Emily Chan
Additionally, there were dozens of objects made out of obsidian, more than 10,000 marine shell beads, and pendants carved from the teeth of mammals. Out of all the artifacts, the most notable find was a greenstone funerary mask.
Most of the artifacts showed evidence of being exposed to high levels of heat, likely up to around 1,500 degrees Fahrenheit.
The quality and amount of objects uncovered at the site indicated that the burial was of Maya royalty.
According to radiocarbon dating techniques, the burning event seemed to have occurred between A.D. 773 and 881, which was around the beginning of the Terminal Classic period in Mesoamerican history.
However, it appeared that the royal figures from the burial died before the burning ritual. One of the individuals died several decades before the event.
This suggests that the tomb was entered for the specific purpose of burning the remains. It is unclear where the burning itself was conducted.
Afterward, they were placed in the temple/pyramid. The locals were probably aware of the event since the remains were deposited in a major structure that was open to the public.
“The fire-burning event of the burial deposit was likely a dramatic public affair,” said Christina Halperin with the Department of Anthropology at the University of Montreal, Canada.
“Because the fire-burning event itself had the potential to be highly ceremonial, public, and charged with emotion, it could dramatically mark the dismantling of an ancient regime.”
At the time of the burning ritual, Maya political systems were experiencing crises, collapses, and clashings of power.
The latest discovery shows that some regimes might have come to an end, but others were reestablished as new dynasties.
