Tuesday, December 04, 2007

Rare Maya "Death Vase" Discovered
An extremely rare and intricately carved "death vase" has been discovered in the 1,400-year-old grave of an elite figure within the Maya Empire, scientists say.

The vase is the first of its kind to be found in modern times, and its contents are opening a window onto ancient rituals of ancestor worship that included food offerings, chocolate enemas, and . . . .


CHOCOLATE ENEMAS? ? ? ?

No wonder they collapsed.

Back to story:

hallucinations induced by vomiting, experts say.

Archaeologists discovered the vase along with parts of a human skeleton while excavating a small "palace" in northwestern Honduras in 2005. (The dig was funded by the National Geographic Society, which owns National Geographic News.)


Kinda gross. But since it was excavated in modern times they were able to do soil and residue analysis, thus getting some idea of its use.