Naranjo Vols. 2.1 – 2.3

Ian Graham and Eric von Euw. 1975 Peabody Museum Press

Ian Graham. 1978, 1980 Peabody Museum Press

The setting of the ruins is a relatively fIat area bordered on three sides by hills and on the fourth by a large bajo. Some of this area is truly flat; but there are a number of hillocks, some of which have been transformed into temple substructures, and there are stretches of very broken terrain, heaped with fractured rock. The range of hills to the north of the site forms part of the great escarpment or arch that runs halfway across Peten, less prominent here than elsewhere. Although Morley places Naranjo in the Holmul Valley, it now appears that land south of the escarpment drains into the Belize River.

The bajo which has formed at the foot of this escarpment is an area of seasonal flooding and supports tangled vegetation and scattered larger trees; at the eastern extremity, however, close to the ruins, the swamp is perennial and covered with reeds. On the 1:125,000 map reproduced on this page, and on the 1:2,000 site plan, the bajo is indicated by a horizontal hatching of broken lines and the swamp by a wrinkle pattern. The darker area within the swamp on this plan represents a curious feature: a sharply defined, straight swath about 15 meters wide and perhaps 250 meters long in which only low reeds and grasses grow. This may be an area that was dredged by the ancient Maya as a measure to improve their water supply. Another aguada, a much smaller one which usually dries up before the end of March, is marked on the plan north of Structure B-13. A never-failing source of excellent water is the little spring at Manantial, two kilometers from the ruins along the track to Melchor de Mencos.

In the late 1950s a logging road was driven through the forest from Fallabon (soon to be renamed Ciudad Melchor de Mencos) to the ruins of Naranjo and beyond. With some labor this road can usually be made passable for vehicles with four-wheel drive in the dry season. The ruins are 18 km from Melchor de Mencos by this route.

Naranjo was discovered by Teobert Maler in 1905 (Maler 1908, pp. 80-122).

In the course of nearly three months, during which time he lived in a small cave north of Structure A-17, Maler discovered 32 carved stelae, most of which he photographed, and the Hieroglyphic Stairway.

In the succeeding years Sylvanus G. Morley visited the site three times, accompanied during one season by Oliver G. Ricketson. The fruit of these visits was incorporated into his Inscriptions of Peten (Morley 1937-38, vol. 2, pp.21-165).

In 1962, at the request of Tatiana Proskouriakoff, Richard E. W. Adams went to Naranjo in order to take latex molds of certain inscriptions. He was badly hampered by the many trees that the hurricane of the previous year had thrown down and was not able to complete his assignment; nevertheless some of his molds have proved valuable, especially those of monuments damaged only a few years later.

As Morley has recounted (ibid., pp. 57, 58), Naranjo began to lose its sculpture at an early date. But the hieroglyphic step that he says had been taken out to Belize only a short time before his visit in 1914 would appear to have been removed from Naranjo by Maler nine years earlier. In a letter to C. P. Bowditch from Tenosique, Maler writes on September 8, 1905: "I brought from El Naranjo a stone of the famous scriptural staircase (after splitting away from the back as much as possible) safely to El Benque Viejo, where I left it in the house of a friendly turco. The stone is showing 4 great glyphs, finely carved and as good as new. I shall send from Merida a photo of this stone to Boston, then you can resolve if it would be important enough to be sent to the United States (still more worked down on the back, because stone is yet too heavy)." This is almost certainly the step now in the Museum of the American Indian, New York City.

In 1920 all but one of the remaining blocks of the Hieroglyphic Stairway were clumsily broken up and taken to Belize (Joyce 1925, p. 297). They have since been reassembled, but there are losses. Serious plundering, however, did not begin until 1964, and in the following years various gangs seem to have raided the site at different times, to judge by the range of techniques employed. Some of the monuments, or parts of them, soon came to light in public and private collections; others have yet to reappear (1974). A tragic amount of sculpture was destroyed forever by looters completely devoid of expertise trying to "thin" stelae for easy removal.

