(22 Sep 1999) Spanish/Nat
Archaelogists in Mexico have discovered what they believe to be an ancient religious offering of human and animal bones in a pyramid in the pre-Columbian city of Teotihuacan.
The artefacts were discovered in a pit filled with loose stones in inside the Pyramid of the Moon.
Scientist have been digging at the site since last year, and say this latest find will give them more information regarding the political and religious significance of the pyramid.
Archaeologists have been digging a tunnel to the center of the Pyramid of the Moon in the pre-Columbian city of Teotihuacan since last year.
Last October, the team, led by Arizona State University archaeologist Saburo Sugiyama, uncovered the skeleton of a man who died some 1-thousand- 800 years ago.
The man had been buried among rich offerings of greenstone figurines, obsidian knives, eagles and jaguars.
Now the team have unearthed what they believe to be a religious offering consisting of 4 human bones, the skeletal remains of cats and birds, snails, dozens of pieces of jade and stone arrowheads.
SOUNDBITE: (Spanish)
SUPER CAPTION: Saburo Sugiyama, Archaeologist
Teotihuacan, in the valley of the same name- 30 miles north of the capital Mexico City, use to be a thriving city and ceremonial center that predated the Aztecs by several centuries.
However very little is known about it- including what language its inhabitants spoke.
Teotihuanan began declining sharply around 650 AD, and for reasons that have not yet been explained, was completely abandoned around 750 AD.
Scientists hope this latest discovery will shed new light on the religious and political significance of the pyramid, and on the cultural and ceremonial practices of the people who lived there.
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