Discover the bloodletting ritual of the ancient Maya queen Lady Xoc (Lady K'abal Xook) on Lintel 24 at Yaxchilán, who is shown piercing her tongue with a thorned rope, and making a sacred offering to the gods. This video explores bloodletting among women in the Classic Maya world through one of the most famous sculptures from Yaxchilán, a Maya city-state in Chiapas, Mexico. Lady Xook, the wife of King Shield Jaguar (Itzamnaaj B'alam III), performs a bloodletting ritual as part of her royal responsibility.

Bloodletting was central to Maya beliefs, and this video discusses why it was important. The role of women in such rituals is also preserved in the murals of Bonampak, where a group of royal women is shown performing similar acts of bloodletting. In both Bonampak and Yaxchilán, these images conveyed elite power, religious duty, and the belief that royal blood nourished the cosmos.

This video is perfect for anyone interested in:

• Ancient Maya history, archaeology, or art history

• Royal women and queenship

• Mesoamerica

• Bloodletting or autosacrifice

• The history of women

Speaker: Dr. Lauren Kilroy-Ewbank

CHAPTERS

0:00 Lady Xook and Lintel 24 0:30 Understanding bloodletting 1:04 How the ritual is depicted on Lintel 24 1:48 Blood in Maya cosmology 3:30 Bonampak comparison

Learn more

1. Check out our entire glossary of art history: https://www.artsq.org/about-key-terms-ideas-art-history

2. Learn about the ancient Maya: https://www.artsq.org/the-ancient-maya-of-mesoamerica

3. Read our introduction to Mesoamerica: https://www.artsq.org/store/p/introduction-to-mesoamerica-reading