SITE	VOL/Part	Monument	Side	Page	Pub.year	Notes	Peabody Number
NARANJO	2.1	Map		5	1975
NARANJO	2.1	Map of Ruins		6	1975
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 1	Front	11	1975		2004.15.6.2.1
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 1	Left	12	1975		2004.15.6.2.2
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 1	Right	12	1975		2004.15.6.2.3
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 2	Front	13	1975		2004.15.6.2.4
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 2	Left	14	1975		2004.15.6.2.5
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 2	Right	15	1975		2004.15.6.2.6
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 3	Front	17	1975		2004.15.6.2.7
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 3	Right	18	1975		2004.15.6.2.8
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 3	Left	18	1975		2004.15.6.2.9
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 4	Front	19	1975		2004.15.6.2.10
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 5	Front	21	1975		2004.15.6.2.11
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 6	Front	23	1975		2004.15.6.2.12
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 6	Back	24	1975		2004.15.6.2.13
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 7	Front	25	1975		2004.15.6.2.14
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 8	Front	27	1975		2004.15.6.2.15
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 8	Back	28	1975		2004.15.6.2.16
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 9	Front	29	1975		2004.15.6.2.17
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 10	Front	31	1975		2004.15.6.2.18
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 11	Front	33	1975		2004.15.6.2.19
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 12	Front	35	1975		2004.15.6.2.20
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 12	Back	36	1975		2004.15.6.2.21
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 13	Front	37	1975		2004.15.6.2.22
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 13	Back	38	1975		2004.15.6.2.23
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 14	Front	39	1975		2004.15.6.2.24
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 14	Back	40	1975		2004.15.6.2.25
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 15	Front	41	1975		2004.15.6.2.26
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 15	Left	42	1975		2004.15.6.2.27
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 15	Right	42	1975		2004.15.6.2.28
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 16	Front	43	1975		2004.15.6.2.29
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 17	Front	45	1975		2004.15.6.2.30
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 18	Back	47	1975		2004.15.6.2.31
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 18	Left	48	1975		2004.15.6.2.32
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 18	Right	48	1975		2004.15.6.2.33
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 19	Front	49	1975		2004.15.6.2.34
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 19	Back	50	1975		2004.15.6.2.35
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 20	Front	51	1975		2004.15.6.2.36
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 21	Front	53	1975		2004.15.6.2.37
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 21	Back	54	1975		2004.15.6.2.38
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 22	Front	55	1975		2004.15.6.2.39
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 22	Left	56	1975		2004.15.6.2.40
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 22	Right	56	1975		2004.15.6.2.41
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 23	Front	59	1975		2004.15.6.2.42
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 23	Left	60	1975		2004.15.6.2.43
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 23	Right	60	1975		2004.15.6.2.44
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 24	Front	63	1975		2004.15.6.2.45
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 24	Left	64	1975		2004.15.6.2.46
NARANJO	2.1	Stela 24	Right	64	1975		2004.15.6.2.47
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 25	front	69	1978		2004.15.6.3.1
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 25	left	70	1978		2004.15.6.3.2
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 25	right	70	1978		2004.15.6.3.3
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 26	front	71	1978		2004.15.6.3.4
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 27	front	73	1978		2004.15.6.3.5
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 28	front	75	1978		2004.15.6.3.6
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 28	back	76	1978		2004.15.6.3.7
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 29	front	77	1978		2004.15.6.3.8
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 29	back	78	1978		2004.15.6.3.9
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 30	front	79	1978	missing
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 30	back	80	1978		2004.15.6.3.11
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 31	front	83	1978		2004.15.6.3.12
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 31	back	84	1978		2004.15.6.3.13
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 32	front	86	1978		2004.15.6.3.14
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 33	front	87	1978		2004.15.6.3.15
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 35	front	91	1978		2004.15.6.3.16
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 35	back	92	1978		2004.15.6.3.17
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 36	front	93	1978		2004.15.6.3.18
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 37	front	95	1978		2004.15.6.3.19
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 38	front	97	1978		2004.15.6.3.20
NARANJO	2.2	Stela 40	front	101	1978		2004.15.6.3.21
NARANJO	2.2	Altar 1	front	103	1978		2004.15.6.3.22
NARANJO	2.2	Altar 1		104	1978	missing
NARANJO	2.2	Lintel 1	front	105	1978		2004.15.6.3.24
NARANJO	2.2	Hieroglyphic Stair	step I	107	1978	step I thru VI	2004.15.6.3.25
NARANJO	2.2	Hieroglyphic Stair	step II	108	1978	are on the	2004.15.6.3.26
NARANJO	2.2	Hieroglyphic Stair	step III	108	1978	same board	2004.15.6.3.27
NARANJO	2.2	Hieroglyphic Stair	step IV	108	1978		2004.15.6.3.28
NARANJO	2.2	Hieroglyphic Stair	step V	108	1978		2004.15.6.3.29
NARANJO	2.2	Hieroglyphic Stair	step VI	109	1978		2004.15.6.3.30
NARANJO	2.2	Hieroglyphic Stair	step VII	109	1978	step VII thru XII	2004.15.6.3.31
NARANJO	2.2	Hieroglyphic Stair	step VIII	109	1978	are on the	2004.15.6.3.32
NARANJO	2.2	Hieroglyphic Stair	step IX	109	1978	same board	2004.15.6.3.33
NARANJO	2.2	Hieroglyphic Stair	step X	110	1978		2004.15.6.3.34
NARANJO	2.2	Hieroglyphic Stair	step XI	110	1978		2004.15.6.3.35
NARANJO	2.2	Hieroglyphic Stair	step XII	110	1978		2004.15.6.3.36
NARANJO	2.2	Hieroglyphic Stair	XIII	110	1978		2004.15.6.3.37
NARANJO	2.3	Map		185	1980
NARANJO	2.3	Stela 41	front	185	1980		2004.15.6.4.19
NARANJO	2.3	Ball-court Sclpt.1	3 Fragments	187	1980		2004.15.6.4.20

