Prehistoric Remains Discovered in Underwater Cave in Mexico

MEXICO CITY, MEXICO—A human skeleton has been found in an underwater limestone cave system along Mexico’s Caribbean coastline, according to an Associated Press report. Archaeologist Octavio del Rio and diver Peter Broger found the bones, partially covered with cave sediment, about one-third of a mile into the cave system, but no signs of modern diving equipment. This suggests the remains were deposited in the cave before it was flooded some 8,000 years ago, at the end of the last Ice Age, del Rio explained. The cave system is located near the construction path of the so-called Maya Train project, the construction of 950 miles of track connecting beach resorts to archaeological sites on the Yucatán Peninsula. To read about ritual objects found in caves in Chichen Itza, go to "Maya Subterranean World," one of ARCHAEOLOGY's Top 10 Discoveries of 2019.