The Kaanul phenomenon in ancient Maya geopolitics
Since the initial discovery of emblem glyphs by Berlin (Reference Berlin1958) more than six decades ago, a new specialty in Maya research emerged: the study of Classic period geopolitics. This focus has combined epigraphic, iconographic, and archaeological data to understand the nature, extent, and dynamism of the Lowland Maya political landscape between the second and ninth centuries a.d. Central to this process has been the identification of “emblem glyphs” in inscriptions, which today we understand to be the title K'uhul Ajaw. Not only are they related to specific archaeological sites or regions, but they also act as nominal referents, group identifiers, or even political ethnonyms when referring to particular places, lineages, social units, or mythological locations.
The “Snake head” (Kaanul) emblem glyph, associated with Calakmul and Dzibanche, has appeared across more than 35 Lowland Maya sites and is related to a far-flung network of Classic period polities. The study of the Kaanul political entity has involved a broad interdisciplinary effort, compiling data from more than ten independent archaeological projects, as well as its interpretation by a large number of archaeologists, epigraphists, art historians, and other specialists.
As we come to grips with the proverbial elephant in the room, we are increasingly capable of recognizing how Kaanul represents a complex and historically contingent political phenomenon rather than an archetype of the “Classic Maya polity” (Canuto and Barrientos Q. Reference Canuto, Barrientos Q., Houk, Arroyo and Powis2020:171–173; see also Martin Reference Martin2020:309–311; Martin and Velásquez Reference Martin and Velásquez2016). Its extensive geographical distribution, as well as its consistently asymmetrical relationship with multiple polities, made it the most successful expansionist and hegemonic Classic period regime of the Central Maya Lowlands (see Martin Reference Martin2024). To describe and partly explain the impact of this singular expansionism and hegemony, we focus on data related to the north and northwestern zones of Peten, Guatemala, where the Proyecto Regional Arqueológico La Corona (PRALC) has been investigating since 2008 and where we find the earliest evidence of Kaanul's expansionist agenda.
The Snake-head emblem glyph and El Mirador
To understand Kaanul's expansion into northwestern Peten, we must first understand the geopolitics of the Northern Central Lowlands in the fourth and fifth centuries. While we know now that Kaanul had its origins in the southern Quintana Roo area, we also have evidence of other contemporary political entities: “Chatahn” Winik, Suutz', and the enigmatic Sak Wahyis. These political “players,” whose importance waned in the Late Classic, were primary movers in this region before the rise of Kaanul.
Before delving into the Early Classic political arena of northern Peten, we must address the hypothesis associating the origins of Kaanul with the Preclassic sites of El Mirador, Nakbe, or Tintal (Guenter and Hansen Reference Guenter and Hansen2019; Hansen Reference Hansen, Hansen and Suyuc2016a:25). When this idea of El Mirador being the original seat of the Kaanul dynasty was first proposed 20 years ago (Guenter Reference Guenter2000, Reference Guenter, Hansen and Suyuc2002), Calakmul was still considered its only Classic period capital. It was thus feasible that a dynastic seat could have shifted location once within the same geographic region. However, after the identification of Dzibanche as Kaanul's Early Classic dynastic seat a few years later (Nalda Reference Nalda2004; Velásquez Reference Velásquez2005), the plausibility that the seat of the same dynasty could have shifted twice and across large distances each time declined.
The main evidence used for the “Mirador hypothesis” are the 12 to 17 codex-style vessels known as the “Dynastic Vases,” dated between a.d. 670 and a.d. 740, which record lists of various rulers associated with the Snake Emblem Glyph (Martin Reference Martin, Kerr and Kerr1997, Reference Martin2017a; Mumary Reference Mumary2016). These vessels are claimed (1) to have been made exclusively in Nakbe or in El Mirador region (Guenter and Hansen Reference Guenter and Hansen2019; Hansen et al. Reference Hansen, Bishop and Fahsen1991), and (2) to refer to Kaanul rulers at El Mirador from 392 b.c. to a.d. 129 (Guenter Reference Guenter2000:12).
There are problems with this interpretation. First, although chemical signatures suggest that some dynastic vases were produced at Nakbe (Boucher and Palomo Reference Boucher and Palomo2012:126), not a single dynastic vase fragment has been found at Nakbe or any other site in the El Mirador region. Moreover, since some dynastic vase sherds have been found in Calakmul (Martin Reference Martin2020:140) and none of the complete vessels has been recovered in their original archaeological context, we cannot discard the possibility that they were made in Calakmul, where high numbers of codex-style sherds and complete vessels have been recovered (Boucher and Palomo Reference Boucher and Palomo2012; García Reference García2011). Second, during the Late Classic, Nakbe was occupied by a dispersed population living among the ruins of the Preclassic center, likely under Kaanul's patronage (Boucher and Palomo Reference Boucher and Palomo2012:127; Forsyth Reference Forsyth, Laporte, Arroyo, Escobedo and Mejía2002:667; Morales Reference Morales2021). Third, the correlation between the king lists on these vases and the dynastic sequence of Early Classic Dzibanche is becoming increasingly robust (Martin Reference Martin2017a; see Martin Reference Martin2024). In any case, these king lists and the codex-style vessels, in general, were commissioned by the Kaanul rulers based at Calakmul, to reaffirm not only their dynastic ties with the Early Classic kings, but also their links with characters and places of mythological symbolism (Mumary Reference Mumary2016; Nalda and Balanzario Reference Nalda and Balanzario2014:200–202; Vázquez López et al. Reference Vázquez López, Kupprat, Morales, García, Valencia, Arroyo, Salinas and Álvarez2016:1103; Velásquez and García Reference Velásquez and García2018:5–6, 13; see Velásquez and Balanzario Reference Velásquez and Balanzario2024).
The second argument focuses on the sign known as the “S-snake,” which Guenter has proposed as a variant of the Snake-head emblem glyph (Guenter Reference Guenter, Hansen and Suyuc2002; Guenter and Hansen Reference Guenter and Hansen2019). Three examples of this glyph are known, two of which supposedly point to Tintal as the site of their origin. One is incised in a greenstone object found in Tintal Burial 1, dated to the beginning of the Early Classic (Hansen Reference Hansen, Traxler and Sharer2016b:407–408). The second appears in the text of the Hauberg Stela, dated to a.d. 408, which informants claim was looted from Tintal (Guenter Reference Guenter, Hansen and Suyuc2002). The third example is located on Tikal Stela 5, dating to the Late Classic, which directly associates this foreign emblem with the ruling family in Tikal. This association would seem implausible given the rivalry between Tikal and the Kaanul dynasty at that time. In any case, the “S-snake” glyph and the Kaanul emblem glyph are fundamentally different signs (see Zender Reference Zender2021) and likely related to a larger northern Peten polity during the Classic, but not Kaanul (Mumary Reference Mumary2019:49–53).
The third argument involves the petroglyph from La Muerta, located in El Mirador's periphery. This carving contains a text ending with a glyph resembling that of Kaanul (Hansen Reference Hansen, Traxler and Sharer2016b:410; Suyuc et al. Reference Suyuc, Balcárcel, López, Alvarado, Laporte, Arroyo and Mejía2005); nevertheless, the carving is far too eroded to be considered incontrovertible proof of a true emblem glyph (see Zender Reference Zender2021). Furthermore, since the text has been dated stylistically to the fourth or fifth century a.d. (Anaya and Guenter Reference Anaya and Guenter2008:217; García Reference García2009:43–50; Morales and Mauricio Reference Morales, Mauricio and López2006:28; Velásquez and García Reference Velásquez and García2018:4) and La Muerta was occupied mainly during the Classic period, this carving does not constitute direct proof of a Preclassic Kaanul. Actually, the recent identification of the “Chatahn” Winik title in its text (Velásquez and García Reference Velásquez and García2018:5–6) suggests an alternative interpretation, to be discussed later.
