Mexican Police Thought They Found a Crime Scene – Turns Out It Was an Ancient Sacrifice From 900 C.E.

(PH๏τo Credit: Ronaldo Schemidt/ AFP/ Getty Images and DEA/ ARCHIVIO J. LANGE/ Getty Images)

When Mexican authorities found a pile of 150 skulls in a cave near the Guatemalan border in 2012, they thought they were looking at a mᴀssive crime scene. Turns out the authorities weren’t completely wrong. They might have been looking at a mᴀssive crime scene, but from way earlier than they were initially thinking.

Mexican skull found at Templo Mayer archeology site

A skull is pictured at The Templo Mayor museum in Mexico City, on October 5, 2012. (PH๏τo Credit: Ronaldo Schemidt/ AFP/ Getty Images)

The remains were brought to the Mexican state capital. Over the next decade, numerous tests and analyses were run on these skulls. Experts recently determined that the skulls came from sacrificial victims killed between 900 to 1200 C.E.

The police weren’t incorrect to believe they were looking at a modern-day crime scene when they stumbled upon these skulls. The border area between Mexico and Guatemala has, sadly, seen a rise in violence and immigrant trafficking in the last few decades.

Furthermore, pre-Hispanic skull piles in Mexico tend to have holes through each side of the skull and are usually found in ancient ceremonial plazas.

Archeologists look at skulls unearthed in Mexico City

Anthropologists, who work at the National Insтιтute of Anthropology and History, examine skulls, which were found during excavation work, in Mexico City, Mexico on July 10, 2017.
(PH๏τo Credit: Daniel Cardenas/ Anadolu Agency/ Getty Images)

Experts believe the victims found in the cave were probably victims of a ritual decapitation. Their skulls may have been put on a trophy rack known as a “Tzompantli.” Spanish conquistadors including Hernán Cortés, Bernal Díaz del Castillo, and Andrés de Tapia have described Tzompantli skull racks in writings about their conquests. It wasn’t uncommon to see a Spaniard’s head included on a Tzompantli.

However, experts note that these skulls might have rested atop poles rather than being strung on them. In ancient cultures including the Aztecs, Tzompantli racks were typically created by casting a hole through the skull and stringing it up on wooden poles.

Tzompantli skull rack

The Tzompantli (skull rack) found during the excavations of Templo Mayor (Great Temple) in Tenochтιтlan. Aztec civilization. (PH๏τo Credit: DEA/ ARCHIVIO J. LANGE/ Getty Images)

More from us: 2,000-Year-Old Skull Shows Evidence of Ancient Surgery

Experts also noted that there were more females than males among the victims found in the cave, and none of them had any teeth. Previously, researchers had thought that skulls in a Tzompantli structure tended to belong to defeated male warriors, but recent analysis has indicated that this is not always the case.

In light of this discovery, archeologist Javier Montes de Paz believes that people should probably call an archeologist before the police.

“When people find something that could in an archeological context, don’t touch it and notify local authorities or directly the [National Insтιтute of Anthropology and History],” he advises.

Madeline Hiltz

Maddy Hiltz is someone who loves all things history. She received her Bachelors of Arts in history and her Master’s of Arts degree in history both from the University of Western Ontario in Canada. Her thesis examined menstrual education in Victorian England. She is pᴀssionate about Princess Diana, the тιтanic, the Romanovs, and Egypt amongst other things.

In her spare time, Maddy loves playing volleyball, running, walking, and biking, although when she wants to be lazy she loves to read a good thriller. She loves spending quality time with her friends, family, and puppy Luna!

Related Posts

The $273 Tesla Pi Phone Is Finally Coming: What Makes This Revolutionary Device DESTROY the iPhone 17?

In a bold move that could redefine the smartphone market, Tesla is set to launch its highly anticipated Pi Phone, priced at an astonishingly compeтιтive $273. As…

The Newgrange Stone Disc: A Neolithic Map of Eternity

In the quiet of a museum display case lies an object of profound mystery: a stone disc from the great pᴀssage tomb of Newgrange in Ireland. Dating…

Cliff Palace: The Stone Whisper of Mesa Verde

Tucked into a vast sandstone alcove, hidden beneath the sun-scorched cliffs of southwestern Colorado, lies Cliff Palace—a silent city of stone that speaks volumes about the people…

The Silent Noble: A Mummy’s Eternal Whisper

In the hushed stillness of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, a figure from a distant past rests in serene repose. This is the mummy of a high-ranking…

Blood Falls: Antarctica’s Crimson Secret

In the vast, silent, and pristine white expanse of Antarctica’s Taylor Glacier, a startling sight defies all expectation: a waterfall the color of freshly spilled blood, cascading…

The Talking Stone

In the summer of 2023, at a small construction site on the outskirts of Da Lat, a young worker suddenly picked up a stone block weighing about…