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- The Maya, an ancient civilization

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that ruled huge
areas of Central America

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for more than two and
a half thousand years.

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- The classic Maya had been
one of the most successful

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societies in the
Americas, if not the world.

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- During their Golden Age, or
Classic Period, 250 to 900 AD,

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there were more than 40 city-states

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and over two million people,
never united as one empire.

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- The Classic Period was a
time of intensive interaction

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between various
kingdoms, alliance networks,

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conflicts, intermarriages.

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- Powerful city-states rose, fought,

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and forged fragile alliances.

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In their rivalries lies the story of
how their entire civilization fell.

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Narratives that we've uncovered
carved in their long-forgotten ruins.

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- We read an amazing story.

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- I'm just thinking about
what that heat and flame

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and seeing the pyramids
burn would have looked like.

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- The classic period was dominated

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by a brutal 200-year-long battle
for control of the Peten region.

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Two ancient
superpowers going head-to-head.

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- We have everything that Game of
Thrones has except the dragons.

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The most powerful player in
the early classic period was

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the Kingdom of Tikal.

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Its ruins tell of its once-greatness,

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and of a leader filled with
ambition and a thirst for power.

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- Chak Tok Ich'aak was a warrior king.

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- And he captured the king of
Washaptun,

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and he took him back to
Tikal, and he sacrificed him.

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- This first attack set into
motion a chain of events

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that would have consequences
for many generations to come.

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Wars with another powerful kingdom.

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Only one of these ancient
superpowers could come out on top.

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360 AD, the height of Mayan existence

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and the midst of the classic period.

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This was the time the
greatest Mayan city stood,

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buried in the forests
of the Peten province

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in Central America.

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Cities that, despite being
allied through belief and trade,

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had complex,
intertwined relationships.

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- The Maya are like
Game of Thrones in this.

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They have people who
betray each other,

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people who love each other,

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people who ally with each other,

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people who marry each other.

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- They dominated what is
today Southern Mexico,

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Guatemala, and Northern Belize.

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- Tikal was the richest
of these Mayan kingdoms

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in the early 300s.

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- In the beginning of
the classic period,

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Tikal was one of the
major, if not the major,

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economical centers of
the early Maya world.

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- Tikal represented abundance.

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This is a paradisiacal
place that's forested,

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jungled, where cacao trees grow.

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Cacao was a major
commodity throughout Mesoamerica.

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It was even used as
money in later periods.

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It was a precious goods,
the drink of the gods itself.

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a place where cotton, jade, the
most precious stone was found in

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the east. And so this was a

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place where they looked at as a
place of luxury, of preciousness,

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where goods were coming in.

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- Tikal was an economic hub. Because
of the scale of the architecture

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in the 300s, the plazas, the

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concentration of people,
certainly it is the place that's

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attracting visitors
from very far away.

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- Mayan trade routes were
extensive, criss-crossing the Peten

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region, Tikal always at their heart.

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- Much of this ancient
city has been lost to time.

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Yet great monuments remain, a
symbol of their once-importance.

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Its inscriptions on these
ancient ruins that have

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unlocked much of Mayan history.

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Sculpted stones named stele
tell long forgotten stories,

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epic tales of love and war.

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They chart the fortunes of the
great Mayan kingdoms, recounting

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the lives of their rulers

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and revealing their role in society.

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- Maya kings and queens were very
much like rulers, I think, of

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other ancient cultures,

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in, say, Egypt or Ancient
Greece, where their power was

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derived from, of course, politics

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and economics, but also
their power was drawn from their

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supposed connections to the divine

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world, through their relationship to
ancestors, to deities, to

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the forces of the cosmos.

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- So there were layers of the
above world, and there were

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layers of the below world, and

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there were people in the
middle, on the middle world.

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- One of the first sacred
Mayan kings was Chak Tok Ich'aak.

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- People argue, "Well, is he
really divine, or is he just sacred?"

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No, they are divine power.

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And they called this majesty Awil.

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The 14th king of the Mutul dynasty,

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Chak Tok Ich'aak, took to the throne
as the divine ruler of Tikal.

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Experts can only guess as to why.

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But under his almighty
rule, Tikal started to grow,

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to expand, to show its might
to the surrounding cities.

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One way he did this was
through construction.

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- The other way for the Maya to
exert power was through force.

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- For a long time, we have known

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that the Maya had constant
conflict among kingdoms.

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The Maya practiced war
like any other civilization

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to conquer a city for power,
for expanding their kingdoms.

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- But it wasn't just
power a city gained.

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There were other clear advantages.

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- The Maya fought
wars for many reasons,

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but one of them was to obtain tribute

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from their
adversaries, from their enemy.

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So they gave them
chocolate, they gave them feathers,

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they gave them shells,
they gave them fine cloth,

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they gave them people,
slaves, both men and women.

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So tribute was a very
important feature of the royal court.

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- After 16 years on the throne,

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Chak Tok Ich'aak had ensured
Tikal continued to thrive,

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building palaces and
establishing trade routes,

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the remains of which
can still be seen.

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But Chak Tok Ich'aak wanted more,
and the only other way to expand

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his power was to create

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an empire -to attack
other Mayan cities.