To conclude, we suggest that:
(1) There are no in situ Preclassic texts with the Kaanul emblem glyph in the El Mirador region, and the examples proposed as evidence date to the Classic period and are epigraphically ambiguous. Besides, the fact that Kaanul seems to be the toponym for Dzibanche discards most doubt that Dzibanche was not its place of origin (Martin and Velásquez Reference Martin and Velásquez2016; see Velásquez and Balanzario Reference Velásquez and Balanzario2024).
(2) We should avoid “retrofitting” the Classic period political system onto Late Preclassic sites, because Preclassic geopolitics are unknown and probably different from those of the Classic period.
(3) Published archaeological data indicate that the El Mirador region suffered a collapse and abandonment in the mid-second century a.d. (Hansen Reference Hansen, Hansen and Suyuc2016a:21–24), contradicting the idea of dynastic continuity at Tintal or La Muerta during the first half of the Early Classic. Given this scenario, it is more feasible that the Kaanul presence in that region arrived during the Classic period, after such collapse.
By discarding the notion of a Preclassic Kaanul in the El Mirador region, we can now turn to the Early Classic in the northern Peten region. In so doing, we consider the roles and interactions of three known political players of the time period—the “Chatahn” Winik, the Bat-head (Suutz') polity, and the enigmatic Sak Wahyis—to help explain Kaanul's eventual hegemony over the northwestern Peten.
“Chatahn” Winik and Achiotal
The “Chatahn” Winik title, which has been documented only in northern Peten and southern Campeche (Boot Reference Boot2005; García and Velásquez Reference García and Velásquez2016; Grube Reference Grube and Nalda2004, Reference Grube and Šprajc2008; Mumary Reference Mumary2019:133–135; Velásquez and García Reference Velásquez and García2018), has been identified mainly in the texts of codex-style vessels (García Reference García2011; Lopes Reference Lopes and Kerr2004) and inscriptions at Calakmul (Vázquez López Reference Vázquez López, Vázquez López, Rivera and González2014:139; Vázquez López et al. Reference Vázquez López, Kupprat, Morales, García, Valencia, Arroyo, Salinas and Álvarez2016:1103) and other nearby sites like Uxul (Grube Reference Grube and Šprajc2008; Grube et al. Reference Grube, Delvendahl, Seefeld and Volta2012:21; Vázquez López Reference Vázquez López2019:248). It is important to note that the “Chatahn” is probably not the actual reading of the title. Even though the initial glyphic sign resembles the syllable cha from other contexts, it seems more likely that it is a logogram of unknown value. So, the current state of knowledge would suggest that this title be read as “?-tahn”; for the purposes of this article, we will refer to it as “Chatahn” Winik.
Most epigraphers do agree that “Chatahn” Winik refers to a politically salient group, title, identity, or concept centered somewhere in northern Peten and southern Campeche at the beginning of the Classic period (Valencia and Esparza Reference Valencia and Esparza2014:38; Vázquez López Reference Vázquez López, Banach, Helmke and Źrałka2017:33; Velásquez Reference Velásquez and Stuardo2008:330). Data suggest that “Chatahn” could be the ancient toponym of a place or the ethnonym of a group (Boot Reference Boot2005; Grube Reference Grube and Nalda2004:122; Martin Reference Martin2005; Martin et al. Reference Martin, Houston and Zender2015; Velásquez and García Reference Velásquez and García2018). If so, “Chatahn” Winik could have meant “person of ‘Chatahn’,” thus referring to a population based in the broader Calakmul-Mirador region long before the Kaanul hegemony developed. In any case, it is important to underscore that the relationship between this title and the K'uhul Ajaw remains unclear.
After the Late Preclassic demise and abandonment of El Mirador, Calakmul developed into an important political center. Calakmul Stela 43, dated to a.d. 514 (Martin Reference Martin2005:6; Vázquez López et al. Reference Vázquez López, Kupprat, Morales, García, Valencia, Arroyo, Salinas and Álvarez2016:1102–1103), suggests that the “Chatahn” were present, if not centered, there at this time. This early reference to a “Chatahn” Winik at Calakmul may explain why, despite Kaanul's eventual hegemony in this area, the “Chatahn” Winik title remained in use at Calakmul (and at other nearby sites, such as Nakbe and Uxul), even if only to identify people subordinate to a K'uhul Ajaw (Vázquez López Reference Vázquez López, Banach, Helmke and Źrałka2017:33; Vázquez López et al. Reference Vázquez López, Kupprat, Morales, García, Valencia, Arroyo, Salinas and Álvarez2016:1104; Velásquez and García Reference Velásquez and García2018:25).
While the identity and domain of the “Chatahn” Winik remain elusive, recent research at the site of Achiotal provides some new clues. A site of modest dimensions, Achiotal is located in the northwest Peten region of Guatemala, on the western margins of the karstic uplands of the central Peten. The site itself is situated on a natural hill surrounded by seasonally flooded bajos, possibly for defensive purposes (Figure 1). Investigations carried out between 2009 and 2019 by PRALC indicate that its occupation dates to the Late Preclassic and extends to the Late Classic, though its apogee dates mainly to the Terminal Preclassic and the beginning of the Early Classic (Arredondo et al. Reference Arredondo, Auld-Thomas, Canuto, Arroyo, Salinas and Álvarez2018).
Figure 1. LiDAR-based digital elevation model of the Achiotal site and its surrounding geography. Image by Luke Auld-Thomas, PRALC.
Achiotal Structure 5C-8 was located in front of the massive pyramidal Structure 5C-1 that dominates the entire site. Despite being heavily looted, excavations along its central axis revealed a small shrine where a fragment and base of Stela 1 were recovered. The relief of the stela fragment and its back-side inscription were well-preserved (Figure 2). The front side of the stela shows a ruler with an elaborate headdress, holding a two-headed serpent ceremonial bar in both arms, carved in a style comparable to other Early Classic monuments. The inscription on its back starts with a tzolkin date of 7 Eb, followed by the G9 glyph and what has been interpreted as a haab date of 10 Sak. The 7 Eb 10 Sak calendar-round date would most likely correspond to 8.19.2.12.2 (November 20, a.d. 418). The inscription continues by noting that the protagonist had been ruler of two katuns, suggesting he rose to power in a.d. 379. This accession would place him on the throne only one year after the famous “entrada” of Siyaj K'ahk to the Peten, an event that led to the imposition of a new political order at Tikal and nearby centers, such as El Perú-Waka', Naachtun, Uaxactun, Yaxha, and La Sufricaya (Canuto et al. Reference Canuto, Auld-Thomas, Arredondo, Hirth, Arroyo and Carballo2019; Estrada-Belli et al. Reference Estrada-Belli, Tokovinine, Foley, Hurst, Ware, Stuart and Grube2009; Freidel and Escobedo Reference Freidel, Escobedo, Laporte, Arroyo and Mejía2006; Kovac and Barrois Reference Kovac and Barrois2013; Nondédéo et al. Reference Nondédéo, Lacadena and Cases2019; Stuart Reference Stuart, Carrasco, Jones and Sessions2000, Reference Stuart2014).
Figure 2. Achiotal Stela 1, front and back side. Photographs by Luke Auld-Thomas, PRALC.
