Several human skulls carved from rock crystal are some of the most unusual ancient artifacts found in Mexico and Central America.
For several decades, scientists have been conducting lively discussions around them, ufologists consider them to be proof of alien technologies, and alternative historians are the work of Atlanteans or the inhabitants of the disappeared continent of Lemuria.
Themselves, these skulls vary in quality and technology, but are equally made in full size. Some even have a movable lower jaw that is hinged.
There are 13 crystal skulls in total. 9 of them are in private collections, the remaining 4 are kept in the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History in Washington, the Museum of Primitive Art in Paris and the British Museum in London.
Two of the 13 skulls were recognized by experts as modern fakes, but about the rest of the experts disagreed in theories, and if we accept their authenticity, then each of them is at least more than 500 years old.
There are many legends about crystal skulls. Supposedly they contain ancient knowledge, they can sing, speak, project telepathic messages into the human brain, or even contain an imprisoned human soul.
Most of the mysticism was connected with the skull found in Belize in 1924. They found him supposedly in the ruins of a Mayan pyramid deep in the jungle and did it Anna Mitchell-Hedges, the daughter of a famous British adventurer.
According to her, she just climbed that day to the top of the ruins and suddenly saw that among the stones something glittered. She told her father about this, and the next day, under his supervision, she crept into a narrow crevice and found there a beautiful skull made of crystal.
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This is one of the most expertly crafted skulls, meticulously crafted and polished. “The most beautiful thing that I have seen,” said Anna.
The skull is quite small in size, it is 13 cm high, 18 cm long and 13 cm wide. According to legend, he is the oldest crystal skull. It was allegedly created 3600 years ago and the Maya only used it for their rituals, but they did not carve it.
This skull received the nickname "Skull of Destiny" because, according to the same legends, if someone wishes death with it, then this person will soon die.
Over the years since its discovery, the skull was allegedly noticed glowing, as well as projecting various images in the dark. Someone was cured of the disease just by touching it, and still someone could hardly control their emotions when they looked at the skull. It was like the skull was taking control of his brain.
Anna Mitchell-Hedges herself spread stories that the skull could kill people and that with its help she even allegedly foresaw the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
In 1959, after the death of her father, Anna Mitchell-Hedges toured half the world with a skull, showing it to all the curious and participating in countless TV shows.
Thousands of articles and books have been published about the skull. It was then that the first theories appeared that aliens, ancient Atlanteans, or Lemurians could have made it.
At the same time, by that time not a single truly scientific study of the skull had been carried out. It wasn't until the 1960s that the skull fell into the hands of Frank Dorland, an expert on quartz crystals, and he studied it carefully. His conclusions were even more intriguing - he did not find any traces of processing with known tools on the surface of the skull.
According to his version, to create such a thing, it was necessary to take a solid piece of rock crystal, and then continuously grind it by hand for 150-300 years. Dorland also noted that the skull may be much older and that it may be 12 thousand years old.
It was shocking, but in 1970 a much more thorough analysis of the skull from Belize was carried out and it did indeed confirm that the skull was created from a single piece of crystal and that there were no traces of handwork on it, except for some marks on the teeth.
After that, there were statements that such a work of art is very difficult and almost impossible to recreate using modern technologies. It was also found that the skull in the eye sockets has very unusual optical properties.
Until her death, Anna Mitchell-Hedges believed in her theory of a mysterious and mystical ancient artifact, and after her death, the skull passed to her husband, who also adhered to these versions.
It would seem that the skull from Belize has confirmation that this is really a very unusual object that ancient primitive people could hardly create. However, serious researchers still ignore it, and in recent years, many critical articles have appeared, trying to debunk the legends surrounding this skull.
So it is reported that most likely this skull was never in the ruins of an ancient pyramid, and Anna's father bought it in London at an auction of antiquities in 1943. Also, some researchers believe that, like the other two skulls, this skull is a modern fake.
However, these criticisms are almost invisible against the backdrop of many articles on the mysterious properties of the skull from Belize. However, they greatly impede serious scientists from thoroughly studying this highly remarkable subject.