Description

The eighth-century Tikal king Jasaw Chan K'awiil commissioned Temples I and II during his reign. Temple II is dedicated to his wife, Lady Twelve Macaw (died 704 A.D.), and she is interred within it. In contrast to Egyptian pyramids, to which they are often erroneously compared, Maya 'step pyramids' served numerous functions besides mortuary ones, and were constructed not from large, solid stone blocks but from smaller, cut stone blocks on top of a rubble-fill core. An enclosed structure would often be built on top. Additionally, many Maya Temples such as Temple II are not mathematically pyramidal - the base angles vary, as one side was built at a less severe slope to allow for a usable staircase. Such 'pyramids' are thought to emulate the shape of mountains and volcanoes, a common pattern found across ancient Mesoamerica.

Media Id: media_TIK_20071003_171739 Date Uploaded: 2007-10-03 17:17:40 Points: 543314 Copyright: Image copyright CyArk, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0