Nim Li Punit

Ruins in Nim Li Punit

Nim Li Punit is the name of a Mayan ruin in the Toledo Province in Belize ( Central America ), which is 40 km north of the city of Punta Gorda . The name comes from the Maya language and means something like big hat , which refers to a sculpture of a Maya king found there.

history

The site was settled around the 5th century AD. In the inscription on a piece of jade jewelry, a ruler named Janaab 'Ohl K'inich, who has been in office since 647, is mentioned, who probably came from the north of today's Belize and possibly the first king of Nim Li Punit was. The piece of jewelery proves that the dynastic entanglements of the regions were more far-reaching than previously assumed: his mother came from Cahal Pech , his father possibly from Guatemala, and the text also relates the ruler to the mighty Caracol . The piece of jewelery was buried in a tomb-like chamber in Nim Li Punit around 800 as an offering and rediscovered in 2015, it is considered one of the most important jade finds in Belize.

The finds suggest that Nim Li Punit had its peak in the late Mayan classical period. The end of the settlement is assumed to be around 850. In modern times, the system was rediscovered for the first time in 1976 during oil test drilling.

investment

Nim Li Punit consists of three plazas, surrounded by several buildings (including step pyramids with a height of up to 12.20 meters) and 25 steles (with a height of up to 9.50 meters). Some of the steles are unfinished, so that an abrupt end of the settlement can be assumed.

The facility is located about 40 kilometers from Punta Gorda , not far from the Mayan ruins of Lubaantun .

proof

1. ↑ ^{a b} Prager, CM and Braswell, GE (2016): MAYA POLITICS AND RITUAL: AN IMPORTANT NEW HIEROGLYPHIC TEXT ON A CARVED JADE FROM BELIZE , Ancient Mesoamerica, 27 (2), pp. 267-278. doi : 10.1017 / S095653611600033X

Web links

Commons : Nim Li Punit  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 16 ° 19 ′ 0 ″  N , 88 ° 48 ′ 0 ″  W.