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Janice Van Cleve
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WHO WAS EIGHTEEN RABBIT? A Life Revealed in Stone Janice Van Cleve Preface It is difficult for me to believe that a mere twelve months ago I had never heard of Eighteen Rabbit. I had not imagined that I would ever be able to access the names and personalities of the enigmatic lords of the Maya. My image of them and their civilization was shrouded in mystery as dense as the jungle vines that strangled their stone cities. As a historian, I had up to now focused largely on medieval European land grants, written in the universal Latin tongue, and ably supported by exhaustive dictionaries and grammars. Yet my long standing appreciation for history and languages always extended to archeology as well. I have stood in England's stone circles, clambered down inside Egypt's pyramids, and gazed upon the foundations of Homer's Troy, the Minoan palace of Knossos, and the temples at Delphi. So when the opportunity arose to visit the lost cities of the Maya, I jumped at the chance. I visited Copan, Quirigua, Tikal, Coba, and Chichen Itza. Almost immediately upon arrival at each site, I abandoned the tour to scale the buildings and to drink in the sense of these magnificent pyramids and temples on my own. I was exhilarated with the thrill of learning, the excitement of adventure, and the desire to see as much as I could in the short few hours our visits allowed. I paid little attention to the stone monuments, impatient as I was to explore what I thought were grander structures. It was only later when my traveling companions were talking, that I heard about somebody called Eighteen Rabbit. They told of the writings on the backs of the monuments, of names, dates, and activities recorded there. This was no longer impossible enigma - this was the stuff of history! This was documents in stone, the very bread and meat of the historian. Thus I was bitten and the result is this paper. I returned to Copan in February this year, 2002, and stayed for ten days. During this visit I thoroughly explored every corner of the principal group, mapped out in detail the structures in the northeast corner and in the residential section known as El Cementario, and groped my way through the tunnels under the acropolis. I investigated the remains in the wooded area south of the acropolis known as El Bosque and I explored the courtyards, buildings, and tombs in the upper class residential area called Las Sepulturas. In addition I examined the contents of the museums at the park site and in the town of Copan Ruinas and I took the time to wander about in the valley and splash in the river which gave this marvelous city state its name. I tried to see Copan as Eighteen Rabbit saw it so I could better tell his story. Anybody with a name like Eighteen Rabbit deserves to have his story told. In this first paper, I have attempted to examine the hard evidence only, the written record left behind by the Maya themselves inscribed on buildings and monuments. In a later effort I will attempt to weave these known points into a plausible tapestry of Eighteen Rabbit's life. I make no pretense that the story I shall tell is provable. Nevertheless, I shall deal with what facts are known at this time with as much accuracy as my knowledge and skill enable me. My efforts would be in vain were it not for the great women who broke the code of the Maya language and opened this spectacular civilization for historians to appreciate. It was Tatiana Proskouriakoff, architect and illustrator, who first demonstrated in 1960 that Maya hieroglyphics recorded history. She was followed by the brilliant and prolific Linda Schele whose detailed drawings of the Maya texts are still among the finest available to scholars. The drawings in this work are hers, courtesy of FAMSI, the Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, Inc. Schele's interpretations have gone far to lift the veil from the world of Maya, particularly in the areas of religion and culture. There are many other scholars to whom my small contributions owe so much and they are listed in the bibliography. In addition, I thank Ricardo Agurcia Fasquelle, executive director of Asociacion Copan, and Oscar Cruz, director of the Copan park, for generously giving me their time for interviews. I thank the park security and maintenance staff for assisting my work and answering my questions. I appreciate the encouragement I received from Sandra Noble, director of FAMSI, for encouraging me to prepare this paper for publication on the organization's website. My gratitude would not be complete without also including Ariele Huff, my mentor and editor, who constantly hones my skills, and Kai von Sydow, my travel agent, who knew of my interests and booked my first voyage to the Maya lands. Finally, I must thank Eighteen Rabbit himself for leaving behind so much reading material. Introduction The inventory of monuments, inscriptions, and references to Eighteen Rabbit is the richest yet discovered among the Maya for a single individual. He personally commissioned eight stelae or stone monuments, seven of which portray his image, and all of which promote his message. In addition, he dedicated building 10L-22 at Copan with an inscription referring to himself, refurbished the ball court, and installed game markers with his name and image. He is mentioned on a contemporary incense burner and on a clay cylinder. Later rulers of Copan recalled Eighteen Rabbit by name or image on the famous Hieroglyphic Stairway, on a panel in temple 26, and on Altar Q, stela 11, and perhaps on an inscription on building 8L-74. His father, Smoke Jaguar, mentioned him when he was still a baby on stela 6. Eighteen Rabbit is also prominently mentioned in Quirigua, a city state in present day Guatemala. The Quirigua stelae are the tallest in the Maya cultural region, some towering 35 feet, and they are covered with detailed glyphs. Five of these stelae and one carved boulder document Eighteen Rabbit's untimely end. In all, twenty-four references to Eighteen Rabbit that were carved or written somewhat contemporaneously by the Maya themselves have been so far discovered. Except for the incense burner, and the temple 26 panel, it has been my very good fortune to see all of these monuments and inscriptions in person or in detailed photos and drawings . I have read as many of the texts as have been translated and I have read many of the sometimes conflicting interpretations of those texts. In some cases I have attempted to apply my own crude efforts to suggest an interpretation. Later investigations will certainly add to our knowledge and undoubtedly will change some of my conclusions, but that is what scholarship is supposed to do. Given an inventory of twenty-four references, my first task was to order them chronologically. The Maya inscribed most of their monuments with a dedication date and sometimes made reference in the text to prior events, including those dates as well. The science of Maya calendrics has been thoroughly hashed out by scholars and there is now general agreement on the dating system. That is not to say that there are not differences of opinion. Sometimes scholars differ as to the reading of the number on the monument, often due to damage of the piece caused by erosion or vandalism. In other cases, scholars may mistake a date in the text for the dedication date or simply may have erred in their reading. In these cases I have usually relied on Linda Schele's analyses both because of her renown as a detailed epigrapher and because often she has considered the earlier readings before coming to her conclusions. Nevertheless, I have differed from her and others by using the 584,283 constant for converting dates from Mayan to modern. The Early Years What mother would name her child Eighteen Rabbit? Well, actually she didn't. It was
archeologists attempting to attach identity to the hieroglyphic characters that make up
his name who first dubbed him Eighteen Rabbit. Now that we know more about the
pronunciation of Maya syllables we are able to render his name correctly as Waxaklajun
Ubah Kawil. Including a numeral in a name was a rare occurance among the Maya. Nor is it a
mistaken reading. The three bar, three dot configuration in the inscriptions are bold and
clear as the number 18. The "rabbit" part of the name is a bit more conjectural.
