prev - home - next

Two of the glyphs are completely intact and clear, spelling Janahb' Pakal. In 1979 Schele and Mathews assumed that this was name of Palenque's greatest ruler. But this is only part of that ruler's name: the K'inich is missing. Only a fragment of the preceding glyph survives, but the part remaining is clearly pakal. Thus we have:

[missing]-pakal-[missing]

janahb'-pakal

In other words, a perfect fit for:

U Pakal K'inich

Janahb' Pakal.





The elements underneath the pakal "shield" in the top glyph block are the phonetic complement la, reinforcing the final l of pacal. In the bottom glyph block, janahb' is the "propeller" (or flower) sign. The three elements to its right are phonetic pa - ka - la, together making pakal. (Drawing: Linda Schele.)