Temple and Priesthood At Q'umarkaj
In the K'iche' capital city Q'umarkaj the temple of Q'uq'umatz consisted of a circular temple in honour of the deity together with a palace in honour of the Kawek lineage, the ruling dynasty of the city. The only trace of the temple now is a circular impression in the surface of the city's main plaza. The temple was located directly between the temples to the important K'iche' deities Tohil and Awilix, slightly north of the central axis of the temple of Tohil and slightly south of the axis of the temple of Awilix, replicating the role of Q'uq'umatz as mediator between the two deities. From the traces left in the plaza it is evident that the temple consisted of a circular wall measuring 6 metres (20 ft) across, running around a circular platform, with a 1-metre (3.3 ft) wide circular passage between the two. The whole structure probably once supported a roof and there were small stone platforms on the east and west sides of the temple, each about 1 metre (3.3 ft) wide. The temple of Q'uq'umatz must have been completely dismantled very soon after the Spanish Conquest since it is not mentioned by any of the Colonial era visitors, and early drawings of the site show only vegetation where the temple once stood. The tradition of circular temples dedicated to the Feathered Serpent deity was an ancient one in the Mesoamerican cultural region.
The priests of Q'uq'umatz were drawn from an important lineage among the ruling Kaweq dynasty and this was likely to have been a source of power and prestige for the Kaweq. The priests were known as Aj Q'uq'umatz, meaning "he of Q'uq'umatz". The priests of Q'uq'umatz and of Tepeu, his partner in the K'iche' creation myth (the Aj Q'uq'umatz and the Tepew Yaki), also served as stewards in Q'umarkaj and were responsible for receiving and guarding any tribute payments and plunder that were returned to the city. Although K'iche' priests were generally of lower rank than secular officials, the priests of the Kaweq lineages were an exception, and this included the priests of Q'uq'umatz, Tepeu and Tohil.
Read more about this topic: Q'uq'umatz
Famous quotes containing the words temple and/or priesthood:
“The same indignation that is said to have cleared the temple once will clear it again. The question is not about the weapon, but the spirit in which you use it. No man has appeared in America, as yet, who loved his fellow-man so well, and treated him so tenderly. He lived for him. He took up his life and he laid it down for him.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“The priesthood is a marriage. People often start by falling in love, and they go on for years without realizing that that love must change into some other love which is so unlike it that it can hardly be recognised as love at all.”
—Iris Murdoch (b. 1919)