Archaeological analyzes have revealed the “entrance to the underworld” of the Zapotec culture with the founding of a Catholic Church in Mexico, thanks to advanced scanning technologies. The find consists of a system of tunnels and underground chambers that were created more than 1,000 years ago near the southern city of Oaxaca.
The Zapotecs emerged at the end of the sixth century B.C. and created several memorials and tombs full of treasure for life after death. The structure related to the underworld was located in the Architectural Complex of Mitla, 44 km from Oaxaca, the most important religious center of the preColumbian culture, and it still has intricate and quite unique mosaics.
People left the site after the Aztec conquest in the late 15th century and the building blocks, already in ruins, were reused by the Spanish invaders almost 100 years later to build the Church of São Paulo Apostle.
Revealing the Zapotec underworld
Mexican oral traditions suggest that the Spanish Church’s main altar was purposely built over a sealed entrance to an underground labyrinth of columns and passageways of the ancient Zapotec temple. The religious building was named Lyobaa, which means “place of rest”.
Therefore, with the Lyobaa project, scientists decided to investigate the myth using modern geophysical methods. Announced last Wednesday (12) was the discovery of the cave and passage complex beneath the church, confirming the existence of the Zapotec “underworld”. The effort was led by 15 archaeologists, geophysicists, conservationists and engineers with support from the National Institute of Anthropology and History of Mexico (INAH), the National Autonomous University of Mexico and the ARX Project.
Three nondestructive methods ground penetrating radar, electrical resistance tomography and seismic noise tomography were used to create a 3D virtual model of the underground ruins. With these technologies it is possible to measure the reflection of electromagnetic and seismic waves as they penetrate subterranean strata and other buried materials. A large hole beneath the main altar and two connecting passages were uncovered, all at a depth of 5 to 8 meters.
The chambers provide a link to Zapotec beliefs and their concept of the underworld, confirming colonial accounts that speak of elaborate rituals and ceremonies performed at Mitla — the very subterranean sites associated with the cult of the dead and ancestors, according to Marco Vigato from the ARX project, to the LiveScience website. Although it was already suspected that the site actually existed, scientists were surprised by the size and depth of the complex. However, further investigation is needed to uncover the full extent of the ruins.
The same methods have already helped to find other archaeological sites in Mesoamerica, such as anomalies at Teotihuacán, which also indicate entrances to the underworld of preColumbian cultures. However, it is necessary to combine these activities with archaeological excavations and to complement the instrumental investigation with field verifications. According to scientists, the find will help elucidate the history of Mitla and its development as an ancient site over 1,000 years ago.
Source: The ARX Project, LiveScience