SITE (by Vol)	VOL/Part	Author(s)
NARANJO	2.1	Ian Graham and Eric von Euw, Vol 2.1, 1975
NARANJO	2.2	Ian Graham, Vol. 2.2, 1978
NARANJO	2.3	Ian Graham, Vol. 2.3, 1980

Inscriptions at Naranjo

HLC	2.19 m
PB	unknown
MW	0.97 m
WBC	0.92 m
MTh	0.32 m
ReI	1.5 cm

(Left) Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 2, front, 2004.15.6.2.4; (Right) Photo of Naranjo, stela 2, front, 2004.15.5.2.4

(Left) Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 2, left, 2004.15.6.2.5; (Right) Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 2, right, 2004.15.6.2.6

Location

Between Stelae 1 and 3, in front of Structure A-15, where it was found lying face down by Maler. Removed in 1971 to the Museo Nacional de Antropología y Etnología, Guatemala City.

Condition

Intact until damaged by looters in the mid-1960s, who started to saw the front off from the top but, wearying of this task, proceeded to smash the upper left-hand corner. Most of the broken pieces have been recovered. The front surface is only slightly weathered; the incised writing on the sides has suffered more, especially along strata of softer stone.

Material

Hard limestone.

Shape

Parallel-sided, with rounded top.

Dimensions

HLC	3.29 m
PB	0.77 m
MW	1.07 m
WBC	1.02 m
MTh	0.46 m
ReI	2.5 cm

Carved Areas

Front carved in relief; sides incised; back uncarved.

Photographs

Front: reproduced from Maler's original negative of 1905. Sides: Graham, 1970.

Drawings

Graham. Drawing of the front based on field drawing corrected by artificial light, and detail photographs. The incised glyphs on the sides were inked in by artificial light and then photographed. Details of the damaged area at the top of the left side were taken from a cast made by R. E. W. Adams in 1961.

