Under a pyramid in Teotihuacan, Mexico, archaeologists discovered an underground passage that researchers believe was designed to resemble the underworld. The breadth of the mystery tunnel was uncovered through electrical scans conducted in the historic city.
In a statement, archaeologist Veronica Ortega, who was engaged in the discovery, stated, “The finding proves that Teotihuacan’s duplicated the same pattern of tunnels connected with their huge constructions, whose function had to be the mimicry of the underworld.”
The tunnel runs from the Pyramid of the Moon, the site’s second-biggest building, to the central plaza, and is hidden 10 meters (33 feet) into the earth.
“The tunnel’s purpose might have been to recreate the underworld, a place where life, animals, and vegetation first appeared. It’s probable that it was only utilized for rituals, perhaps as part of agricultural cycle celebrations, “Ortega explained.
The next stage will be to send archaeologists down the tunnel to investigate it more thoroughly. Researchers expect that, unlike a previous tunnel discovered at the location, the current one has not been robbed.
Teotihuacan (literally “site where the gods were made”), located north of Mexico City, was formerly home to a population of approximately 125,000 people. Human bones at the site show that it was used for human sacrifices between the first and seventh centuries until being abandoned around 550 AD.
The tunnel was discovered in June, and experts at Mexico City’s National Institute of Anthropology and History released information about it on Tuesday.
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