碑文の神殿

Pier A's decoration consists entirely of hieroglyphic text. However, only eleven glyphs and glyph portions survive to this day. Among these glyphs, “capture” can be clearly seen, but who or what was captured is unknown because the corresponding glyphs are unreadable.

Pier B depicts a scene in which a human figure holds the “child” God K, one of whose legs is a serpent, in his hand.

The human figure is actually life size (165 cm tall), but its position and perspective make it appear much larger. It wears an elaborate feather headdress, a jaguar skin skirt, and a belt. The figure also used to wear a loincloth and a short beaded cape, but due to damage those are largely missing today, as is the head of the figure.

It is thought that the figure held by the human figure is God K, although his characteristic “flared forehead” is only visible on Pier D. The figure of God K, often described as an “infant” or “child,” has one human leg and one serpent-leg. The human leg ends in a six-toed foot that is cradled by the other figure. It is likely, especially considering the emphasis placed on the polydactyly, that this feature is a reference to Pakal’s son, Kan B'alam II, who is portrayed in portraits with six fingers on one hand and six toes on one foot.

The standing figure on Pier C is thought to be a woman, possibly Pakal’s mother, Lady Zac-Kuk. The appearance of the psychoduct (a hollow duct that goes from the outer temple into the tomb of Pakal) and the stone band that connects to it have led many to compare the structure to an umbilical cord. The fact that this “umbilical cord” connects the figure on Pier C to Pakal’s tomb (and by extension, Pakal himself) supports the identification of the figure as Lady Zac-Kuk. The umbilical cord can then be interpreted as a reference to the royal bloodline.

Pier D provides the evidence that the “baby” figure is, in fact, God K. In this depiction of the “baby” figure, it wears an “axe” or “flare” including a mirror (visible below the feathers of the standing figure’s headdress), something characteristic of God K. The figure on this pier is more complete than the same figure on any of the other piers. Also present in the depiction of God K are three vertical cuts on the god’s back. These have been shown to be intentional, but their meaning is still unknown.

The standing figure on Pier E is most likely Kan Bahlam I. The elaborate headdress worn by the figure contains glyphs that identify him as “chan-bahlum.” It is unlikely that this refers to Kan B'alam II because he is thought to be represented by the figure of God K. Because Kan Bʼalam II, great-great-grandson of Kan Bʼalam I, finished the decoration of the Temple of Inscriptions, this can be seen as an effort to reinforce the legitimacy of his claim to the throne; he is emphasizing his relationship to his ancestor and namesake, as well as his relationship to his father and grandmother.

Pier F has only one glyph block that remains today. It contains glyphs for what is thought to be a title, translated as “dead rabbit”, followed by the title and name “Kinich Kan-B'alam,” after which comes an unknown glyph (possibly another title), and the glyph for Palenque.

Although much of the color on the piers has deteriorated, some is still visible today. Originally, the piers would have been extraordinarily colorful. Bright red, yellow, and blue would have been seen on their stucco sculpture. A thin coat of light red paint would have been applied to all of the stucco sculpture as a sort of background coloring while the stucco was still wet, binding the color to the building. Because the temple was repeatedly repainted, one can observe layers of pigment between layers of stucco. The color blue signified the Heavens and the Gods and would have been applied to things relating to the gods, as well as the glyphic texts on the sculpture. The color yellow related to Xibalba, the Maya underworld, which was associated with jaguars, so the jaguar skirts were colored accordingly.

ピラミッドの途方もない重さによる墓の崩壊を防ぐため、建築家たちは交差ヴォールトと凹んだ控え壁を用いて小屋型の部屋を設計した。^{[ 11 ]}

パカル王の墓からは、数々の重要な考古学的発見物や美術品が発掘された。