The glyph looks more like a chipmunk to me, but the name Eighteen Chipmunk apparently did
not catch on with the translators. The next evidence of Eighteen Rabbit is stela J which was dedicated on January 24, 702. He had been in power six and a half years and was about twenty-two years old by then. It was the half katun, 9.13.10.0.0 in Maya notation, which was a normal occasion for ritual and erection of a monument. Eighteen Rabbit may either not yet have been quite sure of himself or not quite secure enough on the throne to have the stela carved in his image as his later monuments were. The side facing the plaza is arranged in the symbolic image of the earth monster with cauac grape cluster, bone in the nose, and no lower jaw which are symbols of mortality and partition. The side facing the town is carved in a mat pattern, which is a symbol of authority, thus emphasizing that he was in charge. In the text he alludes to the founder of the Copan dynasty, Yax Kuk Mo, and to his father, the great Smoke Jaguar. The carving and placement of stela J appear to say to the people: "You are now entering the great square of the people, the holy place, where Eighteen Rabbit, legitimate successor to Smoke Jaguar and all the rulers of Copan back to the beginnings of the dynasty, will perform acts of ritual and magic which will ensure your lives and prosperity." On the west side, as they leave the plaza, the stela appears to say to the people: "You are now leaving the great plaza of the people to return to the mortal world which is ruled by the cycle of life and death." Thus he appears to be using this opportunity to declare his legitimacy and to proclaim his right to rule. Stela J may contain clues as well to Eighteen Rabbit's political and religious thinking. As a boundary marker at the entrance to the great plaza, the stela sets the plaza apart and thereby elevates its status and his own importance as well. Perhaps Eighteen Rabbit already had an inkling at this time of the grand building program he was later to carry out in the plaza. Maybe he was forming in his mind how he was going to use religion and ritual as his main instruments of governance. He seems to be claiming with stela J a unique and necessary role in the lives of his people; a role that justified his elevated status and right to claim their taxes, labor, and loyalty. His Own Man Eighteen Rabbit is apparently mentioned in connection with an incense burner dated May 1, 708, but I have seen only one reference to this item and no illustration . In 710, Eighteen Rabbit commissioned the renovation of temple 26 which held the tomb of this father, Smoke Jaguar, and fitted it with the first rows of its famous hieroglyphic stairway. Sometime later, he encased temple 16, the revered tomb of Yax Kuk Mo, intact within a new temple 16. This indicated his special reverence for his dynastic founder while at the same time increasing the scale of temple 16 to keep up with the expansion of buildings he was creating at the north end of the Jaguar Court, particularly temple 10L-22. Stela C is the next monument in his name. It was dedicated on December 3, 711, on the katun ending date of 9.14.0.0.0, and placed in the central plaza of Copan. Not only is the katun ending date a key Maya religious occasion, this particular one marks Eighteen Rabbit's coming of age. He was twenty-seven by now and ready to pass beyond the illustrious legacy of his father to stand on his own. The stela is two-sided, with Eighteen Rabbit facing east, where the new sun rises, and his father, Smoke Jaguar, facing west, where the old sun sets. The visages are remarkably lifelike and individual in spite of the stylized nature and purpose of the monument. The father stands before an altar representing the cosmic turtle from which life emerges and into which life descends. In this case, Smoke Jaguar standing behind the altar appears to descend into the earth as the western sun descends into the underworld at twilight. Eighteen Rabbit, on the other hand, stands before an uncarved altar symbolizing new possibilities as he faces the rising sun. The inscriptions refer to mythological events, one of which calculates over two million years before the erection of this stela. Eighteen Rabbit had two buildings, 10L-20 and 10L-21, raised along the east side of the Jaguar Court sometime early in his reign. Building 10L-20 is known as the House of Bats. Its cornices were crowned with killer bat statues and its door could be locked from the outside - which has led some scholars to associate this building with the House of Bats in the underworld of Xibalba as described in the Popol Vuh where the Hero Twins were imprisoned before they were sacrificed. Building 10L-21 is known as the House of Knives. It was lavishly decorated on the outside with carved vines and obsidian eyes and its cornices were crowned with sacrificial knife images. Both buildings were destroyed by erosion, but pieces have been retrieved and are preserved in the park museum. In 715 his masons completed building 10L-22, an ornate chamber high on the private acropolis of Copan. Eighteen Rabbit dedicated it on March 24 with an inscription on the entrance step which begins "On 5 Lamat my katun was finished . . . ". This was not a normal period ending date; he was referring, rather, to the fact that he had completed twenty years since his accession. An enigmatic clay cylinder dated February 18, 718 is incised with Eighteen Rabbit's name and title. It may record a "burning" of something, but it has not been translated as yet. Six years later, Eighteen Rabbit caused himself to be portrayed on stela F in the guise of the Bearded Jaguar God in celebration of the half katun 9.14.10.0.0, or October 11, 721. The symbolism of the stela and its altar cast the ruler completely into his role as intermediary between the gods and the people through his own blood sacrifice. It also calls forth the story of the two patron gods of Copan, Kan Te Ahau and Bolon Kawil. This story did not survive into the post conquest literature of the Maya, but it evidently was popular throughout the Maya region. It involves the throwing down of a baby jaguar from a mountain and this theme is carried out in stone in the altar that stands before stela F. Eighteen Rabbit was thirty-seven years old at the time stela F was erected. He was at his prime, in full possession of his power as ruler in his own right and as the sacrificial king