Lady Xoc

Noble person

32

Who is Lady Xoc?

Lady Kʻabʻal Xook or Lady Xoc was a Maya Queen consort of Yaxchilan and is considered to have been one of the most powerful and prominent women in Maya civilization. She was the principal wife and aunt of the King Itzamnaaj B'alam II who ruled Yaxchilan from AD 681 to 742.

She is believed by many to have been the sister of Lady Pacal. Yaxchilan is located in Chiapas, Mexico and is considered to be one of the more prominent of the Maya civilizations. Laughton reports that hieroglyphs in Yaxchilan indicate that the city was known to its citizens as ‘The Place of the Split Sky.’

Lady Xoc is best known for adorning Structure 23 in Yaxchilan with 3 lintels that depict her performing rituals. Royal women of Maya civilization are often depicted via texts and iconography like lintels. However, other women of Maya culture are not depicted in this manner. Also, Lady Xoc appears in the images performing ritual sacrifices which women were not typically seen doing in ancient Maya art. It is through Lady Xoc and her lintels that we understand just how involved royal women were with Maya rituals and politics. It has even been suggested that Lady Xoc acted as a regent.

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on July 23, 2013

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