ART AND ARTIFACTS

Hero Twins face Itzamna Detail from Rollout K1183Justin Kerr

The Hero Twins of Ancient Maya MythBarbara and Justin KerrThe Metropolitan Museum of ArtExhibition of Photographs 1994

The Maya painted and carved vases with manyscenes from their mythology. Thesemythological tales were finally recorded in asixteenth-century Quiche document called thePopol Vuh. However, the myths were certainlyin place by the first century AD The maincharacters in the Popol Vuh are known as theHero Twins, who were hunters, ballplayers,magicians, and scribes. They played in the ballcourt of the gods of the Underworld and finallyvanquished them. The ancient Maya rulersoften portrayed themselves as brave, astalented, and as powerful as the Hero Twins.The mythic Hero Twins were emulated by theelite, who played an endless repetition of thecosmic ball game with the gods, vying forcontrol of nature’s forces. By this action theMaya rulers proved and held their power.

Polychrome Vessel depicting HunahpuJustin Kerr 5824

Briefly, this is a story of birth, death, andresurrection. The Hero Twins, named HunAhpu and Xbalanque, are the sons of a twin.Their father, whose name was Hun Hun Ahpu,and his twin brother, Vucub Hun Ahpu, weregreat ballplayers, but in their games with theUnderworld lords were the losers. The HeroTwins’ father was decapitated, and his headwas hung in a tree, whereupon the youngdaughter of an Underworld lord, being curious,approached the head in the tree. The head ofHun Hun Ahpu spat in her hand, and shebecame pregnant with the Hero Twins. Soonthe twins were born with all the attributes oftheir many talents. In an earlier marriage HunHun Ahpu fathered another set of twins,named Hun Batz and Hun Chuen, who wereeventually turned into monkeys by the HeroTwins and became scribes.

After the Hero Twins grew up and had manyadventures, they repeated the games theirfather played with gods in Xibalba, theUnderworld. They resurrected their father,also known as the young Corn God,symbolizing new growth, and the three wereunited. For the Maya, time is cyclical not linearas it is in our world. Ancestors live on:communication with them continues.

Popol Vuh: Sacred Book of the Ancinet Maya

Victor Montejo

One of the major themes in the Maya beliefsystem is that of resurrection, that moment intime when a mortal attains godlike status.Many Maya rulers portray themselves at themoment of death as being transformed intoone of the creatures of the Underworld. Theyoften make the descent to the Underworld on

the snout of a serpent monster that takesthem through the mouth of Xibalba into theUnderworld. Death is such a powerful themethat it is incorporated into the Maya mythologyas rebirth, both of an individual and of theearth. With the sprouting of corn the worldregenerates itself. The Maya saw the growingof corn not only as a food source but also asthe very essence of life. It is no wonder thanthat the father of the Hero Twins is also theCorn God, he who brings forth life and in hisresurrection through his children unites theforces of the universe. This theme emphasizesthe Maya concept that time is cyclical. Livingbeings are born, grow, die, and in the followingseason are reborn, just as the act of wateringthe growing corn plant resurrects its seed.

Prior to the use of the rollout camera, thescenes on Maya vases were photographed inmultiple views and pasted together. Often theindividual frames were assembled and drawnby an artist. This was a time-consuming andcostly endeavor. Because the individualsections of the vase were optically distortedfrom front to back, there was always thepossibility of misunderstanding some of theglyphic text.

After much research into the variousunsatisfactory methods of peripheralphotography, Justin Kerr built his own camerain 1975. Since then he has photographedapproximately twelve hundred vases. Thecompletion of a portable model of the rolloutcamera enabled him to go into the field tomake rollout photographs in museums andprivate collections in the quest for Maya vasesto expand his archives.

Rollout K6059

Justin Kerr

Rollout K1453

Justin Kerr

Rollout K0965

Justin Kerr

Rollout K5764

Justin Kerr