'Entrance to the underworld' is discovered in Mexico: Archaeologists uncover the 'back door of hell' in tunnels under an ancient church

Tunnels that nan ancient Zapotec civilisation believed to beryllium nan 'entrance to nan underworld' person been recovered penetrating heavy into nan world beneath a centuries-old church.

Mitla, meaning spot of nan dead, was a metropolis successful confederate Mexico known for its relation pinch Pitao Bezelao, nan Zapotec deity of death.

But nan Spanish arrived successful nan 16th period and razed nan city, building a religion connected nan ruins of its astir important temple.

A leader later wrote that 'the backmost doorway of hell' laic nether nan metropolis – immense caverns believed to beryllium nan entranceway to nan Zapotec underworld.

But they were walled up, he said, and later excavations grounded to find thing matching nan standard of his explanation – until now.

Using non-invasive techniques, archaeologists precocious revealed a bid of chambers and tunnels beneath nan city.

Five different sets of ruins were probed: nan religion group, nan arroyo group, nan adobe group, nan southbound group, and nan group of nan columns.

Marco Vigato, laminitis of nan ARX Project, which is starring nan search, said: 'Some of nan tunnels and chambers widen to a sizeable depth, successful excess of 15 metres.

'In nan lawsuit of nan southbound group, they're up to 30 metres heavy – this is arsenic acold arsenic nan instruments tin penetrate.

'One enclosure nether nan Church of San Pablo Apostol measures astir 15 metres agelong by 10 metres wide.

'It is imaginable that nan tunnels, peculiarly those nether nan religion group, widen further to nan north, eastbound and south.

'Possibly they link to different geophysical anomalies identified nether nan different groups.'

If these are nan tunnels of legend, nan Zapotec kings whitethorn dishonesty within.

Francisco de Burgoa, nan aforementioned priest, paints a image of nan royal funeral enclosure successful his 1674 text, Geografica Descripción.

He says nan kings are interred 'richly dressed successful their champion attire,' pinch 'feathers, jewels, aureate necklaces, and precious stones'.

Their bodies, meanwhile, clasp 'a shield successful nan near manus and a javelin successful nan right, conscionable arsenic they utilized them successful war'.

Two further caverns he describes incorporate a chapel, and a funeral enclosure for nan Zapotec precocious priests respectively.

The last chamber, he says, leads to 'a acheronian and gruesome room' wherever 'they threw nan bodies of nan victims of nan awesome lords and chieftains who had fallen successful battle.'

Mr Vigato said: 'The Zapotecs believed nan caves and nan subterranean labyrinth nether Mitla to beryllium an entranceway to nan underworld, aliases Lyobaa.

'For this reason, Mitla was nan centre of nan cult of Pitao Bezelao, nan Zapotec deity of decease and nan underworld, and was for hundreds of years nan cemetery of nan Zapotec kings and precocious priests.'

It's nary coincidence that location was a void beneath nan religion altar.

Mr Vigato said: 'The religion was built deliberately connected apical of nan astir important Zapotec temple astatine Mitla.

'It was a measurement of converting a pre-existing belief tract and symbolising nan triumph of nan caller faith.

'A important information of nan ruins were incorporated into nan foundations of nan church, which was built pinch stones stripped from nan ancient buildings.'

The underground tunnels were revealed utilizing a operation of crushed penetrating radar, electrical resistivity tomography, and seismic sound tomography.

The first method uses radar waves to exemplary nan subsurface, while nan 2nd detects buried structures by measuring nan travel of energy done nan earth.

Instead of electricity, nan last method measures nan velocity astatine which seismic waves move done nan ground.

Just really aged nan tunnels are is yet to beryllium established.

Mr Vigato said: 'Natural caves successful nan area of Mitla person been occupied and partially modified by humans for thousands of years.

'The earliest grounds of harvest domestication successful nan area of Mitla dates backmost almost 10,000 years.

'There is nary denotation astatine nan infinitesimal arsenic to nan imaginable property of nan tunnels nether nan religion aliases nan different groups of structures astatine Mitla.

'They whitethorn person been created by nan Zapotecs, aliases they could beryllium overmuch older.'

He added: 'The findings from nan geophysical scans will person to beryllium confirmed pinch archaeological methods.

'This could find nan quality of nan cavities identified nether nan tract and whether they incorporate immoderate artifacts of archaeological significance.'

You tin study much astir nan discoveries astatine Mitla astatine www.arxproject.org.