ABSTRACT

This chapter explores the life and death, appearance, and body modifications of the ancient Maya through the lens of their skeletal remains, including physiological stress indications, sex, age-at-death, and other osteological data. The general trend that emerges is that most ancient Maya people lived relatively short and unhealthy lives. Yet a closer look reveals subtle differences by social class and, occasionally, by biological sex. The examination of specific royal skeletons in combination with historical information on these individuals provides rich stories and unexpected paradoxes in the embodied lives of particular kings and queens.