who bled for the continuation of the cosmic order and for the nourishment of the gods. He introduced a new art form, depicting himself in full round practically stepping right out of the stone in a realism dramatic for Maya monuments. This may be an indication that he was introducing a new school of art and maybe new ideas in other areas as well. Stela 4 was raised on the quarter katun, September 15, 726, (9.14.15.0.0 in Maya long count) and marks the high point of Eighteen Rabbit's rule. By this time he was forty-two years old and had been in power for thirty-one years. He had just installed Cauac Sky two years previously to be the new military governor of Quirigua, a town on the Motagua River under Copan's jurisdiction. Stela 4 continues the themes of Kan Te Ahau and Bolon Kawil, the patron gods of Copan. The image of the ruler, carved again in full round, grasps the black headdress of death and the white Ceiba flower of life. The altar in front of it is a carved globe with spiral drains for blood sacrifices. Eighteen Rabbit shows himself again as the self-immolating king whose repeated blood sacrifices keep in balance the forces of life and death. His altar symbolizes the need for blood to keep the sun revolving around the earth. The inscription harks back to the mythical beginnings of Copan on December 19, 159 CE (8.6.0.0.0 in Maya long count) when the god Bolon Kawil was said to have emerged from death. At the same time, Eighteen Rabbit resurrected stela 5 which had been dedicated by his father, Smoke Jaguar, on July 26, 667. Stela 5 depicts his grandfather, Butz Chan, facing west and his father facing east, much like stela C. Beneath both stelae, Eighteen Rabbit deposited rectangular altars bound with carved wrappings, and on the one he placed under stela 4 he recorded the birth of his grandfather on April 28, 563. This may be very significant, because where he resurrected stela 5 is very near burial 36, which was an important royal tomb and may even have been the tomb of Butz Chan. So stela 4 not only displays Eighteen Rabbit as the fulcum between life and death, but
directly relates back to the mythical beginnings of Copan. His actions relate as well
directly back to his grandfather. I believe that stela 4 represents Eighteen Rabbit's
definitive statement of his view of the cosmos and his place in it. It comes as close as
anything to his credo. Copan was not an isolated city state unto itself. The Maya region contained hundreds of city states during the classic period from 250 - 900 CE. There is ample evidence of lively commerce in luxury goods between cities, cultural and artistic connections, intermarriage among the elite class, and political ties. Rulers and ambassadors visited each other and some cities dominated others in regional hegemonies. Raids on neighboring sites were conducted to capture prisoners for blood sacrifices. Wars were fought to impose overlordship or declare independence, to gain control of trade routes, and to avenge real or imagined wrongs. There was not, however, a central capital for the Maya region. El Mirador was the first and most prominent city in the preclassic period (100 - 250 CE). While it undoubtedly exerted a cultural, commercial, and perhaps even religious influence beyond its immediate zone of control, it never exerted a military or political dominance over the region. El Mirador was replaced by Tikal, the largest Maya city state, which played a similarly influential role during the early classic period (250 - 550 CE). Tikal suffering defeats at the hand of Calakmul in the mid-sixth century and fell into a period of silence for sixty years, during which time other centers asserted their independence. Tikal resurrected its power under a new ruler, Lord Cocoa. However, by then it was impossible to attempt to reinstate the regional dominance the city had previously enjoyed. By 672 other city states had arisen whose economic prosperity and military might rivaled Tikal's. Alliances, wars, raids and coups alternated with trade and cultural exchanges in the ever fluid contests for power. Overarching all was a deep and lasting competition between Tikal and Calakmul which grew to polarize the entire Maya world. Copan began as an outpost of the Maya high in the mountains of western Honduras sometime during the protoclassic period (100 - 250 CE). The population of the Copan Valley was ethnically Maya since earliest times, although it was definitely on the southeastern frontier of the Maya population area. Non-Maya peoples immediately to the south and east interacted and traded with the Copan Maya and some even resided in the city. In spite of its position on the periphery, Copan very early demonstrated its active and ongoing interaction with the rest of the Maya world. Its major cultural and trade connections were with Kaminaljuyu in the Guatemalan highlands to the southwest. This connection served to link Copan to the earliest awakenings of the Maya civilization which arose first along the Pacific coast and in the highlands before it spread to the central Peten area around Tikal. It was through this link that Copan received its first influences from Teotihuacan in Mexico. Much more direct influence from Teotihuacan came with the arrival of Yax Kuk Mo at Copan on February 4, 427. Yax Kuk Mo was a young lieutenant in Mexican general Sayaj Kak's army which sacked Tikal forty nine years previously. He was inaugurated on September 5, 426 most likely at Tikal. It took him 152 days to travel to Copan bearing the image of the new Mexican Kawil (feathered serpent) god to install the new dynasty. In 435 he raised stela 63, the first stela in Copan, to commemorate his accession and the beginning of his dynasty. It was at this time that Copan likely received its name. The Maya pronunciation for Copan is "xukpi". "Xuk" means corner and "pi" means bundle. Together they form a word that means "corner bundle." This is highly significant in that Tikal's emblem glyph or coat of arms is a tied bundle. So Copan/Xukpi may literally mean "the corner of Tikal's reach", or Outpost of Tikal. While too far away to become embroiled in the dynastic rivalries of the central Peten, Copan remained generally aligned to Tikal. The name "Xukpi" may also indicate that the Maya, or at least the elite, recognized themselves as a distinct people, different from peoples beyond their frontiers and perhaps even different from the lower classes they