Thrones of Ancient Maya essays

Thrones of Ancient Maya essays The article that I studied is entitled Thrones and Throne Structures in the Central Acropolis of Tikal as an Expression of the Royal Court, by Peter D. Harrison. In this article it shows that you may use the varieties of reception thrones as evidence of court function. Some other topics are on the source material for the construction of thrones and decoration (or lack of) and reasons for it. Some of the functions that were used from the throne were reception of tribute goods, reception of prisoners involving presence of military guards, reception of visiting dignitaries displaying royalty, ritual divination, and possibly even accession rituals. This wide use of thrones in Tikal was compared to other cultures royal courts, including the court of Louis XIV in France and the royal Inka court of Cuzco. The examiners found that markers of these courts all included the use of livery (clothing showing especially high rank), use of thrones, and the association of church and state. Tikals thrones are the simplest, plainest, least-decorated thrones in the lowlands of Ancient Maya. Highly decorated thrones are smaller and are thought to be less powerful than those in Tikal. We go on to find that even though this was a large city with great political influence and wealth, they seated their highest officials on the plainest of thrones. The author does remind us that even though there seems to be an apparent absence in decoration, there is a variety of form and context of Tikal thrones. It is noted that masonry-constructed benches were a Late Classic (A.D. 650-900) phenomenon in Tikal because there are no Early Classic (A.D. 292-650) examples existing in the Central Acropolis. We find that this is because the native stone to Tikal did not have high tensile strength so they used the medium of wood, which gave way for their famous intricate lintel carvings. When the benches and thrones in masonry form were finally introd...