A funerary urn with the representation of the corn god and the remains of a person was located in the works on Section 7 of the Mayan Train by specialists from National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH). This is part of the rescue work that said institution carries out in the area.
The news was announced during the morning conference of the President Andrés Manuel López Obradorfor him general director of INAH, Diego Prieto Hernándezand for the Secretary of Culture.
Founding offering
The piece is an urn that has been identified as a Paaktzatz-style vessel, which was found with another similar one with applications on the sides that simulate “the thorns of a ceiba tree, a sacred tree among the Mayans of the past and present.”
For this reason, as he said Diego Prieto, it is thought that it must have been part of a founding offering, in association with pre-Hispanic property. “It is a pot of raw mud that contains the mortal remains of a person,” said the anthropologist.
According to a press release, the urn retains applications, which appear to represent the symbol Maya ik, alluding to wind and breath divine; while on its obverse it presents a small anthropomorphic figure made with pastillaje, which alludes to the god of corn in its representation as cob in growth stage.
The representation of this deityaccording to the archaeologists who participated in the recovery of the urn, has been found in other figurines of the Jaina Island, in Campeche, which have been registered by the INAH.
war symbol
In addition to this divine figure, the urn is characterized by having on the lid the representation of a owlsymbol shared with the second vessel of said offering. Regarding this, the official document points out that “in the Mayan iconographyhe owl It was considered a bird of omen and a war symbolduring the Classic period, as recorded in the Paaktzatz vessels made between 680 and 770 AD, in the cultural area known as Río Bec.
Other tasks
Of the archaeological rescue work in the sections 5, 6 and 7 of the Mayan Trainthe owner of the INAH indicated that, as of January 8, 2024, with regard to Section 5, which goes from the Cancun Airport station to Tulum9,038 real estate properties, 192 movable elements, 56,362 ceramic fragments, a human burial and 1,118 natural features associated with the presence of human groups have been protected.
In Section 6, which joins the Tulum and Chetumal Airport stations3,685 real estate properties, 63 pieces of furniture, 69,120 ceramic sherds, five burials and 148 natural features have been registered and preserved.
As for Section 7, which runs from Chetumal Airport stations to Escárcegathe figures amount to 27,941 real estate structures, 334 movable assets, 125,880 ceramic fragments, 141 human burials and 481 natural features.
Diego Prieto Hernández mentioned that other notable actions in these three sections will be the prompt opening of the new service area of the Tulum Archaeological Zone, in Quintana Rooas well as the beginning of the museography and the visitor services facilities in the East Coast Museumwhich is built within the Jaguar Park.