An entire section is dedicated to calomel before concluding with an overview of the analytical methods for the characterisation and provenance investigation of cinnabar. The following section approaches inherent but less known topics such as cinnabar procurement, trade, production technology, application and alteration. The use of cinnabar for writing (ink), medicine and cosmetics is briefly described, and a shortlist of uncommon finds is further provided. The following section addresses the multiple uses of cinnabar, divided into funerary use, decorative use, lustre and Chinese lacquer production. Structural information and properties precede an overview of the geographic distribution of cinnabar deposits. cinnabar, metacinnabar, hypercinnabar and calomel, are presented. First, mercury-based minerals significant for studying pigments, i.e. After a brief introduction on mercury and contamination issues, the article gets to the heart of the topic. This article summarises the history of cinnabar, from its first uses in burials to modern oils on canvas. The nature and location of the findings, the evidence of pigment coloration on the bones employing hematite and cinnabar, and the indication of exposure of the bones to high temperatures suggest highly complex, even protracted mortuary practices of Maya elite. In this paper we describe preliminary findings from non-invasive and non-destructive analytical techniques including XRF, VPSEM-EDS, and XRD, emphasizing the potential of these combined technologies in the identification of organic and inorganic markers to infer burial customs. Archaeological findings included vessels, jade masks, organic materials (wood, cord, and textiles), specular hematite cubes, shells with powdered cinnabar, green (malachite) painted stucco assumed to have decorated the wooden bier where the king was resting, and caches of lip-to-lip Aguila Orange bowls containing human phalanges. Unlike the highly centralized Aztec and Inca civilizations, the Maya empire that spanned much of what is now southern Mexico, Belize, Guatemala and northern Honduras, was a liberal federation of city-states.This project focuses on the characterization of materials from burial offerings and painted decoration in a royal Maya tomb at El Zotz, Guatemala, and their association with mortuary rituals.
From paint traces found, archaeologists say the masks were painted crimson, making for a breath-taking spectacle in the early morning and at dusk. The noon day sun is depicted as an ancient being with crossed eyes that drinks blood, while the evening suns resemble jaguars that awake from their daily slumbers to hunt the nocturnal jungle. One mask resembles a shark, possibly a reference to the sun arising from the Caribbean sea in the east. The masks depict the face of the Maya Sun God changing as he traverses the sky. Experts say that “the temple has a total of 14 giant figurehead masks at the height of the frieze, but only eight have been documented” and say “it is necessary to continue exploring and investigating because only know 75 percent of the structure is currently known”. The masks are in mid-relief (mezzo-rilievo) – three-dimensional which is not often seen in the Maya world. Monumental figureheads of stucco 1.50 meters high were found on the facades of the temple.
The iconography of the temple suggests a “glorification in the Sun” and at the top of the entrance to the temple is a frieze representing three different phases of the Sun. At the rear of the temple is the tomb of the ruler and founder of the first dynasty: Pa’Chan, being a daily reminder of an eternal revival Temple. The structure stands out because “it announces its presence when the Sun rises in the East and hides on the horizon, as representing a dance with the Sun”.
It dates back to the early Classic Maya Period, approximately A.D. It is called the Temple of the Nocturnal Sun and according to Roman, “was created with the intention to see and be seen”. Image Credit Prensa Libre.Ī report in today’s issue of Prensa Libre newspaper says that the temple was discovered by archaeologists Stephen Houston (USA), Thomas Garrison (USA) and Edwin Roman (GUA) at the archaeological site El Zotz (BAT), 23 km from the center of Tikal, and belongs to the substructure of the Devil’s Pyramid. Archaeologist Edwin Roman with giant mask at at El Zotz Maya Temple discovered in The Peten, Guatemala.
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