Ancient cave art unearthed in Mexico

[BlueGin]

Kind of amazing that they are still finding things like this today. Especially about a culture and people they say they mostly know through stories of friars and conquistadors. Hopefully it will be of value and not too ruined by weather and time.

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In the mountains of northeastern Mexico, archaeologists have unearthed thousands of ancient paintings on the walls of caves and ravines from a time before Spanish rule.

The rock art offers rare evidence from native cultures living in the area around the Sierra de San Carlos, a mountain range in Mexico's state of Tamaulipas, researchers say.

Almost 5,000 of these paintings were found across 11 different sites in the region, the researchers said. Created with red, yellow, black and white pigments, the images show animals from deer to lizards to centipedes, as well as people. Depictions of tents, hunting, fishing and possibly astronomical charts also offer a glimpse into the life of this mysterious culture.

Ancient cave art unearthed in Mexico - Science

 

[editec]

Cool beans!

 

[JakeStarkey]

That's neat! Wonder if the Mormons, who are caught in a DNA problem with "Lamanites" being all Native Americans or only a very few, will yell that this is evidence for ancient Jewish civilizations in the Americas.

 

[percysunshine]

Just think. Thousands of years from now someone will unearth the USMB archives and find one of my posts. I wonder what they will deduce....

 

[BlueGin]

Just think. Thousands of years from now someone will unearth the USMB archives and find one of my posts. I wonder what they will deduce....

That you have too much free time on your hands?

 

[JakeStarkey]

They will think we lived a world of unlimited leisure. And were very bored.

 

[percysunshine]

Really. How do we know these cave paintings were not just a contemporary version of a message board? Maybe the three legged dog translates to STFU or something.

 

[Political Junky]

They were located between the Mayan/Aztec and Native American tribes of Texas. It's fascinating.

 

[waltky]

2000 Year Old Graves, Pyramid Ruins Found...

Mysterious 2,000-year-old graves, pyramid ruins found in Mexico
13 July`13 > Construction work in eastern Mexico exposed an ancient settlement, including 30 skeletons and the ruins of a pyramid, believed to be up to 2,000 years old, archaeology officials announced.

At the site of the graves in the town of Jaltipan, southeast of Veracruz, archaeologists also found clay figurines, jade beads, mirrors and animal remains, according to the National Anthropology and History Institute, or INAH. Researchers believe the settlement was occupied from around the first century A.D. until A.D. 600 or 700. Little is known about the people who lived there. The skeletons are set to be analyzed so that researchers can learn about how they were treated for burial. "All that is known so far is that of the 30 burials, two at least belong to infants," explained archaeologist Alfredo Delgado in a statement from INAH.

Monumental stone architecture has rarely been found in Veracruz, archaeologists. The remains of this ancient pyramid were discovered in Jaltipan.

Deer antlers and bones that may belong to dogs, coyotes, deer, fish and birds were buried with the bodies, perhaps as animal companions for the underworld, the researchers said. There's also evidence that the inhabitants of the site were fossil collectors; among the numerous prehistoric remains were the fossilized teeth of a long extinct Megalodon-type shark. The artifacts found at the site represent more than one culture. Some figurines and brickwork look Mayan, while there was also pottery that looks like it came from ancient city of Teotihuacan, the researchers say. "Analyses will enable us to see whether this site was multicultural, as is indicated by the materials found, or whether the inhabitants were all of the same genetic type," Delgado said.

These pre-Columbian artifacts were found in Jaltipan, Mexico.

The pyramid found on a hill near the burials is made of stone slabs and stretches 39 feet (12 meters) tall and looks Mayan or Tajin in style, the researchers believe. While pre-Columbian stone monuments have been found in Los Tuxtlas and the Sierra de Santa Marta, archaeologists say this type of ancient stone architecture has rarely been found in the southern part of the state of Veracruz. The team says they also discovered bricks in Jaltipan resembling those found at Comacalco, a Mayan city 74 miles (120 kilometers) away in the Tabasco region.

Mysterious 2,000-year-old graves, pyramid ruins found in Mexico - NBC News.com

 

[whitehall]

How old? Spanish influence in Mexico is only around 500 years old. Neanderthal cave art in Europe is estimated at 45,000 years old.