Aj Maxam (Maya)
Vicinity of Naranjo, Petén region, Guatemala
Water-Lily Vessel
INV-1268
Aj Maxam (Maya)
Vicinity of Naranjo, Petén region, Guatemala780–810
Water-Lily Vessel
Aj Maxam (Maya) Vicinity of Naranjo, Petén region, Guatemala →mayaclassicmesoamericanPre-Columbianceramicsearthenware
Date
780–810
Medium
Earthenware and pigment
Dimensions
23.5 × 16 × 15.8 cm (9 5/16 × 6 5/16 × 6 1/4 in.)
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Location
Chicago, IL
Credit
Ethel T. Scarborough Fund
The simple, elegant design of this vessel reflects the refined abilities of the artist, who painted images of water lilies and a hieroglyphic text with a perfectly controlled brush. The inscription below was the first to be deciphered on a Classic Maya vessel. It states the name of the artist, Ah Maxam (aj maxam), and declares that he is a member of the royal lineage of the kingdom of Naranjo. His mother and father are also named on this vessel, as well as on other dynastic monuments from the region. For the Maya, water lilies were symbolic of the watery surface of the Underworld and the earth’s regenerative powers.
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