Excavations in Structure 5C-8 also revealed that it was a funerary temple, containing a large fine-masonry mortuary chamber which had been completely destroyed and emptied by looters. Within the looter's debris around the chamber, an intact laurel leaf-shaped knife made of Pachuca obsidian was recovered; this type of object has only been found in Uaxactun and Pacbitun (Spence Reference Spence1996:29, 33). It would thus appear that this foreign-made prestige item was gifted to the ruler of Achiotal from someone associated with the Teotihuacan “entrada” in the late fourth century a.d. If we presume that the main personage on Stela 1 was buried in this tomb and that one of his possessions was this knife, we suggest the “entrada” and its regional impacts were relevant to this individual's accession to the Achiotal throne.
What is most curious however, is that the Stela 1 protagonist is identified not only as the grandson of a “Chatahn” Winik, but also as one of five vassals (yajaw) placed on thrones in the wake of the “entrada.” It would thus appear that this pedigreed Achiotal ruler played a sufficiently salient role in events during the “entrada” to have earned a position of power for himself. Given the site's strategic location between El Perú-Waka', Tikal, and Naachtun, his importance seems plausible (Canuto et al. Reference Canuto, Auld-Thomas, Arredondo, Hirth, Arroyo and Carballo2019). Although it remains unclear precisely to whom he owed loyalty, his “Chatahn” Winik pedigree suggests to us that his allegiance would have been to polities in northern Peten, such as Calakmul or Naachtun, whose own alliance with Siyaj K'ahk' spared it the punitive warfare that the “entrada” brought to wayward Tikal-allied polities farther south.
At some point after this stela's original dedication and use, it was broken into at least three pieces. At the end of the Early Classic, the monument fragments were placed inside a masonry chamber. Later on, two additional west-facing chambers were added, each associated with different dedicatory offerings. The entire three-chambered shrine was terminated by a large ceramic deposit spread over the inner room floor that included at least 26 partial or complete vessels. Among these was one codex-style vase suggesting a post-a.d. 670 date for this termination event. The codex-style vessel was thus deposited—and maybe intentionally broken—as part of a long tradition of offerings dedicated to the “Chatahn” Winik ancestor portrayed in Stela 1 (for more details, see Barrientos Q. et al. Reference Barrientos Q., Canuto, Stuart, Auld-Thomas, Lamoureux-St-Hilaire, Arroyo, Salinas and Ajú Álvarez2016; Canuto et al. Reference Canuto, Auld-Thomas, Arredondo, Hirth, Arroyo and Carballo2019).
This context suggests that this particular individual remained important for at least three centuries. Moreover, if the “Chatahn” Winik of Early Classic Calakmul texts and Late Classic codex-style vessels point to an association with the Calakmul-Mirador region, especially during Calakmul's apogee in the seventh and eighth centuries a.d. (Martin et al. Reference Martin, Houston and Zender2015; Vázquez López et al. Reference Vázquez López, Kupprat, Morales, García, Valencia, Arroyo, Salinas and Álvarez2016:1103; Velásquez and García Reference Velásquez and García2018:15, 25), its appearance in Achiotal at the beginning of the fifth century a.d. (or even before), is not only the earliest reference of a “Chatahn” Winik of known context and provenience, but also indicates that its reach and influence was wider than previously thought (Velásquez and García Reference Velásquez and García2018:5–7, 24).
The rise of the Suutz' polity
Naachtun emerged after the collapse of El Mirador as the Suutz' polity, identified by a bat-head emblem glyph (Nondédéo et al. Reference Nondédéo, Garrido, Patiño, Lacadena, Cases, Lemonnier, Michelet, Hiquet, Andrieu, Morales, Cotom, Purdue, Perla, Goudiaby, González, Gillot, Díaz, Quiñonez, Barrientos, Sion, Dussol, Colin, Arroyo, Salinas and Paiz2015:116–117, Reference Nondédéo, Lacadena and Cases2019:55). It appears in Calakmul (Martin Reference Martin2005; Mumary Reference Mumary2019:72; Vázquez López Reference Vázquez López, Banach, Helmke and Źrałka2017:33; Velásquez and García Reference Velásquez and García2018) and other nearby sites, like Oxpemul (Grube Reference Grube2005, Reference Grube and Šprajc2008; Martin Reference Martin2005), Uxul (Grube et al. Reference Grube, Delvendahl, Seefeld and Volta2012), and possibly Balakbal (Martin Reference Martin2005:7). Recent research suggests that after a light Preclassic occupation, major occupation at Naachtun starts around a.d. 150–350. During this period, its ceramics are affiliated with those of El Mirador (Nondédéo et al. Reference Nondédéo, Garrido, Patiño, Lacadena, Cases, Lemonnier, Michelet, Hiquet, Andrieu, Morales, Cotom, Purdue, Perla, Goudiaby, González, Gillot, Díaz, Quiñonez, Barrientos, Sion, Dussol, Colin, Arroyo, Salinas and Paiz2015:116), suggesting a possible migration after the latter's abandonment.
Naachtun Stela 23 names a Suutz' ruler in a.d. 361, and Stela 24 mentions another ruler who is subordinated to Siyaj K'ahk' (Nondédéo et al. Reference Nondédéo, Garrido, Patiño, Lacadena, Cases, Lemonnier, Michelet, Hiquet, Andrieu, Morales, Cotom, Purdue, Perla, Goudiaby, González, Gillot, Díaz, Quiñonez, Barrientos, Sion, Dussol, Colin, Arroyo, Salinas and Paiz2015:116–117, Reference Nondédéo, Lacadena, Garay, Kettunen, López, Kupprat, Lorenzo, Cosme and Ponce de León2016:61–63, Reference Nondédéo, Lacadena and Cases2019:55–64) during his “entrada” in a.d. 378. It thus appears that Suutz' became the most prominent power in northern Peten at the beginning of the Early Classic, aided in large part by its participation in the Teotihuacan “entrada,” making it an important ally of Tikal, and nearby Río Azul, probably through marriage alliances (Nondédéo et al. Reference Nondédéo, Lacadena and Cases2019:67–68). Their dominance extended over Calakmul from the beginning of the fifth century a.d., as evidenced in Stela 114, dated to a.d. 435, where the portrayed ruler carries the Suutz' emblem glyph as his main title (Martin Reference Martin2005:9). If Naachtun was the seat of the Suutz' dynasty, its presence at Calakmul would suggest a hegemony over the “Chatahn” Winik. However, the portrait of a “Chatahn” Winik in Calakmul Stela 43 in the early sixth century a.d. suggests that both political entities may have found ways to coexist (Valencia and Esparza Reference Valencia and Esparza2018:60). However large and powerful it might have become, it is nonetheless clear that Kaanul's expansionist aspirations would have eventually compelled it to contend with this particular political regime.
Sak Wahyis and Sak Nikte'
Contemporary and related to “Chatahn” Winik is another title of northern Peten cities: Sak Wahyis. Its earliest appearance is in Early Classic La Corona, a site whose original name was Sak Nikte' and, according to epigraphic and archaeological data, was founded in the mid-fourth century as a center of modest scale (Stuart et al. Reference Stuart, Mathews, Canuto, Barrientos Q., Guenter, Baron, Arroyo, Salinas and Rojas2014:436). This title appears in other sites, such as El Zotz (Carter Reference Carter2015:12), Uxul (Grube and Esparza Reference Grube and Esparza2017:5; Grube et al. Reference Grube, Delvendahl, Seefeld and Volta2012:21–23), and El Perú-Waka' (Navarro-Farr et al. Reference Navarro-Farr, Eppich, Freidel, Pérez, Houk, Arroyo and Powis2020; Pérez et al. Reference Pérez, Guenter, Freidel, Castañeda, Navarro, Arroyo, Salinas and Rojas2014:118), as well in codex-style vessels (Velásquez and García Reference Velásquez and García2018). However, it was prominent at La Corona during all its dynastic history and as early as the fifth century a.d., suggesting it originated either there (Vázquez López and Kupprat Reference Vázquez López and Kupprat2018:96) or in a broader region that included Uxul (Grube Reference Grube2013; Grube and Esparza Reference Grube and Esparza2017:5; Grube et al. Reference Grube, Delvendahl, Seefeld and Volta2012:22–23; Velásquez and García Reference Velásquez and García2018:17–21). Unlike most instances of the title outside La Corona, Sak Wahyis at Sak Nikte' was never accompanied by the “Chatahn” Winik title. Furthermore, it was even prefixed by the K'uhul title on occasion, indicating that it came to function as a pseudo-emblem glyph or ethnonym for La Corona rulers (Figure 3), perhaps in a way similar to that of “Chatahn” Winik.
