Divinely sanctioned kingship is found among the ancient civilizations throughout the world. It has been a largely unexplored process in ancient Mesoamerica. Sacred kings, who played key roles in the emergence of complex urban society, first appeared among the Olmec on the Gulf Coast of Mexico around 900 BC, but the full growth of this phenomenon occurred in southern Mexico, Guatemala, Belize and the western Honduras among the most brilliant of the New World civilizations: the Maya. Published to accompany the exhibition at the Los Angeles Country Museum of Art (September 2005), the Dallas Museum of Art (February 2006) and the Metropolitan Museum of Art (June 2006), this superb book documents the development of royal authority among the ancient Maya and their descendants, exploring central historical issues and seminal artworks that exemplify Maya divine kingship.