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(3 objects, created 1/26/2012)

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Northwest corner of the Temple of the Macaws; to the right of which stands the remaining wall of the Dovecote. Archaeologist Pépé Huchim; who grew up at Uxmal and is now the head archaeologist for this site; informs us that what we see here are three stacked faces of the god Chaac or Itzamnah; out of whose mouths three individuals emerge. This could be a representation of the monster of the earth; whose conduct leads to the ancestors returning to earth. (Image Credit: Michelle Williamson; Ideum)

Northwest corner...

This is the figure emerging from the earth monster's mouth on the Temple of the Macaws. It is the face of an old person (look at the eyes) who is returning to the earth; in other words, an ancestor. (Image Credit: Michelle Williamson, Ideum)

This is the figu...

Archaeologists Mary Miller and Karl Taube explain in "The Gods and Symbols of Ancient Mexico and the Maya," that "both parrots and the related larger macaws were much esteemed for their brilliant and multihued plumage" and macaws were "often identified with fire. . . .In Mesoamerican art, macaws can often be identified not only by their thick beak and long tail, but also by a beaded ring encircling the eye." (Image Credit: Jim Spadaccini, Ideum)

Archaeologists M...

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