ruled. Yax Kuk Mo was not the only graduate from the Tikal Class of '26. One Tok Casper was also inaugurated on September 5 and given ruling power over the city of Quirigua. It is noteworthy that he was installed "under the supervision" of Yax Kuk Mo, indicating that the relationship between the ruling house of Quirigua and that of Copan was to be one of vassal to master. Copan's influence first appears outside its mountain valley at Caracol in 534 but it reached its greatest extent under Butz Chan (578-628) and Smoke Jaguar (628-695). Monuments as far away as Pusilha and Nim Li Punit in modern Belize bear their names , while Rio Amarillo, El Paraiso, and Los Higos to the northeast in Honduras also refer to Copan. Eighteen Rabbit records the sacrifice of a lord of Pusilha on stela F and Copan is named with Palenque in a bone carving found in a Tikal ruler's tomb. The Incidents of 730/731 The next two monuments erected by Eighteen Rabbit are at once the most elaborate and most controversial of his entire reign. Stelae H and A pose more questions than they do answers, yet those questions lead us to the most interesting speculations about what may have been one of the most significant moments in Eighteen Rabbit's career. Stela H, erected by Eighteen Rabbit on December 3, 730, is singularly unusual . First, it is one of the most splendidly detailed and ornate carvings ever found, even in Copan, a city noted for the exceptionally fine sophistication of its carvings. Second, it depicts Eighteen Rabbit not in the customary "sacrificial ruler" role, but as a divine maize god in all his glory. Third, he is shown wearing the beaded skirt which has led many researchers to speculate that this monument may be of a woman. Fourth, it is a twin to stela A. Both monuments refer to the same ceremony and they were erected only 60 days apart. Fifth, and most significant to my opinion, stela H and its twin were not erected on any calendar anniversary date. Stelae throughout the Maya world and certainly in Copan were usually raised on twenty-year katun endings or subdivisions of katuns. Stelae H and A, in contrast, were erected around an event that must have been of such cardinal importance that Eighteen Rabbit felt compelled to commemorate it outside the normal time sequence. Stela H shows Eighteen Rabbit magnificently as the maize god, the central character in the mythical drama that explains birth and death through confrontation with the lords of the underworld. At this point he was 49 years old, having ruled for 35 years - at least 19 of them out from under the shadow of his illustrious father. The richly decorated monument leaves only a small section in back for an abbreviated inscription which reads (from Schele, 1998): "4 Ahaw 18 Muwan / it happened, divinity / it was erected, the stood-up thing / Kan ??? / was its name / the lakam / tun of Eighteen Rabbit / Holy Lord of Copan / four gourd trees in the central plaza." My translation reads: "It happened on December 3, 730, under the auspices of the god [unknown] that this stela was erected. Yellow ??? was its name. This monument was commissioned by Eighteen Rabbit, Holy Lord of Copan, on November [day], 730, for the central plaza." Stela A was erected just 60 days after its twin, stela H, on February 1, 731. On this stela, the imagery returns to the sacrifice and blood letting themes which symbolize death and resurrection. The headdress is of the plaited mat pattern which is the quintessential symbol or ruling authority in Maya regalia. Alike to stela H in many ways - artistry, timing, location, detail - stela A is starkly different in that its entire back and sides are filled with inscriptions. The back recalls the events which were briefly noted on stela H and adds significant details (from Schele, 1998): "4 Ahaw 18 Muwan / was erected the lakamtun / the stood-up thing / Kan ??? / is its name; he died / tzi pi k'a, Scatterer / tzi pi k'a, Nun [intermediary] / Three Monkey, Pu-wi Ahaw / Butz Chan, Ma Ahaw / bone . . . / festival, they cut / the bones of the dead one / he entered the road, he set up / the lakamtun / the image of Fire Sun Shield Snake / ??? / Eighteen Rabbit / Holy Copan Lord, the Representative." My translation reads:
The left side of stela A records its dedication on February 1, 731, commissioned by Eighteen Rabbit. The right side speaks of a ritual in which the vault below stela A was opened and then closed, presumably to deposit something inside. Most interesting, however, is that the text records that the lords of Tikal, Calakmul, and Palenque were witnesses to this ritual along with the lord of Copan , and calls them the four prime examples of dynastic power. What do stelae H and A tell us? The timing is, I believe, a critical issue. Stelae H and A captured in stone some event so important that it could not wait to be memorialized on the next regular katun date a mere seven months later. It is most unusual for two such spectacular monuments to be raised a mere 60 days apart, and for the later one to refer directly to the earlier one. The stelae obviously must be understood in conjunction, as two parts to a single message or a single event. Throughout the Maya world, stelae erected outside the normal katun anniversaries involve a military victory, a birth, a coming of age, a change of dynasty, or accession to the throne. None of these apply to stelae H or A. Nor does a particular celestial event or special religious holiday appear to be the motive. In addition, it seems to have been an event for which Eighteen Rabbit felt it necessary to call for help from beyond the grave. While exhuming the bones of ancestors was not unusual in the Maya world, doing so at an odd time may to indicate that Eighteen Rabbit sought to derive something from doing so - perhaps legitimacy, authority, or moral example - which he needed right then. Furthermore, it is curious that he did not exhume the bones of his very illustrious and powerful father, who was buried near at hand in temple 26, but went instead to his grandfather. This leaves only one other cause to which stelae H and A can be attributed. That is the
presence of the lords of Tikal, Calakmul, and Palenque in the city. Were they really
there? It was common enough for lords to visit each other's cities or send their
representatives. Copan, on the very southeastern frontier of the Maya world, was a bit out
of the way place for three such powerful lords to assemble , yet Palenque sent one of its
