Southern Mexico: Discovery of 1400 year old tomb in Oaxaca.

Carving of an owl, signfying both death and night.
On the lintel above the entrance to the tomb.

Entrance to the Zapotec tomb in San Pablo Huitzo.
Oaxaca, southern Mexico

 News broke last week that archaeologists in southern Mexico have made the ‘discovery of the decade’ after unearthing an ancient burial chamber dating back an incredible 1,400 years. It is a Zapotec tomb located in San Pablo Huitzo in the central valleys of Oaxaca, constructed in stone during the era of the Zapotec civilization whose people were known as the Be’ena’a, or Cloud People because originally, they believed that their ancestors had descended from the clouds where their souls would return after death, as spirits; the Zapotecs dominated the region during the pre-Hispanic era. Dating from approximately 600 CE, the tomb has remained hidden for over a millennium and astonishingly, retains a remarkable level of preservation. The Zapotecs were a foundational indigenous society which flourished in the valley of Oaxaca in Mesoamerica, now southern Mexico, from 500 BC, mainly dying out around

Tomb 104 at Monte Alban, 200-500 AD. Example of early
Zapotec funeral art with sculptures and murals.

1521 AD after the arrival of the Spanish. They are recognized as having developed early writing systems, a 260-day calendar and a highly centralized state with a capital at Monte Alban which dominated the region for centuries. They created a socially stratified society with Kings at the apex followed in descending order by priests, soldiers, artisans and commoners below. The Zapotecs were economically competitive and formed successful trading relationships with other Mesoamerican cultures like the Olmecs and the Mayans. The Zapotec civilisation declined noticeably around 900 A.D. but did not completely disappear as the culture persists today when around 400,000 remain in central Mexico. But it did have a centuries-long and gradual decline which culminated in the 16th century, after flourishing from around 700BCE, brought to an end by the Spanish Conquest in the early 15th century. One source quotes the critical end years to 1521-1527.

A sculpture of a man's head with the face of a Zapotec lord
inside the head of the giant owl.

The site is home to multi-coloured murals featuring symbols associated with power and death. At the threshold to the burial chamber there are carvings of two human figures holding various artefacts in their hands, considered by archaeologists to have been the guardians of the tomb. Among the many well-preserved details is a sculpture of a giant owl, signifying both death and night, which sits above the entrance to the burial chamber. A sculpture of a man’s head with the face of a Zapotec lord, can be seen inside the owl’s beak, possibly representing the individual who was buried there or perhaps, a revered ancestor. The doorway is framed by a stone threshold and lintel above which is a frieze of engraved slabs of ancient calendrical names. Inside the burial chamber itself is an extraordinary mural in white, green, red and blue, showing a procession of people walking in the direction of the tomb entrance, carrying bags of copal, a tree resin burned as incense during the ceremonies.  .

Zapotec tomb carving

Mexico’s Culture Secretary, Claudia Curiel de Icaza, underlined the message from the President, Claudia Scheinbaum who highlighted the importance of the discovery. De Icaza said how the tomb is an
‘exceptional discovery due to its level of conservation and for what it tells us about Zapotec culture and its social organization, funeral rituals and belief system, all preserved by the architecture and the murals. It is a compelling example of Mexico's ancient grandeur which is now being researched, protected and shared with society."

 A multi-disciplinary team from the Institute of Anthropology and History [INAH] is now working to protect the site and conduct further research. Their most urgent work includes stabilizing the murals which, despite their miraculous preservation, are nonetheless, in a fragile state due to the impact of 1400 years of withstanding tree roots, insects and increasingly rapid changes in environmental conditions.

 

  

Sample of Zapotec tomb mural art.