Stucco modelled glyph

Stucco modelled glyph with traces of paint. It represents the number 4 in the head-shape version instead of the dots and bars notation system. It must have been part of an Initial Series or Long Count Calendar inscription. It is a modelled stucco glyph of a head in profile. It has traces of paint. The stucco, a soft mixture of lime and sand, was extensively used by Mayans to plaster wall surfaces and floors of their official buildings. Sculpted and modelled, it was also the material of choice to decorate different structures and, as in this case, to become the media for the inscriptions which narrated or indicated dates and political, military and religious events involving their monarchs. Glyphs like the one we are observing formed part of long texts comprised of stucco elements in groups. This piece comes from the excavations led by Captain Antonio del Río in 1787, in the Temple of Inscriptions in Palenque. According to the report, this glyph came from the facade of the eastern arcade of the Palace.