In a huge underwater cave found the cemetery of the ancient Maya

2018-02-22 10:50

In a huge underwater cave found the cemetery of the ancient Maya
Scientists of the National Institute of anthropology and history of Mexico found 198 ancient artifacts and remains of living beings inside a huge cave SAC-Aktun.

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Among the finds that have been discovered by archaeologists, there are human remains, including skeletons, reports Rus.Media.

I wonder what part of the human bones, whose age is about 9 thousand years seem to have the scars of the fire. Thus, the researchers suggested that human activity in this region began a thousand years earlier than previously thought.

There is a version that the cave was used for ancient Mayan cemetery and the site of a sacred cult. In particular, among the findings, the scientists isolated the statue of the God of trade. It’s also possible that the place was used for sacrifices.

“Traders have followed fixed routes and used these places as a ritual of the points of the pilgrimage, they did stop on the altars and sacred places and they left their mark there,” – said at a press conference the head of the research group underwater archaeologist Guillermo de Anda from the National Institute of anthropology and history of Mexico.

De Anda suggests that people, apparently, actually lived in an underwater cave, but decided to go down into it during periods of severe drought to search for water. But the cave and the culture of the tribes was, however, inextricably linked and divers found underwater many examples of Mayan ceramics and other products, as well as a structure that resembles a ladder.

Inside the cave the researchers also found fossils of animals Dating from the last ice age, including giant sloths and bears, as well as the remains of extinct animals konopada of the family Gomphotheriidae. According to scientists, the cave was a trap for those it inadvertently fell.