Figure 3. Different versions of the Sak Wahyis glyph from La Corona inscriptions: (a) Altar 5; (b) Panel 1; (c) Panel 6; (d) Element 3 (K'uhul Sak Wahyis); (e) Element 56; (f) Element 33 (K'uhul Sak Wahyis). (a–c, e, f) Drawings by Stuart; (d) drawing by Linda Schele, modified by Barrientos Q.
As for the references to this title outside of La Corona, we suggest that its frequent coupling with the “Chatahn” Winik title reflects a Kaanul-induced Late Classic conflation of distinct and once independent Early Classic political identities. Also, it is worth noting that except for codex-style vessels, most individuals carrying the Sak Wahyis title outside La Corona are women (Uxul, El Perú-Waka', and El Zotz). It seems possible that they were outsiders (from La Corona?) who helped cement political alliances in a way similar to how Sak Wahyis rulers of La Corona were repeatedly leveraged by their marriages to Kaanul princesses. It is also possible that given the esoteric nature of the term Wahyis (Velásquez and García Reference Velásquez and García2018:4), both men and women from La Corona were conceived as prestigious religious specialists. In any case, these temporal, spatial, and syntactical patterns point to the probability that the Sak Wahyis title was the political identity of the native elite, both men and women, of La Corona throughout its entire dynastic history.
Kaanul expansion in the northwest Peten
During the fifth century a.d., the Kaanul capital Dzibanche established the control of its immediate surroundings through conquest, attested by 18 portraits of captives that formed the steps of the “Building of the Captives” (Nalda Reference Nalda2004; Velásquez Reference Velásquez2005; see Velásquez and Balanzario Reference Velásquez and Balanzario2024; Figure 4). Other alliances or military takeovers are further suggested by the presence of the Kaanul emblem glyph in a hieroglyphic staircase in El Resbalón (Carrasco and Boucher Reference Carrasco and Boucher1987; Esparza Reference Esparza2012; Velásquez Reference Velásquez and Stuardo2008:33). References in monuments at Pol Box in a.d. 573 (Esparza and Pérez Reference Esparza and Pérez2009:9–10), Yo'okop in a.d. 593 (Shaw et al. Reference Shaw, Johnstone and Krochock2001; Velásquez Reference Velásquez and Stuardo2008:341; Wren et al. Reference Wren, Nygard, Shaw, Werness-Rude and Spencer2015), and Los Alacranes in a.d. 561 (Martin and Beliaev Reference Martin and Beliaev2017:5; Velásquez Reference Velásquez and Stuardo2008:340–341) indicate that these campaigns continued during the sixth century (Figure 4). Furthermore, the undeniable importance of Dzibanche at this time has been confirmed by the large extension of its settlement exposed by LiDAR images (see Estrada-Belli and Balanzario Reference Estrada-Belli and Balanzario2024), and the presence of Teotihuacan-style elements, such as the talud-tablero architecture and stucco reliefs of the Temple of the Cormorants, as well as the stucco reliefs recently found in the Tutil Group (Nalda and Balanzario Reference Nalda and Balanzario2014).
Figure 4. Map showing the sites allied or conquered by Kaanul during the Early Classic period, linked to least-cost path routes. Shaded areas represent Kaanul expansion during the fifth and sixth centuries a.d. Map by Canuto and Barrientos Q.
Given this historical context, it is important to note that evidence for the earliest activity of the Kaanul outside the immediate region of Dzibanche is found on La Corona's Panel 6 (Figure 5). This monument records the arrival of a Kaanul woman at Sak Nikte' in a.d. 520 to marry the local ruler, known as “Vulture Winik” (Martin Reference Martin2008, Reference Martin2020:186; Stuart et al. Reference Stuart, Mathews, Canuto, Barrientos Q., Guenter, Baron, Arroyo, Salinas and Rojas2014). Unfortunately, due to erosion, her name is only partially legible as Ix (?) Naah Ek'. She is portrayed with a giant feline protector carrying Teotihuacan-related iconographic elements, such as k'an crosses, as well as central Mexican year signs, goggles, and fans, something that recalls the stucco relief in Dzibanche's Tutil Group (Nalda and Balanzario Reference Nalda and Balanzario2014:202; Figure 5). This Kaanul princess was the daughter of Dzibanche ruler Tuun K'ab Hix (Martin Reference Martin2008, Reference Martin2020:188; Stuart et al. Reference Stuart, Mathews, Canuto, Barrientos Q., Guenter, Baron, Arroyo, Salinas and Rojas2014), who reigned for at least 26 years (a.d. 520–546) and was responsible for the initial expansion of Kaanul outside its immediate region. In fact, he supervised the accession of ruler Kan I of Caracol in a.d. 531 and ruler Aj Nuumsaaj of Naranjo in a.d. 546 (Martin Reference Martin2020:245; Martin et al. Reference Martin, Fialko, Tokovinine, Ramirez, Arroyo, Salinas and Álvarez2016:617; Velásquez Reference Velásquez and Stuardo2008:337) expanding his influence in the southeast Peten and Belize. Furthermore, a reference to a captive Tuun K'ab Hix vassal in Yaxchilan Lintel 35 in a.d. 537 (Mathews Reference Mathews1997:77) also suggests that the western expansion of Kaanul extended as far as the Usumacinta region.
Figure 5. La Corona Panel 6. Drawing by Stuart.
Considering that 200 linear km separate La Corona from Dzibanche, it is likely that the Kaanul expansion to the southwest had begun decades earlier, sometime in the fifth century. To reach La Corona, Kaanul would have traversed areas controlled by the Suutz' kingdom seated in Naachtun and the important site of Río Azul, whose political affiliation is still undefined during this period. Direct evidence of a military takeover is suggested by a reference in Dzibanche Monument 11 to a captive from Río Azul in either a.d. 505 or 518 (Beliaev Reference Beliaev2017). Interestingly, this is consistent with the proposed destruction of Río Azul around a.d. 530 (Adams Reference Adams1999:186). It is possible, in fact, that Dzibanche monuments 7b and 12 allude to the Suutz' kingdom when portraying captives with accompanying captions that include a bat-head hieroglyph (Velásquez Reference Velásquez and Nalda2004:89, 92). Moreover, the presence of a possible Kaanul Ajaw in La Muerta might also be evidence of the Kaanul dynasty taking control of a depopulated Mirador region in order to gain access to La Corona and regions beyond.
