Detail of a Mayan Plate with Gods Shooting Blowguns in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, December 2022

Title: Plate with gods shooting blowguns

Date: 7th–9th century

Geography: Mexico

Culture: Maya

Medium: Ceramic

Dimensions: H. 17 1/2 × W. 17 1/2 × D. 13/16 in., 3.3 lb. (44.5 × 44.5 × 2 cm, 1.5 kg)

Classification: Ceramics-Containers

Credit Line: Museo Maya de Cancún, Mexico, Secretaría de Cultura–Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia

Accession Number: SL.2.2022.12.1


This plate features two young gods shooting blowguns at a supernatural bird pictured at center. Their skin is ridden with black sores, symbolic of humility and sickness, contrasting with the bird’s ostentatious appearance. Colonial and modern mythical narratives, including the Popol Wuj, explain how young, humble, and sometimes ailing heroes vanquished older, stronger, and wealthier foes who opposed their rise as luminaries.

Text from: www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/854901