Ukit Took was the last
Ajaw
Ajaw or Ahau ('Lord') is a pre-Columbian Maya political title attested from epigraphic inscriptions. It is also the name of the 20th day of the ''tzolkʼin'', the Maya divinatory calendar, on which a ruler's ''kʼatun''-ending rituals would fal ...
of
Copán
Copán is an archaeological site of the Maya civilization in the Copán Department of western Honduras, not far from the border with Guatemala. This ancient Maya city mirrors the beauty of the physical landscape in which it flourished—a fert ...
. He ascended the throne on 6 February 822. He commissioned Altar L in the style of
Altar Q
An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paganism ...
, but the monument was never finished — one face shows the enthronement of the king and a second face was started but two others were completely blank. The long line of kings at the once great city had come to an end. Before the end, even the nobility had been struck by disease, perhaps because epidemics among the malnourished masses spread to the elite. With the end of political authority at Copán, the population fell to a fraction of what it had been at its height. The collapse of the city-state, which is believed to have occurred sometime between 822 and 830 AD, was sudden.
[Snow 2010, p. 168.]
Notes
References
*
*{{cite book , author=Snow, Dean R. , year=2010 , title=Archaeology of Native North America , publisher=Prentice-Hall , location=New York , isbn=978-0-13-615686-4 , oclc=223933566
9th-century monarchs in North America
Rulers of Copán
9th century in the Maya civilization