The coffin lid of Pacal and the Palenque pilot
The coffin lid of Pacal and
the Palenque pilot
The depiction of a rocket and a coffin lid beneath the sarcophagus may be evidence of extraterrestrial influence on the ancient Maya The theory that the sculpture depicts an astronaut was popularized in the 1960s by writer Erich von Däniken The transition to the afterlife is central to Maya cosmology These images reflect their complex beliefs about the universe and the cycle of life and death This intricate carving depicts Pagal prone surrounded by symbols such as the World Tree celestial bodies and elements of the Mayan underworld. This intricate carving may depict an ancient astronaut traveling in a spaceship suggesting a deeper connection to life beyond our own world
Ces trois sculptures comptent parmi les chefs-d'Å“uvre de l'art maya
The mysterious Mayan astronaut of Palenque appears on the lid of the sarcophagus of Paquilla the Great in Palenque or perhaps it reflects only one aspect of the deity Symbols of the sun moon and stars as well as the heads of six noblemen with different names are central to this mystery Other symbols around the lid are cosmological symbols. Paquilla is buried in a giant sarcophagus within the largest step pyramid in Palenque
The building known as Bʼolon Yej Teʼ Naah or "House of the Nine-Sharp Spear" suggests that beliefs about Paquilla's connection to the universe have come and gone The secret to opening his tomb sealed with a stone slab with a plug in a hole previously unknown to archaeologists was discovered by Mexican archaeologist Alberto Ruz Lhuillier in 1948. It took four years to clear debris from the stairs leading down to Paquilla's tomb but it was finally discovered in 1952.
Tomb of Kinich Hanab Pakal Ruler of Palenque 615-683 AD Replica
His skeleton remains in the sarcophagus wearing a jade mask and beaded necklace surrounded by sculptures and stucco reliefs depicting the transition to divinity and statues from Mayan mythology relics of an ancient civilization that believed that the journey to the heavens was real The mysterious Mayan Palenque astronaut is not merely an example or a creation of the Mayan night sky ritual nor is it linked to the civilization of the time of Pakal the Mayan king of the Palenque city-state
This idea which combines the origins of reality with the resurrection of the god is believed by some to be a divine king capable of communicating with the spirit world after death In this image Pakal is reborn as the maize god a young maize god resurrected. Pakal on his tomb lid is represented as both a dying man falling into the maize gully and a baby born on the tree of life The maize grain must be buried in the ground to grow Pakal's fall into the underworld only to be resurrected reflecting Mayan artistic tradition symbolism cosmology and written history
There are inscriptions on the walls of both Mayan and ancient Egypt legends that resemble modern airplanes Pakal's tomb is the most obvious evidence of the ancient astronaut's predictions This interpretation is often condemned by archaeologists epigraphers and Mayan art historians A wider archaeological context or much further research or perhaps just a mythical model of the ritual from the ground to the sky according to the constellations of Mayan cosmological beliefs
There are inscriptions on the walls of both Mayan and ancient Egypt legends that resemble modern airplanes Pakal's tomb is the most obvious evidence of the ancient astronaut's predictions This interpretation is often condemned by archaeologists epigraphers and Mayan art historians A wider archaeological context or much further research or perhaps just a mythical model of the ritual from the ground to the sky according to the constellations of Mayan cosmological beliefs
