Guatemala's 'FAT BOYS' - A Pre-Columbian Mystery

Naturally, one might conjecture that the connection being implied between magnetism and the head was the symbolization of a mental or spiritual link -- perhaps the commemoration of creative thought. The fact that the right temple was selected rather than the left may simply have been a reflection of the overwhelming propensity of humankind for right-handedness; surely the ancient Soconuscan stone carver would not have been aware that control over the right side of the body is actually centered in the left hemisphere of the brain. Similarly, the association between magnetism and the navel may well have been a commemoration of the physical side of life -- the continuity of the life-force from mother to child, despite the cutting of the umbilical cord at birth.

Had the "Fat Boys" been the only magnetic sculptures discovered in Soconusco, these speculations may have borne some semblance to the true nature of the thought processes which went through the minds of the ancient stone carvers.

But, as luck would have it, the first magnetic sculpture found in the region (by the author at Izapa in southernmost Mexico in 1975) was not a depiction of a human head or body at all, but most likely the representation of the head of a turtle. (At least it was so identified by me and my student assistants, although we later learned that the personnel of the New World Archaeological Foundation who had initially excavated the sculpture had termed it a "frog.") Located some 30 m (100 ft) to the southeast of the ramped pyramid of Group F (on the northwest side of Highway 200), the turtle-head has a strong north polarity in its snout and an equally strong south polarity in the extreme back of its head. In addition, there is a weaker pole of south polarity located on the right side of its mouth directly under its right eye. Overall its magnetic attraction is such that it easily deflects a compass needle from 15 cm (6 in.) away, and the resultant field represents a good approximation of that demonstrated in a classic science-class iron filings experiment. In short, the turtle's head acts as a giant bar magnet.