Scientific American - USA (2020-10)

October 2020, ScientificAmerican.com 73

SACRED LANDSCAPE of Lake Mensa-

bak ( 1 ) contains dozens of spiritually

important sites. One of the most

significant is a limestone cliff that

is believed to be both the home

of Mensabak—the god of agriculture

and rain—and the gateway to the

heaven of Mensabak, where the

Lacandon people go when they die.

At the base of the cliff lies a bone

shrine containing the remains of

people who may have been some

of the first Lacandon. The skulls

have flattened foreheads and crani-

ums that were shaped into two

separate lobes during early child-

hood when the bone was pliable ( 2 ).

Clay pots bearing the faces of gods

accompany the bones ( 3 ). Each god

pot overflows with a tarry substance

that is left over when resin from the

seed pods of copal trees is burned

and prayers are chanted over the

frag rant smoke. Archaeologists draw

a direct connection between these

god pots and the elaborate ceramic

incensarios that Maya people used to

make offerings to their gods for

3,000 years. It is one of many exam-

ples of cultural continuity between

the Lacandon and the ancient Maya.

1

2 3

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