Hundreds of mysterious yellow orbs discovered under Temple of the Feathered Ser

[Mikolon]

Hundreds of mysterious yellow orbs discovered under Mexico’s Temple of the Feathered Serpent

 
Matilda Battersby Author Biography



Archaeologists excavating beneath Mexico’s Temple of the Feathered Serpent have discovered hundreds of mysterious yellow orbs.

Tunnels near the third largest pyramid in the pre-Hispanic city of Teotihuacan have been the focus of archaeological study ever since they were discovered in 2003.

The yellow spheres were uncovered when a remote-controlled robot carrying camera equipment was deployed to explore a series of winding and largely inaccessible chambers within the ancient pyramid ruins that are characterised by statues of strange serpent-like creatures.

"They look like yellow spheres, but we do not know their meaning," Jorge Zavala, an archaeologist at Mexico's National Anthropology and History Institute, told ABC news of the find. "It's an unprecedented discovery."

The orbs measure between 1.5 and 5 inches and are believed to be covered in a yellow material called jarosite and to contain a core of clay.

The World Heritage Site, a city of pyramids located just 30 miles from Mexico City, is thought to have been established around 100 B.C and was inhabited by around 100,000 people at its peak before being mysteriously abandoned around 700 A.D.

The remote-controlled robot Tlaloc II-TC sent to explore the tunnels carries an infrared camera and a laser scanner that generates 3-D visualisation of the spaces beneath the temple, allowing it to access parts of the ruin which have not yet been excavated.

"A few months ago we found two side chambers at 72 and 74 metres from the entrance. We called them North Chamber and South Chamber,” archaeologist Sergio Gómez Chávez, director of the Tlalocan Project, told Discovery News.

"The robot was able to enter in the part of the tunnel which has not yet been excavated yet and found three chambers… We believe that high-ranking people, priests or even rulers, went down to the tunnel to perform rituals.”

George Cowgill, professor emeritus at Arizona State University, told Discovery News the find was “unique”.

He said: “Pyrite was certainly used by the Teotihuacanos and other ancient Mesoamerican societies. Originally the spheres would have shown brilliantly. They are indeed unique, but I have no idea what they mean.”

The walls of the tunnels are covered in a mineral powder made up of magnetite, pyrite and hematite. Gomez believes the tunnel was sealed twice by the Teotihuacan people and the access was blocked nearly two millennia ago in order to project something very important in the central chamber.

He believes the tunnels might contain the remains of those who ruled Teotihuacan and that the site is possibly one of the most significant archaeological finds in the region.
http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/history/hundreds-of-mysterious-yellow-orbs-discovered-under-mexicos-temple-of-the-feathered-serpent-8601439.html

[Mikolon]

The Temple of the Feathered Serpent, also known as the Temple of Quetzalcoatl, is a six-level pyramid decorated with snake-like creatures.

DMC, INAH/M. Marat

[Mikolon]

Robot Finds Mysterious Spheres in Ancient Temple
Apr 29, 2013 06:00 PM ET // by Rossella Lorenzi

Hundreds of mysterious spheres lie beneath the Temple of the Feathered Serpent, an ancient six-level step pyramid just 30 miles from Mexico City.

The enigmatic spheres were found during an archaeological dig using a camera-equipped robot at one of the most important buildings in the pre-Hispanic city of Teotihuacan.

"They look like yellow spheres, but we do not know their meaning. It's an unprecedented discovery," said Jorge Zavala, an archaeologist at Mexico's National Anthropology and History Institute.
PHOTOS: The Temple of the Feathered Serpent

The Mesoamerican ruins of Teotihuacan, a World Heritage Site, represent one of the largest urban centers of the ancient world. Thought to have been established around 100 B.C., the pyramid-filled city had more than 100,000 inhabitants at its peak, but was abandoned for mysterious reasons around 700 A.D. -- long before the Aztecs arrived in the 1300s.

