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Diver in a cenote in Mexico. Public Domain.

13,700-Year-Old Skeleton in Mexican Cenote Reveals Human Origins (Video)

Deep within Mexico's subterranean realm lies a site of immense archaeological significance. Recent discoveries have reshaped our understanding of the earliest human presence in the Americas,...
Cenote in Yucatan, Mexico. Source: Angiolo / Adobe Stock.

Exploring the Dark Depths: Mystery of the “Evil” Maya Sinkhole (Video)

Deep in the Yucatan jungle , near the ancient city of Mayapán in Mexico's Yucatán peninsula lies a cenote, a natural sinkhole, that has long been shrouded in mystery and superstition. It is a place...
Cenote used by the Mayans for offerings (representational). Source: 2ragon / Adobe Stock.

Fossils and Artifacts Found in Belize's Sacred Mayan Pools (Video)

In a recent discovery, a team of researchers has uncovered what appears to be an underwater portal to the Maya underworld . The team had set out to explore the sacred pools of the ancient Maya,...
The Pre-Maya human remains were found in a cenote near a section of the Maya Train route. Source: Peter Broger/ INAH

Will a Pre-Maya Skeleton be Destroyed by the Maya Train?

A cave-diving archaeologist has made a remarkable discovery in Mexico – a Pre-Maya human skeleton which may date to as far back as the end of the last ice age. It’s a fascinating find, but the human...
Giant sinkhole that has opened up in the Atacama Desert, Chile. Source: Sernageomin

Giant Sinkhole Is Growing In Chile’s Atacama Desert

An enormous sinkhole that appeared on a plot of mining land in Chile’s Atacama Desert region has continued to grow. The gigantic cavity was first seen on July 30 in a rural area outside the town of...
The rare Maya canoe found in a Mexican cenote. Source: Oficina Península de Yucatán de la SAS-INAH

Rare 1000-Year-Old Maya Canoe Found in Yucatan Cenote

An ancient wooden Maya canoe, believed to have been used more than 1,000 years ago, has turned up in San Andres, in the Yucatan area of southern Mexico. Almost 5 feet (1.6 meters) in length, the...
Ik-Kil cenote, Chichen Itza, Mexico

Sacred Cenotes: Portals to the Maya Underworld

The ancient Maya who populated the Yucatan Peninsula in the first millennium AD believed that there were three ways for the living to enter Xibalba, the world of the dead: through deep caves, through...
Diver Christophe Le Maillot documents the ocher mining activity at the site.   Source: Sam Meacham, CINDAQ. A.C. SAS-INAH / INAH

Divers Find Oldest Ocher Mines in the Americas

Experts in Mexico have discovered what they believe to be the oldest ocher mines in all the Americas. They date back an astonishing 10-12,500 years ago. The discovery is helping researchers to better...
The Maya pyramid of Kukulcan at Chichen Itza in Mexico. 	Source: IRStone /Adobe Stock

Chichen Itza: Ancient Maya City Built Above A Gateway to the Underworld

Chichen Itza is an ancient Maya city located in the northern part of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. The city is thought to have been founded around the 6th century AD. Nevertheless, it only rose to...
Octavio del Rio recording one of the bonfires in the Yucatan cenote, Aktun Ha. 	Source: Krzysztof Starnawski / INAH

Ancient Fires In Yucatán Cenote Dated To 10,000 Years Ago

The oldest charcoal remains ever discovered in Mexico have been found submerged in a Yucatán Peninsula cenote. New archaeological evidence from burnt charcoal samples has determined the earliest...
Right: Divers discovered the ancient woman's remains in the Chan Hol cenote cave, near Tulum, Mexico. Left: Pieces of skeleton put together.  Source: Eugenio Acevez & Jerónimo Avilés Olguín / Heidelberg University

9,900-Year-Old Skeleton Found in Mexican Cenote Rewrites History

9,900-year-old human skeleton found in a Mexican underwater cenote cave illustrates the complexity of the first settlers in the Americas. New research published yesterday in the journal PLOS One...
Original position of the skeletal remains inside submerged cave of Muknal.    Source: Jerónimo Avilés /© 2020 Hubbe et al CC BY 4.0

First Americans Were More Diverse Than Thought

Scientists are claiming current theories “over-simplify” how the Americas were populated. Many of us were once taught that the Americas were void of humans until around 13,000 years ago. Authors like...
Reconstructed face of Eva of Naharon, who would have lived about 13,600 years ago.

Putting a Face to Eva of Naharon, The Oldest Human Relic Found in the Americas

Eva of Naharon, also known as the Woman of Naharon, is the name given to the oldest known human remains found in the Americas to date. She met her demise in a cenote (sinkhole) some 13,600 years ago...
Exploring the Sac Actun submerged caves in Quintana Roo, Mexico.

A Mexican Underwater Cave System is the Largest in the World…and Filled with Archaeological Value

The largest known flooded cave system in the world is also a major source of archaeological interest. After 10 months of intensive exploration, divers have declared that 347 kilometers (216 miles) of...
Kukulkan temple pyramid is being surveyed with multiple imaging technologies

Hidden Passage Discovered Underneath Chichén Itzá

After two months of investigations using state of the art non-invasive imaging equipment, as well as the good old-fashioned technique of crawling through tight spaces on hands and knees,...
El Castillo, Chichén Itzá as viewed from the first level of the Temple of a thousand Columns

“Elaborate Underworld” of Mayan Pyramids Explored by Archaeologists for the First Time

Archaeologists have been exploring the ancient Mayan Temple of Kukulkan and the ruins of Chichén Itzá for the first time in more than five decades. As they have stated, the first two weeks of the...
Prehistoric human skeleton in the Chan Hol Cave near Tulúm on the Yucatán peninsula prior to looting by unknown cave divers.

Skeleton Stalagmite Reveals Human Inhabitants in Mexico At Least 13,000 Years Ago

A prehistoric human skeleton found on the Yucatán Peninsula is at least 13,000 years old and most likely dates from a glacial period at the end of the most recent ice age, the late Pleistocene. A...
Main: A cenote in Tulum, Mexico. Inset: Ancient skull found in Tulum cenote.

10,000-year-old human remains found in underwater cave in Mexico shed light on ancient migrations

In May last year, archaeologists made the exciting announcement that a complete Ice Age skeleton had been found in an underwater cave in Tulum, Mexico. Since then, more than eight well-preserved...
Elongated skull in Mayan cave

Elongated skulls and a mythical underwater Mayan cave

A flooded sinkhole in southern Mexico that terrifies local villagers was recently explored by underwater archaeologists , who found the submerged cavern littered with elongated skulls and human bones...