K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo' (Copán founder)

K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo' was the founder of the Classic dynasty of Copán (Oxwitik), taking power in 426 CE after arriving from the west, apparently with ties to the great central-Mexican city of Teotihuacan. Later kings revered him as the source of their legitimacy: Altar Q depicts him passing the emblem of rulership to his fifteen royal successors. His tomb, deep beneath the Copán acropolis, confirms him as a real historical figure at the root of the dynasty.