Tikal Burial 196 Tomb of the Jade Jaguar - Maya Archaeology

Pearl Necklace Plan #67 117A-84
On the plan the pearl necklace is mistakenly shown as
199
only occurring on the south side of the neck. In reality,
there were pearls for a considerable arc around the head of
the deceased. Most of the pearls were mixed with the upper
strands of the jade bead necklace or were west of the jade
necklace altogether. Whether the two were strung together or
separately is not known. Because the pearls fell into the
crevices between bones and jade beads, their original order
was lost. Altogether, there were about 137 pearls of various
shapes and sizes: pear-shaped, spherical, bilobed, elongate,
and irregular. The largest specimen was L 3, W 2.3,
and T 1.5; with most having a diameter of 1-1.5 cm., and all
were perforated with one being incised around one side of the
hole. The buried noble in Bu. 116 had a pearl necklace also.
Cataloged with the pearls was one large shell bead,
flattened and spherical in shape. The author cannot say much
without seeing the piece but it is possible that the shell
bead belonged to the belt and became mixed with the pearls by
mistake.
MISCELLANEOUS OFFERINGS
Incised Stingray Spines Plan #24 117A-85 a, b Photos 103
As the excavator was clearing fallen debris away from
the skeleton, George Guillemin suggested that a search be
made