A L U M N I M A G A Z I N E - Colby-Sawyer College

Climbing a ladder to the third level of Actun Tunichil
Muknal (the Cave of the Stone Sepulcher) in western
Belize to view the best preserved of the 14 skeletons
located there.
ward embroidery stitches, and grating the heart of a cohune
tree for our lunch one day. Their own work was very beautiful,
from the dresses they made for themselves, to the baskets and
beaded jewelry they sold to me, to a most delicious treat which
they served at several meals—a crispy, slightly sweetened tortilla
called a “chuqua.” Chuquas are festooned on both sides
with an overall flower pattern, a decoration created not by a
mold of some sort but by pressing the head of an actual flower
a dozen times or so on each tortilla they made. Once again I
observed how Mother Earth provides what these Mayas need to
make their food taste good and look quite elegant.
I clearly learned the most about how contemporary
Mayas—like the Shos—are carrying on many traditional
native practices during the four days I spent with them in Na
Luum Ca. I absorbed much of the history of their ancestors
by visiting spectacular ruins
throughout Belize, like those
at Caracol, Lamanai, Altun Ha,
Cahal Pech and Xunantunich,
where I marveled at the artistic
and architectural achievements
created centuries ago. I tried to
imagine daily life here as it might have been between 1500 B.C.
and 1500 A.D. as I climbed the massive pyramids, admired the
intricate carvings on temples and altars and stelae, and envisioned
spirited athletic contests on the ballcourts.
What brought me closest to ancient Mayan customs, however,
was my day-long visit to Actun Tunichil Muknal, a sacred
site whose English translation—Cave of the Stone Sepulcher—
might suggest the Indiana Jones-like adventure it afforded me.
Getting to this remote site entailed a jeep ride across a river
where the bridge had washed out a year ago, then a mile-long
hike deep into the jungle during which we crossed the same
river several times and were fed termites by our Mayan guide,
Carlos (I had just one; it tasted like carrots). When we finally
reached the mouth of the cave, we had to swim inside, in water
over our heads, then hike and swim through water for another
kilometer—often crawling through very tight spaces—until
we arrived at the main chamber, where we rock-climbed to
the second floor. Here we encountered a most remarkable living
museum. All around us, illuminated by Carlos’ flashlight,
were dozens of ceramic vessels and the skeletal remains of 14
In an archway of the Inca ruins at Ollantaytambo,
noted for its mortar-less stonework which has
stood the test of time for thousands of years.
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The skeletal remains of a 14-year old Maya girl,
left in situ where the ceremonial sacrifice took
place, on the third level of the cave Actun Tunichil
Muknal in Belize.
individuals, all in situ, where they had been left by the Mayas
more than a thousand years ago. The pots, containing corn,
chili peppers and cacao, served as offerings to their gods and
deceased ancestors, while the copal incense discovered here
would have been used during the bloodletting rituals, which
accounts for the 14 skeletons. These sacrificial victims (six
infants, a young child and seven adults) would have been
offered to the powerful deities who were thought to reside in
caves like this, including Chac the rain god, as well as the evil
spirits which cause death and disease. Further underscoring
the life/death duality associated with subterranean sites is the
ancient Mayan belief that the spirits of their deceased ancestors
made their way to these caves where, eventually, they would be
reborn. Thus, entering a cave such as Actun Tunichil Muknal
for an ordinary Maya would have been a very mixed blessing,
providing the opportunity to
honor one’s gods and ances-
tors but also fraught with the
possibility they might be sacrificed
themselves. In an attempt
to let us experience the absolute
darkness an ancient Maya
would have known had their torch gone out, Carlos asked us
to extinguish our headlamps, hold hands, and walk through
the ankle-high water for several minutes as we headed out of
the cave. The blinding physical darkness surrounding us would
have been compounded for the Maya by the spiritual beliefs
they associated with these chambers.
As these experiences with the Sho family in Na Luum Ca
and my underground adventure at Actun Tunichil Mukal
suggest, my own understanding of both the ancient and contemporary
native peoples of Central and South America was
increased exponentially through my travels. I was fortunate
to meet dozens of people like the Shos and to visit dozens of
ancient sites where, in often seemingly inaccessible places,
these intelligent, artistic, hard-working people carved out lives
that still serve as sources of astonishment to those who study
them. The time I spent immersing myself in these remarkable
cultures exceeded all expectations, reminding me once again
that we never know where our curiosity might take us—or what
treasures we might uncover—simply by being open to those
unimagined opportunities which life often sends our way. ■
WINTER 2010 37