Joljaʼ is an

archaeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology a ...

of the

pre-Columbian In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era spans from the original settlement of North and South America in the Upper Paleolithic period through European colonization, which began with Christopher Columbus's voyage of 1492. Usually, ...

Mayan civilization The Maya civilization () of the Mesoamerican people is known by its ancient temples and glyphs. Its Maya script is the most sophisticated and highly developed writing system in the pre-Columbian Americas. It is also noted for its art, arc ...

, located in the Chiapas highlands of central southern

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. Also known as ''Cueva de Jolja (or ''Jolja'') in

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

, the site is a

cave A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

which contains a painted

mural A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' is a Spani ...

and a number of inscriptions in the Mayan script which date back to the Early Classic period (ca. 3rd to 7th centuries AD).

Overview

The name ''joljaʼ'' is from the Chʼol language, one of the

Mayan languages The Mayan languagesIn linguistics, it is conventional to use ''Mayan'' when referring to the languages, or an aspect of a language. In other academic fields, ''Maya'' is the preferred usage, serving as both a singular and plural noun, and as ...

, meaning "at the head of the water", referring to it being the source of the headwaters of the Ixtelja River, which emerge from the mouth of one of the three interconnected caves to flow down a steep escarpment on the eastern side of Misopaʼ Mountain to the valley below. The three caves are collectively referred to as "Cueva de Joljaʼ" by the local Chʼol Mayan inhabitants. The highest and drier of these containing the inscriptions and other evidence of use in pre-Columbian times. The Maya performed rituals in many caves and left behind many artifacts. Though there are many such caves in the area, few of them have been found to contain murals or hieroglyphic writing. The cave is still used today by the local Chʼol Mayan of the nearby Joloniel community for their Day of the Cross ceremonies. The main Joljaʼ cave contains one mural with accompanying inscriptions as well as at least five other groups of inscriptions. It was common for Mayan elites to wear quetzal feather headdresses. The ''

Ajaw Ajaw or Ahau ('Lord') is a pre-Columbian Maya civilization, Maya political title attested from epigraphy, epigraphic inscriptions. It is also the name of the 20th day of the ''tzolkʼin'', the Maya divinatory calendar, on which a ruler's ''kʼat ...

'' sign appears above two of the figures depicted in the mural. There are several dates that are present at Joljaʼ Cave. These dates are a part of the

Mesoamerican Long Count calendar The Mesoamerican Long Count calendar is a non-repeating, vigesimal (base 20) and octodecimal (base 18) calendar used by several pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures, most notably the Maya. For this reason, it is often known as the May ...

. The Long Count calendar is divided into units of 360 days called tuns. Major ceremonies were held at the end of every katun or 20 tuns. The Day of the Cross ceremonies are conducted at Jolja cave on May 3. This is a Catholic festival, but there are aspects of pre-Columbian rain rituals incorporated in them, because May 3 is the start of the rainy season.

References

* {{coord missing, Chiapas Maya sites in Chiapas Cave sites in Mesoamerican archaeology Caves of Mexico Landforms of Chiapas Maya Classic Period

Overview

See also

References