PALENQUE SARCOPHAGUS
- ($40 US)
ANCIENT ASTRONAUT OR MYTHIC SCENE ?
Stone-cast relief, terracotta hydrostone, 185 x 111 mm (7 x 4.5 inches), hand detailed in antique gold, with large wood display stand & back label description.
Scaled-down replica of the carved sarcophagus of the Mayan king Pacal Votan the Great from 615-683 A.D, discovered within an ancient pyramid at Palenque in 1952 .
In 1949, Mexican archaeologist Alberto Lhullier discovered a staircase plunging into the heart of the Pyramid of Inscriptions at Palenque in the Mexican highlands. After three years of excavation, he penetrated the burial chamber to find a 20 ton stone coffin with a wonderfully carved lid. Inside was the skeleton of a Mayan ruler, covered in jade. Lhullier had found one of the most magnificent and famous pieces of Maya art yet discovered, on a ten foot tombstone from 692 AD.
In 1968, Swiss author Erich von DŠniken brought the Palenque sarcophagus new fame when he published his bestseller Chariots of the Gods. He quoted a Soviet scientist who claimed the carving depicted the image of an ancient astronaut in a spaceship. This caused tremendous interest around the world and is still often cited as evidence for high technology in the ancient past.
Of course Mayan scholars tell a different story, believing it to be a mythic portrayal of the resurrected sun god, the Maize God, rising from the jaws of Och Chan, the plumed serpent-dragon. Och Chan's jaws also represent the gates of the Mayan Underworld Xibalba (pron She-Bal-Ba). The newly regenerated Tree Of Life bursts from the Maize God's solar plexus, arresting the destructive activity of the storm god Hurakan above. Hurakan is source of the modern word "hurricane."
Postage:
Ground: $6 Australian dollars - Australia New Zealand
Air: $8.50 USD - Asia, India, Pacific, Japan
Air: $10.00 USD - USA & Canada
Air: $12.00 USD - Europe, Scandinavia, Britain, Germany, Italy, Greece, Spain, Mediterranean, Africa, South America & most other locations.
Combined postage when required postal insurance or more expensive registered mail available on request.
Local Australian ground postage 2-3 days
Airmail Europe, USA & Canada 7-14 days
