ART 347L--Cacaxtla

	Cacaxtla Cacaxtla, whose name means "place of the merchant's pack," is strategically located on a hilltop site in the Mexican state of Tlaxcala. Cacaxtla rose to power c. AD 700 - 800 and was part of a Terminal Classic communication sphere that also included sites such as Chichén Itzá, El Tajín, and Xochicalco. It is most famous for its fantastic polychromed murals that were painted in a very Maya style. Murals found on the north and south walls and doorjambs of Structure A depict individuals garbed in elaborate costumes and regalia. The figure on the north wall wears a jaguar costume, stands on a spotted, legged serpent, and holds a bundle of atlatl darts. A broad blue frame encloses the scene and depicts aquatic imagery.
	The corresponding north jamb depicts another jaguar-costumed individual who appears to be dancing. He grasps a coiling serpent in one hand and, in the other, a vessel from which water flows. From his navel emerges a flowering vine, which recalls similar imagery from Chichén Itzá in which themes of intestinal sacrifice, flowering vines, and rebirth were linked. The mural on the south wall of Structure A depicts a figure costumed as an eagle and standing on a feathered serpent. He clasps a ceremonial bar of rulership. Adjacent to the figure's head is a rectangular cartouche with star symbols and blue hands. This cartouche alludes to the imagery in another room at Cacaxtla known as the Star Chamber. The same kind of broad blue frame with aquatic imagery seen on the north wall frames this scene as well.
	The corresponding south jamb (image opens in another window) depicts a figure, painted black, standing in a dance posture. He holds a giant shell from which emerges a tiny figure with red hair.

In another chamber at the site, known as the Red Temple, is a mural that depicts a merchant standing next to a large pack. This figure, who appears to be the Maya deity God L, may be the merchant for whom Cacaxtla was named. In his pack he carries trade items that came from the lowland Maya region, such as quetzal feathers, jaguar pelts, and cacao. He faces some flowering vegetation that appears to represent a cacao tree and a stalk of maize whose cobs of corn resemble the heads of the Maya maize god. The same blue aquatic band encloses this scene as well, following the contours of the adjacent stairway. Part of the floor of the Red Temple was painted with captive figures, which were associated with glyphs that appear to provide the names of conquered sites.

Building B contains a long polychromed mural (image opens in another window) that depicts a very graphic scene of battle. The scene shows victorious warriors holding shields and spears and dressed in jaguar pelts, standing over fallen victims with dripping entrails. The figures are painted in a very Maya style, as a detail of the face of one of the victorious war captains reveals. The culminating moment of the battle appears to be when the captain of the losing side, with arms folded in submission, is placed before a white background with star symbols.

The star background in front of which the losing captain stands not only recalls the star cartouche from the mural in Structure A, but also appears to be related to a recently excavated mural at Cacaxtla in a room known as the "Star" or "Venus" Chamber. This Star Chamber contains two rectangular piers that depict supernatural figures wearing star skirts and standing on blue aquatic bands. They are surrounded by five-pointed star motifs that correspond closely to the stars framing the losing war captain.

Bibliography

Baird, Ellen T. 1989. "Public Proclamation in the Art of Cacaxtla and Xochicalco." In Mesoamerica After the Decline of Teotihuacan A.D. 700-900, edited by Richard A. Diehl and Janet Catherine Berlo, pp. 105-122. Washington, D.C.: Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection.

Carlson, John B. 1993. "Rise and Fall of the City of the Gods." In Archaeology, volume 46, number 6 (November/December): 58-69.

Kubler, George. 1980. "Eclecticism at Cacaxtla." In Third Palenque Roundtable, 1978, Part II, edited by Merle Greene Robertson, pp. 163-172. Austin, University of Texas Press.

Lombardo de Ruiz, Sonia and Diana López de Molina, editors. 1968. Cacaxtla: El lugar donde muere la lluvia en la tierra. Mexico: I.N.A.H. e Historia/Gobierno del Estado de Tlaxcala.

Nagao, Debra. 1989. "Public Proclamation in the Art of Cacaxtla and Xochicalco." In Mesoamerica After the Decline of Teotihuacan A.D. 700-900, edited by Richard A. Diehl and Janet Catherine Berlo, pp. 83-104. Washington, D.C.: Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection.

Robertson, Donald. 1985. "The Cacaxtla Murals." In Fourth Palenque Roundtable, 1980, edited my Merle Greene Robertson and Elizabeth P. Benson, 291-302. San Francisco: PARI.

Stuart, George. 1992. "Mural Masterpieces of Ancient Cacaxtla." In National Geographic, volume 182, number 3 (September): 120-136.