Skip to Content
Closed now, next open tomorrow. Closed now, next open tomorrow.

Hieroglyphic Altar

A work made of limestone.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

Image actions

  • A work made of limestone.

Date:

650–700

Artist:

Late Classic Maya
Possibly Bonampak/Lacanha area, Mexico or Guatemala

About this artwork

This altar depicts the head and torso of an individual wearing an ornate headdress and a large, woven mat pectoral emblem of rulership. He appears within a four-lobed cartouche, suggesting that he is a deceased ancestor who lives in the Underworld. The hieroglyphs that surround the figure describe the commemoration of a monument or structure; the text carved around the sides of the monument celebrate a successor’s completion of six years of kingship.

Status

On View, Gallery 136

Department

Arts of the Americas

Culture

Maya

Title

Hieroglyphic Altar

Place

Bonampak (Object made in)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

650 CE–700 CE

Medium

Limestone

Dimensions

21.6 × 37.5 × 41.9 cm (8 1/2 × 14 3/4 × 16 1/2 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Herbert Baker

Reference Number

1971.895

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/37817/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

Share

Sign up for our enewsletter to receive updates.

Learn more

Image actions

Share