Pacal II, also known as Pacal the Great (the most recent work gives his full name as K'inich Janaab' Pakal[1] (26 March 603 - 31 August 683), was ruler of the Maya polity of Palenque. March 26 is the 85th day of the year (86th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events Battle of Degsastan: Aethelfrith of Northumbria defeats Aedan of Dalriada. ... is the 243rd day of the year (244th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events Umayyad caliph Yazid I (680 - 683) succeeded by Muawiya II ibn Yazid (683 - 684) End of the reign of Pacal the Great, ruler of Maya state of Palenque Births Emperor Mommu of Japan Bilge Khan, emperor of the Gokturks I Sin, Chinese astronomer Deaths Pope Leo II Tang Gao... This article is about the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. ... The Palace, Ruins of Palenque Palenque is a Maya archeological site near the Usumacinta River in the Mexican state of Chiapas, located at about 130 km south of Ciudad del Carmen (see map). ...

An image of Pacal the Great.

Pacal II, king of Palenque. ... Pacal II, king of Palenque. ...

Biography

Pacal ascended the throne at age 12 on July 29, 615, and lived to the age of 80. The name "Pacal" means "shield" in the Maya language. is the 210th day of the year (211th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events The Edict of Paris grants extensive rights to the Frankish nobility. ... This article is about the defensive device. ... Maya language may refer to: generally, any one of the various Mayan languages, a related group of languages spoken by the Maya peoples of Mesoamerica specifically, Yukatek (Yucatec) Maya language is frequently referred to simply as Maya language Maya language (Brazil), an unclassified language of Brazil that may be related...

Pacal saw expansion of Palenque's power in the western part of the Maya states, and initiated a building program at his capital that produced some of Maya civilization's finest art and architecture. This article is about the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. ...

He was preceded as ruler of Palenque by his mother Lady Zac-Kuk. As the Palenque dynasty seems to have had Queens only when there was no eligible male heir, Zac-Kuk transferred rulership to her son upon his official maturity. Lady Zac-Kuk (sometimes rendered as Sac Kuk ) was Queen of the Maya state of Baakal, now known as Palenque, in what is now eastern Mexico. ...

After his death Pacal II was succeeded by his son Chan Bahlum II. A younger son, Kan Xul II, succeeded his brother Chan Bahlum II. Chan Bahlum in January of 690 Chan Bahlum II, also known as Kinich Kan Balam the younger, (23 May 635 - 20 February 702) was king of the Maya state of Baakal, with the capital in the city now known as Palenque. ... Kan Xul II (November 5, 644-ca. ...

After his death, Pacal the Great was worshiped as a god, and said to communicate with his descendants. Pacal the Great was buried within the Temple of Inscriptions. Though Palenque had been examined by archaeologists before, the secret to opening his tomb—closed off by a stone slab with stone plugs in the holes, which had until then escaped the attention of archaeologists—was discovered by Mexican archaeologist Alberto Ruz Lhuillier in 1948. It took four years to clear the rubble from the stairway leading down to Pacal the Great’s tomb, but was finally uncovered in 1952 [2]. His skeletal remains were still lying in his coffin, wearing a jade mask and bead necklaces, surrounded by sculptures and stucco reliefs depicting the King's transition to divinity and figures from Maya mythology. This article discusses the term God in the context of monotheism and henotheism. ... Alberto Ruz Lhuillier (27 January 1906 – 25 August 1979) was a Mexican archaeologist. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

