Tlayococ Cave’s Hidden Chamber Filled With Rare Pre-Hispanic Artifacts Left By The Extinct Tlacotepehua People

Jan Bartek - AncientPages.com - Archaeological exploration in the Tlayócoc cave, located in the Guerrero mountains of southern Mexico, has yielded a significant discovery.

Russian speleologist Yekaterina Katiya Pavlova and cave guide Adrián Beltrán Dimas embarked on this journey, uncovering a submerged passageway that led to an unexplored chamber filled with ancient artifacts.

INAH confirms archaeological findings and begins research at the Tlayócoc Cave in Guerrero. Photo: CINAH Guerrero.

A Hidden, Previously Unknown Cave Chamber

According to the Mexican National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), two engraved shell bracelets were found atop stalagmites, likely offerings from pre-Hispanic times. Additional discoveries included pieces of a third bracelet, a giant snail shell, and black stone discs.

Upon notifying local authorities to secure these artifacts against looting, archaeologists Cuauhtémoc Reyes Álvarez and Miguel Pérez Negrete from INAH Guerrero Center, along with historian Guillermina Valente Ramírez from the Autonomous University of Guerrero, conducted further investigations. They observed that stalagmites had been modified historically for spherical shaping. Among the stirred sediments were three more stone discs.

Among their decorations, the pieces contain faces in profile that appear to represent characters. Photo: CINAH Guerrero.

In total, 14 archaeological items were documented: three complete shell bracelets; one bracelet fragment; a giant snail shell, charred wood, and eight stone disc remains. The bracelets appeared to be crafted from marine species Triplofusus giganteus shells, featuring engravings such as 'S'-shaped xonecuilli motifs and anthropomorphic figures. The stone discs averaged 9.5 centimeters in diameter with small perforations at their ends.

Pavlova contributed her photographic documentation and mapping of Tlayócoc cave to INAH for research purposes, enhancing site analysis efforts alongside these findings.

Little Is Known About The Lost Tlacotepehua People

"This discovery is of great importance because, by studying the contextual relationship of the cave artifacts, we will be able to interpret symbolic notions, cultural aspects, manufacturing, and even trade to characterize the pre-Hispanic societies settled in the Guerrero Mountains," says Miguel Pérez in a press release.

Meanwhile, for Cuauhtémoc Reyes, the remarkable aspect of discovering this closed context is that it highlights the connections between cultural elements within a space considered the underworld and the womb of the Earth.

Photo: Katiya Pavlova.

"Possibly the symbols and representations of figures on the bracelets relate to pre-Hispanic cosmogony regarding creation and fertility," he notes. Archaeologists estimate that the heritage assets were placed there during the Postclassic period, between 950 and 1521 AD, when the area was populated by the extinct Tlacotepehua ethnic group, according to 16th-century historical sources.

S-shaped motifs known as xonecuilli were identified on the bracelets. Photo: CINAH Guerrero.

Some bracelets also resemble pieces from archaeological sites in Guerrero, such as Infiernillo in Coahuayutla, as well as from more distant cultural regions, including the Huasteca. The community of Carrizal de Bravo is located 2,397 meters above sea level and is surrounded by dense pine and oak forests, in the municipality of Leonardo Bravo. Its residents recall that their ancestors walked long distances to herd cattle; they were Nahua "chiveros" who transitioned to a sedentary lifestyle. Their first settlement was in a place called El Aserradero (The Sawmill); however, due to the cold, they moved less than a century ago to a lower altitude to found the community where they live today.

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These communities have little historical or cultural knowledge about their past. This is the first time INAH researchers have visited Carrizal de Bravo.

The visit marked the beginning of a campaign that will be implemented in the area to promote awareness and preservation of biocultural heritage.

The campaign aims to establish a community-based organization and conduct a study on the state of conservation of the Tlayócoc Cave artifacts, led by the INAH Guerrero Center's Restoration Department.

Written by Jan Bartek - AncientPages.com Staff Writer