Loltun Cave is a
cave
A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...
in the
Yucatán
Yucatán (, also , , ; yua, Yúukatan ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Yucatán,; yua, link=no, Xóot' Noj Lu'umil Yúukatan. is one of the 31 states which comprise the federal entities of Mexico. It comprises 106 separate mun ...
, approximately south of
Oxkutzcab
Oxkutzcab is a town and the municipal seat of the Oxkutzcab Municipality, Yucatán in Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the nor ...
. The cave contains
paintings
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...
attributed to the
Maya civilization
The Maya civilization () of the Mesoamerican people is known by its ancient temples and glyphs. Its Maya script is the most sophisticated and highly developed writing system in the pre-Columbian Americas. It is also noted for its art, a ...
from the Late Preclassic Era or even older. The name is
Mayan
Mayan most commonly refers to:
* Maya peoples, various indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica and northern Central America
* Maya civilization, pre-Columbian culture of Mesoamerica and northern Central America
* Mayan languages, language family spoken ...
for "Flower Stone" ("Lol-Tun").
History
This cave is about two kilometers in length.
Inside Loltún there is evidence that confirms human occupation such as recovered bones of
mammoth
A mammoth is any species of the extinct elephantid genus ''Mammuthus'', one of the many genera that make up the order of trunked mammals called proboscideans. The various species of mammoth were commonly equipped with long, curved tusks an ...
, bison, cats, and deer remains from the pleistocene.
On the walls you can observe natural formations and
paintings
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...
, hand painted with representations of the technique of negative human faces painted on the walls, sculptural representations, representations of animals and some geometric shapes. Tools were also recovered.
The prehispanic Maya also used the cave as shelter and used to extract the clay to make their tools.
The tour offers visits to the galleries and natural formations known locally as the room of musical columns, a vault known as the cathedral, jaltunes, Grand Canyon, corn cob, the infant, black hand paintings, the room of stalactites and trenches.
The Huechil cavity was excavated where they found remains of extinct fauna such as
mammoth
A mammoth is any species of the extinct elephantid genus ''Mammuthus'', one of the many genera that make up the order of trunked mammals called proboscideans. The various species of mammoth were commonly equipped with long, curved tusks an ...
bones and vegetation different from today.
The occupation in Loltún goes back more than 10,000 years and served as a hiding place during the
caste war
Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultura ...
.
Location
It is located 110 kilometers southwest of
Mérida. It is 7 km south of the town of
Oxkutzcab
Oxkutzcab is a town and the municipal seat of the Oxkutzcab Municipality, Yucatán in Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the nor ...
.
See also
*
Maya cave sites
Mayan cave sites are associated with the Mayan civilization of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica. Beliefs and observances connected with these cave sites persist among some contemporary Mayan communities. Many of the Mayan caves served religious purposes. ...
References
External links
Loltun Cave Photo ArchiveINAH official siteCaves of the YucatanPhoto Essay of the Loltun Cave
Caves of Mexico
Cave sites in Mesoamerican archaeology
Maya sites in Yucatán
Landforms of Yucatán
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