Resumen

VEGA VILLALOBOS, María Elena. Queen Consorts of the Classic Period: A Study through ˀIx Winaakhaab’ ˀAjaw in the Inscriptions of Piedras Negras. Estud. cult. maya [online]. 2025, vol.66, pp.71-106.  Epub 16-Abr-2026. ISSN 0185-2574.  https://doi.org/10.19130/iifl.ecm.66.2025/fall-wint/1473.

In Classic Maya hieroglyphic texts, elite women are referred to as mothers, wives, and daughters, indicating that the most significant role they played in society was that of royal consorts. Both texts and iconography allow us to gain a glimpse into their symbolic, economic, and political functions in Classic Maya cities. This article is a biographical study of a queen consort ˀIx Winaakhaab’ ˀAjaw, from the ancient city of Namaan, who married the king of Piedras Negras K’ihnich Yoˀnal ˀAhk II. The following pages apply a historical and biographical approach to the epigraphic data available on ˀIx Winaakhaab’ ˀAjaw and reconstruct some important facets of Classic Maya lives: royal wives’ titles and functions, typical activities, and ceremonies involving their birth, engagement and marriage. This article emphasizes the importance of biographical histories for the study of Classic Maya women and shows how ˀIx Winaakhaab’ ˀAjaw’s representations both linked and delimited the public and private spheres of royal life, and, thus constituting an important component in the exercise of power in Piedras Negras.

Palabras llave : epigraphy; dynastic politics; marriage; motherhood; women’s history.

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