noble daughters to marry the 15th ruler of Copan not many years later. It is unlikely that
Eighteen Rabbit contrived these visitors as spiritual phenomena or outright fabrications,
because the glyph "to witness" on stela A is a formula verb used in similar
circumstances throughout the Maya world. Nor could the visitors have been traveling
merchants/ambassadors from the named cities because the emblem glyphs on stela A are all
preceded by the blood scattering symbol which was reserved only for the "Holy
Lord" of the city. Finally, in the tomb of Tikal's Lord Cocoa, are bones carved with
the death dates of foreign nobility, and others carved with references to Palenque and
Copan. It would seem difficult to place the lords of rival cities like Tikal and Calakmul
together for the peaceful witnessing of Copan stela A, but that's what the evidence in
stone indicates. If we accept, then, that these three visiting lords actually gathered in Copan, could their presence have been the reason for the rituals commemorated by stelae H and A? Could they have been the cause rather than merely the witnesses? Did Eighteen Rabbit invite them? Why? Why would he have done that and why would they have responded? Could it be that he called a summit meeting of these most powerful lords? Was he attempting to broker some kind of deal or treaty? Was he a protagonist of peace trying to end the vicious spiral of violence that was decimating the elite class to their impending doom? Did he have a oracle so dramatic that he had to share it with them in person? Was he attempting to elevate his status among or even above the other powerful lords? Or, on the other hand, was he attempting to elevate his status among his own growing nobility by inviting important outsiders? The stones have yet to yield up answers to these questions. The particular choice of maize god for stela H and patron god of Copan for stela A was surely deliberate, but interpreting their mythological significance is difficult at best. In addition, the stelae are not simple objective representations of events, but rather also serve as propaganda billboards for the ruler. What message did Eighteen Rabbit attempt to send to his immediate subjects and to posterity with these monuments? Until more data is uncovered and analyzed, we may be left only with questions. Later Years Eighteen Rabbit erected stela B on August 20, 731. He was 50 years old and had ruled Copan for 36 of those years. The stela was raised in the central plaza, facing east, on the major katun ending date of 9.15.0.0.0. This date was commemorated in cities throughout the Maya world with monuments and dedicatory rituals. Stela B is most remarkable in the political statement it makes which may even offer a clue to the messages projected from stelae A and H. Stela B depicts Eighteen Rabbit fully decked out in the panoply of the blood sacrificing ruler. At his belt he wears sting ray spines and he is surrounded by images of dead ancestors displaying blood soaked ribbons. He carries the whistongue, the giant symbol of autosacrifice, and the double headed serpent bar, which is the main symbol of Maya authority . From out of his turban emerges the image of the maize god, surrounded by two large macaw heads. On the back of the stela is a huge depiction of the great mountain monster. In the monster's right eye, is the glyph Mo Witz or "Macaw Mountain" and in the left eye is the glyph Kan Na Kan or four Na Skies, which also appears on stela H in reference to the "four on high" or the four major dynasties of Copan, Tikal, Calakmul, and Palenque. In the monster's mouth is the glyph Baknal Ox Witik or "bone place three sources." The mountain, I believe, is a direct reference to temple 16 at Copan. This was the mountain built by the Copan people, the holiest site in the city where the bones of the dynastic founder, Yax Kuk Mo (Queztal Macaw Lord) were interred. Macaw mountain is the tomb pyramid of Queztal Macaw. The "bone place" is the tomb itself and "three sources" was the specific location where Yax Kuk Mo declared his rulership of Copan in 427. The four Na Skies links the Copan dynasty, begun by Yax Kuk Mo and carried on by Eighteen Rabbit, to the other three major dynasties in the Maya world and relates the four to the quadripartite cosmic order of Maya ideology. In other words, Eighteen Rabbit is claiming his rightful place as heir to the founder of Copan and by extension his place in the natural cosmic order of the universe. This message is strengthened, then, by the appearance of ancestors on the face of the monument and by Eighteen Rabbit functioning in the role of blood letting sacrificial ruler for the people. Stela B may, in fact, be a very graphic representation of a vision that Eighteen Rabbit invoked in a ritual he actually performed on or in temple 16 itself with the bones of his illustrious forbearer. The inscription on stela B textually confirms the message presented by the images. In it, Eighteen Rabbit proclaims himself to be the 13th in succession from the founder of Copan who commemorates the 300th anniversary of Yax Kuk Mo by letting blood and invoking the gods of heaven, earth, and Venus. Stela B appears to make a strident case for Eighteen Rabbit's legitimacy and right to rule. Did he perhaps feel threatened? There does not appear to be any evidence of outside threat of invasion or rivalry as indeed the other three "great powers" were witness to the raising of stela A just seven months previous. Nor is there any evidence of internal revolt from any of Copan's subsidiary towns. Was there a rival claimant to the throne or were his nobles getting out of hand? Was the gathering of great powers for stela A a show of mutual support among Maya CEO's in the face of internal challenges to the titular rule of single individuals? The next katun ending was the quarter katun on July 25, 736, when Eighteen Rabbit raised stela D. He was 55 and in his 41st year as ruler of Copan. This monument represents Eighteen Rabbit in another ritual trance state, replete with blood letting paraphernalia and surrounded by umbilical snakes. He is wearing a mask of death strikingly similar to the one worn by his father, Smoke Jaguar on stela I. Both stelae D and I are situated on the sides of the central plaza rather than in the middle with the rest of the monuments. The stela and its altar represent the ruler in his role of mediator and