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Inscriptions carved in the stones of
Tikal speak of one such vie for power

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the attack of a city just 18
kilometres to the north

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-Uaxactun.

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- So Chak Tok Ich'aak was a warrior
king.

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We know this from an important
monument from Tikal that was

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dedicated in the year 376 that

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shows him standing atop a
captive and probably a ruler from

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Uaxactun, which is the neighboring

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kingdom to Tikal and also a very
important place in the early classic.

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- We believe Chak Tok Ich'aak
launched his attack

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under the cover of darkness. This
was typical of a Mayan conquest.

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They favoured ambush
over direct attack.

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Taking a town by surprise to
avoid them fighting back, their aim

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not to kill all, but to capture

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the rival king and other nobles.

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to ransack temples, cause chaos.

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- Chak Tok Ich'aak attacked
Uaxactun,

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which was only a few
kilometers away to the north.

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And he captured the king of Uaxactun

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and he took him back to
Tikal and he sacrificed him.

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- With the old king gone, they
wanted to install a new dynasty.

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- We can tell that Chak Tok Ich'aak,
it seems an aggressor and at

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least a victor of a conflict,

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victorious over Washaktun.

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Uaxactun was defeated.

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From then on, Tekal
ruled over Uaxactun.

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its people forced to
pay tribute, to obey.

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But as Chak Tok Ich'aak's
power in the region grew,

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it became a threat to
other great ancient powers.

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The start of a domino effect

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that would have
ramifications across Central America

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for centuries to come.

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- I wonder if this may
have caught the attention

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in some way of Teotihuacan.

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- The King of Tikal, Chak Tok Ich'aak,

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attacked Uaxactun in 376.

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The Teotihuacan people,
they thought this is not good.

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There's something bad here.

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And so they knew they
were going to have a war

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with the King of Tikal.

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- This would not have been
what Chak Tok Ich'aak wanted.

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Teotihuacan was formidable,
another ancient powerhouse.

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Located 1,000
kilometers west of Tikal,

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it was a city dominated by
imposing pyramid temples

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dedicated to the sun and moon
that is still visible today.

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This was the so
-called City of the Gods.

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- Teotihuacan was a city
like no other in Mesoamerica.

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It's famous because it is scale.

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About 100,000 people
were living in the city

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and it's metropolitan nature.

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It's sort of like New York
of the new world itself.

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It was a place that everybody
wanted to see for themselves.

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And many migrants came
from throughout Mesoamerica

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in search for job
opportunities, connections.

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- This was not a Mayan kingdom.

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The exact origin of its
people remains unknown,

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but artifacts show us that Teotihuacan

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had a different
culture, a different language,

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a different religion.

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And where Tikal was the hub
of the Mayan civilization,

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Teotihuacan was at the heart

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of the entire ancient American world.

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Protected by so
-called Jaguar warriors,

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their spears able to pierce
armor from 50 meters away.

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The city was the
richest and most powerful,

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its reach extending far
beyond modern day central Mexico,

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all the way into the Mayan heartlands.

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- We know that Tikal and Teotihuacan

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had a very strong
relationship going back decades

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decades, we're not sure
exactly what the relationship was,

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but if anything they

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knew each other very well.

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- Large portions of ancient
Teotihuacan still stand today.

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Excavations began in

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the 1880s and restorations followed in
the early 20th century. The finds here

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paint a picture of this great
civilization, of trade, of connection.

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They go so far as to show that
people from other Mayan cities,

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from Tikal, were living here.

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- The best evidences of a Maya
community residing in Teotihuacan

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is the Merchant's Barrio,

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where we know that
there are ceramic materials

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from the Maya region,

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but more recently at Plaza of
the Columns complex we have been

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able to identify abundant Maya

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materials. The architecture itself
also looks very Maya-like,

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maybe even Maya palace-like,

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and so we're not just talking
about migrants coming to Teotihuacan

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in search for job opportunities,

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but actually Maya dignitaries,
maybe even real individuals that

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came and even resided in the

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the heart of Teotihuacan in
the ceremonial core itself.

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- But it wasn't just
Mayans living in Teotihuacan.

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In 2024, archaeologists
found the remains of families

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from Teotihuacan in Tikal.

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- Despite being allies,

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the culture and imagery
within Tikal and Teotihuacan

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were vastly different.

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Each city with its own distinct style

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that experts can easily recognize.

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- With mutual migration,

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there would have been
ample opportunities

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for migrants to spy,

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whilst also going
about their daily lives,

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observing, listening,

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and reporting back to the
city from once they came.

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And rumours are dangerous.

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potentially powerful
enough to start wars.

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- If there were
Teotihuacan people living at Tikal,

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then I'm sure they were
somehow setting the stage

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for whatever happened.

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But surely there's some
very complex relationships

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behind it, family
relationships,

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political relationships.

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So whoever was there at
Tikal living in the area,

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this enclave, surely played a role.

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- In 1960, archaeologists
discovered a stele buried

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in the North Acropolis of Tikal

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that explains what happened next.

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Carved with highly complex
Mayan script known as glyphs,

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it took years for
researchers to unscramble.

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Whilst Western languages
use a 26-letter alphabet,

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Mayan writing consists of 800 glyphs

242
00:19:43,354 --> 00:19:47,314
organised in double columns
that are read from left to right.

