Strange Tuxtla Statuette And Its Undeciphered Inscription – An Epi-Olmec Puzzle
Ellen Lloyd - AncientPages.com - The Tuxtla statuette is a strange ancient artifact left by a culture we still know very little about. Who was this bullet-shaped being with wings wearing a duckbill mask? Is the undeciphered script on the statuette some charm or magical incantation?
A side view of the Tuxtla Statuette. Credit: Wikipedia
This curious artifact was discovered in 1902 by a farmer plowing his field in the western foothills of the Tuxtlas mountains in Veracruz, Mexico. Examinations of the statuette revealed it was an artifact made by the Epi-Olmec culture. Certain Maya scholars had difficulties accepting the artifact pre-date the Maya, but upon further investigations, scholars confirmed the antiquity of the Tuxtla statuette.
The Epi-Olmec culture was a successor culture to the Olmec. They lived in the central region of the present-day Mexican state of Veracruz from about 300 B.C to roughly 250 C.E.
The Epi-Olmec culture never attained the far-reaching achievements as the Olmec, but they did develop sophisticated calendars and writing system.
Their mysterious Isthmian script still remains undeciphered. The Isthmian script is structurally similar to the Maya script, and like Maya uses one set of characters to represent logograms (or word units) and a second set to represent syllables. This suggests these two writing systems developed together. Both systems have the Long Count calendrical system fixed with a zero date. This type of Meso-American writing was often used to record specific events and carved on stone stelae that serve as durable memorials to rules and symbols of political and religious legitimacy.
Frontal view of the Tuxtla Statuette. Note the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar date of March 162 CE (8.6.2.4.17) down the front of the statuette. Credit: Wikipedia
Unfortunately, there are very few surviving examples of the Isthmian script, making the deciphering process even harder.
Tuxtla statuette is incised with 75 glyphs. Its glyphs include the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar date of March 162 AD, which in 1902 was the oldest Long Count date yet discovered. The round statuette is only 6 inches (16 cm) and made of nephrite, greenstone, similar to jade, but not as hard.
The problem is that no-one really knows who the Tuxtla statuette depicts. Most researchers believe the statuette represents a shaman wearing a bird mask and bird cloak.
Written by Ellen Lloyd – AncientPages.com
Updated on July 10, 2021
Copyright © AncientPages.com All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part without the express written permission of AncientPages.com
More From Ancient Pages
-
20 Roman Forts Safeguarding Roman Empire’s Borders And Territories
Featured Stories | Jun 15, 2024
-
Mayan Maize God And Ancient City Of El Mirador
Featured Stories | Apr 25, 2019
-
Hephaestus (Hephaistos) – God Of Fire And Master Craftsman Constructed Talos, First Greek Robot And Divine Weapons Of The Gods
Featured Stories | Jul 7, 2018
-
Can Peptide Droplets Explain The Emergence Of The First Living Organisms On Earth?
Archaeology | Oct 20, 2021
-
Europe’s Earliest Culture Of Aurignacian People Made Amazing Images With Dots
Archaeology | Mar 5, 2017
-
Mysterious Viking Gerdrup Grave – Burial Place Of Sorceress Katla And Her Son Odd Mentioned In The Eyrbyggja Saga?
Featured Stories | Mar 22, 2023
-
How Did Climate Change Impact European Ice Age Humans?
Earth Changes | Aug 21, 2024
-
Surtshellir Cave Reveals How Vikings Attempted To Prevent Ragnarök – Doom Of The Gods
Vikings | Jul 17, 2023
-
Ancient Roman Settlement Discovered In Deal, UK
Archaeology | Dec 16, 2022
-
Early Homo Sapiens From Southeast Asia Could Adapt To A Rainforest Environment
Archaeology | Oct 17, 2021
-
Nabopolassar: Father Of Nebuchadnezzar II And King Of Babylon Rose To Power Thanks To His Dedication To Gods Nabu And Marduk
Featured Stories | Jan 11, 2019
-
3.6 Million-Year-Old Rare Skeleton Of Human Ancestor Revealed By Researchers In South Africa
Archaeology | Dec 7, 2017
-
Ancient Tradition And True Meaning Of Candy Canes
Christmas Traditions | Dec 26, 2024
-
Sunduki – ‘Home Of The Gods’ – One Of The World’s Oldest Astronomical Observatories
Civilizations | Oct 4, 2015
-
Prehistoric Heavy Machinery Of The Ancient Times Or A Piece Of Jewelry?
Ancient Technology | Sep 12, 2018
-
Large Bronze Age Stone May Be Europe’s Oldest 3D Map
Archaeology | Apr 8, 2021
-
Ancient DNA Reveals A 50,000-Year-Old Secret And Re-Writes History Of Australia
Archaeology | Mar 8, 2017
-
Akrotiri Of Thera: Sophisticated City In The Greek Cyclades Devastated By Volcanic Eruption
Civilizations | Jul 6, 2016
-
Last Fragment Of Early Christian Christogram Found In Ancient City Of Parthicopolis, Bulgaria
Artifacts | Sep 9, 2015
-
2,000-Year-Old Roman Road Discovered In Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Archaeology | Jan 23, 2023