HLC	1.98 m
PB	0.47 m
MW	1.00 m
WBC	0.87 m
MTh	0.35 m
ReI	2.0 cm

HLC	1.9 - 2.1 m approx.
PB	0.27 m
MW	0.93 m
WBC	Unknown
MTh	0.50 m
ReI	1.2 cm

HLC	1.83 m
PB	0.62 m
MW	0.88 m
WBC	0.83 m
MTh	0.37 m
ReI	1.3 cm

HLC	1.69 m
PB	0.46 m
MW	0.62 m
WBC	0.45 m
MTh	0.34 m
ReI	1.1 cm

HLC	2.53 m
PB	0.62 m
MW	1.20 m
WBC	1.10 m
MTh	0.62 m
ReI	3.0 cm

HLC	1.87 m
PB	0.62 m
MW	0.92 m
WBC	0.60 m
MTh	0.19 m
ReI	1.5 cm

HLC	2.20 m
PB	0.70 m
MW	0.83 m
WBC	0.48 m
MTh	0.48 m
ReI	unknown

HLC	1.94 m
PB	0.70 m
MW	1.13 m
WBC	1.11 m
MTh	0.57 m
ReI	1.0 cm

HLC	2.89 m
PB	0.78 m
MW	1.00 m
WBC	0.99 m
MTh	0.34 m
ReI	1.8 cm

HLC	2.00 m
PB	0.70 m
MW	0.88 m
WBC	0.74 m
MTh	0.36 m
ReI	unknown

HLC	3.49 m
PB	0.96 m
MW	0.94 m
WBC	unknown
MTh	0.35 m
ReI	1.5 cm in surviving areas

HLC	2.65 m
PB	0.92 m
MW	0.76 m
WBC	unknown
MTh	0.31 m
ReI	1.4 cm

Ht	1.53 m
MW	1.01 m
MTh	0.30 m
ReI	1.0 cm

HLC	1.91 m
PB	unknown
MW	0.91 m
WBC	0.82 m
MTh	0.50 m
ReI	1.0 cm

HLC	1.93 m
PB	unknown
MW	0.82 m
WBC	unknown
MTh	0.50 m
ReI	1.3 cm

Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 18, back, 2004.15.6.2.31

Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 18, left, 2004.15.6.2.32

Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 18, right, 2004.15.6.2.33

Photo of Naranjo, Stela 18, back, 2004.15.5.2.31

Location

Found on the west side of the southern extension of Structure B-20.

Condition

The shaft is unbroken, but the entire front of it, in the form of a layer perhaps 15 cm thick, has split off and disintegrated. The loss may be attributed to natural causes, although purposeful mutilation in antiquity cannot be discounted. The back and sides are moderately well preserved; there have been some losses from the back by flaking, but some of the irregularity so caused occurred before the incised text was carved.

Material

Limestone.

Shape

Unsymmetrical, tapering toward base; canted top.

Dimensions

HLC	1.52 m
PB	1.01 m
MW	0.96 m
WBC	0.85 m
MTh	0.36 m; originally about 0.50 m
ReI	1.2 cm on the sides

Carved Areas

Sides carved in low relief, as the front may have been also. The back carries an incised hieroglyphic text.

Photographs

Graham, 1969.

Drawings

Graham, based on field drawings corrected by artificial light, and a photograph of the incised text emphasized by inking.

Remarks

Nearly vertical parallel lines, which show most clearly on the plain base and over the three rows of glyphs next above it, may have originated when the shaft was dragged from the quarry to its place of erection. The same may be true of the thin laminae that must have split off before the text was incised, since the finish of the back suggests that at one time it had been smoothly dressed all over.

HLC	2.41m
PB	0.49m
MW	0.93m
WEC	0.87m
MTh	0.24m
ReI	2.8cm

HLC	1.83m
PB	0.43m
MW	0.89m
WEC	0.83m
MTh	0.32m
ReI	2.0cm

HLC	2.23m
PB	0.57m
MW	0.81m
WEC	unknown
MTh	0.33m
ReI	3.0cm

HLC	2.55m
PB	0.67m
MW	1.14m
WEC	1.09m
MTh	0.45m
ReI	3.7cm

Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 23, front, 2004.15.6.2.42

Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 23, left, 2004.15.6.2.43

Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 23, right, 2004.15.6.2.44

Photo of Naranjo, Stela 23, front, 2004.15.5.2.45

Location

Easternrnost of the three stelae on the south side of Structure C-6.