243
00:19:49,674 --> 00:19:51,794
This is Tikal Stele 31.

244
00:19:51,874 --> 00:19:55,274
It's one of the most
important Maya monuments there is.

245
00:19:56,154 --> 00:19:58,594
This is because it's explaining

246
00:19:58,674 --> 00:20:04,074
the whole political change at Tikal.
The back inscription is very long.

247
00:20:04,154 --> 00:20:05,514
When you see long inscriptions,

248
00:20:05,594 --> 00:20:08,274
you tend to think there's
something they need to justify.

249
00:20:08,354 --> 00:20:09,954
There's something
they need to explain.

250
00:20:10,194 --> 00:20:13,674
And what they're explaining
is this big power change.

251
00:20:14,634 --> 00:20:17,434
- One of the glyphs
that repeatedly appears

252
00:20:17,514 --> 00:20:21,554
is the name of one of
Teotihuacan's greatest rulers,

253
00:20:22,194 --> 00:20:24,314
a king who would change the balance

254
00:20:24,394 --> 00:20:25,874
of the Mayan world forever.

255
00:20:27,274 --> 00:20:29,794
- So here we have the
name of Spear Thrower Owl.

256
00:20:30,354 --> 00:20:33,354
His name is composed of a hand

257
00:20:33,754 --> 00:20:35,794
which is holding a
wooden spear thrower.

258
00:20:35,874 --> 00:20:38,834
Now this is essentially
not really a Maya glyph.

259
00:20:38,914 --> 00:20:42,034
This is already something
which is indicating foreignness.

260
00:20:50,234 --> 00:20:54,594
- Spear Thrower Owl is really, I
think,

261
00:20:54,674 --> 00:20:57,874
one of the most curious
figures of Mesoamerican history.

262
00:20:58,234 --> 00:21:01,314
We read about him at
Tikal, and we read about him

263
00:21:01,394 --> 00:21:02,434
at other sites as well.

264
00:21:02,874 --> 00:21:05,994
Most of our information about
him comes from the Maya world,

265
00:21:06,994 --> 00:21:11,794
but we believe that he
was not a Maya king,

266
00:21:11,874 --> 00:21:13,874
but actually a ruler of Teotihuacan.

267
00:21:13,954 --> 00:21:17,034
He comes to power in 374.

268
00:21:19,274 --> 00:21:21,234
- This iconic ancient character

269
00:21:21,594 --> 00:21:24,274
somehow became
entwined in Mayan history

270
00:21:24,914 --> 00:21:28,194
during the late 300s
and right at the peak

271
00:21:28,274 --> 00:21:30,314
of Chak Tok Ich'aak's reign in Tikal.

272
00:21:31,154 --> 00:21:35,034
The question archaeologists
needed to answer was, why?

273
00:21:36,194 --> 00:21:39,354
By piecing together the
stories on this stone and others,

274
00:21:39,914 --> 00:21:43,194
they found that it all
came back to Tikal's ruler

275
00:21:43,274 --> 00:21:44,754
and his need for power.

276
00:21:46,434 --> 00:21:50,074
- So Chak Tok Ich'aak and
his victory over Uaxactun,

277
00:21:50,714 --> 00:21:54,034
it may have been an event
that in some way led up

278
00:21:54,114 --> 00:21:57,554
to the desire of Teotihuacan elites

279
00:21:57,634 --> 00:22:00,074
and the ruler of
Teotihuacan, Spear Thrower Owl,

280
00:22:01,074 --> 00:22:05,434
to interfere, to somehow
insert himself in the Maya world.

281
00:22:11,114 --> 00:22:13,794
- Teotihuacan readied its warriors.

282
00:22:14,674 --> 00:22:17,674
Artwork on ancient
walls show their costumes

283
00:22:18,154 --> 00:22:22,954
incorporated animal elements,
symbolizing spiritual armor.

284
00:22:23,274 --> 00:22:27,314
These ancient cultures
believed that part of the human soul

285
00:22:27,394 --> 00:22:28,954
could take the form of an animal.

286
00:22:32,354 --> 00:22:36,514
the armies of Teotihuacan
taking the form of jaguars.

287
00:22:45,594 --> 00:22:48,514
The remains of their
ancient stone monuments

288
00:22:48,954 --> 00:22:51,274
tell us that as they
set off to battle,

289
00:22:51,674 --> 00:22:54,474
their leader, Spear Thrower Owl,

290
00:22:54,914 --> 00:22:56,794
didn't leave Teotihuacan.

291
00:22:57,234 --> 00:23:01,354
He stayed, ensuring his
throne remained secure.

292
00:23:02,594 --> 00:23:06,314
This meant that someone
else had to lead his armies.

293
00:23:09,034 --> 00:23:14,354
At Tikal, the stones talk about two
people, not just one. One

294
00:23:14,434 --> 00:23:16,274
of them is Spearthrower Al.

295
00:23:21,034 --> 00:23:24,394
And the other one is
Fireborn, Siak-Kak.

296
00:23:25,674 --> 00:23:29,594
The question is, who was Siyaj K'ak?

