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The Historical Significance of the Murals in the Temple of the Warriors, Chichen Itza

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 January 2017

Donald E. Wray*
Affiliation:
5526 Ellis Avenue, Chicago, Illinois

Extract

According to Alfred M. Tozzer, events relating to the taking of Chichen Itza by the Toltecs are depicted in the frescoes and bas-reliefs on buildings at that site which date from the Mexican period. In a paper entitled “Maya and Toltec Figures at Chichen Itza,“ he analyzes scenes from the Temple of the Jaguars, the Monjas, the North Temple of the Ball Court, and the Northeast Colonnade with reference to the known historic conquest and interprets them as portrayals of the Mexican attacks, the submission of the Maya, and the recognition of Toltec supremacy.

In his paper, Tozzer tells us that the Toltec warrior is characterized by a mosaic headdress; a breast ornament, probably also of mosaic; a back shield or dorsal mirror; decorated garters; bands below the knee; and sandals. He carries a bundle of spears and a bag in his left hand and an atlatl in his right. His left arm is protected by padding or a round shield.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for American Archaeology 1945

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References

1 Proceedings of the 23rd International Congress of Americanists, pp. 155–164.

2 Earl H. Morris, Jean Chariot, and Ann Axtell Morris, The Temple of the Warriors at Chichen Itza, Yucatan, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Publication No. 406, 1931.

3 Ibid.,Vol. 2, Pl 139.

4 Ibid., Pl 146.

5 Ibid., Pl 145.

6 Ibid., Pl. 151.

7 Ibid., Pl. 159.

8 Ibid., Pls. 150, c; 152, a; 155, a; 156, b; 161, d.

9 Notes on Middle American Archaeology and Ethnology, No. 19, Carnegie Institution of Washington, 1943, p. 118.