Melipona Beecheii�Ko'olel Kaab

Jim Jones

Mayan Deities - Chaac

• Associated with water, lightning and rain, so he is invoked to obtain good harvests.

Ah Muzenkaab or “The Descending God”

• The descending god, patron of bees and honey, Ah Muzenkab, is usually represented as a giant bee that rules the whole species.

​

• His name means in Maya, "the one who protects or cares for the honey“ and Mayan art portrays him with honeycombs in his hands.

The Descending God

Descending God Cancun

Descending God Teotihuacan

(in the Museum of Anthropology Mexico City)

The Descending God

Temple of the Frescoes God - Tulum

Temple of the Seven Dolls – Dzibilchaltun

Summer Equinox

Ko'olel Kaab – Messenger to the Xibalba �The Mayan Underworld

Ko’olel Kaab Glyph

The Madrid Codex

One of the oldest surviving books written in the Americas, circa 900 AD

Ko’olel Kaab in the Madrid Codex

Ko’olel Kaab

Mayan Priest

Miel ceremony

Hive bounty

Polen, Miel, and Wax

The Madrid Codex circa 900 AD

Contains a mix of astronomical tables, ritual schedules, divinatory almanacs, and other information related to Maya religion, astrology, farming, and ritual practices.

Melipona Beecheii�- Hive

Honey & Pollen Stores

Comb & Brood

The Queen�(aka Kardashian)

Creating a New Queen:

• No queen cell!
• Any larva less than three days old can become a queen
• Diet of royal jelly

Melipona �Parasites and Disease

Batumen

• Small hive beetles
• Wax moths
• Fungus gnats
• Ants

• Nosema
• Foulbrood
• Chalkbrood

Senora Fani & the Womens Collective

Harvesting Honey

Photo courtesy of: Luisi Leyva

Photo courtesy of: Ame-Rio.org

Miel of the Ko’olel Kaab

Photo courtesy of: Eric Tou

Empirical:

• Antimicrobial
• Anti-inflammatory
• Antioxidant
• Immunomodulatory

​

Not so Empirical:

• Glaucoma
• Mosquito bites!
• Eczema
• Diabetes
• Arthritis
• Wrinkles
• Asthma
• Etc. etc. etc.

​

Questions?

Tasting time!

​

Two Types:

• Melipona Beecheii
• Mellifera

References

• "The World History of Beekeeping and Honey Hunting"; Eva Crane; 1999
• "University of Michigan Undergraduate Research Jounral" Volume 7: "Ancient Maya Beekeeping (ca. 1000 - 1520 CE)" Dylan M. Imre; 2010
• "Pot-Honey: A legacy of stingless bees"; Patricia Vit, Silvia R.M. Pedro, David Roubik (editors); 2013
• "Animals and Plants of the Ancient Maya: A Guide"; Victoria Schlesinger; 2001
• Stanford University: "Cultural Factors in the Survival ofStingless Bee Domestication (Meliponiculture)among the Yucatec Maya"; Genevieve Dezso"; June 2014
• "The Maya Tropical Forest: People, Parks, and Ancient Cities"; James D. Nations; 2006"
• University of Wisconsin-La Cross: “Multiple Organisms: Melipona beecheii” BIO 203
• “Science Direct – Melipona”: https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/melipona