Developments in Brief : Mayan Burial Tomb in Belize Thought a Royal Find--and Not for Looters

A royal Mayan burial tomb, more than 1,000 years old and apparently untouched by looters, has been discovered in the Central American nation of Belize.

“The discovery of any tomb in such good shape is a wonderful find, but a royal tomb like this is especially significant,” said Richard Leventhal, director of the Institute for Mesoamerican Studies at the State University of New York at Albany.

The tomb was discovered March 15 in the ancient Mayan city of Nim Li Punit in southern Belize. About 5,000 to 7,000 Mayans once lived in the city, which was discovered in 1974. The tomb itself was discovered by archeologists with the Southern Belize Archeological Project, headed by Leventhal.

He said last week that the 9-foot-long, 3 1/2-foot-wide tomb contained 39 ceramic vessels, numerous jade beads and pendants, jaguar teeth and shell beads. Also found were pieces of sting ray spines, which may have been used in bloodletting rituals important for legitimizing power among the Maya elite.