The geopolitical implications of the arrival of Lady Naah Ek' to Sak Nikte' in the early sixth century a.d. help explain the beginnings of the Kaanul expansionist strategy carried out by Tuun K'ab Hix. This marriage was a maneuver to establish an important ally on the western side of the Central Lowlands. At that time, La Corona was an insignificant polity compared to Kaanul's other allies, therefore the political identity of its rulers could be profoundly transformed by Kaanul. In fact, from this point on, its kings would maintain multigenerational kin-based ties with the Kaanul dynasty through marriages that allow them to gain sociopolitical promotion in exchange for allegiance (bride-price). The Kaanul princesses were thus agents of political advancement for the Sak Wahyis kings who received singular attention on the site's copious Corona monuments (Canuto and Barrientos Q. Reference Canuto, Barrientos Q., Houk, Arroyo and Powis2020:185–186; Vázquez López Reference Vázquez López, Vázquez López, Rivera and González2014:128, Reference Vázquez López, Banach, Helmke and Źrałka2017:16). Perhaps for these mutually beneficial reasons, the political alliance between the Sak Wahyis and Kaanul would last for more than two centuries, turning the Sak Wahyis royal court into a de facto extension of Kaanul.
La Corona Altar 5 further elucidates the early expansion of Kaanul (Stuart et al. Reference Stuart, Canuto, Barrientos Q. and González2018). Found inside Structure 13R-45 of the Coronitas Group, this altar portrays a seated ruler holding a two-headed serpent ceremonial bar, from whose jaws emerge the heads of two patron deities (Figure 6). The image is accompanied by an inscription with a Long Count date of 9.5.10.0.0 (May 13, a.d. 544), making this the earliest dated monument recovered at the site. The fact that Altar 5 portrays a ruler invoking patron deities indicates that Kaanul-sponsored rulership at vassal sites such as La Corona involved the performance of mythic-religious acts, such as establishing new patron deities. Given that these same patron deities appear later, in a text from Panel 1 dated to a.d. 658, suggests that these gods were introduced to La Corona as a form of political legitimation of the Kaanul-sponsored dynasty through the unique and charismatic association of these rulers with mythical entities who were claimed to enjoy a long-standing precedence in the region (Canuto and Barrientos Q. Reference Canuto, Barrientos Q., Houk, Arroyo and Powis2020:191; González Reference González2021).
Figure 6. La Corona Altar 5. Photograph by Raúl González, PRALC.
The accompanying Altar 5 text identifies the protagonist as Chak Tok Ich'aak, a figure already known from El Perú-Waka', a large Maya city located approximately 30 km to the south. Stela 44 from that site records the death (probably at Waka') of Chak Tok Ich'aak in a.d. 556 and the succession of his son, Wa'oom Uch'ab Ahk in a.d. 564, as well as his celebration of the 9.6.10.0.0 period-ending (Pérez et al. Reference Pérez, Guenter, Freidel, Castañeda, Navarro, Arroyo, Salinas and Rojas2014), exactly one katun after La Corona Altar 5. Because of the short time between Altar 5 and Stela 44, it is noteworthy that the titles bestowed upon Chak Tok Ich'aak on both monuments are different. On La Corona Altar 5, he is the Sak Wahyis, while on El Perú-Waka’ Stela 44, he is the Waka' Ajaw. To explain this difference, we must consider the broader geopolitics of the mid-sixth century a.d.
Since La Corona Altar 5 dates to a.d. 544, it is possible not only that Chak Tok Ich'aak succeeded “Vulture” Winik as ruler of La Corona, but also that he was his son. It would follow, then, that Tuun K'ab Hix, although not directly mentioned in La Corona Altar 5, was both grandfather and overlord of Chak Tok Ich'aak. Stela 44 of El Perú-Waka' further indicates that Chak Tok Ich'aak (1) was married to a woman named Ikoom carrying the titles of Sak Wahyis and K'uhul “Chatahn” Winik, who is also mentioned in Stela 43 (Navarro-Farr et al. Reference Navarro-Farr, Eppich, Freidel, Pérez, Houk, Arroyo and Powis2020:206–207; Pérez et al. Reference Pérez, Guenter, Freidel, Castañeda, Navarro, Arroyo, Salinas and Rojas2014:118–119; see Navarro-Farr et al. Reference Navarro-Farr, Kelly and Freidel2024); (2) was ruler of El Perú-Waka' less than a decade after Altar 5 was dedicated; and (3) was succeeded by his son, Wa'oom Uch'ab Ahk, as a vassal (yajaw) of the Kaanul ruler K'ahk' Ti' Ch'ich, successor of Tuun K'ab Hix (Martin and Beliaev Reference Martin and Beliaev2017).
We interpret this series of events, titles, and dates to mean that Chak Tok Ich'aak was native to La Corona and a Sak Wahyis by birth, and married Lady Ikoom, a fellow member of the La Corona elite who also carried the Sak Wahyis title. While ruling Sak Nikte' in and around a.d. 544, Kaanul extended its political hegemony into the southern sector of the Peten. We suggest that Chak Tok Ich'aak played enough of a prominent role in Kaanul's expansionist strategy to be “promoted” to rule, as a Kaanul vassal, at the larger center of El Perú-Waka', where eventually his son, also as a Kaanul vassal, acceded to the throne. It is important to note that the current evidence does not rule out the possibility that Chak Tok Ich'aak was from El Perú-Waka' and ruled both centers contemporaneously, using different titles in each one.
Whatever the case, these data from La Corona and El Perú-Waka' clearly indicate that La Corona and Chak Tok Ich'aak played a key role in Kaanul's expansionist strategy that culminated in the subsequent Kaanul ruler, K'ahk' Ti' Ch'ich, defeating Tikal in a.d. 562 (Martin and Beliaev Reference Martin and Beliaev2017). After this victory, in fact, the following five Kaanul rulers (“Sky Witness” Yax Yopaat, “Scroll Serpent” Yuknoom Ti' Chan, and Tajoom Uk'ab K'ahk') continued expanding their hegemony (see Velásquez and Balanzario Reference Velásquez and Balanzario2024; Table 1). Their conquests included Palenque in a.d. 599 and a.d. 611 (Bernal Reference Bernal2012:354; Martin Reference Martin2005:7; Mumary Reference Mumary2019:173, 250), which they probably reached through La Corona (Figure 4).
Table 1. Dynastic rulers of La Corona, Dzibanche, and Calakmul in the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth centuries a.d. After Martin and Beliaev Reference Martin and Beliaev2017; Martin and Grube Reference Martin and Grube2008; Martin and Velásquez Reference Martin and Velásquez2016; Mumary Reference Mumary2019; Stuart et al. Reference Stuart, Mathews, Canuto, Barrientos Q., Guenter, Baron, Arroyo, Salinas and Rojas2014.
While the Kaanul kings had a major impact in larger centers with established dynasties, such as at Naranjo (Martin et al. Reference Martin, Fialko, Tokovinine, Ramirez, Arroyo, Salinas and Álvarez2016), Caracol (Martin Reference Martin2017b), Naachtun (Nondédéo et al. Reference Nondédéo, Garrido, Patiño, Lacadena, Cases, Lemonnier, Michelet, Hiquet, Andrieu, Morales, Cotom, Purdue, Perla, Goudiaby, González, Gillot, Díaz, Quiñonez, Barrientos, Sion, Dussol, Colin, Arroyo, Salinas and Paiz2015), Holmul (Estrada Belli and Tokovinine Reference Estrada-Belli and Tokovinine2016), and El Perú-Waka' (Navarro-Farr et al. Reference Navarro-Farr, Eppich, Freidel, Pérez, Houk, Arroyo and Powis2020, Reference Navarro-Farr, Pérez, Pérez, Menéndez, Patterson, Eppich and Kelly2021; see Navarro-Farr et al. Reference Navarro-Farr, Kelly and Freidel2024), the case of La Corona is different. The absence of a preexisting major center in northwestern Peten made it possible for Kaanul to promote the Sak Wahyis of La Corona and make them rulers of a key node along its important “royal road” to the south and west, rendering it capable of reaching the Maya Highlands and the Tabasco Plain (Canuto and Barrientos Q. Reference Canuto and Barrientos Q.2013; Figure 7). In this way, the Sak Wahyis helped Kaanul establish a large—if not the largest—hegemony in the Maya Lowlands.