297
00:23:30,114 --> 00:23:32,634
- I think he was
clearly a representative of

298
00:23:32,714 --> 00:23:35,914
Spear Thrower Owl in some way.

299
00:23:35,994 --> 00:23:38,234
They seemed to be acting together.

300
00:23:38,314 --> 00:23:43,434
He was perhaps a Maya
warlord or a Maya elite

301
00:23:43,514 --> 00:23:46,674
who had lived at
Teotihuacan for a long time,

302
00:23:46,754 --> 00:23:49,314
was part of the
Teotihuacan political culture,

303
00:23:49,994 --> 00:23:55,594
but who was chosen or somehow
designated to be at the front line

304
00:23:55,674 --> 00:23:59,754
of this intrusion by
Teotihuacan into the Maya heartland.

305
00:24:05,034 --> 00:24:07,874
- Siyaj K'ak was a man of Mayan origin

306
00:24:07,954 --> 00:24:11,874
who somehow rose to
political power in Teotihuacan.

307
00:24:13,634 --> 00:24:15,234
He was the chosen one,

308
00:24:15,474 --> 00:24:18,234
the man who Spear Thrower Owl trusted

309
00:24:18,314 --> 00:24:20,354
to lead his powerful armies.

310
00:24:21,594 --> 00:24:23,834
But with more than a
thousand kilometers

311
00:24:23,914 --> 00:24:25,114
between the two cities,

312
00:24:25,634 --> 00:24:28,674
Siyaj K'ak couldn't simply march on
Tikal.

313
00:24:29,314 --> 00:24:32,754
His first role would
have been to gain allies,

314
00:24:33,594 --> 00:24:35,794
other cities that
would join the fight,

315
00:24:36,274 --> 00:24:39,514
providing guides,
troops, and supplies,

316
00:24:39,834 --> 00:24:43,834
a base close to Tikal from
which to launch his attack.

317
00:24:45,394 --> 00:24:47,994
- The first mention we have of Siyaj
K'ak

318
00:24:48,434 --> 00:24:50,914
and his journey towards Tikal

319
00:24:51,594 --> 00:24:53,594
comes from a stone monument

320
00:24:53,874 --> 00:24:57,114
at a site to the west of Tikal

321
00:24:58,154 --> 00:25:00,154
known as El Peru Waka.

322
00:25:24,514 --> 00:25:27,274
A village west of Tikal,

323
00:25:27,674 --> 00:25:31,594
El Peru Waka is where experts believe

324
00:25:31,674 --> 00:25:34,434
Siyaj K'ak planted his strategic base.

325
00:25:40,314 --> 00:25:42,474
- Waka is on the intersection

326
00:25:42,554 --> 00:25:44,234
of two important riverine arteries.

327
00:25:44,834 --> 00:25:47,474
It's a highly important trading center

328
00:25:47,794 --> 00:25:50,794
situated prominently
atop of a high escarpment.

329
00:25:50,874 --> 00:25:52,274
It has great visibility,

330
00:25:52,354 --> 00:25:54,754
a really tremendously strong viewshed.

331
00:25:54,834 --> 00:25:56,434
So tactically and strategically,

332
00:25:56,994 --> 00:26:01,154
It's an important location on
a long-existing trade route.

333
00:26:02,794 --> 00:26:05,594
- It's here that one stone in
particular

334
00:26:05,674 --> 00:26:10,234
has shed light on the timeline
of Siyaj K'ak's attack on Tikal.

335
00:26:10,954 --> 00:26:14,994
- I think what makes Stele 15
so historically important

336
00:26:15,074 --> 00:26:18,794
is the important
documentation of the 378 event

337
00:26:18,874 --> 00:26:22,474
and particularly the
eight-day prior note

338
00:26:22,554 --> 00:26:24,874
of Siyaj K'ak coming through Wakha.

339
00:26:28,194 --> 00:26:29,314
What's he doing there?

340
00:26:30,514 --> 00:26:35,194
- Well, some people think he's
there to impose power on Waka

341
00:26:35,274 --> 00:26:39,354
and take people from Waka with
him to go and attack Tikal.

342
00:26:40,034 --> 00:26:42,754
He's on his way with an
army from Teotihuacan.

343
00:26:43,514 --> 00:26:46,954
- But would the people of
Waka really turn against Tikal,

344
00:26:47,034 --> 00:26:48,954
their long-term ally?

345
00:26:49,874 --> 00:26:53,434
- I wouldn't be surprised if
there were promises, alliance, and

346
00:26:53,514 --> 00:26:54,874
then the benefits and outcomes

347
00:26:54,954 --> 00:26:57,394
of that alliance that
that would afford Waka.

348
00:26:58,874 --> 00:27:04,674
- If this pact was formed,
Kinich-Balaam, the king of Waka,

349
00:27:04,754 --> 00:27:06,194
likely provided warriors to

350
00:27:06,274 --> 00:27:09,954
march alongside the
Jaguar army of Teotihuacan.

351
00:27:11,034 --> 00:27:13,074
Tikal had been betrayed.

