Lords of creation: the origins of sacred maya kingship

Divinely sanctioned kingship is found among the ancient civilizations throughout the world. It has been a largely unexplored process in ancient Mesoamerica. Sacred kings, who played key roles in the emergence of complex urban society, first appeared among the Olmec on the Gulf Coast of Mexico around 900 BC, but the full growth of this phenomenon occurred in southern Mexico, Guatemala, Belize and the western Honduras among the most brilliant of the New World civilizations: the Maya.