Cranial Modification Among the Maya: Absence of Evidence or Evidence of Absence

Cranial modification is considered a visible and permanent emblem of community identity and embodiment. In the Maya area, head binding is viewed as a normal rite of passage for children; however, the frequency of cranial modification in the archaeological record ranges from 50% to 88% of observable skeletal samples. Are individuals without cranial modification somehow less than fully embodied? This chapter argues that absence of cranial modification does not reflect a lack of embodiment. Specifically, data on Maya souls and child-rearing ceremonies demonstrate that children could potentially lose animating essences through their heads. This is not to say that variation in head shape was not intentionally created or was not a potentially meaningful social index in some Maya contexts; it was. Head binding, however, was first and foremost an attempt to prevent such loss and did not necessarily have to result in a modified head shape to accomplish that goal.