Condition

Unbroken when found by Maler and apparently lying face down, since he writes of the relief having suffered from the moisture of the soil. The surface has indeed been severely eroded in an unusual way, with the recessed background left unaffected.In the mid-1960s the stela was shattered by fire or explosives set by looters. The lower half was left in fragments, some of which had disappeared a few years later; the upper part, although thoroughly cracked, remained coherent.

Material

Limestone.

Shape

The almost parallel sides taper somewhat towards the base; the top is rounded and irregular.

Dimensions

HLC	3.40m
PB	.80m
MW	1.07m
WBC	O.94m
MTh	O.34m
ReI	3.2cm

Carved Areas

Front, and both narrow sides.

Photographs

Reproduced from Maler's negatives taken in 1905, except for the upper part of the right-hand side down to glyphs G10 and H7, which is from a photograph by Graham. Stereophotos also by Graham.

Drawings

Front: von Euw. Sides: Graham. All were based on field drawings corrected by artificial light. the missing sections of the sides, for which the only record is Maler's, are E16-21, F17-21, G18-20, and small areas of other glyphs.

Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 24, front, 2004.15.6.2.45

Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 24, left, 2004.15.6.2.46

Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 24, right, 2004.15.6.2.47

Photo of Naranjo, Stela 24, front, 2004.15.5.2.50

Location

North side of Structure C-7. The stela was broken up and removed in the mid-1960s. All the pieces constituting the front were later recovered and sent to the Miami Museum of Science for restoration and exhibition, on loan fronn the governnnent of Guatemala.

Condition

Unbroken when found by Maler, buried in debris and thus protected from erosion. After undergoing demolition and reconstruction the front of the stela remains in quite good condition, marred only by the numerous cracks running across it. The thickness of the shaft having been reduced by a little more than one-half, glyph collumns C and D,adjacent to the front, have survived with their inner edges cropped of about one-quarter of their width.

Material

Limestone.

Shape

Sides essentially parallel; unsymmetrically rounded top.

Dimensions

HLC	1.92m
PB	0.46m
MW	0.87m
WBC	0.86m
MTh	0.32m
ReI	4.0cm

Carved Areas

Front, and both narrow sides.

Photographs

Reproduced from Maler's negatives taken in 1905, except for the upper part of the right-hand side down to glyphs G10 and H7, which is from a photograph by Graham. Stereophotos also by Graham.

Drawings

Carved Areas

Front and both sides.

Photographs

reproduced from Maler's original negatives of 1905.

Drawings

Graham, based on Maler's photographs and examination of the original.

Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 25, front, 2004.15.6.3.1

Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 25, left (2004.15.6.3.2) and right (2004.15.6.3.3)

Photo of Naranjo, Stela 25, front, 2004.15.5.3.1

Photo of Naranjo, Stela 25, left, (2004.15.5.3.2) and right (2004.15.5.3.3)

Location

Northernmost of the rear row of stelae set on the terrace in front of Structure C-9. The stela was removed to Flores in 1971.

Condition

Broken into two halves, with a piece missing at the break. The lower half was still standing when Maler found it. Most of the sculptured surface is qui te well preserved.

Material

A hard limestone,

Shape

Parallel sides, with rounded top.

Dimensions

HLC	1.86m
PB	0.80m
MW	0.70m
WBC	0.67 m
MTh	0.31 m
Rei	1.2 cm

Carved Areas

Front carved in relief; both sides carry incised inscriptions.

Photographs

Morley, 1921.

Drawings

Front: von Euw, based on field drawings corrected by artificial light. Sides: Graham, based on field drawings and a photograph of the upper right-hand side with the glyphs inked in.

Remarks

At B8, a third numerical dot can be faintly distinguished, although a month position number of three cannot properly occur with the day Kan. At C10, the position number in the month Zip is very clearly 18, whereas 17 is called for.

