18 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Archaeologists have unearthed a stone chest containing the ritual deposit of 15 anthropomorphic figurines

Archaeologists have unearthed a stone chest containing the ritual deposit of 15 anthropomorphic figurines that were placed as votive offerings at the Templo Mayor of Tenochtitlan in Mexico City.

The stone chest was found under the platform of the rear façade of the temple in a layer that dates to the reign of Aztec emperor and king of Tenochtitlan Moctezuma I (1440-1469 A.D.)

Stone chest is known as Tepetlacalli in Nahuatl, containing 15 anthropomorphic figurines and numerous green stone beads,  two rattlesnake-shaped earrings, snails, shells, and marine corals. Fourteen of the artifacts portray men, while the smallest of the group features a woman.

The anthropomorphic figures are in the Mezcala style, a Mesoamerican culture that emerged in the Middle and Late Preclassic within Mesoamerican chronology (700 to 200 BC). Archaeologists believe the Aztecs valued Mezcala objects and excavated them from Mezcala sites in Guerrero, Mexico’s southwestern state, to use as ritual offerings.

“This means that when the Mexicas (Aztecs) subdued those peoples, the figurines were already true relics, some of them more than 1,000 years old,” archaeologist Leonardo López Luján, director of the Templo Mayor Project, said in the statement. “Presumably they served as cult effigies, which they appropriated as booty of war.”

Photo: Mirsa Islas, Templo Mayor Project

Carved from green metamorphic stones, the largest of these statues is 30 centimeters high, while the smallest figure is 3 centimeters high. On one of the figurines, the remains of facial paint depicting the Mexica god of rain, Tlaloc, were discovered. Researchers think this was part of a planned Mexica reset of the religious significance of the ancient cult figurines.

The stone chest was found in the context of stage IVa of the Templo Mayor, which dates from the rule of Moctezuma Ilhuicamina between AD 1440 and 1469.

“In their homes, the Mexicas used to keep their most precious belongings in palm-frond chests, such as fine feathers, jewelry or cotton garments,” López Luján said in the statement. “We can imagine the priests storing in these ‘stone cases’ the quintessential symbols of water and fertility: sculptures of the rain gods, green stone beads, shells, and snails.”

Photo: Mirsa Islas, Templo Mayor Project

The sand and shells came from the Atlantic shore, an area conquered by the Aztecs of the Triple Alliance (the combined forces of three Mexica city-states, Tenochtitlan, Tetzcoco, and Tlacopan) under Moctezuma I.

In Tenochtitlan, the seat of the Aztec Empire, the Templo Mayor served as the focal point of a larger temple complex. The temple was devoted to Huitzilopochtli, the god of war, and Tlaloc, the god of rain and agriculture, and was known in Nahuatl as huey teocalli.

INAH

Cover Photo: Mirsa Islas, Templo Mayor Project

Related Articles

An inscription containing the Turk name was discovered for the first time in Anatolia

3 September 2022

3 September 2022

For the first time in the pre-Islamic Early period Turkish history, an inscription bearing the inscription expression “Turk” and written...

Roman camp of 10,000 people discovered in northern Portugal

2 July 2021

2 July 2021

A camp used by 10,000 Roman soldiers sent to conquer northwestern Iberia has been discovered in the Portuguese city of...

Anglo-Saxon monasteries were more resilient to Viking attacks than thought

31 January 2023

31 January 2023

Researchers from the University of Reading’s Department of Archaeology have found new evidence that Anglo-Saxon monastic communities were more resistant...

Angkor Wat Reopens

26 April 2021

26 April 2021

After being temporarily closed on April 7 to prevent the spread of Covid-19 to locals, Apsara National Authority and Angkor...

The Amazon rainforest was once home to ancient cities – A vast network of 2,500-year-old garden cities

12 January 2024

12 January 2024

Aerial surveys have revealed the largest 2,500-year-old ancient cities in the Amazon, hidden for thousands of years by lush vegetation...

A former Spanish disco-pub confirmed as lost medieval Synagogue

11 February 2023

11 February 2023

In the Andalucian city of Utrera, archaeologists have uncovered the remains of a 14th-century synagogue. The discovery, made public on...

Archaeologists have discovered the origins a Herefordshire Stone Age monument

22 August 2021

22 August 2021

Archaeologists have finally uncovered the mysterious origins of Arthur’s Stone, named after the mysterious legends of King Arthur, who inspired...

A Big, Round, 4,000-Year-Old Stone Building Discovered on a Cretan Hilltop

12 June 2024

12 June 2024

During excavations for an airport on Greece’s largest island of Crete, a large circular monument dating back 4000 years was...

Roman Era Mosaic Unearthed in Illegal Excavation Near Zile Castle

13 May 2025

13 May 2025

A stunning mosaic has been unearthed during an illegal excavation near Zile Castle, located in the Tokat province of Türkiye,...

The Highest Prehistoric Petroglyphs in Europe Discovered at 3000 Meters in the Italian Alps

20 November 2024

20 November 2024

The highest petroglyphs in Europe were found at Pizzo Tresero (Valfurva) in the Stelvio National Park in the northern Italian...

Rare Ancient Bone Game found in Israel “Astragali”

18 August 2022

18 August 2022

Archaeologists have found a rare assemblage of animal knucklebones known as astragali used in ancient Greek games and divination in...

7500-year-old cursed city of Iran

17 March 2023

17 March 2023

Sialk Hills, located in the southwestern part of Kashan city in Iran, was known among the locals as a ‘cursed...

Klazomenai, ceramic center of ancient period was found the first seal belonging to the city

20 November 2022

20 November 2022

A seal belonging to the city was found for the first time during excavations in the ancient city of Klazomenai...

13,000-year-old Clovis campsite discovered in Michigan

10 September 2021

10 September 2021

In St. Joseph County, independent researcher Thomas Talbot and University of Michigan scholars uncovered a 13,000-year-old Clovis campsite, which is...

Do Byzantine coins Record the Supernova of 1054?

25 June 2022

25 June 2022

SN 1054 was one of the most spectacular astronomical events of all time. The supernova explosion eventually formed what is...