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The Crystal Skull The Crystal Skull

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The Mystery of the
Aztec Crystal Skull
Mark Vallen February 2005

Inspired by the Chicano Arts Movement,
I began to study Aztec art as a teenager in the late 1960's. In all my years of research on the subject, one of the most remarkable artifacts I read about was the life-sized sculpture of a human skull carved from a mass of rock crystal.

On a trip to Europe I was fortunate to see that sculpture on display at London's British Museum. The otherworldly carving, a perfect example of the severe Aztec aesthetic, has undeniably influenced thousands of artists over the years. But today's advanced research and analysis points to the carving being a forgery. The crystal skull was sold to the British Museum in 1897 by the New York jewelry house, Tiffany, which in turn had purchased it from a French dealer of Mexican antiquities.

A report issued by a scientific team in early January, 2005, concludes the sculpture to be a fake. Professor Ian Freestone from the University of Wales at Cardiff and a former head of scientific research at the British Museum, led a team of researchers from the museum in thoroughly analyzing the artifact. Professor Freestone said that while circumstantial evidence indicates the skull was of 19th-century European origin, there was no definite proof. However, the case for the work being a counterfeit is very strong.

Professor Freestone thinks the rock crystal from which the skull was carved was not of Mexican origin. "We are not at all sure that there is a rock source in Mexico that would produce a rock crystal of this size. There is strong circumstantial evidence that it comes from Brazil." The research team believes the skull was created by a lapidary in Europe, conceivably Germany, some time in the 19th-century. Employing the same resin dentists use when making exact impressions of teeth, the team made casts of the skull's surface and examined the results using an electron microscope.

Minuscule rotary scratch marks were found in the region of the skull's teeth, cranium and eye sockets - marks that could only have been created using the type of rotating wheels common in 19th-century European jewelry houses. Professor Freestone noted, "When you look at known, genuine Aztec rock crystals, they have a much gentler polish. This has the harsh, polished look you get with modern equipment. The evidence coming together suggests that it was late. To me the case is overwhelmingly against it being of earlier, Aztec origin." The clincher here is that the Aztecs did not use the wheel in any practical application.

Mark Vallen is a social realist painting in Los Angeles, visit his website at: www.markvallen.com