HLC	0.33 m plus
PB	0.62 m
MW	0.84 m
WBC	unknown
MTh	0.25 m plus
Rel	2.0 em

HLC	0.73 m plus
PB	0.47 m
MW	0.67 m plus
WBC	unknown
MTh	0.30 m
Rei	0.9 em

HLC	2.34m
PB	0,27 m plus
MW	1.25 m
WBC	1.20 m approx.
MTh	0.46 m
R,I	4,0 em

HLC	2.44 In
PB	0.76 In
MW	1.03 In
WBC	0.92 ill
MTh	0.35 m
ReI	2.0 em

Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 30, front

Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 30, back, 2004.15.6.3.11

Photo of Naranjo, Stela 30, front, 2004.15.5.3.10

Photo of Naranjo, Stela 30, back, 2004.15.5.3.11

Location

Second from the right-hand (southern) end in the front row of four stelae on the terrace at the foot of Structure C-9. In about 1966 looters broke up the stela, and two years later the fragments constituting the front surface came to light in the U.S. Customs at Houston, Texas, in a crate marked "Machinery." Through court action the government of Guatemala regained possession of these fragments.

Condition

The stela had fallen forward and lay unbroken when discovered by Maler. The front was in practically perfect

condition, the back considerably eroded. Since being smashed up by looters, the front is crisscrossed with breaks but has retained most of its fine detail. The back lies in a thousand chips at the site.

Material

Fine-grained limestone.

Shape

Parallel sides with nearly flat top.

Dimensions

HLC	2.33 m
PB	0.87 m
MW	1.17 m
WBC	l.13m
MTh	0.38 m
Rei	2.9 em

Carved Areas

Front and back.

Photographs

Reproduced from Maler's original negatives of 1905.

Drawings

Graham. Drawing of the front based on Maler's photograph and examination of the reassembled fragments; that of the back based on Maler's and Morley's photographs.

HLC	2.43 m (2.12 m
	measured on the
	back
PB	0.35 m plus
MW	1.19m
WBC	1.02 m
MTh	0.31 m
ReI	2.6 cm

HLC	1.86 m
PB	0.83 m
MW	1.23 m
WBC	1.09 m
MTh	0.35 m
Rei	1.5 cm

HLC	1.83 m
PB	O.SOm
MW	O.45m
WBC	0.45 m
MTh	0.30 m
Rei	1.2 em

HLC	2.90 m
PB	0.91 m
MW	0.66 m
WBC	0.56 m
MTh	0.32 m
Rel	1.0 cm

Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 35, front, 2004.15.6.3.16

Drawing of Naranjo, Stela 35, back, 2004.15.6.3.17

Photo of Naranjo, Stela 35, front, 2004.15.5.3.21

Photo of Naranjo, Stela 35, back, 2004.15.5.3.22

Location

Found by one of Morley's workers on the east side of Structure C-4, lying face up. Removed to Flores in 1971.

Condition

As found, the stela lay in five pieces, the smallest of which could not be found in 1971; this carried portions of glyphs C8, 9, 10. A fragment affecting glyphs E1, F1, also broke off the stela before discovery and has not come to light. The front is quite badly eroded, the back moderately so.

Material

Hard white limestone.

Shape

Sides nearly parallel; top unsymmetrical, with a shoulder caused by an irregularity of the shaft as quarried. The cross section is lenticular.

Dimensions

HLC	1.40 m
PB	0.48 (front)
	0.61 m (back)
MW	0.53 m
WBC	0.48 m
MTh	0.29 m
Rel	1.2 cm

Carved Areas

Front and back.

Photographs

Graham, 1973; Morley's 1921 photographs have been used for the small fragment that has disappeared since his day. The apparent discontinuity in the outline of the back is due to the lower partion having been photographed from an offcenter camera position.

Drawings

Graham. The drawings were based on tracings from photographs of flat casts made from latex molds. In this way distortion could be avoided: direct photographs of the stela suffer from unavoidable foreshortening toward the sides, due to the curvature of the sculptured surfaces. Details in the renderings were based on field drawings corrected by artificial light, and on Morley's photographs.

