At first, the researchers were surprised by the dark dust. In 2022, a team led by archaeologist Christina Halperin from the University of Montreal examined a temple pyramid in the Mayan ruins of Ucanal, located in what is now Guatemala. In the rubble at the top they found jewelry made of jade, pearls and obsidian, and everything was so strangely sooty, the researcher told the science magazine Science. But it is now clear why: like the archaeologists in the specialist journal Antique to report, they had not only come across jewelry, but apparently also traces of a morbid ritual. The ashes came from the cremated bodies of previous Mayan rulers. According to the researchers, the residents of Ucanal removed their bones to make room for a new order.
Archeology: Why the Maya burned their kings – Knowledge
