Archaeological Find of the Century?
Saw an update on the excavation of the tomb of Ahuizotl on the Aztlan mailing list yesterday and thought I'd share it with you. If it's intact, it could beat the pants of Pakal's tomb and perhaps even King Tut's. The amazing bits are in bold.
Listeros,
In the summer issue of American Archaeology, not online, Johanna Tuckman has written a wide ranging update on the ongoing excavations in downtown Mexico City below the giant monolith of Tlaltecuhtli that was uncovered in October 2006 contiguous to the Templo Mayor.
Here is a URL for that story;
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/08/070809-aztec-tomb.html
And a tiny URL;
http://tinyurl.com/6jwv2a
There are a number of new revelations in this article that Tuckman uncovered in talking to the chief archaeologist at the site, Leonardo Lopez Lujan.
It was surmised by way of certain indications that below the giant Tlaltecuhtli monolith may lie the tomb of Aztec emperor Ahuizotl. If this turns out to be true, this would be the first tomb of an Aztec tlatoani ever found.
1) Lopez Lujan says that further leads may be showing that Ahuizotl's tomb does lie below the monolith. Historical sources point at this spot as likely. There are chambers spotted below the monolith using modern technology to sense them out.
2) There is a date carved on the monolith with a rabbit and two dots on one side and 10 on the other which could be the year 10 Rabbit when Ahuizotl died. But it could also say 12 Rabbit, a year of a solar eclipse or two Rabbit , the name of a god that eclipsed the sun.
3) There could be three chambers below the monolith as remote sensing apparatus may indicate.
4) In February, they uncovered stones that could be the roof of a chamber and 3 stone boxes of offerings yet to be opened.. 15,000 objects have been uncovered so far including 350 species of animals. There is an entranceway that may be the place Aztec workers entered but it is filled with mud and hampering excavation. Bloodletting tools, copal, agave leaves, greenstone beads were found there.
5) The water table is so high at the site that it necessitates three pumps working full time and the pumps do not always work well. This has slowed the excavations but the water has also created bog like conditions which preserves organic matter.
6) Lopez Lujan believes there is a possibility that the two brothers of Ahuizotl who ruled before him, Axayacatl and Tizoc may be in the chambers as well and perhaps Moctezuma II.
Follow up stories like this one are rare in archaeology where we hear of the original find and the theories about them and then we wait long periods of time for updates and further information. If the tombs are found here, it will be one of the most important archaeological finds in all of Mexican history.
Mike Ruggeri
Mike Ruggeri's Aztec and Toltec World
http://tinyurl.com/yqypej
The post is also in the Aztlan archive:
http://www.famsi.org/pipermail/aztlan/2008-June/004664.html
I also found American Archaeology's website but as the post says the actual article isn't online, just a brief snippet. However, it does have a cool picture of Tlaltecuhtli.
http://www.americanarchaeology.com/aatoc.html
Listeros,
In the summer issue of American Archaeology, not online, Johanna Tuckman has written a wide ranging update on the ongoing excavations in downtown Mexico City below the giant monolith of Tlaltecuhtli that was uncovered in October 2006 contiguous to the Templo Mayor.
Here is a URL for that story;
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/08/070809-aztec-tomb.html
And a tiny URL;
http://tinyurl.com/6jwv2a
There are a number of new revelations in this article that Tuckman uncovered in talking to the chief archaeologist at the site, Leonardo Lopez Lujan.
It was surmised by way of certain indications that below the giant Tlaltecuhtli monolith may lie the tomb of Aztec emperor Ahuizotl. If this turns out to be true, this would be the first tomb of an Aztec tlatoani ever found.
1) Lopez Lujan says that further leads may be showing that Ahuizotl's tomb does lie below the monolith. Historical sources point at this spot as likely. There are chambers spotted below the monolith using modern technology to sense them out.
2) There is a date carved on the monolith with a rabbit and two dots on one side and 10 on the other which could be the year 10 Rabbit when Ahuizotl died. But it could also say 12 Rabbit, a year of a solar eclipse or two Rabbit , the name of a god that eclipsed the sun.
3) There could be three chambers below the monolith as remote sensing apparatus may indicate.
4) In February, they uncovered stones that could be the roof of a chamber and 3 stone boxes of offerings yet to be opened.. 15,000 objects have been uncovered so far including 350 species of animals. There is an entranceway that may be the place Aztec workers entered but it is filled with mud and hampering excavation. Bloodletting tools, copal, agave leaves, greenstone beads were found there.
5) The water table is so high at the site that it necessitates three pumps working full time and the pumps do not always work well. This has slowed the excavations but the water has also created bog like conditions which preserves organic matter.
6) Lopez Lujan believes there is a possibility that the two brothers of Ahuizotl who ruled before him, Axayacatl and Tizoc may be in the chambers as well and perhaps Moctezuma II.
Follow up stories like this one are rare in archaeology where we hear of the original find and the theories about them and then we wait long periods of time for updates and further information. If the tombs are found here, it will be one of the most important archaeological finds in all of Mexican history.
Mike Ruggeri
Mike Ruggeri's Aztec and Toltec World
http://tinyurl.com/yqypej
The post is also in the Aztlan archive:
http://www.famsi.org/pipermail/aztlan/2008-June/004664.html
I also found American Archaeology's website but as the post says the actual article isn't online, just a brief snippet. However, it does have a cool picture of Tlaltecuhtli.
http://www.americanarchaeology.com/aatoc.html