Ht	1.22m
MW	0.76 m
MTh	0.30 m
Rel	unknown

HLC	2.88 m approx.
PB	unknown
MW	0.95 m
WBC	0.94 m approx.
MTh	0.50 m
Rel	2.2 cm

HLC	1.58 m
PB	0.58 m
MW	0.89 m
WBC	0.79 m
MTh	0.43 m
Rel	0.9 cm

HLC	0.74 m plus
PB	0.40 m
MW	0.69 m
WBC	0.63 m
MTh	0.21 m
Rel	1.0 cm

HLC	1.45 m
PB	0.80 m
MW	0.76 m
WBC	0.71 m
MTh	0.40 m
Rel	1.5	cm

Max. diameter	0.82 m
Min. diameter	0.61 m
MTh	0.14 m
Rel	0.2	cm

Drawing of Naranjo, Lintel 1, 2004.15.6.3.24

Photo of Naranjo, Lintel 1, 2004.15.5.3.29

Location

Found by Maler reused in the second step of the Hieroglyphic Stairway, between Inscription 7 and Inscription 8 in Morley's terminology, or Step VII and Step VIIl in the informal usage of this work. Removed by Herbert J. Spinden to the American Museum of Natural History in 1914.

Condition

Found by Maler buried in debris and rather well preserved, although trimmed down from its original size. Already cracked, Spinden broke the lintel to carry it away; this action resulted in no significant loss of detail. Textual evidence shows that a whole column of glyphs was anciently trimmed off the left side, and half a column on the right. Maler was probably mistaken in supposing the upper border also to have been trimmed before reuse in the stairway.

Material

Limestone.

Shape

Essentially rectangular, with a narrow, well finished border above and one that is wider and more roughly dressed below.

Dimensions

Ht	0.47 m
MW	0.70 m
HSc	0.37 m
MTh	unknown
Rei	unknown

Carved Areas

Front only (or underside, if truly a lintel).

Photograph

Reproduced from Maler's original negative of 1905.

Drawing

Graham, based on Maler's photograph and on a drawing made of the original lintel on display, mounted in a showcase from which it was evidently not convenient to remove it.

Remarks

This piece might better have been called Panel 1. The fact that inscriptions on lintels generally run down rather than across and the inequality of the borders suggest a panel, one perhaps that had its lower edge set in a floor, A further point is that carved stone lintels are otherwise unknown in the eastern Maya lowlands.

Outer dia	0.42 m
Inner dia	0.19 m
MTh	0.20 m
Rei	0.4	em

Drawing of Naranjo Hieroglyphic Stairway, front

(Left) Photo of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, step 1, 2004.15.5.3.30; (right) Drawing of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, step 1, 2004.15.6.3.25

Photo of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, steps 2 through 4

Photo of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, steps 2-4, 2004.15.5.3.30

Drawing of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, step 2, 2004.15.6.3.26

Drawing of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, step 3, 2004.15.6.3.27

Drawing of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, step 4, 2004.15.6.3.28

Drawing of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, step 5, 2004.15.6.3.29

Photo of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, steps 6 through 9

Photo of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, steps 6-9, 2004.15.5.3.30-31

Drawing of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, step 6, 2004.15.6.3.30

Drawing of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, step 7, 2004.15.6.3.31

Drawing of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, step 8, 2004.15.6.3.32 --coming soon-- Drawing of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, step 9, 2004.15.6.3.33

Photo of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, steps 10 through 13

Photo of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, steps 10-13, 2004.15.5.3.31-32

Drawing of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, step 10, 2004.15.6.3.34 --coming soon-- Drawing of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, step 11, 2004.15.6.3.35 --coming soon-- Drawing of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, step 12, 2004.15.6.3.36

Drawing of Naranjo, Hieroglyphic Staircase, step 13, 2004.15.6.3.37

A Note on Nomenclature

Maler's numbering of the individual blocks, or Inscriptions in Morley's terminology, is retained but given in Roman numerals. Formally, a block will be referred to as HS. 1, IV, for example, or less formally as Step IV where there is no danger of confusion with the fourth step of the stairway.