That the bones within the tomb are really those of Pacal the Great himself is under debate due to the fact that the analysis of wear on the skeleton’s teeth places the age of the owner at death as 40 years younger than Pacal the Great would’ve been at his death. Epigraphers insist that the inscriptions on the tomb indicate that it is indeed Pacal II entombed within, and that he died at the age of 80 after ruling for around 70 years. Some contest that the glyphs refer to two people with the same name or that an unusual method for recording time was used, but other experts in the field say that allowing for such possibilities would go against everything else that is known about the Maya calendar and records of events. The most commonly accepted explanation for the irregularity is that Pacal the Great, being an elite, had access to softer, less abrasive food than the average person so that his teeth naturally acquired less wear [3]. Despite the controversy, it remains one of the most spectacular finds of Maya archaeology. A replica of his tomb is found at the National Museum of Anthropology and History in Mexico City, Mexico. Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... The Maya calendar is a system of distinct calendars and almanacs used by the Maya civilization of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, and by some modern Maya communities in highland Guatemala. ... Front entrance to the museum. ... Mexico City (Spanish: Ciudad de México) is the federal capital of and largest city in Mexico. ...

Pacal's tomb lid

The large carved stone slab over the tomb in the Temple of Inscriptions is a famous piece of Classic Maya art. The widely accepted interpretation of the sarcophagus lid is that Pacal is descending into Xibalba, the Maya underworld. Around the edges of the lid are glyphs representing the Sun, the Moon, Venus, and various constellantions, locating this event in the nighttime sky. Below him is the Maya water god, who guards the underworld [4]. Beneath Pacal are the "unfolded" jaws of a dragon or serpent, into whose mouth Pacal the Great descends. This is a common iconographic representation of the entrance to the underworld. Other examples of this imagery are found in sculpture on Monument 1 "El Rey" and Monument 9 at the Olmec site of Chalcatzingo, Morelos, on Altar 4 at the Olmec site of La Venta, Tabasco, and in recently discovered murals at the Late Preclassic Maya site of San Bartolo, Guatemala. In Maya mythology Xibalba (IPA: ), roughly translated as Place of fear,[1] is the name of the underworld, ruled by Mayan spirits of disease and death. ... Monument 1, one of the four Olmec colossal heads at La Venta. ... // Overview Chalcatzingo was an Olmec culture center in the Valley of Morelos, which is in the southern portion of the Central Highlands of Mexico. ... Monument 1, one of the four Olmec colossal heads at La Venta. ... The Grandmother, La Venta (reproduction) La Venta is the name of a Pre-Columbian archaeological site of the Olmec civilization. ... This article is about the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. ... San Bartolo is a municipality in the Totonicapán department of Guatemala. ...

Erich von Däniken's "Maya Astronaut"

Pacal the Great’s tomb has been the focus of attention by some fringe cult archaeologists since its appearance in Erich von Däniken's 1968 best seller, Chariots of the Gods?. Von Däniken reproduced a drawing of the sarcophagus lid (incorrectly labeling it as being from "Copan") and comparing Pacal's pose to that of 1960s Project Mercury astronauts, interpreting drawings underneath him as rockets, and touting it as supposed evidence of Extra-terrestrial influence on the ancient Maya. Erich Anton Paul von Däniken (b. ... Chariots of the Gods?: Unsolved Mysteries of the Past is a book written in 1968 by Erich von Däniken. ... The Pre-Columbian city of Cop n is a locale in extreme western Honduras, in the Cop Department, near to the Guatemalan border. ... Project Mercury was the first human spaceflight program of the United States. ... Green people redirects here. ...

Cases out of context:

In the center of that frame is a man sitting, bending forward. He has a mask on his nose, he uses his two hands to manipulate some controls, and the heel of his left foot is on a kind of pedal with different adjustments. The rear portion is separated from him; he is sitting on a complicated chair, and outside of this whole frame, you see a little flame like an exhaust.

