Maíz y balché. Una revisión de la iconografía de los murales de Tulum

Abstract

In this paper we present a review about the murals located in the Temples of the Descending God (Temple 5) and the Frescos (Temple 16) at the pre-Columbian city of Tulum, Quintana Roo. We first study some of the characters dressed as gods, as Chahk, K’awil, Quetzalcóatl, and Xólotl. Secondly, we analyze the ritual paraphernalia, mostly composed of ceramic objects in the form of effigy urns, incense burners, idols, containers with offerings of corn in different preparations, and large jars used to contain liquids, presenting correspondences with the archaeological record. Afterwards, we analyze the intertwined serpents, as well as the vegetal elements that we identify with the flower and fruits of balché tree. Finally, these data are integrated in order to interpret the meaning of the Tulum murals in relation to the practice of bending over the maize stalks in the autumn, and also to the first fruits harvest, which coincides with the flowering of the balché tree and the beginning of the harvest of tajonal honey in Yucatán.