Figure 7. Map showing the sites allied or conquered by Kaanul during the seventh century a.d. (reign of Yuknoom Ch'een II), linked to least-cost path routes. Map by Canuto and Barrientos Q.
The nature of the Kaanul hegemony
For reasons yet unknown, the Kaanul dynastic seat at Dzibanche was transferred to Calakmul in the early seventh century, although a faction of the Kaanul remained in Dzibanche afterwards (see Velásquez and Balanzario Reference Velásquez and Balanzario2024). According to the Naranjo Hieroglyphic Staircase, originally located in Caracol Structure B-5 (Martin Reference Martin2017b; see Helmke and Vepretskii Reference Helmke and Vepretskii2024), an individual named “Yuknoom Head,” carrying the title of Kaanul Ajaw, but associated with toponyms at Calakmul (i.e., Ux Te' tuun and Chiik Nahb), defeated Naranjo in a.d. 631 in war (Martin Reference Martin2017b; Tokovinine Reference Tokovinine2007). Furthermore, according to the same monument, this same person defeated the (Dzibanche-based?) Kaanul ruler Waxaklajuun Ubah Chan in a.d. 636. It is after this last battle that the dynastic seat moved from Kaanul (Dzibanche) to Ux Te' Tuun (Calakmul; Helmke and Awe Reference Helmke and Awe2016a, Reference Helmke and Awe2016b; Martin Reference Martin2020:139; Martin and Velásquez Reference Martin and Velásquez2016). This same transference of power—though dated to one year earlier—was also mentioned on La Corona's Element 33 (Stuart Reference Stuart2012a; Stuart et al. Reference Stuart, Mathews, Canuto, Barrientos Q., Guenter, Baron, Arroyo, Salinas and Rojas2014; Figure 8).
Figure 8. La Corona Element 33. Drawing by Stuart.
While “Yuknoom Head” is the main protagonist of the Waxaklajuun Ubah Chan defeat, the first person claiming to be the Kaanul ruler at Calakmul was Yuknoom Ch'een II (it is likely that these names point to the same person; Martin Reference Martin2017b; Martin and Velásquez Reference Martin and Velásquez2016). Demonstrating the continued importance of the Sak Wahyis kingdom, Yuknoom Ch'een II visited La Corona in a.d. 635, perhaps even before the Kaanul dynasty was formerly established at Calakmul. Portrayed in ballgame regalia, together with the La Corona ruler, Sak Maas (La Corona Elements 35 and 36), Yuknoom Ch'een II was likely forging a personal alliance (Figure 9). If, because of the timing of this visit, Yuknoom Ch'een II had not yet formally become the Kaanul ruler, this visit underscores how any and all factions of the Kaanul regime considered the Sak Wahyis critical to their long-term political fate. As reflected in later inscriptions, the decision of the Sak Wahyis to throw in with the Calakmul faction of Kaanul paid great dividends, as it extended, renewed, and strengthened their political relevance for another century.
Figure 9. La Corona Elements 35 and 36. Drawings by Stuart.
Although Kaanul accomplished considerable expansion while centered in Dzibanche, the seventh-century regime led by Yuknoom Ch'een II expanded even farther, especially towards the south, eventually reaching the Northern Maya Highlands in the following century (Figure 7). More than just a geographic enlargement, the seventh-century growth of Kaanul brought new political strategies that strengthened its presence. One of these was the incorporation of the political entities native to northern Peten and southern Campeche, such as “Chatahn” Winik, Suutz', and Sak Wahyis. The epigraphic record shows that just after a.d. 630, different individuals carrying these titles seem to have intermarried. For example, Uxul Stelae 2 and 3, dated to a.d. 632, portray a Suutz' ruler paired with a “Chatahn” Winik – Sak Wahyis woman named Ix Ajaw K'ahk (Grube et al. Reference Grube, Delvendahl, Seefeld and Volta2012:21; Vázquez López Reference Vázquez López, Banach, Helmke and Źrałka2017:20; Vázquez López et al. Reference Vázquez López, Kupprat, Morales, García, Valencia, Arroyo, Salinas and Álvarez2016:1103). In addition, the fact that the couplet “Chatahn” Winik – Sak Wahyis begins appearing during the reign of Yuknoom Ch'een II suggests that these two previous entities were bonded as means of a broad political integration. The manufacture of codex-style vessels in Late Classic residential compounds at Nakbe and other sites of the El Mirador region is related to three individuals carrying the “Chatahn” Winik – Sak Wahyis title. Likely sponsored by the Kaanul court of Calakmul, they helped maintain their status as the native occupants of that area (Boucher and Palomo Reference Boucher and Palomo2012:127; Lopes Reference Lopes and Kerr2004; Morales Reference Morales2021; Mumary Reference Mumary2016:112–113; Vázquez López et al. Reference Vázquez López, Kupprat, Morales, García, Valencia, Arroyo, Salinas and Álvarez2016:1104; Velásquez and García 2008:13–15).
Another integrating strategy that has been identified during this regime is the ballgame (Canuto and Barrientos Q. Reference Canuto and Barrientos Q.2013:2; Helmke et al. Reference Helmke, Andres, Morton and Wrobel2015; Vázquez López Reference Vázquez López, Banach, Helmke and Źrałka2017:25–30). Similar to the paired stelae, carved panels of rulers dressed as ballplayers were used to cement these political relations in La Corona (Stuart Reference Stuart2012b; Stuart et al. Reference Stuart, Mathews, Canuto, Barrientos Q., Guenter, Baron, Arroyo, Salinas and Rojas2014), Uxul (Grube et al. Reference Grube, Delvendahl, Seefeld and Volta2012:34), Naranjo (Martin et al. Reference Martin, Fialko, Tokovinine, Ramirez, Arroyo, Salinas and Álvarez2016), El Perú-Waka' (Navarro-Farr et al. Reference Navarro-Farr, Eppich, Freidel, Pérez, Houk, Arroyo and Powis2020:216), Hix Witz (Tunesi Reference Tunesi2007), and more distant sites like Dos Pilas, Tonina, Quirigua, and perhaps even Tipan Chen Uitz (Helmke et al. Reference Helmke, Andres, Morton and Wrobel2015:22).
