Antiquities Collection

Gold From Chichén Itzá Sacred Cenote

Museo de Antropología

Gold From Chichén Itzá Sacred Cenote

Museo de Antropología

El Salvador - Maya Copper Effigy Ring

G&T Foundation Collection
 

G&T Foundation Collection

G&T Foundation Collection

G&T Foundation Collection

G&T Foundation Collection

This gold pendant, representing a Maya ruler, was allegedly found at Palenque by Frederick Waldeck, a French traveller and one of the first Europeans to visit the ancient city at the beginning of the nineteenth century.

Indiana University Art Museum

Peabody Museum, Harvard

Peabody Museum

Peabody Museum

Peabody Museum

Some of the objects seem to have been direct imports from the Isthmus although many appear to be of local manufacture. The evidence seems to indicate that the technology, introduced in the area at the end of the Classic period (AD 600-800), was used to create objects that conformed to Maya aesthetic canons and world view.

Mayan Bronze Axes

Mayan Bronze Axes

Mayan Bronze Axe & Bell Necklace

Mayan Bronze Axes