From Fragments to Clarity: Reconstructing The Hieroglyphic Narrative of Lintel 34 from Yaxchilan (Chiapas, Mexico)

Abstract

During the investigation for the Maya Image Archive of the "Text Database and Dictionary of Classic Maya" project[1], the authors identified a previously unknown drawing by the German-Austrian architect and explorer Teobert Maler (1842-1917). This artwork, dated around 1900, was recently published within Maler's digital repository at the Ibero-American Institute in Berlin. The pencil-and-ink rendering illustrates the inscription on Lintel 34 from the archaeological site of Yaxchilan (Chiapas, Mexico). This inscription originally comprised 32 hieroglyphic blocks, many of which have been lost over time. Notes written on the drawing, along with Maler's German comments in his book manuscript, suggest that the limestone lintel was already fragmented and incomplete when Maler first discovered it between 1897 and 1900. The findings of this study offer an advancement in the understanding of Yaxchilan’s dynastic history, particularly through the detailed reconstruction of the hieroglyphic inscription on Lintel 34. The rediscovery of an unpublished drawing by Teobert Maler, housed in the digital archives of the Iberoamerikanisches Institut in Berlin and created during his expeditions in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, has presented a unique opportunity to reassess and enhance the epigraphic record of this monument. By integrating Maler’s rendering with previously known fragments, this study has reconstructed all 32 hieroglyphic blocks, thereby addressing long-standing gaps in the textual record. This accomplishment provides new insights into the political, genealogical, and religious dimensions of Yaxchilan’s dynastic history.