Chapter One. Introduction: Substance of the Ancient Maya
Andrew K. Scherer and Thomas G. Garrison

Part I. Kingdoms and Communities
Chapter Two. Classic Maya Royal Courts, Gender, Personhood, and Moral Authority
Patricia A. McAnany

Chapter Three. Revisiting the Moral Community: Holy Lords, Patron Deities, Origins, and Collapse at Piedras Negras and Beyond
Charles Golden and Takeshi Inomata

Chapter Four. Negotiating Ancient Maya Identity: Ethnicity, Community, and the Fostering of Loyalty in Classic Period Kingdoms
Thomas G. Garrison and Edwin Román

Chapter Five. Maya Populations, Proxies, and Puzzles
David Webster

Chapter Six. The Long Twilight of the Tikal Dynasty: What Ninth Century Tikal, Zacpeten, Ixlu, and Jimbal Tell Us About the Classic Maya Collapse
Simon Martin

Chapter Seven. Revisiting the Architectural Settings of Bonampak: A World on Fire
Mary Miller

Part II. Objects and Beings
Chapter Eight. Proper Names and the Origins of Writing
David Stuart

Chapter Nine. The Olmec Double Merlon Motif: A Middle Formative Sign for Green
Karl A. Taube

Chapter Ten. Setting the Story in Motion: Dedicatory Texts on 4th–6th Century Maya Vases
Claudia Brittenham

Chapter Eleven. Supporting Roles: Wood and Helper Figures in Ancient Maya Art
James Doyle

Chapter Twelve. The Death Within: Maya Perspectives on Bone, Material, and Being
Andrew K. Scherer

Chapter Thirteen. Animal Sacrifice in Mesoamerica: Imitation, Incorporation, and Intimacy
Sarah E. Newman and Franco D. Rossi

Part III. End Matters
Chapter Fourteen. Unfinished Business
Stephen Houston