Ceramic Cup with Hieroglyphic Inscription
Ceramic Cup with Hieroglyphic Inscription
Maya
About A.D. 600-800
Guatemala, Petén, El Zotz region
Earthenware with colored slips.
Gift of Dr. M. Larry and Nancy B. Ottis; 1996.3
This vessel probably comes from the region of El Zotz, where similar vessels have been found. The high-quality of the painted glyphs that encircle its rim belie the simplicity of their message. The passage simply reads: Ay ? yich u tz’ihbil u jaay. In English, this roughly translates as “It is _(verbed)_, its surface, the painting/writing of his vessel.” Such highly self-referential texts are common in the ancient Maya world, where standard texts on painted ceramics generally focus on describing the vessel itself, the scribe who painted it, and/or the person who owned it.
For a vessel with a very similar inscription, see 1997.351.
-Lucia R. Henderson, 2016 (hieroglyphic reading provided in consultation with David Stuart)
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