The graves are part of a group of a dozen tombs identified in San Pedro Nexicho, considered one of the largest and most important settlements in the Sierra Juárez, in the state of Oaxaca, the Mexican National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) reported. Wednesday night.
The archaeological works were possible thanks to the financial support of the local entity Fundación Alfredo Harp Helú (FAHHO), which warned about the poor condition and “irregular activity” in five of the tombs, four of which have a rectangular plan and one cruciform. .
“The INAH team found that Tomb 1, discovered by a neighbor in 2010, had been looted; despite this, materials that were part of the funerary paraphernalia were recovered, such as a small gold bead and splendid murals,” he explained. the institute in a statement.
This tomb, the largest, is the one with a cross-shaped surface and is accessed through a ramp that leads to an antechamber four meters wide by one long, then passing into the main room of two meters wide by 1.4 long.
“Although there are paintings on all the walls, executed in a ‘codex style’, the war scenes in the main chamber stand out,” the INAH explained. “Its quality, iconography and color give it a high cultural value,” he added.
The tombs of San Pedro Nexicho were used between the Classic, Early and Late Postclassic periods (AD 200 to AD 1100-1521), and offer clues on the subject of elite tombs at that time in the area of present-day Oaxaca, explained the researcher Nelly Robles, in the statement.