The Maya employed the kan |KAN| glyph in Late Classic (~750 CE) hieroglyphs on murals and polychrome pottery as an adjective meaning precious, yellow. On cacao drinking vessels, the kan glyph was suggested as a descriptor for a flavoring ingredient, allspice, Pimenta dioica (L.) Merr. (Myrtaceae). However, our previous consensus ethnobotanical fieldwork with Qeqchi Maya healers of Belize revealed another candidate among antidiabetic plants, Tynanthus guatemalensis Donn. Sm. (Bignoniaceae), which was the healers top selection for treatment of diabetes and an exceptionally active extract in an antidiabetic assay for inhibition of protein glycation. Traits of T. guatemalensis observed after cross sectioning the liana were: (1) a cross-shaped xylem organization similar to the kan glyph; (2) an allspice-like aroma; and (3) yellow color. Based on taxonomy and ethnobotany, confirmation of the allspice-like aromatic compound eugenol, and antidiabetic activity, we determined the plant described by the kan glyph to be T. guatemalensis (chibayal in Qeqchi), not P. dioica (allspice). In contemporary Qeqchi tradition, the section of the chibayal vine with its cross is associated with the eighth day of their Tzolkin calendar, which is called the nawal (energy) of qanil (ripe, full yellow). This day is represented with a different glyph from the kan glyph, but notably has a cross representing the four cardinal points. The identification of a potent medicinal plant used in the late classic as well as contemporary times may suggest the long-term preservation of traditional medicinal knowledge in Maya culture for pharmacologically significant plants.
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