Archaeologists have found a strange statue of a Mayan warrior with a snake on his head

Mexican scientists are building theories about a rare find

In Mexico, during archaeological excavations, scientists discovered a 1000-year-old statue of a Mayan warrior in the basement of a temple in Chichen Itza on the Yucatan Peninsula. What the complete sculpture looked like remains unknown — only one head with a helmet in the form of a feathered serpent with an open mouth remained. Previously, a temple of a snake deity was found.

Photo: inah.gob.mx

According to Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), the anthropomorphic statue depicts a warrior wearing a helmet in the shape of a snake with open jaws, and scientists suspect he may once have been part of a larger sculpture made about 1,000 years ago. This means that the find dates back to the earliest period of residence of the Mayan tribe in Chichen Itza. “We can conclude that the sculptural parameters of the find coincide with those used in the earliest times of this Mayan city,” the institute added. The fragment of the statue, 33 centimeters high and 28 centimeters wide, has a crack but is in good shape, according to the scientists.

INAH head Diego Prieto Hernandez described the head as “a very interesting find.”

“In this case, this is the figure of a snake, from which a human face seems to “flow”, and a feathered headdress, so this probably hints at Kukulcan, the Mayan feathered serpent,” the archaeologist expresses his assumptions about the find.

The feathered serpent, depicted on the warrior's helmet, was one of the most important gods in Mesoamerica. The Aztecs called it Quetzalcoatl, and the ancient Mayans called it Kukulcan.

At a press conference, Prieto Hernandez argued that the discovery of an anthropomorphic statue in the archaeological site of Chichen Itza is a sign of the contact that people can have with their past. He said the pre-Hispanic element, which must have been part of a larger sculptural work, was found in the eastern basement of the Maudsley Temple, named after the British explorer.

Chichen Itza was one of the greatest centers of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization in the Yucatan Peninsula, which flourished between the 9th and 13th centuries AD. Chichen Itza covers an area of ​​more than 300 hectares. In the center of the site rises 30 meters high a pyramid known as El Castillo (The Castle). There are many temples at the site, as well as a massive ball court and an astronomical observatory. Now Chichen Itza is considered one of the largest and best preserved sites of ancient civilization.

As The Independent writes, the National Institute of Anthropology and History of Mexico is working on the construction of a new museum, and is also involved in the construction of a railway line — Tren Maya, connecting people to the site of the Mayan civilization. This project is helping scientists make scientific discoveries: a number of archaeological finds have already been made, a number of ancient architectural structures and many other artifacts have been discovered.

According to Prieto Hernandez, archaeological work on seven sections of the railway track under construction helped restore 57,146 construction sites structures, 1,925 moving artifacts, 660 human burials and 2,252 natural objects associated with human settlements.

Currently, Chichen Itza receives at least 3,500 tourists per day, and in high tourist seasons the number can reach 8 thousand daily visitors, according to UNESCO. This requires constant care and attention to prevent damage to ancient monuments.