Mayan Hierarchy

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Mayan Hierarchy
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Social Hierarchy
A Mayan Warrior
A Mayan Priest
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Social Hierarchy

• King and ruling family
• Priests
• Hereditary nobility (from which came the merchant
  class)?
• Warriors
• Professionals and artisans
• Peasants
• Slaves

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Social Hierarchy

• King and ruling family
• Ruled from the city-kingdoms such as Tikal
• Ruled by semi-divine right and believed their
  connection with the gods was maintained by ritual
  human sacrifice
• Often had names associated with the jaguar
• Called themselves Halach Unich
• Often rebuilt temples as a means to ensure their
  position in perpetuity.

A Mayan King
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• This picture shows a ceremonial depiction of a
  Halach Unic.
• The various animals and accoutrements represent
  specific powers and attributes that the rulers
  felt they had or wanted people to believe they
  had.

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Priests

• Priests
• Maintained an elaborate calendar and transmitted
  knowledge of writing, astronomy, and mathematics

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Social Hierarchy

• Hereditary nobility (from which came the merchant
  class)?
• Owned most of the land and cooperated with the
  kings and priests by organizing military forces
  and participating in religious rituals
• Warriors
• Mayan kingdoms fought constantly with each other
  and warriors won tremendous prestige by capturing
  high-ranking enemies
• Captives were usually made slaves, humiliated,
  tortured, and ritually sacrificed

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Social Hierarchy

• Professionals and artisans
• Architects and sculptors supervised construction
  of the large monuments and public buildings
• Peasants
• Fed the entire society
• Slaves
• Provided physical labor for the construction of
  cities and monuments
• Often had been captured in battle