Archaeologist discovers 'path through hell': 11-11-2008
A Mexican archaeologist is believed to have found the caves that the Mayans used to tell of their belief of a pathway the dead must take through hell.
Using a testimony from the Spanish Inquisition, Guillermo de Anda located the caves in the Yucatan peninsula, which the Mayans are believed to have fashioned into a replica of their belief.
"It was the place of fear, the place of cold, the place of danger, of the abyss," he said, describing the pathway in which the dead had to deal with rivers of blood and chambers full of sharp knives.
Mr de Anda spent five years looking looked through pages of the 450-year-old records of the Spanish Inquisition in an attempt to find references to previously undiscovered archaeological sites.
His discovery allows scientists to look at what the Mayans perceived Xibalba (the path through hell) to be like.
The Mayans are well known for building structures in caves, which they believed to be sacred.
Travellers can still witness many pieces of evidence of Mayan existence throughout Mexico, some of which are to be found in the capital Mexico City.
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