纪录片《大英博物馆世界简史》 051玛雅宫廷放血仪式浮雕（2）（在线收听）

All the objects in the programmes this week are from the great royal courts of the world, around 800 AD. They're not objects that were made for public view - they're intimate, private expressions of great public power, objects created so that the rulers of the world could state and re-state the full extent of their authority to themselves, to their courtiers and to their gods. And, it must be said, the very real obligations that they saw as going with that authority.

I'm looking at a limestone relief carving, about the size of a small coffee table. It's rectangular, and it shows two human figures. A man,is standing holding a blazing torch over the kneeling figure of a woman, and both are elaborately costumed, with wonderful extravagant headdresses.

So far, so innocuous - but when I look more closely at the woman, the scene becomes horribly disconcerting. Because I can see that she is pulling a rope 'through' her tongue - and the rope contains large thorns, which are piercing and lacerating her.

My squeamish European eye keeps focusing on this stupefying act, but for the Maya, what would have been important was the whole scene. For this is the king and his wife, together in a devotional partnership, jointly performing a ceremony that is of fundamental significance for their position and for their power. It was commissioned by the king to go into the queen's private building. And it was certainly intended to be seen by only a very select few.