German and American researchers have examined finds from the famous ruined city of Chichén Itzá in present-day Mexico, one of the main archaeological sites in Mesoamerica. In an underground chamber, a so-called chultún, discovered in 1967, the remains of more than 100 children were found. The children were buried in the chamber after being ritually sacrificed.
In the past, the general opinion was that they were girls and young women, but it is difficult to determine the gender based on skeletons belonging to young people.
Twins were sacrificed
But by studying the remains genetically, the researchers have now been able to see that the Mayans at the site exclusively sacrificed boys. A quarter of the victims were related to each other, shows the study presented in Nature.
“The most surprising thing was that we identified two pairs of identical twins,” says Kathrin Nägele, one of the researchers at the German Max Planck Institute, in a press release.
The children who were related to each other had also eaten the same food, which indicates that they grew up together. The researchers therefore conclude that the victims were selected in pairs.
Dating shows that the chultún was used for at least 500 years, between the 6th century and the 12th century.
Because the skeletal parts are mixed up, the researchers chose to pick out the left clavicle, part of the skull, in order not to count the same individual several times. In total, the remains of 64 individuals were examined.
Death not bad
In the study, DNA from the victims was compared with blood samples from 68 people who today live in the city of Tixcacaltuyub, four miles from Chichén Itzá. It turned out that they were related to each other, suggesting that the Mayans chose their victims from people who grew up nearby.
The study’s lead author Rodrigo Barquera told The Washington Post that he understands that the idea of child sacrifice is horrific today, but that death was not necessarily seen as something bad in Mesoamerican cultures.
– At that time, and with their myths and beliefs, they did what they thought was right. So we can’t judge them with today’s eyes, he says.