THE MAYAN ANCIENT ALIEN AND HIS SARCOPHAGUS

 Ancient spaceship?

Pacal the Great ruled over the Mayan city of Palenque, in what is now southern Mexico, during the seventh century. Upon his death, he was buried inside a pyramid called the Temple of Inscriptions. The intricately carved lid of his sarcophagus has become a classic work of Mayan art—and an oft-cited piece of evidence for ancient alien theorists. In their view, Pacal is pictured in a spaceship during takeoff, with his hand on a control panel, his foot on a pedal and an oxygen tube in his mouth.

K'inich Janaab' Pakal was a Mayan ruler of the was a Mayan ruler of the ruling, Pakal was responsible Pre-Classic Mayan Civilization.  While his  68 years or for the construction or extension of some of Palenque's for the construction or extension of some of Palenque's most notable surviving inscriptions and monumental architecture.

Before his name was deciphered from Maya inscriptions, this ruler has been known by many nicknames and approximations, common ones including Pakal (or Pacal), "Sun Shield", "8 Ahau", and (familiarly) as "Pacal the Great".

Pakal ascended the throne at age 12 on July 29, 615, and lived to the age of 80. The name Pakal means "shield" in the Maya language.

When Pakal came into rule, he saw the opportunity of expansion and Palenque's power in the western part of the Maya states. Pakal initiated a building program at his capital that produced some of Maya civilization's finest art and architecture.The large carved stone 

sarcophagus lid in the Temple of Inscriptions is a famous piece of Classic Maya art.  The commonly accepted interpretation of the sarcophagus lid is that Pakal is descending into Xibalba, the Maya underworld. Around the edges of the lid are glyphs that represent 

the Sun, the Moon, Venus, and various constellations, locating this (Pakal descending) event in the nighttime sky.

Below him is the Maya water god, who guards the underworld.  Beneath Pakal are the "unfolded" jaws of a dragon or serpent, into whose mouth Pakal descends. This is a common representation of entering into the underworld.  Enthusiasts have come to focus on this sarcophagus lid since it's mention in Von Däniken's 1968 best seller, "Chariots of the Gods?" Von Däniken re-produced the image that was found carved into the sarcophagus (he mentioned that it was from Coban; however, this is a false fact) and comparing Pakal's pose to that of the 1960's Project Mercury astronauts.  Von Däniken beings to interpret drawings underneath Pakal as rockets, and saying that this is evidence of extra-terrestrial interaction on the ancient Maya Civilization.   

Ancient Aliens: “Arguably the most remarkable Mayan artifact ever found – the stone sarcophagus lid of King Pacal – has produced considerable controversy. Mainstream scholars believe the depiction of King Pacal on a journey to the underworld, but ancient astronaut theorists believe the king is portrayed at the seat of the controls of a space craft and have dubbed him the Palenque astronaut.” AA: “He appears to be going into space. He is the original rocket man manipulating his spacecraft; going into space.” AA: “We have maintained for a very long time that the depiction here is king Pacal sitting in some kind of spacecraft. He is at an angle like modern-day astronauts upon lift-off. He is manipulating some controls. He has some type of breathing apparatus or some type of a telescope in front of his face. His feet are on some type of a pedal. And you have something that looks like an exhaust – with flames.” The sarcophagus lid of Pacal has been a centerpiece for the Ancient Astronaut theories since the beginning. Eric Von Daniken believes this to be one of his best pieces of evidence. AA: “You see his upper hand – he is manipulating some controls. From the lower hand – he is turning something on. The heel of his left foot is on a kind of pedal and, outside the capsule, you see a linking flame. This is incredible. This is absolute proof of extraterrestrials.” The theory rests on the idea that the Mayans were not depicting their usual symbols here but were trying to realistically depict a rocket with Pacal as its pilot. I think the best thing I can do for you here is to clearly explain what Mayanists and other scientists who specialize in Mayan culture and artwork believe this scene is depicting.