communicator between the world of the living and the world of the dead. The inscriptions on the back reveal little more than the date, the name of the stone, and the fact that Eighteen Rabbit commissioned it. The End Less than two years after he raised stela D, Eighteen Rabbit was dead. The manner of his death and the events leading up to it are at once one of the most dramatic and best described events in Maya history. His last monument foreshadowed his coming doom. On January 8, 738, Eighteen Rabbit renovated the central ball court which lay just north east of, and adjacent to, temple 26 in which his father was buried. It was his 42nd year in office at age 56. The Maya ball game was a ritual reenactment of the epic struggle between life and death. It harked back to the myth of the Hero Twins, Hunahpu and Xbalanque, who defeated the lords of death in Xibalba, the Maya underworld. Eighteen Rabbit commissioned three markers for the ball court. The north marker shows death receiving homage from one of his teammates; the central marker shows Eighteen Rabbit facing the lord of death in a ball game to decide the future of the world; the south marker shows the defeated underworld team paying homage to the maize god who is the representation of resurrection and the continuance of life. The maize god wears Eighteen Rabbit's emblem, implying the latter's victory. The timing of this construction is significant in that Eighteen Rabbit was killed just four months later. It is tempting to imagine that this renovation was no ordinary public works project, but on the contrary, that he knew that a life or death challenge loomed on his immediate horizon. Given that the markers make a rather direct statement about his personal triumph over death, it is conceivable that he had the court rebuilt and a ritual game played as an augury for a battle he knew he would soon face. To understand what might have been the source of Eighteen Rabbit's concerns, we can turn to two stelae at Quirigua, across the mountains from Copan in modern Guatemala. Quirigua stela E, erected January 22, 771, records, among other things, that one Cauac Sky received the emblems of office to rule there under the supervision of Eighteen Rabbit on December 31, 724. Thus Quirigua was still under the control of Copan in 724 as it had been since 424. It is most likely that Eighteen Rabbit knew the young man whom he appointed on that day and that he personally presided over the investment ceremony. The other stela, Quirigua stela I, erected August 19, 800, records a visit to Quirigua by a lord from Calakmul in 736. The text reads in part "and then it happened on July 25, 736 , that Cauac Sky [unknown title], holy lord of Quirigua, [verb] Wamaw Kawil, holy lord of Calakmul." It would be disturbing for the ruler of one major power to hear about a visit by another major power to one of his dependencies. This visit cannot have gone unreported to the ruler of Copan. Stela I goes on to relate the capture and destruction of the idols of Eighteen Rabbit on April 25, 738, just six days before he himself was killed. The juxtaposition of the visit from Calakmul and the demise of Eighteen Rabbit on one monument strongly hints that the two events are directly connected. What happened to him is recorded on five stelae and one zoomorph, a carved boulder, at Quirigua. On Quirigua stela J, dedicated on April 10, 756, the quarter katun, Cauac Sky briefly notes that Eighteen Rabbit was beheaded on May 1, 738. Cauac Sky also notes that he is the 14th in line from the founder of Quirigua and he recounts his inauguration on December 31, 724, calling himself the holy lord of Quirigua. Stela F, dedicated on the half katun of March 15, 761, repeats the formulaic declaration of Cauac Sky's accession, his position as 14th in line, and the capture of Eighteen Rabbit on April 25, 738. Stela E, dedicated on the next full katun on January 22, 771, contains substantially more information. The east side contains an uncertain text that may refer to a lord of Pusilha. The west side records the accession of Cauac Sky on December 31, 724, under the auspices of Eighteen Rabbit. The text goes on to list an untranslated subsequent event, then the sacrificing of Eighteen Rabbit on May 1, 738. Cauac Sky then records that he received (read: seized?) the palanquin of a "bat lord" on November 26, 762 . The rest of the text of stela E is not clear but it names Cauac Sky as a "lord of Copan", more likely a black lord , then something 18 smoking dog, bat lord witnessed bat lord, 6 shell-in-hand. I believe that translation of these final glyphs on Quirigua stela E is critical to understanding the relationship of Quirigua and Copan after the death of Eighteen Rabbit. Stela A of Quirigua records a bloodletting by Cauac Sky on December 27, 775 on the occasion of the quarter katun. The inscription also appears to name Cauac Sky as the "black lord of Copan", followed by the emblem glyph of Quirigua and later a mention of Eighteen Rabbit, but this time without reference to a capture or execution. Cauac Sky died on July 25, 785. It was left to his successors to supply the remaining
bits of information about the events surrounding Eighteen Rabbit's untimely end. Sky Xul
described the death and burial of his predecessor on zoomorph G, a large boulder carved in
the shape of a crouching jaguar with Cauac Sky emerging from its mouth. The text includes
mention that Cauac Sky decapitated the images of Eighteen Rabbit , that is, the carved
wooden images of the patron gods of Copan which the latter carried into battle. This
interpretation is supported by Quirigua stela I, which was erected by the 16th ruler of
that city, Jade Sky, on August 19, 800. The text there reads in part: ". . . 14th in
line from the founder. On April 25, 738 he captured [or defaced] the wood of [several