The excavation at the temple focused on a 330-foot-long tunnel which runs under the structure. The conduit was discovered in 2003 when heavy rain uncovered a hole a few feet from the pyramid.

Exploring the tunnel, which was deliberately filled with debris and ruins by the Teotihuacan people, required several years of preliminary work and planning.

"Finally, a few months ago we found two side chambers at 72 and 74 meters (236 and 242 feet) from the entrance. We called them North Chamber and South Chamber,” archaeologist Sergio Gómez Chávez, director of the Tlalocan Project, told Discovery News.

The archaeologists explored the tunnel with a remote-controlled robot called Tlaloc II-TC, which has an infrared camera and a laser scanner that generates 3D visualization of the spaces beneath the temple.

"The robot was able to enter in the part of the tunnel which has not yet been excavated yet and found three chambers between 100 and 110 meters (328 and 360 feet) from the entrance," Gómez Chávez said.

The mysterious spheres lay in both the north and south chambers. Ranging from 1.5 to 5 inches, the objects have a core of clay and are covered with a yellow material called jarosite.
http://news.discovery.com/history/archaeology/mysterious-spheres-emerge-from-ancient-temple-130429.htm

[Mikolon]

Hundreds of mysterious spheres are discovered beneath the Temple of the Feathered Serpent, in the pre-Hispanic city of Teotihuacan, just 30 miles from Mexico City.

[Mikolon]

[Mikolon]

snake-like creatures. It was built by the Teotihuacan people possibly between 100 and 200 A.D.
DMC, INAH/M. Marat

The excavation focused on a 330-foot-long tunnel which runs under the structure. The conduit was discovered in 2003 when heavy rain uncovered a hole a few feet from the temple.

[Mikolon]

when heavy rain uncovered a hole a few feet from the temple.
CNMH, INAH

Exploration of the tunnel, which was deliberately filled by debris and ruins by the Teotihuacan people, required several years of preliminary work and planning. A few months ago archaeologists found two side chambers near the entrance.
DMC, INAH/M. Marat

The walls and ceiling of both chambers were covered with a mineral powder composed of magnetite, pyrite and hematite which provided a special brightness to the place and a peculiar atmosphere for the rituals that were most likely carried there.
DMC, INAH/M. Marat

According to archaeologists, the spheres would have appeared metallic to those who placed them here.
DMC, INAH/M. Marat

To understand where and how the tunnel ended, the archaeologists used a 3-foot-long, remote-controlled robot which was able to explore the last part of the duct.
CONFIRM CREDIT BEFORE USING THIS IMAGE

Called Tlaloc II-TC, the robot uses an infrared camera and a laser scanner to generate 3D visualization of the spaces beneath the temple.
DMC, INAH/M. Marat

The chambers are displayed as they were plotted by the laser scanner.
Héctor Montaño/INAH

The archaeologists will next explore the last part of the tunnel and the three chambers seen through the robot cameras.

They believe it's possible the central chamber at the end of the tunnel contains the remains of those who ruled Teotihuacan.
DMC, INAH/M. Marat

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[Mikolon]

The walls and ceiling of both chambers were covered with a mineral powder composed of magnetite, pyrite and hematite which provided a special brightness to the place and a peculiar atmosphere for the rituals that were most likely carried there.
DMC, INAH/M. Marat

[Mikolon]

According to archaeologists, the spheres would have appeared metallic to those who placed them here.
DMC, INAH/M. Marat

[Mikolon]

To understand where and how the tunnel ended, the archaeologists used a 3-foot-long, remote-controlled robot which was able to explore the last part of the duct.
CONFIRM CREDIT BEFORE USING THIS IMAGE

[Mikolon]

DMC, INAH/M. Marat

To understand where and how the tunnel ended, the archaeologists used a 3-foot-long, remote-controlled robot which was able to explore the last part of the duct.
CONFIRM CREDIT BEFORE USING THIS IMAGE

[Mikolon]

[Mikolon]