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Reports on the discovery of a royal tomb in Calakmul, Campeche, Mexico, believed to be that of Yukom Yich'ak K'ak' or Jaguar Paw, the former governor of Calakmul. Alleged legend of Jaguar Paw regarding his capture and sacrifice at Tikal in 695 A.D.; Description of the tomb and its contents; Discovery of ceramic vessels and royal identity.

In this paper we present a review about the murals located in the Temples of the Descending God (Temple 5) and the Frescos (Temple 16) at the pre-Columbian city of Tulum, Quintana Roo. We first study some of the characters dressed as gods, as Chahk, K'awil, Quetzalcóatl, and Xólotl. Secondly, we analyze the ritual paraphernalia, mostly composed of ceramic objects in the form of effigy urns, incense burners, idols, containers with offerings of corn in different preparations, and large jars used to contain liquids, presenting correspondences with the archaeological record. Afterwards, we analyze the intertwined serpents, as well as the vegetal elements that we identify with the flower and fruits of balché tree. Finally, these data are integrated in order to interpret the meaning of the Tulum murals in relation to the practice of bending over the maize stalks in the autumn, and also to the first fruits harvest, which coincides with the flowering of the balché tree and the beginning of the harvest of tajonal honey in Yucatán. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Manipulation of wetlands for agricultural purposes by the ancient Maya of southern Mexico and Central America has been a subject of much research and debate since the 1970s. Evidence for wetland cultivation systems, in the form of drained or channelized fields, and raised planting platforms, has been restricted primarily to the southern Maya Lowlands. New research in the Yalahau region of Quintana Roo, Mexico, has recorded evidence for wetland manipulation in the far northern lowlands, in the form of rock alignments that apparently functioned to control water movement and soil accumulation in seasonally inundated areas. Nearby ancient settlements date primarily to the Late Preclassic period (ca. 100 B.C. to A.C. 350), and this age is tentatively attributed to wetland management in the area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]