Heads, Skulls, and Sacred Scaffolds. New Studies on Ritual Body Processing and Display in Chichen Itza and Beyond

A new study challenges the notion that skull racks (tzompantli) at Chichen Itza were introduced through foreign influence, revealing instead that they built upon long-standing local practices of ritual body processing and display. Analyzing skeletal remains—including skulls with signs of impalement and mandibles showing perimortem decapitation—from the Osario complex and Caracol astronomical site, alongside iconographic evidence, researchers found that Chichen Itza's ceremonial innovations were rooted in regional traditions rather than external ones. These practices, though less prominent at other Yucatecan urban centers like Nohpat, Kabah, Uxmal, and Dzibilchaltun, demonstrate a broader cultural context for the display of human body segments, complicating the term 'tzompantli.' The study suggests that Chichen Itza's massified violence and corpse exhibition were tied to late religious cults, battles, astronomical cycles, and the symbolic movement of the Feathered Serpent.

Tiesler, V., & Miller, V. E. (2023). HEADS, SKULLS, AND SACRED SCAFFOLDS. NEW STUDIES ON RITUAL BODY PROCESSING AND DISPLAY IN CHICHEN ITZA AND BEYOND. Ancient Mesoamerica, 34(2), 563–585. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0956536120000450