Make your way through the Actun Tunichil Muknal cave in Belize and you might be prosperous enough to meet the Crystal Maiden . This ancient Maya archaeological site is the rest home of a number of skeletons , including one that has been caked in calcite , giving the effect it ’s jewel in glistening crystal .
The remains are known as theCrystal Maiden , although the skeleton is in reality consider to have belonged to a boy . It ’s thought it was ab initio mistake for a unseasoned female due to its smaller stature , but later on work showed it to be a 17 - year - older male person .
Over the centuries , weather in the limestone - rich cave has resulted in the bone becoming cover incalcitecrystals .
The body is found on the base in a strew place with its arms and legs appearing to be flailing . That seemingly unhappy place is no surprise when you appreciate the person was most probably killed as asacrifice to the gods .
While the Crystal Maiden is undoubtedly the cave ’s main fibre , plenty of other amazing discoveries have been found here . Along with legion lesson of ancientMayapottery , at least 14 more human skeletons have been found in the cave .
It ’s estimated that these souvenir were deposited in the cave over a thousand years ago , belike dating somewhere between 700 and 900 CE . This is in the main known as the Preclassic Era when many of the typical elements ofMesoamerican civilizationwere just initiate to come out .
Getting into the cave now is no small-scale effort . It ’s key as a snarl of chambers and tight crevices that can only be strain by swimming through body of water and then wading for around a kilometre .
It is uncommitted for tourists to visit if they ’re with an experienced guide , although this has do some problems . In 2012 , a touristreportedlydropped their camera and fractured one of the skull . gratefully , the skull was n’t severely damaged and archaeologist grapple to repair the terms .
Unfortunately , the incident did result in cameras being ban from the cave unless visitors have special permit from the Institute of Archaeology Belize .
speak of crystallize swell , there is also theAltamura mankind , another calcite - caked skeleton in the cupboard discovered in southern Italy that go steady to between 128,000 and 187,000 year old . Unlike the Crystal Maiden , however , scientists think this individual was in fact a Neanderthal .
[ H / T : Atlas Obscura ]