352
00:27:19,954 --> 00:27:23,714
- It is not just a stopping point
on the route, although for all

353
00:27:23,794 --> 00:27:24,754
the reasons I've said,

354
00:27:24,834 --> 00:27:29,274
there's a tremendous gain to be
had coming and sort of stopping

355
00:27:29,354 --> 00:27:30,474
and having this be probably

356
00:27:30,554 --> 00:27:33,034
one of the last points along
the route before the final push

357
00:27:33,114 --> 00:27:35,474
into Tikal. But I think that

358
00:27:35,554 --> 00:27:40,834
there's more to it than that
regarding the symbolic and ritual

359
00:27:40,914 --> 00:27:42,794
significance of Waka.

360
00:27:44,074 --> 00:27:49,474
- Waka was a kingdom of
sorcerers and magic and a long-term

361
00:27:49,554 --> 00:27:52,114
ally of Tikal. Taking this

362
00:27:52,194 --> 00:27:56,034
settlement was the ultimate show of
intent. Teotihuacan was

363
00:27:56,114 --> 00:27:58,954
capable of taking anything it

364
00:27:59,034 --> 00:28:04,794
chose. Yet, Chak Tok Ich'aak,
king of Tikal, would have been

365
00:28:04,874 --> 00:28:07,114
unaware of this impending threat,

366
00:28:07,394 --> 00:28:12,994
of the betrayal of Teotihuacan and
Waka. Sixty-five

367
00:28:13,074 --> 00:28:14,554
kilometers to the north,

368
00:28:14,914 --> 00:28:18,954
Stele-24 tells us that
another city, Naachtun, had

369
00:28:19,034 --> 00:28:21,874
also joined Siyaj K'ak,

370
00:28:22,954 --> 00:28:25,434
despite its previous
allegiance with

371
00:28:25,514 --> 00:28:27,674
Chak Tok Ich'aak and Tikal.

372
00:28:29,114 --> 00:28:34,474
- This was not just some
isolated event, some random attack,

373
00:28:34,554 --> 00:28:37,394
but rather that it
involved many Maya kingdoms.

374
00:28:37,874 --> 00:28:41,314
Perhaps these were
allies against Tikal.

375
00:28:56,514 --> 00:29:00,754
Artwork shows Teotihuacan's new allies

376
00:29:00,994 --> 00:29:03,474
also gave them other Mayan skillsets.

377
00:29:29,914 --> 00:29:33,714
- The Maya had a deep
understanding of the night sky.

378
00:29:34,354 --> 00:29:38,234
Archeologists have found
tables detailing lunar cycles,

379
00:29:38,314 --> 00:29:40,834
the movements of Venus and Mars,

380
00:29:40,914 --> 00:29:43,634
and predictions of solar eclipses

381
00:29:43,714 --> 00:29:46,434
all calculated with
remarkable precision.

382
00:29:47,114 --> 00:29:49,754
But this knowledge wasn't only used

383
00:29:49,834 --> 00:29:51,514
to understand the cosmos.

384
00:29:52,154 --> 00:29:53,274
It was a weapon.

385
00:29:53,954 --> 00:29:56,794
The Maya believed
Venus, in particular,

386
00:29:57,354 --> 00:30:01,394
played a key role in the
planning of conflicts,

387
00:30:01,474 --> 00:30:04,114
and use of the moon was strategic.

388
00:30:25,714 --> 00:30:31,394
- The lunar cycle also acted
as a form of communication.

389
00:30:56,994 --> 00:31:01,834
The strike was meticulously
recorded on a monument in Tikal.

390
00:31:03,274 --> 00:31:07,314
- So as part of the narrative on
Stele 31, these extraordinary

391
00:31:07,394 --> 00:31:09,274
events that took place in the

392
00:31:09,354 --> 00:31:11,634
year 378, what we call the Entrada.

393
00:31:13,074 --> 00:31:17,194
- This was the moment Tikal's
destiny was forever changed.

394
00:31:18,074 --> 00:31:22,514
The stones tell us that the
attack was swift, coordinated.

395
00:31:23,314 --> 00:31:25,754
The jaguar warriors and their allies

396
00:31:26,194 --> 00:31:29,434
struck simultaneously
from several directions.

397
00:31:30,634 --> 00:31:34,274
Tikal, despite its
power, was taken by surprise.

398
00:31:36,234 --> 00:31:39,114
- This was a moonless night, clearly

399
00:31:39,194 --> 00:31:41,234
a violent event of some sort.

400
00:31:41,314 --> 00:31:44,354
It really does seem like
it's a hostile takeover

401
00:31:44,434 --> 00:31:46,514
of the dynasty of Tikal.

402
00:31:49,154 --> 00:31:53,554
- In this story, Siyaj K'ak had a
militia

403
00:31:53,634 --> 00:31:56,234
of a group of
powerful mercenary warriors

404
00:31:56,594 --> 00:31:59,514
who used their very special weapons,

405
00:31:59,594 --> 00:32:02,834
the projectiles that were
thrown with a throwing stick.

406
00:32:04,634 --> 00:32:07,514
- Within the chaos, Siyaj K'ak,

407
00:32:07,594 --> 00:32:10,394
the leader of the Teotihuacan army,

408
00:32:10,474 --> 00:32:15,794
had one aim, capture
Chak Tok Ich'aak, King of Tikal.

