A Mystery in the Museum

In the finest museum of Guatemala, the Popol Vuh, there are many rooms of priceless Mayan artifacts. There's pottery, ceramics and intricately carved obsidian knives. There are stone statues of mushroom deities, sacred frogs and chocolate serving vessels.The most unusual and inexplicable item is in Room 1, located immediately past the entrance.

Mounted on a five foot high white pedestal, and set behind clear plexiglass is something that doesn't fit. Measuring some four inches high and about seven inches long is a quartz replica of a human skull. It was catalogued as being part of a large collection donated in the 1970's by a prominent Guatemalan family, the Castillos.

The crystal skulls and their lore have been with us for over a hundred years.  The British Museum had one on display but it has been removed from public sight. The Smithsonian likewise had one on display, but that one also has been relegated to a box in a back room.  The famed Mitchell-Hedges crystal skull has a legion of believers, and Indiana Jones fought off the Russians to save one.

As of this writing, there is no mention of this particular carving found anywhere, a bit of a mystery in itself. The item is in full view, in a public museum and one would have assumed that papers or research might have been written.

There are current New Age belief systems that state that there were thirteen crystal skulls carved by Maya artisans. And that until these are located and returned or aligned, the expected cataclysm of 2012 will fall upon us with full fury.  The stelae in Quirigua speak of the Mayan Long Count and the end of the cycle, occurring on December 21, 2012.

We know that the Maya believed that time moved in cycles, with an end and a beginning that roll over for time immemorial.  They manipulated mathematics in a way far advanced for their times and they could calculate astronomical events backwards and forwards. This served two major purposes, the planting cycle of their most important staple, corn and the use of celestial configurations to plan wars and royal events, such as successions and sacrifices. 2012? Simply the turning over of the celestial odometer and all the zeros will line up, once again.

Crystal skulls? Only one has authentically been found in situ, under the auspices of a trained archeologist. The rest, such as the Mitchell-Hedges skull, supposedly found under an altar in British Honduras on New Year's Eve, have, for the main part, been proven to be of recent manufacture.

The Aztecs, Toltecs and Maya all used skull iconography in their temple images but these were usually carved from basalt or created with stucco. Smaller carvings of skulls, drilled for use as beads or decorations have been noted, principally from Mexico. The mystery will continue to unfold. Christmas in 2012 should be very interesting.

 

 

Source: Guatemala News-El