Based on the above, during the reign of Yuknoom Ch'een II, Naachtun (Nondédéo et al. Reference Nondédéo, Garrido, Patiño, Lacadena, Cases, Lemonnier, Michelet, Hiquet, Andrieu, Morales, Cotom, Purdue, Perla, Goudiaby, González, Gillot, Díaz, Quiñonez, Barrientos, Sion, Dussol, Colin, Arroyo, Salinas and Paiz2015:118, Reference Nondédéo, Lacadena, Garay, Kettunen, López, Kupprat, Lorenzo, Cosme and Ponce de León2016:73–75), Dos Pilas (Guenter Reference Guenter2003), Zapote Bobal (Hix Witz) (Martin and Reents-Budet Reference Martin and Reents-Budet2010), Piedras Negras (Pallán Reference Pallán2010:5), Moral Reforma (Martin Reference Martin2003), Cancuén (Fahsen and Jackson Reference Fahsen, Jackson, Laporte, Escobedo and Arroyo2002), Santa Elena (Bernal Reference Bernal2016), Edzná (Pallán Reference Pallán2009:265, 521), Itzán, and El Reinado (Stuart Reference Stuart2012c), among others, became “incorporated” as new vassals to the already large Kaanul hegemony. During this same time, La Corona inaugurated a “golden age” that spanned the reigns of rulers Sak Maas (a.d. 625–655), K'uk' Ajaw (a.d. 655–658), Chakaw Nahb Chan (a.d. 658–667), and K'inich' (?) Yook (a.d. 667–689; Table 1). The last is considered the most important ruler of Sak Nikte' because of his marriage in a.d. 679 to Yuknoom Ch'een II's daughter, extending the kin relationship between the Sak Wahyis and the Kaanul dynasty to its Calakmul faction. This enduringly intense and intimate relationship also involved frequent visits of Kaanul kings to La Corona, extended stays of Sak Wahyis princes at Calakmul, as well as multiple rituals of investiture celebrated by the vassal rulers. For example, La Corona Panel 1 tells that K'inich' (?) Yook lived in Calakmul as a youth for several years, during which time he was educated by and integrated into the Kaanul dynasty (Stuart et al. Reference Stuart, Mathews, Canuto, Barrientos Q., Guenter, Baron, Arroyo, Salinas and Rojas2014:439–440). Presumably, it was during this period that K'inich' (?) Yook's marriage was arranged, further leveraging his subordinate parents (Canuto and Barrientos Q. Reference Canuto, Barrientos Q., Houk, Arroyo and Powis2020:182). We further learn from La Corona Panel 1 that, as an adult, K'inich' (?) Yook returned to Calakmul for a ritual of investiture wherein he donned the outfit of a military captain. In other words, he left La Corona dressed as a Sak Wahyis and returned home costumed in Kaanul's military regalia, as reflected in his two portraits of Panel 1 (Figure 10).
Figure 10. La Corona Panel 1. Drawing by David Stuart.
The asymmetrical relationship between Sak Nikte' and Kaanul was founded on a “healthy dose” of coercion, despite the absence of any overt military activity—this was yet another of Kaanul's strategies. So strong was Kaanul's control over its Sak Wahyis vassals that the latter would never have the freedom to present themselves as holders of the K'uhul Ajaw title. Instead, they continued using the city's toponym Sak Nikte' and the title Sak Wahyis, what we suggest was their ancestral ethnonym, which they elaborated occasionally with the K'uhul title (Figure 3). We see a similar situation at other minor centers located within Calakmul's surroundings, such as Uxul, Oxpemul, Champerico, and El Palmar (Tsukamoto and Esparza Reference Kenichiro, Esparza, Okoshi, Chase, Nondédéo and Arnauld2020). Similarly, their local rulers achieved the Ajaw status, but never the K'uhul Ajaw title (Grube Reference Grube2005). This may also have been similar to other centers without known inscriptions, such as Altamira, Naadz'caan, Xpuhil, and La Muñeca (Folan Reference Folan1992).
The legacy of the Kaanul
This hegemonic regime lasted well into the eighth century, but not without major setbacks, beginning with the military defeat in a.d. 695 at the hands of Jasaw Chan K'awiil, ruler of its long rival and enemy Tikal. Yet Sak Nikte' remained as close as ever throughout this period: La Corona Element 33 indicates that six months after being defeated by Tikal, Kaanul ruler Yuknoom Yich'aak K'ahk' arrived at La Corona, proving again the high esteem with which Kaanul regarded their Sak Wahyis vassals (Stuart Reference Stuart2012a; Figure 8). How this hegemony unraveled is beyond the scope of this article, but we find that what happened in its aftermath is instructive regarding how it came to develop (Figure 11).
Figure 11. Map showing the sites allied or conquered by Kaanul during the first half of the eighth century, linked to least-cost path routes. Shaded area represents Kaanul expansion until a.d. 743. Map by Canuto and Barrientos Q.
After the Kaanul downfall was complete in a.d. 744, some of the original, subordinated, and somehow “silenced” early political configurations of northern Peten revived. Predictably, the weakening of the Kaanul political power in Calakmul gave the “Chatahn” Winik and Suutz' factions an opportunity to regain political footing. Indeed, two Calakmul rulers, known as “Ruler Y” and “Ruler Z,” portrayed in Stelae 59 and 62 in a.d. 741 and a.d. 751 respectively, were both referred to as K'uhul Suutz' Ajaw (Gronemeyer Reference Gronemeyer2012:28; Martin Reference Martin2005:5, 9; Mumary Reference Mumary2019:284–286; Valencia and Esparza Reference Valencia and Esparza2018:48), though a possible reference to “Ruler Z” still carries the title Kaanul Ajaw in two sculpture block fragments (Gronemeyer Reference Gronemeyer2012:28; Valencia and Esparza Reference Valencia and Esparza2018:50).
This political affiliation is consistent with evidence from Naachtun stelae 10 and 18 that record marriage alliances between Naachtun (the original seat of the Suutz' kingdom) and Calakmul in the second half of the eighth century a.d. (Nondédéo et al. Reference Nondédéo, Lacadena, Garay, Kettunen, López, Kupprat, Lorenzo, Cosme and Ponce de León2016:75; Reese-Taylor et al. Reference Reese-Taylor, Mathews, Guernsey, Fritzler, Orr and Koontz2009; Vázquez López and Kupprat Reference Vázquez López and Kupprat2018:85). The reemergence of the Suutz' dynasty is also recorded at Oxpemul, another site formerly related to Calakmul, as evidenced by its bat emblem glyph in Stela 17 (a.d. 741), Stela 2 (a.d. 771), Altar 6, and Altar 15 (Grube Reference Grube2005, Reference Grube and Šprajc2008; Martin and Grube Reference Martin and Grube2008:115; Robichaux Reference Robichaux2010; Valencia and Esparza Reference Valencia and Esparza2018; Vázquez López et al. Reference Vázquez López, Kupprat, Morales, García, Valencia, Arroyo, Salinas and Álvarez2016:1103). In addition, Stela 9, dated to a.d. 751, portrays a ruler impersonating Chaak, standing over a coiling snake, something that could refer to a military victory over Kaanul (Robichaux Reference Robichaux2010:75–78, 185).
Concerning “Chatahn” Winik, they reappear in a.d. 731 at Calakmul as one of the sculptors of stelae 51 and 89, named Sak Ikin(?) Yuhk “Head,” who carries the title K'uhul Chatan Winik Sak Wahyis (Martin et al. Reference Martin, Houston and Zender2015; Velásquez and García Reference Velásquez and García2018:15). As mentioned before, the latter title is very common in codex-style vessels, especially carried by Yopaat Bahlam and his son Titomaj K'awiil, who resided in Nakbe (Lopes Reference Lopes and Kerr2004: Martin et al. Reference Martin, Houston and Zender2015; Morales Reference Morales2021). Eventually, “Chatahn” Winik would also be considered an independent polity, as reflected in the list of emblem glyphs carved in Altar 3 of Altar de Los Reyes that dates to around a.d. 800 (Grube Reference Grube2003; Martin Reference Martin2020:148; Vázquez López et al. Reference Vázquez López, Kupprat, Morales, García, Valencia, Arroyo, Salinas and Álvarez2016:1104; Velásquez and García Reference Velásquez and García2018:18).