409
00:32:16,714 --> 00:32:18,674
- Here is the name of Chak Tok
Ich'aak.

410
00:32:19,674 --> 00:32:22,434
This term here tells us that he dies,

411
00:32:22,514 --> 00:32:25,554
and he dies on the
same day that Siyaj K'ak,

412
00:32:26,194 --> 00:32:29,554
with the
Teotihuacanos, arrives at Tikal.

413
00:32:39,474 --> 00:32:44,314
- Surrounded, overwhelmed, and
betrayed by his once-allies,

414
00:32:44,554 --> 00:32:48,794
Chak Tok Ich'aak 18
-year rule came to an end

415
00:32:48,874 --> 00:32:53,554
when he was executed on the
night of the 16th of January,

416
00:32:54,114 --> 00:32:56,034
378 AD.

417
00:32:57,314 --> 00:33:00,514
- They overcame Chak Tok Ich'aak and
killed him.

418
00:33:17,234 --> 00:33:22,954
- With Chak Tok Ich'aak gone, Tikal
fell. It was no longer to be a

419
00:33:23,034 --> 00:33:26,594
Mayan city. Instead, the

420
00:33:26,674 --> 00:33:31,434
kingdom took on Teotihuacan's
jaguar emblem, and Monument Stele

421
00:33:31,514 --> 00:33:34,634
31 tells us that Spear Thrower

422
00:33:34,714 --> 00:33:39,114
Owl, the Teotihuacan
king, chose another to rule his

423
00:33:39,194 --> 00:33:46,274
new enclave, Yashnunayin, his own son.

424
00:33:51,714 --> 00:33:56,554
- Yashnunayin seems to be quite
young, he may even be a few

425
00:33:56,634 --> 00:33:59,394
years old at most when he is

426
00:33:59,474 --> 00:34:02,634
installed as the new king of Tikal.

427
00:34:04,914 --> 00:34:08,274
- With a Mayan mother
and Teotihuacan blood

428
00:34:08,354 --> 00:34:09,634
on his father's side,

429
00:34:10,234 --> 00:34:14,114
he was the perfect symbol
of the new order that Spear

430
00:34:14,194 --> 00:34:16,074
thrower oWl wanted to impose.

431
00:34:17,194 --> 00:34:18,994
But it was to be short-lived.

432
00:34:20,314 --> 00:34:24,314
In the early part of the 5th
century, Spear Thrower Owl died.

433
00:34:25,114 --> 00:34:28,074
Then Siyaj K'ak
disappeared from inscriptions.

434
00:34:29,674 --> 00:34:36,674
In 404 A.D., at the age of just
25, Yashnunayin passed away.

435
00:34:38,234 --> 00:34:41,594
- He was quite young when he
died, but he already had a son.

436
00:34:42,034 --> 00:34:45,794
And that son we know
as Sihyaj Chan K'awil.

437
00:34:46,674 --> 00:34:51,074
A ruler who took the
throne in the year 411 A.D.

438
00:34:51,154 --> 00:34:55,874
and would go on to become one of the
greatest kings of Tikal's golden age,

439
00:34:56,394 --> 00:34:59,634
his reign marked with
spectacular inscriptions.

440
00:35:01,514 --> 00:35:05,514
- On the front we see a king in
full regalia,

441
00:35:05,594 --> 00:35:08,514
his name is Sihyaj Chan
K'awil,

442
00:35:08,954 --> 00:35:12,114
and he is at this moment
in time the king of Tikal.

443
00:35:12,594 --> 00:35:15,834
He's dressed as a really
traditional Maya king,

444
00:35:15,914 --> 00:35:20,794
he is in a sense re
-establishing the dynasty of Tikal,

445
00:35:20,874 --> 00:35:23,874
because that dynasty has been
ruptured and that's really the

446
00:35:23,954 --> 00:35:25,114
story of this monument.

447
00:35:26,754 --> 00:35:31,794
- Like his father, Sihyaj Chan K'awil
was a descendant of Mayan

448
00:35:31,874 --> 00:35:33,634
royalty on his mother's side

449
00:35:33,994 --> 00:35:36,794
with a Teotihuacan
lineage from his father.

450
00:35:37,754 --> 00:35:42,034
He was the ultimate symbol of the
merge that had taken place in Tikal.

451
00:35:43,874 --> 00:35:47,514
- Sihyaj Chan K'awil
becomes a central figure.

452
00:35:47,594 --> 00:35:52,074
He anchors his authority at
Tikal, I think, in a new way.

453
00:35:52,154 --> 00:35:57,394
Almost see himself as coming
out of this complex history

454
00:35:57,474 --> 00:36:01,634
as a singular figure, a
singular ruler at Tikal,

455
00:36:01,714 --> 00:36:06,354
and able to consolidate all of
these different types of power.

456
00:36:07,634 --> 00:36:11,354
Tikal solidifies its role, I think,

457
00:36:11,434 --> 00:36:15,114
as the central power
player in Maya politics.

458
00:36:15,634 --> 00:36:19,154
We know because it
was the base, I think,

459
00:36:19,234 --> 00:36:21,034
of this Teotihuacan enclave.

