Mexico: archaeologists find more than 100 Mayan funeral deposits over 1,000 years old

2011-06-29 07:13:56 GMT+7 (ICT)

TABASCO, MEXICO (BNO NEWS) -- Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) on Tuesday announced that a group of archaeologists found over 100 artifacts dating back to more than 1000 years near Mayan ruins in the country's southern region.

The artifacts, which have totaled to 116, were found in the Mayan ruins of Comalcalco, located in the southern state of Tabasco. The INAH said the discovery could be a possible pre-Hispanic cemetery, as the artifacts include 66 burials located inside urns, while the 50 others were found around them.

The discovery is the largest skeletal finding in the region and were located beneath three mounds that had previously been destroyed by agricultural activities, the INAH said. The mounds are located some 2.8 kilometers (1.7 miles) from the ruin's Great Acropolis of Comalcalco.

Archaeologist Ricard Armijo, coordinator at the work site, said the 66 funeral deposits found in the urns could possibly correspond to elite Mayans, while the remaining 50, which were found in various positions around them, could have been their companions.

Preliminary analysis of the findings - which also include a number of whistles, rattles, ceramic figures representing animals and humans, knives, daggers, obsidian, fragments of grinding stones, and over 70 thousand sherds - indicate that the materials could date back to 750-850 AD, that is, some 1,161 to 1,200 years ago.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2011-06-29

Good to hear some good news from Mexico. Viva Meheeko!