Contents -- Preface -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction -- 1. LIFE AT THE CROSSROADS Quirigua before K'ak' Tiliw -- 2. A RESTIVE VASSAL The Early Reign of K'ak' Tiliw -- 3. REBELLION AND REVIVAL The First Stelae of K'ak' Tiliw -- 4. DREAMS OF POWER Stelae F, D, and E -- 5. FOUNDATION OF THE COSMIC HOUSE Stelae C and A and Zoomorph B -- 6. IN HONOR OF A GREAT WARRIOR The Legacy of K'ak' Tiliw -- Appendix A: Rulers of Quirigua -- Appendix B: Historical Events Recorded in the Texts of Quirigua -- Appendix C: Selected Historical Events from the Texts of Copan -- Appendix D: Transcriptions and Translations of the Monumental Inscriptions Commissioned by K'ak' Tiliw -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index.