What is BLOODLETTING? | Ancient Maya Women and Lady K'abal Xook from Yaxchilán

Discover the bloodletting ritual of the ancient Maya queen Lady K'abal Xook (Lady Xoc), shown piercing her tongue with a thorned rope and making a sacred offering to the gods on Lintel 24 from Yaxchilán. This video explores bloodletting among women in the Classic Maya world through one of the most famous sculptures from Yaxchilán, a Maya city-state in Chiapas, Mexico. Lady Xook, the wife of King Shield Jaguar (Itzamnaaj B'alam III), performs a bloodletting ritual as part of her royal responsibility. Bloodletting was central to Maya beliefs, and this video discusses why it was important. The role of women in such rituals is also preserved in the murals of Bonampak, where a group of royal women is shown performing similar acts of bloodletting. In both Bonampak and Yaxchilán, these images conveyed elite power, religious duty, and the belief that royal blood nourished the cosmos. This video is perfect for anyone interested in: ✅ Ancient Maya history, archaeology, or art history ✅ Royal women and queenship ✅ Mesoamerica ✅ Bloodletting or autosacrifice ✅ The history of women Speaker: Dr. Lauren Kilroy-Ewbank 🔔 Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more videos about art history, history, and archaeology! It really helps our small channel, and we appreciate it. CHAPTERS 0:00 Lady Xook and Lintel 24 0:30 Understanding bloodletting 1:04 How the ritual is depicted on Lintel 24 1:48 Blood in Maya cosmology 3:30 Bonampak comparison Check out our entire glossary of art history: https://www.artsq.org/about-key-terms... Learn about the ancient Maya: https://www.artsq.org/the-ancient-may... Join this channel membership to get access to perks:    / @artsq_channel   ---------------------------- SUPPORT OUR WORK? Become a patron to help us create materials for our channel! Patreon—  / artsq   WANT TO LEARN MORE? HAVE A QUESTION? http://artsq.org/ JOIN OUR COMMUNITIES ON SOCIAL Instagram—  / artsq_official   Facebook—  / artsqofficial   #mesoamerica #blood #queen #arthistory #mexico #archaeology #mayans #historyofart #womeninhistory #medievalart #ancientamerica #learningisfun #history #ancientamerica #worldhistory