INAH Restores Maya Funerary Urn Found Along Tren Maya Route in Quintana Roo

Mexico City — The National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) has completed the restoration and digitalization of a Maya funerary urn discovered during archaeological salvage work on Section 7 of the Tren Maya project in southern Quintana Roo.

The urn was found in a ritual context west of the community of Nicolás Bravo, in the municipality of Othón P. Blanco. Its lid features a nocturnal bird, likely an owl, which the ancient Maya associated with the underworld and the transition to the afterlife.

According to INAH specialists, the urn likely held the bones or ashes of a high-ranking individual, as it was found alongside ceramic, lithic, and malacological materials. However, no human remains were found inside.

Archaeologist Ramón Carrillo Sánchez, coordinator of the archaeological salvage effort on that section of the Tren Maya, explained that nocturnal birds held multiple meanings in Maya cosmology, including death, war, divination, and the underworld.

The urn has a concave converging body and a modeled lid. It measures 23 centimeters (9 inches) in height and 10 centimeters (4 inches) at the base. Based on its stylistic features and associated ceramics, specialists date it to the Classic Maya period, between 600 and 900 AD.

The piece was transferred in 2025 to the INAH laboratory at the Museum of Maya Culture, where conservation specialists performed physical-chemical cleaning, fragment reattachment, filling, and chromatic reintegration to restore the urn’s stability and appearance.

Experts also carried out photogrammetric recording to create a three-dimensional digital model, which will facilitate future research and public outreach projects on Maya archaeological heritage.

Mexico’s Secretary of Culture, Claudia Curiel de Icaza, highlighted that such discoveries help recover historical memory and expand knowledge about the funerary practices and worldview of the ancient Maya.

The urn remains under INAH custody in Chetumal, while officials consider its potential inclusion in future public exhibitions.