Chak Tok Ichʼaak IThe ruler's name, when transcribed, is CHAK-TOK-ICHʼA꞉K, translated "Great Misty? Claw", Martin & Grube 2008, p.28. also known as Great Paw, Great Jaguar Paw, and Toh Chak Ichʼak (died 14 January 378) was an ''

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 the

Maya Maya may refer to: Civilizations * Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America ** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples ** Maya language, the languages of the Maya peoples * Maya (Ethiopia), a popu ...

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 archeological sites and urban centers of the pre-Co ...

. He took the throne on 7 August 360? and reigned until his death in 378, apparently at the hands of invaders from central Mexico.These are the dates indicated on the Maya inscriptions in

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 ...

, Accession: 8.16.3.10.2 11 Ikʼ 10 Sek and Death: 8.17.1.4.12 11 Eb 15 Mak, Martin & Grube 2008, p.28.Martin & Grube 2008, p.28. Born to Kʼinich Muwaan Jol and Lady Bahlam Way, Chak Tok Ichʼaak I is one of Tikal's best known kings. His name is recorded on a number of ceramic pieces and

stelae A stele ( ),Anglicized plural steles ( ); Greek plural stelai ( ), from Greek language, Greek , ''stēlē''. The Greek plural is written , ''stēlai'', but this is only rarely encountered in English. or occasionally stela (plural ''stelas'' or ...

. Stela 39, which was discovered by archaeologists in the Mundo Perdido complex, was produced to commemorate the

Kʼatun A ''kʼatun'' (, ) is a unit of time in the Maya calendar equal to 20 '' tuns'' or 7200 days, equivalent to 19.713 tropical years. It is the second digit on the normal Maya long count date. For example, in the Maya Long Count date 12.19.13.15.12 ...

ending in 376. It depicts the king standing upon a bound captive while holding an ax decorated with jaguar markings that was probably used as either a weapon or an instrument of sacrifice. His name also appears on the fragmentary Stela 26 from Tikal's North Acropolis, which he may have dedicated. Both stelae were deliberately smashed soon after being dedicated. Another stela from the distant site of

El Temblor El Temblor is an archaeological site in Petén Department, Guatemala which was once the location of a settlement of the Maya civilization. First recorded in 1974 by Ian Graham of Harvard University's Peabody Museum, the site represents a medium- ...

may have been created to mark his accession to power, but it is possible that it may instead have been dedicated to a namesake. His palace was located in the

Central Acropolis The Central Acropolis of the ancient Maya city of Tikal is an architectural complex located immediately to the south of the Great Plaza.Harrison 2001, p. 200. Tikal is one of the most important archaeological sites of the pre-Columbian Maya civiliz ...

and was identified from a carved clay vessel which had been interred under the western staircase as part of a dedication ritual.Sharer & Traxler 2006, pp. 315, 317 Unusually, it was never built over by later rulers, and was kept in repair for centuries as an apparently revered monument. Stela 31 from Tikal records that Chak Tok Ichʼaak I died on the same day that Siyaj Kʼakʼ, probably a war-leader from

Teotihuacan Teotihuacan (Spanish: ''Teotihuacán'') (; ) is an ancient Mesoamerican city located in a sub-valley of the Valley of Mexico, which is located in the State of Mexico, northeast of modern-day Mexico City. Teotihuacan is known today as the ...

, entered Tikal. The arrival of Siyaj Kʼakʼ probably represented a forcible takeover, perhaps a conquest, which resulted in the death of Chak Tok Ichʼaak I. The dead ruler's entire lineage was overthrown and a new line of rulers took power in their place, starting with Yax Nuun Ahiin I.Martin & Grube 2008, p.29.

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* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Chak Tok Ichʼaak 01 Rulers of Tikal 4th century in the Maya civilization 4th-century monarchs in North America Year of birth unknown 378 deaths