In the Comitán Valley of Chiapas, Mexico, several large Maya centers flourished in the Late Classic (600–900 CE) and Early Postclassic periods (900–1250 CE). People of these cities left behind monumental architecture, elaborate burials, and over 100 inscribed stone monuments—yet they are almost completely absent from reconstructions of Maya history. In this talk, Earley will present a new interpretation of art from the Comitán Valley, based on over ten years of fieldwork and new photography of over 50 sculptures. Far from being a culturally impoverished frontier, this zone was home to flourishing and sophisticated artistic programs that constructed specific civic identities based on warfare and ritual power. From the accession of kings to the sacrifice of captives, works of art from the Comitán Valley document the diversity of Maya art and the potential for innovation in frontier places.

Caitlin Earley (she/her) is an Assistant Professor of Art History. Her research focuses on ancient Maya sculpture, with a particular interest in how sculpture constructs and negotiates identities at the margins of the Maya world. Her first book, The Comitán Valley: Art and Identity on the Maya Frontier, was published with the University of Texas Press in 2023. She has held fellowships from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the ACLS H. and T. King Fellowship in Ancient American Art and Culture. She earned her MA and PhD in Art History from the University of Texas at Austin. This talk is part of the tenure and promotion process at UW.

RSVP is encouraged.

Image: Chinkultic Monument 40, c. 800 CE, stone.