460
00:36:21,274 --> 00:36:24,434
And it was in this time
that they forged this network,

461
00:36:24,514 --> 00:36:27,834
this alliance system,
with various Maya kingdoms.

462
00:36:27,914 --> 00:36:29,274
And this is something that was new.

463
00:36:29,354 --> 00:36:30,954
It had not really existed before.

464
00:36:31,514 --> 00:36:33,434
Former enemies were brought together.

465
00:36:34,074 --> 00:36:39,714
So Naachtun, El Ruacan, Rio
Azul, La Sufricaya, Holmul,

466
00:36:40,234 --> 00:36:44,874
- These were all centers
of courts and dynasties

467
00:36:45,114 --> 00:36:48,474
that were now really under the sway

468
00:36:48,554 --> 00:36:52,714
of this singular new
Teotihuacan system.

469
00:36:55,794 --> 00:37:00,674
- For 45 years, Sihyaj Chan K'awil
ruled over this empire.

470
00:37:01,634 --> 00:37:05,434
He forged alliances,
not only with Nashtun

471
00:37:05,514 --> 00:37:09,834
and El Peru Waka, but his name also
appears

472
00:37:09,914 --> 00:37:14,594
in Uaxactun, El Zapot e
Berrucal, and Rio Azul .

473
00:37:17,554 --> 00:37:22,234
Under his reign, Tikal
experienced a new golden age.

474
00:37:22,834 --> 00:37:26,274
The splendor is clear to
archaeologists even now,

475
00:37:26,794 --> 00:37:29,234
some 1,500 years later,

476
00:37:30,514 --> 00:37:33,634
especially in Sihyaj Chan K'awil tomb.

477
00:38:08,834 --> 00:38:13,194
- Royal Mayan tombs often
contained a stone sarcophagus, jade

478
00:38:13,274 --> 00:38:16,114
mosaic masks, intricate

479
00:38:16,394 --> 00:38:21,714
pottery, and shell figurines. They
were generally oriented west or

480
00:38:21,794 --> 00:38:24,314
north to represent the underworld.

481
00:38:25,994 --> 00:38:30,274
Being a people to whom
ritual was a vital part of life,

482
00:38:30,354 --> 00:38:33,874
we can only imagine those
surrounding a royal death.

483
00:38:56,274 --> 00:38:59,754
- Even the burial was
steeped in tradition and ritual,

484
00:39:00,434 --> 00:39:03,354
something that can be seen
in the remains themselves

485
00:39:03,434 --> 00:39:04,714
despite the cause of death.

486
00:39:05,434 --> 00:39:08,594
Experts believe
Sihyaj Chan K'awil was captured

487
00:39:08,834 --> 00:39:13,874
and sacrificed by a
rival king in the year 456,

488
00:39:14,514 --> 00:39:16,474
his head and hands removed

489
00:39:16,874 --> 00:39:18,914
before he was brought home for burial.

490
00:39:21,354 --> 00:39:23,954
- Generally speaking,
they would bundle a king

491
00:39:24,274 --> 00:39:26,114
and wrap him in material

492
00:39:26,354 --> 00:39:29,714
and then cover that
material with smelling resin.

493
00:39:30,074 --> 00:39:34,754
And they would place that
person on a wooden bed,

494
00:39:34,994 --> 00:39:38,154
pallet, and they would
put offerings next to them.

495
00:39:38,234 --> 00:39:40,354
They would put jewels on the chest.

496
00:39:41,354 --> 00:39:44,514
They would prepare that
person to continue to be

497
00:39:44,594 --> 00:39:46,194
a ruler for the rest of time.

498
00:39:46,754 --> 00:39:50,074
So when they started
burying people that way,

499
00:39:50,394 --> 00:39:53,314
the things they buried
with them were very important

500
00:39:53,714 --> 00:39:57,034
because they were not just
offerings for an afterlife.

501
00:39:57,514 --> 00:40:00,794
They were living
things that interconnected,

502
00:40:01,034 --> 00:40:04,594
that together would create power.

503
00:40:06,954 --> 00:40:10,594
- The Maya believed that
death was only a passage.

504
00:40:11,434 --> 00:40:15,114
The offerings in the tomb
were to be used by their rulers

505
00:40:15,354 --> 00:40:17,834
in the underworld of Xibalba.

506
00:40:19,194 --> 00:40:21,714
Dead kings joined the ancestors there,

507
00:40:22,314 --> 00:40:24,954
existing between the
living and the gods.

508
00:40:26,274 --> 00:40:29,274
This is exactly what
the people of Tikal

509
00:40:29,354 --> 00:40:33,354
would have believed of their
departed king, Sihyaj Chan K'awil

510
00:40:39,794 --> 00:40:44,914
- So our best indication
of the end of the reign

511
00:40:44,994 --> 00:40:48,274
of Sihyaj Chan K'awil is burial 48.

512
00:40:49,034 --> 00:40:52,754
And lucky for us, when
archeologists opened this tomb,

513
00:40:53,594 --> 00:40:56,554
they noticed that there was
a date written on the wall.

514
00:40:59,074 --> 00:41:03,714
- We know it's his tomb, because it's
got hieroglyphic inscriptions on it,

515
00:41:03,954 --> 00:41:06,274
and those are about
the time of his death.

