Join us on this journey in the past and discover with us the latest discoveries, exclusively for unknown Mexico, in this, the first part of archeology to the extreme.
Without a doubt, the Mayan civilization is one of the most enigmatic societies of the past. The environment in which it was developed, as well as the wonderful archaeological legacy that is still preserved today, makes everything related to the Mayan arouse more and more interest and that it acquires new followers every day.
For centuries, this enigmatic culture has attracted archaeologists, explorers, adventurers and even treasure hunters who have wandered into the jungles where this vital civilization once inhabited.
Underwater worship
The Mayan religion revered different deities, among which Chac, the god of rain, stood out, who ruled in the bowels of the earth, in a watery underworld known as Xibalba.
According to his religious thinking, this area of the universe was accessed through the mouth of caves and cenotes, such as Chichén Itzá, Ek Balam and Uxmal, to name just a few. Thus they played an important role in their religion, the same served as oracles or were providers of "sacred water", as well as deposit sites for the dead, ossuaries, places of offering and abode of the gods.
The sacredness of these sites is evidenced by the existence of areas within the caves to which only the ox men ob priests could access, who were in charge of carrying out the rituals, whose liturgy was strictly regulated, since these events would have to be carried out in very specific spaces and times, using the correct paraphernalia for the occasion. Among the elements that made up the regulation of the ritual, the sacred water or zuhuy ha stands out.
Studying these systems can help to resolve some of the "gaps" that still exist in Mayan archaeological research. Among other things, due to the excellent state of preservation in which some of the artifacts deposited in these sites can be found, which helps us to understand in a clearer way what were the characteristics of the rituals and the social environment in which they occurred.
Treasure hunters
Until relatively few years ago, studies related to caves and cenotes were very scarce. Recent publications have confirmed the ritual importance and the enormous amount of information contained in these systems. This may be due to the natural isolation and difficult access, since it requires the development of special skills such as the management of vertical caving techniques and cave diving training.
In this sense, researchers from the Autonomous University of Yucatán decided to take on the challenge of an exhaustive study of the archeology of the natural cavities of the Yucatan Peninsula, for which a team of archaeologists was trained in vertical speleological techniques and cave diving.
The team is currently dedicated to the search for the secrets that the Xibalba keeps. Their working tools differ from those used in conventional archeology, and these include climbing ropes, lifts, rappelling equipment, lamps, and diving equipment. The total load of the equipment exceeds 70 kilos, which makes the walks to the sites extremely extreme.
Human sacrifice
Although work in the field is full of adventure and strong emotions, it is important to highlight that before field work, there is a research phase in the office that serves as a guide to formulate our working hypotheses. Some of the lines of investigation that have led us to search within the Mayan underworld have their origins in ancient documents that mention human sacrifice activities and offerings to the cenotes.
One of our main lines of research is related to human sacrifice. For several years they dedicated themselves to the laboratory study of the individuals that were extracted from what they have called the "Mother" of all cenotes: the Sacred Cenote of Chichén Itzá.
The study of this important collection revealed that living individuals were not only thrown into the Sacred Cenote, but that a great variety of body treatments were carried out, which made it a place not only for sacrifice but also a burial site, ossuary , and perhaps a place that, due to the extraordinary energy conferred on it, could neutralize the power of some artifacts or bone parts, to which at a given moment, negative effects were attributed, such as calamities, famines, among others. In this sense, the cenote became a catalyst for negative forces.
With these tools in hand, the work team is dedicated to searching in the most remote areas of the state of Yucatan, evidence of rituals carried out in caves and cenotes and the presence of human bone remains that could have reached the bottom of these places. in a similar way to that reported for the Sacred Cenote.
This is not always easy, as archaeologists encounter obstacles such as height (or depth) to access these systems, and sometimes unexpected fauna, such as huge swarms of wild wasps and bees.
Where to begin?
In the field, the team seeks to locate itself in a central location in the area they intend to work. Currently the field work is located in the center of Yucatan, so the town of Homún has turned out to be a strategic place.
Thanks to the municipal authorities, and especially to the parish priest of the Church of San Buenaventura, it has been possible to install the camp in the facilities of the beautiful 16th century colonial convent. Very early the day of searching for new sites begins, following the names and locations found in the historical chronicles.
A very important element for the success of our investigations are local informants, without whom it would be practically impossible to locate the most remote sites. Our team is fortunate to have Don Elmer Echeverría, an expert mountain guide, a native of Homún. Not only does he know the trails and cenotes practically by heart, but he is also an extraordinary narrator of stories and legends.
The guides Edesio Echeverría, better known as “Don Gudi” and Santiago XXX, also accompany us on our expeditions; The two of them, through long hours of work, have learned the proper handling of the safety ropes for rappelling and ascent, so they have also become an excellent safety support on the surface.
The team of archaeologists looks to the future waiting for cutting-edge technology that allows them to know from the surface what the morphology of a site is and perhaps to be able to know what types of archaeological materials are hidden under the sediment of the bottom, through the use of sophisticated remote sensing equipment. This seems to be a dream about to come true, since the Faculty of Anthropology of the UAE has established a working agreement with the University of Science and Technology of Norway.
This institution is a world leader in the field of underwater remote sensing, and to date works in the prospecting and excavation of archaeological sites submerged at depths greater than 300 meters, in the seabed between Norway and Great Britain.
The future is promising, but at the moment, it is only the end of a working day.
A normal work day
1 Agree on a route to follow with our guides. We previously conducted questionnaires with them to try to identify names of cenotes, towns, or ranches that we obtained in our archival research. Sometimes we run with the luck that our informants identify the old name of some site, with the current name of some cenote.
2 Physical location of the place. Most of the time it is necessary to descend using vertical caving techniques to be able to access the places. A scanner is dispatched first and is responsible for setting the baseline and initiating recognition.
3 Diving plan. Once the dimensions and depth of the place have been established, the diving plan is established. Responsibilities are assigned and work teams are established. Depending on the depth and dimensions of the cenote, the logging and mapping work can take from two to six days.
4 Ascent by the rope and refreshment. When we reach the surface we take something that helps us endure the way back to the camp, where we can enjoy hot soup.
5 Information dump. After lunch at camp, we put our valuable new data on the computers.