Location

The carved blocks were incorporated into the lower part of the stairway leading up the west side of Structure B-18. Alterations to the stairway and dismemberment of it evidently began long ago, probably in Postclassic times, as Maler realized when he found a reused panel inserted in place of a broken step. Another striking piece of evidence is the step, undoubtedly once part of the stairway and here designated Step XIII, that was found at Ucanal, 35 kilometers away as the guacamayo flies.

As mentioned above in the general description of the site, the stairway was picked clean of its sculpture within fifteen years of discovery, except for the three monsters' heads, and they disappeared in the 1960s. The location of the steps in 1977 is as follows: Steps I and IV to XI in the British Museum; Step XII in the Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation, New York City; Step XIII in storage at Tikal National Park; Steps II and III lost, the latter possibly in transit to El Cayo in 1920 (Morley 1937-38, vol. 2, p. 58).

Condition

The general condition of the steps at the time of their discovery was good because they were of hard stone, and most of them had fallen on their faces or else had been buried in debris. Step XIII retains most of its design in spite of having lain face up for a few centuries, at least. The only noteworthy breakage, apart from Step VIII, the left-hand half of which is missing, is the loss of about one-tenth of the cartouche of Step XI. As the result of being broken up for removal, the steps now in the British Museum show some small losses. Step XII appears exactly as in Maler's photograph, and Step XIII was taken out of Ucanal entire.

Material

Hard, fine-grained limestone.

Shape

Rectangular blocks, with the front and upper surfaces smoothly dressed. The upper edge is well rounded in some cases, most notably Steps IV, VII, and XIII, and least so in Steps V and VI.

Dimensions

The most consistent dimensions are those of the cartouches: these all fall within one centimeter of 0.35 by 0.38 m for the smaller steps, neglecting the surrounding line. The width of the stone blocks is more variable and in some cases cannot now be established because of breakage. The two larger blocks, Steps V and VI, have cartouches measuring 0.75 by 0.60 m and 0.78 by 0.62 m respectively.

Carved Areas

Front surfaces (risers) only.

Photographs

Steps I to XII: reproduced from Maler's original negatives of 1905; Step XIII: Graham, 1972.

Drawings

Graham, based on above photographs and drawings from originals (excepting Steps II and III). The outlines of some of the blocks have been left incomplete because they fell outside the frame of Maler's photgraph and have since been altered by breakage.

The diagram showing the arrangement of the steps and the monsters' heads is taken from Morley 1937-38, vol. 2, fig. 26. Individual blocks are numbered in Arabic numerals on the diagram, rather than in the Roman numerals employed in this work.

Note

Further information on Step XIII will be found in the section of this work treating of Ucanal and its monuments.

Naranjo Vols. 2.1 – 2.3

Ian Graham and Eric von Euw. 1975 Peabody Museum Press

Ian Graham. 1978, 1980 Peabody Museum Press

Location and Access expand_more

Principal Investigations at the Site expand_more

Notes on the Ruins expand_more

A Note on the Plan of the Site expand_more

Register of Inscriptions at Naranjo expand_more

References Cited expand_more

Site Volume Reference expand_more

Author Reference expand_more

Inscriptions at Naranjo

Stela 1 expand_more

Location

Condition

Material

Shape

Dimensions

Carved Areas

Photographs

Drawings

Remarks

Stela 2 expand_more

Location

Condition

Material

Shape

Dimensions

Carved Areas

Photographs

Drawings

Stela 3 expand_more

Location

Condition

Material

Shape

Dimensions

Carved Areas

Photographs

Drawings

Stela 4 expand_more

Location

Condition

Material

Shape

Dimensions

Carved Areas

Photograph

Drawing

Remarks

Stela 5 expand_more

Location

Condition

Material

Shape

Dimensions

Carved Areas

Photograph

Drawing

Stela 6 expand_more

Location

Condition

Material

Shape

Dimensions

Carved Areas

Photographs

Drawings

Note

Stela 7 expand_more

Location

Condition

Material

Shape

Dimensions

Carved Areas

Photographs

Drawing

Stela 8 expand_more

Location