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Smoking Gods: Tobacco in Maya Art, History, and Religion
In this, Robicsek's third major book on the Mayans, he traces what must be every conceivable reference to tobacco smoking in the historic record of this amazing Central American civilization. Most of his data comes from inscriptions on artifacts and sculpture that have been conveniently computerized for reference. He provides what is almost a personal smoking history of the various Mayan gods, and there were a lot of them. Every man with a cigar depicted on a Mayan vase is mentioned.
Tobacco in the New World -- Tobacco and the Mayas -- Tobacco and Religion -- Tobacco as Medicine -- Unexplained Effects of Tobacco -- God K, the Deity with the Smoking Cigar -- The Classification of Archaeological Material -- Scenes Almost Certainly Representing the Act of Smoking -- Scenes Probably Representing the Act of Smoking -- Scenes Showing Objects That May Be Large Cigars -- God K on Ceramic Artifacts and Frescoes.
Tobacco in the New World -- Tobacco and the Mayas -- Tobacco and Religion -- Tobacco as Medicine -- Unexplained Effects of Tobacco -- God K, the Deity with the Smoking Cigar -- The Classification of Archaeological Material -- Scenes Almost Certainly Representing the Act of Smoking -- Scenes Probably Representing the Act of Smoking -- Scenes Showing Objects That May Be Large Cigars -- God K on Ceramic Artifacts and Frescoes.
258 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1979
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March 17, 2025
This is another great publication from Robicsek that once again in retrospect shows how far the field of Maya studies has come. That is not to say there still aren't a lot of great information in it, but I really enjoy the moments where later research has either proven something wrong or expanded upon so much the information feels older than it really is.
This is also an interesting book because it features the November Collection pretty heavily. The November Collection is the largest collection of Maya pottery in North America and was smuggled into the US sometime between the 1960s and 70s, though the exact date is unknown. The November Collection is now housed at the MFA, Boston. Interestingly enough, there are examples of pottery featured here that are not mentioned anywhere on the MFA's catalogue, which begs the question: are these pieces in the MFA's possession? Were they sold to someone else before the rest of the collection was sold to Landon T. Clay? Did Clay and his estate keep a selection of the vases and donate the rest? Where are these vases? Why are the vases about tobacco enemas missing? Why is this taking so much real estate in my head?
This is also an interesting book because it features the November Collection pretty heavily. The November Collection is the largest collection of Maya pottery in North America and was smuggled into the US sometime between the 1960s and 70s, though the exact date is unknown. The November Collection is now housed at the MFA, Boston. Interestingly enough, there are examples of pottery featured here that are not mentioned anywhere on the MFA's catalogue, which begs the question: are these pieces in the MFA's possession? Were they sold to someone else before the rest of the collection was sold to Landon T. Clay? Did Clay and his estate keep a selection of the vases and donate the rest? Where are these vases? Why are the vases about tobacco enemas missing? Why is this taking so much real estate in my head?
Displaying 1 of 1 review