entities] of the Ceiba Flower lord, the gods of Eighteen Rabbit." In Copan, the capture and death of Eighteen Rabbit had mixed results. His successor, Smoke Monkey, acceded to the throne just 39 days later on June 10, 738. He dedicated building 10L-22A at Copan on June 2, 746, to serve as a council chamber where he and his chief lieutenants could confer on governing the city, which may imply that he was not sufficiently powerful to govern alone. This increase in overt power by the local nobility was further evidenced by an inscription on the outer façade of a noble's house at location 8L-74 which was dedicated just two days after Eighteen Rabbit's death. The next Copan ruler, Smoke Shell, completely missed the major katun ending on May 7, 751, with nary a stone marker to commemorate it. However on May 6, 755, Smoke Shell dedicated his expansion of the famous Hieroglyphic Stairway which mounts the burial pyramid of Smoke Jaguar, temple 26. This major work is the longest single text in the Maya world and was started during Eighteen Rabbit's reign. The scope of the latter's intentions is not known, but Smoke Shell's intentions are clear: to demonstrate his legitimacy from a long line of illustrious rulers and to proclaim the continuous majesty and power of Copan, irregardless of the demise of Eighteen Rabbit. The stairway chronicles the dynastic history of Copan from Yax Kak Mo to Smoke Shell whose stela M stands at its foot. Five figures sit carved in full round with spears and shields up the center of the stairway in order from the bottom: Smoke Monkey, Eighteen Rabbit, Smoke Jaguar, Butz Chan, and finally Moon Jaguar. Eighteen Rabbit is also mentioned on a panel in the sanctuary of temple 26. The risers of the stairway record the deeds and dates of the rulers. This is only one of two places in Copan where the death of Eighteen Rabbit is mentioned and there it says only that he died in battle. There is no mention that he was taken, tortured, and ultimately sacrificed on a foreign altar by an erstwhile subordinate. The stairway, like the stelae, is a propaganda billboard in this case extolling the proud and unbroken continuity of the dynasty. Smoke Shell's death is not recorded. However, he dedicated stela N on March 15, 761, and so presumably he was still alive then. His successor, Yax Pac, came to the throne on July 1, 763. However, it is recorded three times in Quirigua, on stela E and altars O and P, that Cauac Sky seized a palanquin from a bat lord on November 26, 762, a date between the last time Smoke Shell was heard from and before the accession of Yax Pac. The bat lord is referred to only as "6-shell-in-hand" which has not been identified definitively with Smoke Shell. Was this action related to the death of Smoke Shell? Was Smoke Shell the "bat lord?" Did another Copan ruler fall to the violent ambitions of Eighteen Rabbit's nemesis? Cauac Sky was succeeded by Sky Xul on October 13, 785. The latter also attacked Copan. On March 22, 786 he "felled" a bat-hand lord who may have been a Copan noble Then he attacked a bat lord again on October 30, 786, and seized a palanquin. If these bat lords refer to nobles of Copan, then it appears that for almost 50 years Quirigua continued to attack Copan. Smoke Shell left a widow, the Lady Chak Nik Ye Xook from Palenque, and her son, Yax Pac, who became the 16th ruler of Copan. The latter's famous Altar Q, which stands at the base of temple 16, records around its sides, all sixteen of Copan's rulers in order, including Eighteen Rabbit. He also left a bench in temple 11 which includes the sixteen rulers and some of the patron deities. The last mention of Eighteen Rabbit is on stela 11. The stela shows an aged and bearded ruler replete with death signs. The short inscription on the back begins with an abbreviated date which has been calculated to refer to May 6, 820, making this the latest monument in Copan. The text begins with "founder of the dynasty", followed by seven glyphs, then the names of Yax Kuk Mo, holy lord of Copan, and Yax Pac, its last ruler. The eight glyph appears to be Eighteen Rabbit's name and there is a reference to obsidian and flint, which may relate to his having been killed in battle. Epilogue Twenty four monuments record the history of Eighteen Rabbit. They range from spectacularly carved stelae to a one line notation on a stairway. They reveal much about the life and the death of one of the brightest stars in the Maya world. They also leave hanging many intriguing questions which even further epigraphy and archeology may not fully answer. What really happened during that fateful week of 738 when Eighteen Rabbit met his end? From the direct evidence of the relevant texts, to inferences gathered from similar episodes in other Maya conflicts, to general knowledge gleaned from an understanding of Maya politics, religion, and geography, and a good deal of circumstantial logic, we may be able to construct a plausible narrative. We know when Eighteen Rabbit was captured - April 25, 738. We also know when he was killed - May 1,738, just six days later. We know that the idols he carried with him were destroyed when he was captured. Where did these actions take place? There is no evidence to point to a direct assault by Quirigua on the Copan metropolitan area itself. Yet the final killing most certainly was done as a ritual sacrifice in Quirigua. The two cities are 50 miles apart in direct line and more like 80 miles apart along the jungle trails through the mountains that separate them. In order for Eighteen Rabbit to be sacrificed at Quirigua just six days after he was captured, the battle must have taken place somewhere on the trail between Quirigua and Copan. There are several trails between Copan and Quirigua. The western trail passes through Llano Grande and Agua Sucia and then follows the Rio Managua over the hills and across empty countryside to Quirigua. The eastern trail passes up the Copan basin through the major towns subject to Copan, including El Raizal, Rio Amarillo, Piedras Negras, El Cafetal, and El Paraiso, descending then down the north side of the mountains along the Rio Morja to Quirigua. There are several trails that link these two through the hills but these have no major settlements along them. Why would Eighteen Rabbit be out on a trail where he could be captured? This, I believe is the key to understanding the fateful week of 738. He must certainly have been aware of Cauac Sky's growing independence. He must have heard that Cauac Sky used the Quirigua emblem glyph on a carving in the latter's city in 734 . He must also have heard of the visit there by the lord of Calakmul in 736. Perhaps Cauac Sky gave other provocations such as delaying or stopping tribute, interfering with the flow of trade, or refusing to appear before his overlord when directed . In any event, it appears that the conflict was growing to a crisis over a period of several years and that Eighteen Rabbit finally decided to deal with it. I believe that is why he rebuilt the ball court and