Lintel 25 of Yaxchilán Structure 23

Lintel 25 of Yaxchilán Structure 23

16°53'57.51"N, 90°57'52.13"W

Carved from limestone, this scene was once the lintel above the central doorway of Yaxchilán’s palace structure (structure 23). It depicts the wife of Shield Jaguar II (Itzamnaaj B'alam II), known as Lady K’abal Xook, having a vision of a serpent during a blood letting ceremony. Out of the serpent’s mouth, a warrior with a shield and spear faces her. This lintel is associated with two others (Lintel 24 and 26) from the same palace, which cumulatively appear to tell a narrative of Lady Xook. An inscription on the lintel gives the date October 20, 681 AD, the date of Shield Jaguar II’s ascension to the throne. Though the actual creation of the work may have been later, near 725 AD.

*Currently on display at the British Museum.*

Translations from [Harvard Peabody](https://www.peabody.harvard.edu/cmhi/detail.php?num=25&site=Yaxchilan&type=Lintel)