Sarcophagus could provide clues to Mayan decline

A thousand-year-old stone sarcophagus discovered in southern Mexico could provide clues to the reason for the decline of Mayan culture, the archaeologist responsible for the find has said.

The tomb was discovered in November by specialists from the National Institute of Archaeology and History, known as INAH, in the Mayan city of Tonina in Chiapas state on the border with Guatemala.

The stone sarcophagus and the gravestone accompanying it date to a period from AD840 to 900, when the Mayan civilisation's decline began, Juan Yadeum told a news conference on Thursday.

Remains found inside were believed to be those of a woman or an adolescent of high rank, Yadeum said.

The sarcophagus, described as of a type "unique in Mexican antiquity", was altered by indigenous Tzotziles between 1490 and 1495, a period when the Mayan civilisation was in a state of collapse, he said.

The find could help determine whether those responsible for the Mayan collapse were locals influenced by a group from the Andean highlands, or if they came from Central America and the regions on the border of modern Mexico, he said.

The Mayan civilisation, which lasted from 2000 BC to 1546, a half century after the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors, developed a calendar, city states and advanced political organisations.

Many theories have been put forward to explain its decline, including internecine struggles, wars and peasant rebellions. Some experts believe the misuse of natural resources led to droughts and famine.