Re-assessing the Botanical Identity of the Supposed 'Maize God' in Maya Iconography

Human societies throughout the world have traditionally paid homage to deities that represent the origin and annual rejuvenation of staple crops.  Historians attribute such roles to an anthropomorphic Maya divinity on Classic and pre-Classic ceramics (‘god E’) whose jade skirt and shaved, elongate head are thought to represent maize vegetation and a cranial corn ear.    A systematic survey of this god’s portraitures on ceramics, codices and stelae reveals, however, that god E is born from the cranium of the ‘water lily monster’ (30% of ceramics) or maw of the ‘water lily serpent’ (30%) and pertains in mythical settings to the Maya watery netherworld (73%).   Only five of 191 pre-Columbian ceramics investigated portray plant features that might arguably be construed as either a corn cob or maize plant.   This finding urges an explanation for the dominant role of an aquatic plant in Maya cosmology and iconography.