516
00:41:06,354 --> 00:41:09,514
Now, it's probable that
they're not exactly when he died,

517
00:41:09,594 --> 00:41:12,474
because he's died without
his hands and his head.

518
00:41:16,154 --> 00:41:20,394
It's quite possible that he was
captured and sacrificed by an enemy,

519
00:41:20,474 --> 00:41:25,954
and his body was ransomed and
put back in the tomb by his son.

520
00:41:28,314 --> 00:41:32,474
- What he was buried with speaks
to the late king's heritage.

521
00:41:33,234 --> 00:41:38,314
Sihyaj Chan K'awil thought of himself
as part of the Teotihuacan legacy,

522
00:41:38,954 --> 00:41:41,114
rather than simply a Mayan king.

523
00:41:42,674 --> 00:41:46,394
- Many of the ceramics from
Burial 48, in fact, are in the

524
00:41:46,474 --> 00:41:47,914
style of Teotihuacan.

525
00:41:48,154 --> 00:41:53,794
They are a very nice indication, I
think, of Sihyaj Chan K'awil's

526
00:41:53,874 --> 00:41:57,154
connections to Teotihuacan itself.

527
00:41:57,594 --> 00:42:01,634
rather than being this
enemy-conquering power,

528
00:42:02,394 --> 00:42:05,634
was rather part of his
own personal history.

529
00:42:19,554 --> 00:42:23,394
- For over a century, a
hybrid dynasty ruled.

530
00:42:23,914 --> 00:42:27,874
Tikal controlled the lowlands
with the support of Teotihuacan,

531
00:42:27,954 --> 00:42:30,994
but it wasn't to last.

532
00:42:31,474 --> 00:42:37,554
With the death of Sihyaj Chan K'awil
on the 3rd of February 456 AD,

533
00:42:37,634 --> 00:42:40,114
this period of Mayan history

534
00:42:40,554 --> 00:42:46,994
came to a close. Beyond the deep
forests of Peten, a new power

535
00:42:47,074 --> 00:42:50,674
was rising. Its symbol, a serpent.

536
00:43:02,274 --> 00:43:05,994
- It's what we call an emblem
glyph, and that's basically a royal

537
00:43:06,074 --> 00:43:08,794
title that Maya kings carried,

538
00:43:08,874 --> 00:43:11,274
and it's different for
each city, each dynasty.

539
00:43:11,954 --> 00:43:15,634
For the Kaanul, it was
the head of a serpent.

540
00:43:17,794 --> 00:43:22,634
- Around 500 or so, we see
this extraordinary rise

541
00:43:22,714 --> 00:43:27,554
of the Kaanuls as the new power.

542
00:43:31,594 --> 00:43:37,274
- When we began to understand
political relationships and political

543
00:43:37,354 --> 00:43:38,754
mentions in the inscriptions,

544
00:43:39,594 --> 00:43:42,994
it was very clear very
quickly that there was one kingdom

545
00:43:43,074 --> 00:43:46,274
that was mentioned in more

546
00:43:46,354 --> 00:43:49,354
More places than anyone else,
more times than anyone else, and

547
00:43:49,434 --> 00:43:51,834
that was particularly intriguing

548
00:43:51,914 --> 00:43:57,434
because this was a kingdom of which
we did not know where it was based.

549
00:43:57,514 --> 00:44:01,474
We knew its name, we knew it
was a Kaanul, that it's the

550
00:44:01,554 --> 00:44:03,834
snake place, it's the kings

551
00:44:03,914 --> 00:44:07,434
of the snake place, but we didn't
know where the snake place was.

552
00:44:08,114 --> 00:44:12,234
- It wasn't until the 1990s
that we finally found it.

553
00:44:12,594 --> 00:44:15,514
A place today known as Dzibanche.

554
00:44:16,154 --> 00:44:19,074
It's from here that
the Kaanul dynasty grew

555
00:44:19,394 --> 00:44:21,594
and plotted its next move.

556
00:44:22,754 --> 00:44:26,434
- The Kaanul lords
were clearly interested

557
00:44:26,914 --> 00:44:30,514
in coming into the world of Tikal.

558
00:44:30,594 --> 00:44:33,474
He wanted the
chocolate and jade and slaves

559
00:44:33,554 --> 00:44:35,554
going across the Maya
world through Tikal.

560
00:44:57,754 --> 00:44:59,754
- A new war was brewing.

561
00:45:01,154 --> 00:45:05,274
Longer, more
destructive, more decisive.

562
00:45:05,994 --> 00:45:10,554
The jaguars of Tikal against
the serpents of the Kaanul.

563
00:45:11,474 --> 00:45:15,634
This time, it was to be
a war between Mayans.

564
00:45:17,154 --> 00:45:19,514
- And that's another story.

565
00:45:21,514 --> 00:45:23,994
- Amongst the chaos
of a fallen kingdom,

566
00:45:24,314 --> 00:45:26,194
a new order rises,

567
00:45:26,674 --> 00:45:29,914
ready to take on the
other great superpower

568
00:45:29,994 --> 00:45:35,874
in the ancient Peten
region, jaguars versus snakes.

569
00:45:36,194 --> 00:45:38,194
Only one could win