Lady K'abel (7th-century - between 702 and 711) was the

queen regnant A queen regnant (: queens regnant) is a female monarch, equivalent in rank, title and position to a king. She reigns ''suo jure'' (in her own right) over a realm known as a kingdom; as opposed to a queen consort, who is married to a reigning ...

of the

Maya Maya may refer to: Ethnic groups * Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America ** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples ** Mayan languages, the languages of the Maya peoples * Maya (East Africa), a p ...

Wak kingdom between 672 and 692 AD. She is also referred to by the names Lady Water Lily Hand and Lady Snake Lord.

Life

She was a member of the powerful Snake dynasty of

Calakmul Calakmul (; also Kalakmul and other less frequent variants) is a Maya civilization, Maya archaeological site in the Mexican state of Campeche, deep in the jungles of the greater Petén Basin region. It is from the Guatemalan border. Calakmul w ...

. She married a man of lower rank named K'inich Bahlam II.
The Maya: a Very Short Introduction
' Together, they ruled

El Perú Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

, a vassal town of Calakmul. She was clearly given higher status and rank than her spouse. Regarding their respective stela, hers is more elaborate—she is depicted in full royal regalia and served by a slave, neither of which was the case for her husband, and she alone had the royal title ''Ix Kaloomte’'' (which may mean something like ‘Lady Supreme Warlord’), a title more common among men and one of the highest royal titles.
Archaeology at El Perú-Waka': Ancient Maya Performances of Ritual, Memory
' She is speculated to have led armies against the Maya city of

Tikal Tikal (; ''Tik'al'' in modern Mayan orthography) is the ruin of an ancient city, which was likely to have been called Yax Mutal, found in a rainforest in Guatemala. It is one of the largest archaeological sites and urban centers of the Pre-Col ...

. She ruled

between 672 and 692. However, the date for her death is contested and was probably between 702 and 711.

Burial site

In October 2012, the suspected tomb and remains of an important Maya queen were discovered at

. Excavations led by

David Freidel David Freidel (born 1946) is a U.S. archaeologist who studies the ancient Maya. He is known for his research at El Perú-Waka’ and his books with epigrapher Linda Schele. He is professor emeritus in the Arts and Sciences at Washington Universit ...

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU) is a private research university in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1853 by a group of civic leaders and named for George Washington, the university spans 355 acres across its Danforth ...

uncovered a tomb in the city's main pyramid temple and it was identified as belonging to Lady K’abel, the military ruler of the Wak kingdom between 672 and 692 AD. The body inside was buried with various offerings, including "ceramic vessels, jade jewellery, stone figurines, and a small alabaster jar carved in the shape of a conch shell, out of which the carved head and arms of an old woman emerge". Maya hieroglyphs on the back of the jar include the names "Lady Water Lily Hand" and "Lady Snake Lord", according to the study team. Both names are thought to refer to Lady K'abel, who governed the Wak kingdom for her family, the empire-building Kan, or "Snake", dynasty, based in the Maya capital

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lady K'abel K'abel Maya monarchs 7th-century queens regnant 2012 archaeological discoveries