Maya
Painted and Modeled Funerary Urn
AD250-900
Jaguar spots adorn the central face and with the addition of large earspools, the iconography suggests that it is a depiction of Xbalanque, one of the hero twins. The skulls flanking the face connect the vessel with the Underworld.
William P. Palmer III Collection
Maya Polychrome 
Hacha
AD 250-900
The connection between the ballgame and the death is evident in this skeleton shaped ball court marker.
William P. Palmer III Collection
Hacha
AD 200-1100
This piece of ballgame gear depicts Life and Death-a dualism that appeared often in Precolumbian Mesoamerican art.
William P. Palmer III Collection
Limestone Glyph Panel
AD 600-900
This piece, probably a temple stair riser, was one of a series of at least 20 panels from a site on the Usumacinta River. The panel depicts only a portion of a larger text. The panels date, 13 Kan 2 Kankin, appears in the second row of glyphs from the bottom.
William P. Palmer III Collection
Jaina Island-style Warrior Figurine
AD 600-900
This figure would have been one of an assemblage of figurines placed in the tomb of an elite Maya.
William P. Palmer III Collection
Greenstone Pendant
AD 250-900
The pendant depicts a seated ruler with elaborate headdress.
William P. Palmer III Collection
Greenstone Necklace
The pendant of this necklace depicts Camazotz, the bat god who symbolizes night, death, and sacrifice.
William P. Palmer III Collection
Cylinder Vase
AD 600-900
A ruler seated on a throne gestures toward a kneeling figure that may represent a bound captive destined for sacrifice. Kneeling trumpeters are depicted on the reverse.
William P. Palmer III Collection
Vase with Battle Scenes
AD 250-900
This Vessel depicts warriors and dismembered victims.
William P. Palmer III Collection
Cylinder Vase with stylized Bat Heads
AD 600-900
William P. Palmer III Collection
Bat Rattle
The imagery may relate to the House of Bats, which is referenced in the Popul Vub, a K’iche Maya text chronicling history, recounting creation legends and the exploits of the Hero Twins.
William P. Palmer III Collection