Tripod Dish: Division of the World into Four Parts
Location
Era
Late classic Period (600-900 C.E.)
Culture
Maya
Title
Tripod Dish: Division of the World into Four Parts
Date
600-850 C.E.
Materials
Earthenware, slip, polychrome painted decoration
Dimensions
8.1 cm (h.), 38.3 cm (diam.)
Credits
Purchase, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Gerald Benjamin, inv. 1972.Ac.1
Collection
Archeology and World Cultures
The world, as it was conceived by the ancient Maya, had two main dimensions: one vertical, with its stacking of subterranean, terrestrial and celestial layers; and the other horizontal, a plane divided into four sections, each associated with a cardinal point. In the centre, at the intersection of the vertical and horizontal planes, was the axis of the world, the point of connection between the upper and lower realms. Placed at the four corners of the earth’s surface, bearers called “bacabs” held up the sky.
