Yucatan Today: anthropological museum

Anthropological Museum One of Merida's biggest tourist attractions is the spectacular Anthropological Museum in the Canton Palace located on the Paseo de Montejo. On the cover of the July 2004 magazine, we have shown the interior of the museum, and the current exhibition "Dialog with the Divinities Cosmos: Gods, Rites and Offerings". Remember, the Museum is closed on Mondays.

This exhibition is designed to give the public a view of the Mayan vision of the Cosmos and the religion of the pre-Hispanic Maya, its evolution in time and the cultural influences of other regions.

The Antrhopological Museum in Merida Yucatan
Above: The Museum of Anthropology

The exhibit includes marvelous Mayan pieces elaborated in clay and stone. These pieces were found in different sites on the Yucatan Peninsula as a result of the intense archeological work that has conducted for the past 25 years.

Pieces in the exhibit include various representations of Itzamna, the god of creation, the sacred Ceiba trees that are believed to be the axis of the earth, the "pawatunes" that support the corners of the world on their shoulders, and the myth of creation as related in the Popol Vuh.

Another section of the exhibition is devoted to the divinities including the god of corn and lower gods, Kinich the sun god, Tlaloc the Teotihuacan god of storm and his Mayan counterpart Chaac the rain god, Ixchel, the goddess of fertility, weaving and sensual love, Kawii the god of the political leaders and Cizin and Ah Puch, gods of death from the Classic and Post-Classic periods. These are just a few of the gods and divinities represented by sculptures, carvings and paintings found here in the Yucatan