Woven Words: Women and Classic Maya Hieroglyphic Writing

What survives of Classic Maya (250–925 CE) scribal tradition suggests that production and use of hieroglyphs were dominated by elite men. Ancient texts and imagery, as well as ethnohistorical sources, overwhelmingly position males as agents of writing. This situation significantly shapes contemporary understanding of the female aspects of Classic Maya society and encourages the tacit assumption of the absence of female scribes. In this paper, we argue that three factors have obscured the visibility of women in scribal roles: (1) archaeological preservation bias that erased the products of female scribes while preserving those produced by men; (2) a patriarchal assumption that men alone had access to the education required for literacy, and (3) a narrow definition of epigraphic sources that excludes images of writing. We draw attention to iconographic and hieroglyphic evidence that suggests that female participation in Classic Maya scribal tradition was less anomalous than previously assumed. We examine painted, sculpted, and molded images of garments and other textiles ornamented with hieroglyphs as evidence that women not only used but also produced writing. Critical consideration of these sources offers an expanded view of pre‐colonial Maya society that allows for female engagement in scribal practice.