Who isAlberto Ruz Lhuillier?

Answer 1

1906--1979), Mexican archaeologist who, in 1952, discovered the tomb of King Pacal in the interior of the Pyramid at the Temple of the Inscriptions in Palenque,Chiapas, Mexico. This discovery is considered to be one of Mesoamerican archaeology's major achievements. Besides being a very competent field archaeologist, Ruzwas also an accomplished writer and educator.Ruz was born in Paris to a Cuban father and a French mother. He received his early education in France; in 1926 he moved to Cuba, began studies at the University of Havana, and began writing for local publications. His political views caused him to be imprisoned for six months. After his release from jail, in 1936 he moved to Mexico, where he traveled extensively and became fascinated with Mesoamerican antiquities. He later adopted Mexican nationality. In 1937, Ruz began his studies in anthropology. In 1945 he was the first student to obtain a professional degree in archaeology at the then recently founded Escuela Nacional deAntropología e Historia in Mexico City. Many years later he would receive a doctorate from theUniversidad Nacional Autónoma deMéxico. While still an undergraduate, he worked at Monte Albán under Alfonso Caso and at Tula with Jorge Acosta.In 1943 he was appointed director of archaeology for the Mexican state of Campeche, and he explored several Maya sites along the Gulf Coast, which contributed significantly to a better archaeological understanding of this until then little-known region. From then on, he directed his efforts mostly to the study of Maya culture. His excavations at several sites, which he recognized to be contemporaneous with the Classic cities in the central Maya area, brought him into conflict early in his career with the theories of Sylvanus G. Morley, then the acknowledged leader in Maya studies. Ruzwas among the first archaeologists who rejected Morley's Old Empire--New Empire sequence and sought to present a more realistic and better documented historical account of Maya civilization, its development and later decline. He also challenged the then prevalent view of the Maya as a peaceful, idyllic, spiritual society. With a historical materialism approach that took into account the economic infrastructure and material forces of production, he endeavored to present a more realistic interpretation of Maya civilization. He debunked many myths and presented the Maya not only as a living, dynamic society formed by priests, astronomers, artists, and savants but as a complex theocratic order with an overwhelming agrarianpopulation---a society with strong socioeconomic stratification, as well as war, conquest, and slavery, all apparent in the archaeological evidence. [.]After Ruz's appointment as director of archaeology for the Maya area in Mexico, he studied several sites in Yucatán andChiapas. He conducted extensive excavations and major conservation work at Uxmal,presented important revisions to the chronology of the site, and clarified the problems related to central Mexican influences in this area. His most important work was carried out atPalenque in the years between 1949 and 1958. He excavated and studied many of the buildings, plazas, and tombs at the site, and his contributions to a better understanding of Palenque and of Maya culture in general were numerous and important. His explorations culminated in the discovery of the extraordinary crypt and tomb inside the Temple of the Inscriptions, as mentioned above. The impact of this discovery on the scientific community and on the general public cannot be overstated; in a short timePalenque would become a center for Maya studies and one of the most visited sites inMesoamerica. The emotional aspect of the find is best expressed in Ruz's own words in his book The Civilization of the Ancient Maya(1957/1970). He had removed one of the slabs of the pavement of the upper temple and found a stairway that led downward into the bowels of the pyramid. From there on, Ruzstates:The stairway ... was completely filled with heavy stones and earth placed there with the intention of obstructing passage.... It took us four seasons of three months each to empty it.... Finally ... we came to a great triangular slab placed to seal off an entrance.... On June15th,1952, we were able to make the stone turn and we entered the mysterious chamber we had been so eagerly seeking since 1949.... The crossing of the threshold was a moment of indescribable emotion. I was in a spacious crypt that seemed to be carved in ice since its walls were covered with a shiny calcareous layer and numerous stalactites hung from the vault like curtains, and thick stalagmites gave the impression of huge candles.... On the walls were large human figures of stucco seemingly on guard.Thetomb chamber was a huge monolith sealed by a beautifully carved stone slab measuring 3.8 by 2.2 meters (150 by 87 inches); on its top and sides were sculpted numerous images and glyphs. Upon lifting this slab and opening the tomb, Ruzfound the skeleton of a man: "[T]hepersonage had been buried with all his jade jewels. ... [T]he brilliant green of the jade stood out sharply against the red of thecinnabar-covered coffin and bones."Ruz had discovered the tomb ofPacal, lord of Palenque.Besides the important research that was accomplished,Ruz and his multidisciplinary team carried out vast and impressive restoration and conservation work. Previously almost unknown and scarcely visited, through their effortsPalenque became one of the most visited, beautiful, and expressive of Mesoamericancities.Ruz distinguished himself not only as an archaeologist but also as a humanist. Besides his methodical archaeological reports, he produced numerous articles, written in plain, nontechnical language for the general public. In them, as well as in numerous lectures, he discussed the ancient Maya ofpre-Hispanic times, concerned himself with the cruel fate of these people after the Spanish conquest, and revealed theirpresent-day misery. He firmly believed that the splendid architectural monuments of the Maya should be "reconstructed" in order to give back to the people "their patrimony, the cultural heritage of which they have been dispossessed." He wrote scores of books and articles, and a representative sample of his publications is presented here, in the bibliography. His last work, El Pueblo Maya, posthumously published in 1981, is a synthesis of his views on the cultural history of the Maya people from prehistoric times to the present. Each chapter deals with a component of Maya civilization and its accomplishments: environment, technology, science, religion, art, social and economic organization, and so on.In 1960, Ruz retired from field archaeology and joined the faculty at theUniversidad Nacional in Mexico City. He is remembered as a dedicated and brilliant speaker, with a fine sense of humor and agreeable disposition, always involved in the work of his students. He was the founder and first director of the Centro deEstudios Mayas at the university, and in 1961 he began the journal Estudios deCultura Maya, which is still one of the most prestigious in Maya studies. In 1977, Ruzwas appointed director of the MuseoNacional de Antropologíain Mexico City, one of the most important museums ofMesoamerican cultures. He continued in this position until his death, which came during a trip to Canada, in 1979.Read more: alberto-ruz-lhuillier