Though at first glance one could see a similarity of the pose, von Däniken's claim is not considered a credible interpretation by any professional Mayanist. For example Ian Graham responded to von Däniken's claims, "Well I certainly don't see any need to regard him as a space man. I don't see any oxygen tubes. I see a very characteristically drawn Maya face" [5]. In contrast, biblical interpretaions can be applied in forms that all religions share. There is corn in the picture representing this king as the grain or bread of life. There is the serpent that as with Europe versus China is debated whether to be good or bad in the tree of life. There is the cross which since Sumer has been a symbol of astronomy stars crossing, and that too has been equated with a tree of life having branches on it. On the cross is a Quetzal bird, the fire bird in the jungle that represented Venus Quetzalcoatl. More evidence indicates Quetzalcoatl as Venus than it does as the Big Dipper, and yet it may be an indication of a Venus in Leo (the same zone). Another intepretation by many is that these things converge upon dead Pacal to life him out of the Earth Monster grave to take him to heaven. If this is so, he then is a christ or prophet like Jesus and Mohammed in the year 3744 haab (3796 tun) declaring Pacal as king of kings. And it should be noted it is 8-year Venus after Moslem 622 AD. Mayanist is a term which has been in widespread use from the late 19th century onwards, to refer to scholars who have specialised in research and study of the Central American pre-Columbian Maya civilization. ... Ian Graham (born January 5, 1943) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Collingwood in the VFL during the 1960s. ...

José Arguelles' "Pacal Votan"

Another example of this carving's manifestation in pseudoarchaeology is Jose Arguelles' identification of "Pacal Votan," of whom he claims to be an incarnation named "Valum Votan," who will act as a "closer of the cycle" in 2012 (an event that is also significant on Arguelles' "13 Moon" calendar). Daniel Pinchbeck, in his book 2012: The Return of Quetzalcoatl (2006), also uses the name "Votan" in referring to Pacal the Great. However, this is a spurious identification that derives from Arguelles' writing and is rejected as fantasy by academic archaeologists, epigraphers, and iconographers. Arguelles claims a connection between Pacal and the semi-historical Toltec figure Ce Acatl Tolpitzin Quetzalcoatl, but this is also unsupported by archaeological or epigraphic evidence. Pseudoarchaeology is an aspect of pseudohistory. ... Jose Arguelles (b. ... Maya mythology refers to the pre-Columbian Maya civilizations extensive polytheistic religious beliefs. ... Maya mythology refers to the pre-Columbian Maya civilizations extensive polytheistic religious beliefs. ... 2012 (MMXII) will be a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Daniel Pinchbeck. ... It has been suggested that this article be split into multiple articles. ...

See also

• Maya civilization
• Palenque
• Pacal I
• Mesoamerican world tree

This article is about the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. ... The Palace, Ruins of Palenque Palenque is a Maya archeological site near the Usumacinta River in the Mexican state of Chiapas, located at about 130 km south of Ciudad del Carmen (see map). ... Pacal I or Pakal I (? - March 9, 612) was a ajawof the Maya city-state of Palenque. ... A world tree depicted on the sarcophogus lid of the Classic-era Maya ruler of Palenque, Pacal II World trees are a prevalent motif occurring in the mythical cosmologies, creation accounts and iconographies of the pre-Columbian cultures of Mesoamerica. ... Ix Sak Kuk in 615 Ix Sak Kuk (sometimes rendered as Zac Kuk) was Queen of the Maya state of Baakal, now known as Palenque, in what is now eastern Mexico. ... The Palace, Ruins of Palenque Palenque is a Maya archeological site near the Usumacinta River in the Mexican state of Chiapas, located at about 130 km south of Ciudad del Carmen (see map). ... is the 210th day of the year (211th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events The Edict of Paris grants extensive rights to the Frankish nobility. ... is the 243rd day of the year (244th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events Umayyad caliph Yazid I (680 - 683) succeeded by Muawiya II ibn Yazid (683 - 684) End of the reign of Pacal the Great, ruler of Maya state of Palenque Births Emperor Mommu of Japan Bilge Khan, emperor of the Gokturks I Sin, Chinese astronomer Deaths Pope Leo II Tang Gao... Kinich Kan Balam II, from the Temple of the Cross, Palenque (illustrated by Frederick Catherwood). ...

External links

• drawings of the sarcophagus of Pacal the Great
• Photo of the sarcophagus of Pacal II
• Mesoweb's description of the discovery of Pacal II's tomb
• Michael Finley's "The 'Maya Astronaut,'" a discussion of Von Daniken's claims.