In a similar fashion, the Sak Wahyis of La Corona became the central political community after the fall of the Kaanul hegemony, consistent with changes in the architecture, sculptural art, ceramics, and funerary offerings at the site. La Corona underwent major changes in architectural construction in the middle of the eighth century a.d., especially in the palace complex and in structures that became funerary sanctuaries of post-Kaanul rulers (Structures 13Q-1 and 2). These changes could be interpreted as a reaction to the collapse of the regional Kaanul polity within which it had played a critical and vigorously celebrated role. Most remarkably, during this period, there is evidence for widespread relocation of hieroglyphic panels (as spolia), many of which contained historical information about the Sak Wahyis and Kaanul alliance (Barrientos Q. et al. Reference Barrientos Q., Canuto, Stuart, Auld-Thomas, Lamoureux-St-Hilaire, Arroyo, Salinas and Ajú Álvarez2016)—something that also happened at the same time in other Kaanul-allied centers like El Perú-Waka' (Navarro-Farr et al. Reference Navarro-Farr, Eppich, Freidel, Pérez, Houk, Arroyo and Powis2020:216) and Uxul (Grube et al. Reference Grube, Delvendahl, Seefeld and Volta2012:34–36). In La Corona, these sculptures were methodically relocated to important locations throughout the site in pairs or sets of blocks, usually not in their original order. As in other known cases of spolia in the Maya region, the re-use of sculptures was aimed at evoking a legacy meant to serve a new reality (Nielsen Reference Nielsen2020). They therefore seem to represent an effort at curating evidence of past glories—including conquest, subordination, changes in religious beliefs, reverence to ancestors—in order to safeguard a particular “collective memory” relevant to a post-Kaanul landscape.
The spolia were important for the “re-foundation” or “reformulation” of a new Sak Wahyis regime between a.d. 750 and 800 that we still do not fully understand. However, we can surmise that the thorough cancellation of elite buildings, combined with the repositioning of hieroglyphic panels focused on their long-standing association with Kaanul, suggests that the last rulers of La Corona were compelled to navigate changes to their political responsibilities that likely left them more independent than before. At this time, fine funerary offerings of jade, pyrite, and hematite connect La Corona with sites like Aguateca and Cancuen (Barrientos Q. et al. Reference Barrientos Q., Sandoval, Iizuka, Suzuki, Estrada, Arroyo, Salinas and Ajú Álvarez2020), suggesting that Sak Nikte' may have appropriated part of the Kaanul “royal road.” This new role seems to be supported by the fact that in a.d. 791 another foreign woman came to La Corona (La Corona Altar 4; Stuart et al. Reference Stuart, Mathews, Canuto, Barrientos Q., Guenter, Baron, Arroyo, Salinas and Rojas2014:441), identified with the Mutul emblem glyph. It remains plausible that she hailed from the Pasion/Petexbatun zone, or even from Tikal itself.
Discussion
With all this epigraphic, iconographic, and archaeological evidence, the notion of regional, hegemonic, and even “imperial aspirations” among the Classic Maya is now theoretically and empirically reasonable. The hegemonic state developed by the Kaanul was characterized not by the eradication of allied or conquered local polities like those of the “Chatahn” Winik, Suutz', or Sak Wahyis, but rather by their integration into a larger state. In fact, from the perspective of La Corona and other northwestern Peten sites, military action, indirect management, kinship assimilation, intrusion upon local and regional economies, and imposition of patron deities were all strategies of political integration that the Kaanul regime deployed at different degrees of intensity (for a more detailed discussion, see Canuto and Barrientos Q. Reference Canuto, Barrientos Q., Houk, Arroyo and Powis2020). As a regime, Kaanul created a complex but successful political landscape, hinged “not simply on the production and enforcement of relations of authority and subjection as experience—that is, in the movement of people and things across physical space—but also on the fostering of an enduring perception of geopolitical relationships” (Smith Reference Smith2003:135–136).
Among the polities integrated to the Kaanul regime, the case of La Corona is of particular interest. Despite its modest architectural size and population of only 5,000–8,000 people, it had an abnormal number of hieroglyphic inscriptions (over 75 pieces; Figure 12). Although La Corona can be characterized as a small royal court, similar to sites like Minanha, La Joyanca, El Cayo, or Uxul (Grube et al. Reference Grube, Delvendahl, Seefeld and Volta2012; Iannone Reference Iannone2009), labels such as “secondary,” “subordinate,” “entrepôt,” or “petty royal court” do not sufficiently capture its particular importance, given not only the quantity and quality of texts (they include the longest Precolumbian text found in Guatemala to date), but also the presence of direct references to the Kaanul ruler biographies. The only way to explain this inconsistency is to appreciate how the long-standing asymmetrical reciprocity between both kingdoms resulted in the installation of a “hybrid” political regime that combined new components (patron deities, relatives, access to prestige goods) with preexisting ones (political identity, ancestral lineage). In other words, the rulers of Sak Nikte' felt obligated to record not only their local history, but also that of Kaanul kings. For that task, they certainly had Kaanul-sponsored scribes and artists at their service.
Figure 12. Reconstruction of La Corona around a.d. 780. Drawing by Julián González, courtesy of PACUNAM.
Nevertheless, however mighty and powerful the Kaanul became in the seventh century, their movement from Dzibanche to Calakmul required contending with, dominating, and eventually integrating multiple native political groups. In other words, the Kaanul dynasty was intrusive to Calakmul's “Chatahn” Winik. As Martin and Velásquez (Reference Martin and Velásquez2016:30) point out, the establishment of Calakmul as the new capital was a “deliberate act of dynastic (re-)foundation.” It appears that the Sak Wahyis of La Corona may have played a singularly important role in the regional integration through their intermarriage with other dynasties at Uxul and El Perú-Waka'. Along the same lines, the “fusion” of Sak Wahyis and “Chatahn” Winik through the production of codex-style vessels allowed for consolidation of political identities by means of highly symbolic funerary, ritual, and feasting activities (Boucher and Palomo Reference Boucher and Palomo2012:125–126). Moreover, the “dynastic vases” served as means to reformulate and reinforce the Kaanul legitimacy and authority, through a dynastic genealogy linking the Calakmul rulers to the Early Classic period at a time when the Kaanul hegemony was losing its power (Mumary Reference Mumary2016:112–113, Reference Mumary2019:289, 301).
Data from La Corona and other “minor” Kaanul allies or vassals show how the Kaanul regime cannot be neatly defined as a “typical” Classic Maya polity. The Classic period Kaanul regime practiced a hegemonic governance that included the development of multiple and geographically extensive political relationships as its basis for regional domination. The establishment of secondary or satellite centers like La Corona helped to physically link the territory under control through “royal roads,” but political unity was also achieved ideologically, through a heterogeneous set of political values and identities (Canuto and Barrientos Q. Reference Canuto, Barrientos Q., Houk, Arroyo and Powis2020:172–173). Like many ancient hegemonies, the Kaanul permitted, incorporated, and even depended on preexisting infrastructural autonomy at local levels. Late Classic Kaanul centered at Calakmul under the authority of Yuknoom Ch'een II was thus the accumulation of political, economic, religious, and social components from the regions conquered and absorbed, expressed in subsistence strategies, calendric systems, lineage and kin rights and privileges, socioeconomic communities, religious beliefs and practices, and political institutions. This constellation of autonomous administrative nodes maintained mutually beneficial asymmetrical relations with the “central” state, as it was registered in the many inscriptions at all these sites that refer to Kaanul rulers.
La Corona was a historically contingent product of hegemonic forces. In this sense, it belonged to a larger regional regime for at least two centuries of its existence. Once that regime faltered and faded, La Corona was left to fend for itself and reconstruct a government with its legacy of belonging to a larger political entity. Its development and persistence is evidenced not for the stable political structure of the secondary center, but rather as an effective adaptation between regimes. This case evokes the nature of other “small” or “secondary” sites with a considerable epigraphic record that gained total or relatively higher political autonomy after the dismantling of the Kaanul hegemony throughout the Maya Lowlands (Oxpemul, Quirigua, Dos Pilas, Cancuen, etc.). Only by acknowledging the strength and influence of such a hegemonic regime, even after its demise, can we understand the geopolitical landscape of the second half of the eighth century, and perhaps, the very beginnings of the political fragmentation that led to the larger collapse later.
