an animal that represented several forms of ancient Maya gods. Catherwood’s highly romanticized illustration is one of the only Western records of the colossal head before it dropped to the ground. It ...

Drawing several parallels to figures from Greek ... violence and death. This Maya god is often depicted as a sadistic ...

On one side of the sculpture, two serpents intertwine and hold a grotesque figure and a blood-letter (an instrument that allowed one to draw one’s own blood for sacrifice to the gods). Performing ...