Explorers mindblown after finding underground river system revealing ancient Mayan secrets in Mexico

Dinosaurs that once ruled the planet were suddenly wiped out 66 million years ago by an asteroid that crashed into Earth and left the Yucatán peninsula riddled with more than 7,000 holes, which have formed cenotes into the porous limestone rock. This ringlet of Mexican cenotes is the largest underground river system in the world where divers hear nothing except the sounds of bubbles. The blue waters are also brimming with untold Mayan stories depicted through fossils and artifacts that cave divers unearthed, according to The Smithsonian.

Lit up with surreal hues of blue and green light, the caverns below illuminate stalactites and stalagmites that contain the freshwater and also host animal life including crocodiles, manatees, eels, tarpons, frogs, and spanners. Among the fossils discovered so far are the fossils of giant sloths called “Megalonyx,” which translates to a “large claw” in Greek. This typical beast was a polar bear-sized ground sloth with massive claws and measured up to 12 feet in height while weighing nearly a ton. Some fossils also feature strange cut marks and scars that indicate that someone, probably early humans, butchered these species with tools made of stone, to remove their flesh from the bone. Some animal bones also have burn marks, and were found in cooking pits.

Apart from these fossils, divers have discovered ancient Mayan artifacts such as paintings and oversized skulls resembling a jaguar’s head. Harvard Peabody Museum shared an excerpt from the book titled “Artifacts from the Cenote of Sacrifice, Chichen Itza, Yucatan,” revealing that a man named Edward H. Thompson discovered remains of hundreds of textiles, wooden objects, and copal incense offerings lurking in the waters of these limestone cenotes. There were also lithics, ceramics, and bone and shell artifacts; things that are commonly found in a Mayan site used for burial and sacrifices.

It is believed that ancient Mayans considered these waters as sacred. It was not only their primary source of freshwater but also a site of religious rituals, which is one of the reasons that the sacred Maya temple, Chichén Itzá, was built in the proximity of these underwater tunnels. According to BBC, the Mayans also believed these cenotes to be the gateway to Xibalba, the Maya underworld, where humans go when they die. Mayans made offerings of gold, jade, copper, and even humans to appease the rain god, who they believed, resided in these cenotes. Today, travelers and tourists can observe these rituals with offerings of flower petals, sugar, cacao, etc.

Photographer Martin Broen, who has explored 280 of the Yucatan cenotes, captured the atmospheric photographs in a book called “Light in the Underworld.” Describing his otherworldly experience swimming inside these caves, Martin told New Scientist, “During rain showers in the Mexican jungle, water washes tannin from the vegetation into the cenotes, creating a tannic acid solution. These natural filters provide a surreal green, yellow or red atmosphere to the caverns.” He expressed his fascination for the underwater time capsules, saying, “The more I dive, the more I discover the beauty and secrets of these caves, uncovering unique fossils of extinct megafauna, indications of the first Palaeo-Americans, and Mayan artifacts.”