dedicated new markers showing him as victor just four months before marching off to battle. Warfare between Maya cities was usually a matter of raiding parties seeking loot and victims for sacrifice, often triggered by a celestial event. Such, however, was not the case in the conflict between Copan and Quirigua. This was a serious rebellion by a major vassal with foreign entanglements. Therefore it is likely that Eighteen Rabbit planned a considerable force for the campaign, including his chief nobles and their retainers, his own retinue, and probably a number of mercenaries . Since he did not maintain a standing army at Copan, he most likely took the eastern trail through his most populous vassal towns to pick up more troops, to secure their continued loyalty, and to show them that he was taking the threat from Quirigua seriously. In all, he probably commanded 300-500 troops, but certainly less than 1000. This would have been more than enough to punish a rebellious subordinate (unless the latter had allies, which Cauac Sky did.) The trail from his last outpost of El Paraiso winds down through the jungle valley of the Rio Morja, frequently looping back and forth through river shallows. Anywhere along this river would make a perfect ambush location. The marching army would be strung out along the path. Flank reconnaissance would be limited by the thick undergrowth on either side. Maya combat doctrine focused on hand to hand fighting, not set piece formations on an open field, making ambush preferable to open battle. Finally, Cauac Sky was appointed to rule Quirigua partly because of his military skill which was undoubtedly reinforced by the experienced soldiers he received from Calakmul. He would not have missed the opportunity to seize the advantages of ambush. Whether or not the attack was a surprise, the presence of a large number of veteran Calakmul troops certainly must have surprised the Copan forces. Eighteen Rabbit, even at 56 years old, would have jumped down from his throne palanquin to fight Cauac Sky hand to hand and to defend the other palanquin which carried the Copan gods. When the rebel forces fought their way through to the latter and seized the god images, Copan's troops broke and fled, taking the throne palanquin with them. Eighteen Rabbit was either already in rebel hands or was captured while bravely fighting to defend the idols. Following the customary treatment of captured lords, Eighteen Rabbit would have been stripped on the spot and held down by the hair as he was forced to kneel before his captor. His wrists and arms would have been tied behind his back to a pole. He would have been taken back to Quirigua where he faced public humiliation before the people and the rebel troops. He would be tortured, mutilated, and forced to give his blood to the gods of Quirigua. Finally on May 1, 738, he would have been decapitated at the top of the stairs above the ball court. His head may have been used in a triumphal ball game. His body may have been cast down the stairs to the waiting skinners. In fact, Cauac Sky himself may have dressed in the skin of his former overlord in a macabre dance to demonstrate that he had fully consumed the latter's power. Thus, I propose, ended the fateful week of April/May 738 and the reign of Eighteen Rabbit. Postscript Before I visited Copan the first time, 3 baktuns, 3 katuns, 19 tuns, 7 uinals, and 4 kins (March 15, 2000) since the death of Eighteen Rabbit, I had harbored visions of dank jungles, large snakes, and brooding temples strangled in vines. I had thoughts of a vanished race, inspired, some say, by Atlantis, Egypt, or aliens from another world. I had imagined an advanced people with science, astronomy, and peaceful government who took their secrets with them to the grave. Much the same reaction was experienced by John Stephens who first visited the ruins of Copan in 1839. He wrote: "I am entering abruptly on new ground. . . . . Who were the people that built this city?. . . The place where we were sitting, was it a citadel from which an unknown people had sounded the trumpet of war? or a temple for the worship of God in peace?. . . All was mystery, dark, impenetrable mystery. . . In Egypt the colossal skeletons of gigantic temples stand in unwatered sands in all the nakedness of desolation; but here an immense forest shrouds the ruins, hiding them from sight, heightening the impression and moral effect, and giving an intensity and almost wildness to the interest . . . Here were the remains of a cultivated, polished, people, who had passed through all the stages incidental to the rise and fall of nations, reached their golden age and perished, entirely unknown." This image was challenged when I realized that these graven figures with their detailed hieroglyphics were in fact the actual historical record of this amazing people. Here they left us names, dates, drama, and accomplishments carved in plain sight for us to read once we deciphered the characters. Much has been accomplished by Proskouiakoff, Schele, Berlin, Fash, Marcus, Grube, and many other archeologists and epigraphers who have painstakenly unlocked one key after the other. Their work has made the lives and deaths of the Maya people accessible to readers from the 21st Century. Their work has made it possible for me, in my own imperfect way, to focus on one particular individual and to gather enough data about him that I might string together a plausible biography. Perhaps, if I am successful, I may be able carve him free from his stone monuments to walk alive among us as an understandable human being. Such will be my goal in a future work based upon the research outlined in this paper. Janice Van Cleve Post Postscript Since this first visit, I have been privileged to return to Copan three times to continue research, meet with other archeologists, and advance my knowledge and understanding of the site. This paper, Who Was Eighteen Rabbit? was published on the website of the Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies (FAMSI at www.famsi.org) and remained there for three years. Since then I completed a biographical novel of this king called: EIGHTEEN RABBIT: The Intimate Life And Tragic Death Of A Maya God-King. This book came out in June 2006 and is available from www.xlibris.com
or www.amazon.com. I participated in the III
International Congress at Copan in June, 2007, and was happy to find that my book was well
received. |